Since I’ve been caregiving for someone in California, I haven’t been able to get out much. But a couple of weekends ago, I managed a day trip to Columbia. The town is a historical area and state park that encompasses the main part of downtown. Everything is still as it was back in the mid 1800s and is a wonderful place to visit.
Columbia is in the heart of the California Mother Lode and the Columbia State Historic Park is a living gold rush town that has the largest collection of existing gold rush-era structures in the state. I’ve blogged about Columbia years ago, but since I hadn’t visited Columbia in such a long time, I thought it would be fun to tell you about it again.
I love spending time in Columbia. It’s like stepping back in time to a nineteenth century mining town. All the folks working in the shops dress in 1850’s attire, and there are all sorts of fun little shops. You can even take a stage coach ride!
My book, Minnie, Cowboys and Debutantes Book 3 is set in Columbia, inspired by the Columbia Mercantile 1855. 
The year the building was constructed by French provisioners from Lyon, France after the tent and wood city of Columbia burned to the ground earlier that same year. The new mercantile was built out of brick and iron. The city primarily built their new buildings out of wood which were very quickly destroyed by fire a second time in 1857.
The hero in my story owns the town mercantile, so when I had the chance to visit the Columbia Mercantile 1855 (yes, that’s its name) and met Teresa Torbett, who runs it, I had to ask a few questions.
The state of California owns the mercantile, and Teresa and her husband were awarded the concession contract after submitting a proposal to operate a grocery store– but for the first time in an 1850’s style. They’ve since transformed it into a lovely establishment that is like a Trader Joe’s wrapped up in an 1850’s mercantile!
The mercantile carries local, organic produce, international and craft beer, foothill wines, sushi making supplies, Indian food, fresh-baked, vegan, gluten-free–even a music supply store, garden tools and gloves, and local fine art original paintings and prints. The better question is, “What don’t they have?”
I remember snapping some pictures of the building years ago. That’s what inspired me to write Minnie’s story. The store was also the inspiration for Ruggles & Son General Store which appears in my Fiddler’s Gap series. There’s just something about an old fashioned general store that touches us and makes us envision simpler times. And visiting the Columbia Mercantile will certainly do that!
The Columbia Mercantile 1855 doesn’t look like it would be a real grocery store. Folks think it’s a mercantile transformed into a gift shop or something. So when they walk in and find actual groceries, some are taken aback.
The store has baskets of produce here and there, and a tiny shelf-filled cubby that serves as the “Pharmacy”. There are eggs and other staples and Teresa has meats in the back such as beef, elk, buffalo, and more. All in all it’s a fantastic store for the locals and tourists to shop in, all within an old fashioned mercantile setting.
Is there an old fashioned general store or mercantile you’ve been to? If so, what was it like? For me, we had the Springwater Store which was much smaller than the Columbia Mercantile 1855, but still fun to go to. We used to ride our horses to the store and buy candy and then eat it on the three and a half mile ride home. I’m giving away a free ebook of my Cowboys and Debutants box set which includes Minnie’s story to one lucky commenter! Here’s a little more about the set:
These riches to rags mail-order bride stories prove that love can be found in the most unexpected places, and that money does not always make the man. But as our debutantes know, it sure helps!
Effie Stout is in her third season and beginning to worry if she’ll ever find a husband. But just when she sets her 
sights on a good prospect, the unthinkable happens. Her family falls into ruin. Forced to become a mail-order bride by her stepmother, Effie does her best to live like the other half and not get her or her would be groom killed in the process.
Minnie Stout, along with her sisters and cousins, had been forced after a family tragedy, to become mail-order brides. Now here she was, heading west, WAY west, to California, where she’d never find so much as a crumb of her old life. Unfortunately for Minnie, she didn’t allow herself to imagine a new one, either. Add to that a snobby rival, and watch the sparks fly!
