
                                                                    Exhibit 23.1




                          INDEPENDENT AUDITORS' CONSENT



The Board of Directors
Dollar Tree Stores, Inc.:


We consent to the use of our report dated  January 20,  1999,  except as to note
13, which is as of March 22, 1999,  relating to the consolidated  balance sheets
of Dollar Tree Stores,  Inc. and  subsidiaries as of December 31, 1997 and 1998,
and the related  consolidated  income statements and statements of shareholders'
equity  and cash  flows for each of the  years in the  three-year  period  ended
December 31, 1998,  incorporated by reference in the registration statement (No.
333- ___________), on Form S-3, of Dollar Tree Stores, Inc. which report appears
in the Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 1998 of Dollar
Tree Stores,  Inc. and to the reference to our firm under the heading  "Experts"
in the prospectus.

                                                            /s/ KPMG LLC

Norfolk, Virginia
August 18, 1999

