As days slip into years, and years slip into decades, it can be difficult to separate folklore from reality. But if you embrace the tale, Jim Richards of Old Mission is following in the footsteps of giants. His steps take the same path as Henry Ford, Thomas Edison, Harvey Firestone, Teddy Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, and President Warren Harding. All these giants of history had reportedly walked through the doors at the Old Mission General Store in Grand Traverse County. Today, Richards not only walks through those same doors, but he now owns this thriving business.

The Old Mission General Store is believed to be the first store at the first permanent settlement in northern Michigan. It started as a wigwam by the shore of East Grand Traverse Bay in 1839. During the Civil War, it moved to a more permanent building in its current location in the tiny community of Old Mission.

Today, it can be difficult to discern what is part of the general store and available for sale, and what are historical trinkets worth gawking at in appreciation. Is that a real loaf of bread, or is it a plastic replica? It's real. How about those cans of tomatoes? You probably don't want to try them; it's a part of history. That wind-up phone is a display; it doesn't work. That old Coke machine out front still keeps the pop cold, but don't put coins in the slot; it doesn't work. You'll need to pay for the drink at the counter inside.  

There are moose antlers, fur trappings, jars of hard candy, a ship in a bottle, sandwiches, ice cream, and, despite what the sign says, we doubt you can buy bacon at 19¢ a pound.

Jim Richards fits right into the blurred lines of historical confusion. When you talk to him, you're not quite sure if he's an actor portraying an olde-tyme shopkeeper or if he's the real deal. Does he really own this place? If you guess he's both, you would be accurate. Richards is a product of the Juilliard School of Performing Arts and spent 40 years as a performer, working mostly out of Los Angeles.

Now his performances are at the Old Mission General Store, and he's quick to jump on stage even if there are no bright lights. He will fill you in with stories about the multitude of ghosts that hang out in the store. How lights are mysteriously turned off, or water shut off. Or the strange sound of footsteps going up and down the stairs.

He'll tell tales of how the store began just a few feet away from its current location by the bay as a trading post for settlers and indigenous people. He'll tell you how Henry Ford and Thomas Edison helped pay for the expansion of the store and sat around what is now a faded checkerboard. Henry installed one of the first gas pumps in the state at this store. He would hear the rhythmic dinging of the pneumatic bell, run out to pump gas. But he would only pump gas if the car were a Ford, according to Richards. “If not, he would say, what are you driving that piece of crap for?”

Jim's stories go way beyond Henry Ford. They take you back to Chief Ahgosa from the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians. He was a signer of the 1836 Treaty of Washington.

Richards' love of history extends well beyond Old Mission General Store. He can fill you in on how the first cherries were grafted and developed a short distance from his store. Cherries were rare at the time, but wild, non-fruit-bearing trees grew in the region. Eventually, the trees developed tiny berries that are called choke cherries. That tiny fruit evolved, and the area became the “Cherry Capital of the World.”

The question begs to be asked: Is it a burden to not only operate a general store, but essentially work as a self-appointed curator of Old Mission's history? “Oh God, no,” Richards said. “You know, I've been coming into the store before I was born, they say. I love the store.” Jim especially loves to see customers' reactions when they come in for a sandwich and leave with a healthy serving of awe. “People come in with the same look on a little kid's face. Like it took them back to someplace.”

It's a cliché to say this is a place where “history comes alive.” But Old Mission General Store is clearly a place where history is alive and well. And a place where you can buy a homemade pie to go with your slice of history.