Lula Stout, along with her sisters and cousins, had a charmed life. Emphasis on the word “had.” They lived in New York City, the daughters of rich shipping magnates. And in a blink of an eye, they were reduced to nothing, their father and uncle’s business gone. Right along with their reputations. To help fix the mess, Lula’s step-mother forces Lula and her sisters to become mail-order brides, sending each off without informing them where the others are going. Reeling from loss and not knowing if she’ll ever see her sisters again, Lula steps off the stage in a little town called Clear Creek, wondering what the future will bring. What she brought was a whole lot of anger and heartache.
USA Today bestselling author Kit Morgan is the author of over 140 books of historical and contemporary western romance! Her stories are fun, sweet stories full of love, laughter, and just a little bit of mayhem! Kit creates her stories in her little log cabin in the woods in the Pacific Northwest. An avid reader and knitter, when not writing, she can be found with either a book or a pair of knitting needles in her hands! Oh, and the occasional smidge of chocolate!
Columbia sounds like a fantastic step back into history, especially the grocery.
It’s a great place to visit, Abbie. I love it there!
I don’t think I’ve experienced a “throwback” store of this type; visiting would be fun! What you describe reminds me of our 5th grade class trip to colonial Williamsburg: present day people dress like colonists and demonstrate how things were done then (dipping candles, carding/spinning wool, making soap…).
I’ve always wanted to go to Williamsburg, Mary! I just haven’t had the chance yet.
This mercantile sounds like a great place to visit. We have a hardware store in my little town that is over 100 years old. I remember when we moved here how fascinated I was at the variety of items they sold. I love bringing out of town visitors there just to browse- it too is like stepping back in time to a simpler way of life.
Hardware stores seem to last. There are a lot of little towns with very old hardware stores! I love how quaint some of them are!
Such a wonderful experience. Columbia sounds like such a fun experience. Thank you for sharing.
Columbia is definitely worth a visit if you’re ever in the California motherlode!
We had a Five and Dime Store in the late 70’s. I loved going in there and just looking. It was so unique. Wooden floors and bins filled with “stuff”. Unfortunately, they could not compete with the super centers.
We had one of those in our little town too! I loved going in there! You never see them anymore except in tiny towns with no super centers.
We visited Oatman, AZ a couple of times. It is an old mining town, which takes you back to that time as it is very authentic. They have all kinds of stores, a hotel, and some bars (of course). Donkeys roam the streets to hopefully get fed carrots from the bystanders. They also roam around the stores, attempting to enter into them as well. On another time, I also recall a general store like this one mentioned here. It had barrels of items (I cannot recall what was in them back then as I was in my ‘tween years. The floor was the old creaky wood floors, and all the open shelves were behind counter tops. It was memorable and still in operation at the time.
Donkeys! Virginia City in Nevada has donkeys wandering around it too! Oatman sounds like a fun place to visit, Judy!
I’ve ever been to a store like that, but it would be fascinating. Your books found really intriguing to read.
I love the old country stores, Karijean. But they’re getting harder to find nowadays.
This reminds me of the store we had growing up. It was out in the country and it carried a little of everything. If you needed something they usually had it.
The Springwater store near us was like that. Beat going all the way into town for something.
We too have a local historical encampment area with turn of the century town buildings from the church, school, smithy and mercantile close to us in Parke County, IN
Cool, Teresa! I love places like that and the California Motherlode has quite a few! One of these days I’ll do a little road trip and visit them all.
I remember the old five and dimes stores back in the early 70’s that were still open at that time. Nowaday’s your lucky if you can get something for less than a dollar.
We had a store like that in our little town growing up. It was simply called the Variety Store and two little old ladies ran it. I used to love going in there!
I have been to one of those in conjunction with a visit to a western town. When I was a child and we visited my grandmother, there was a penny candy store. You went in with your money and the man helped you pick out your candy. It was so much fun.
Ohhhh, that would be fun, Debra!
Columbia sounds like fun! I’d love to go to a store like that!! The closest I’ve been was the little store I used to go to when I visited my cousins in the summers in NW GA. That little store building still stands, but it’s used mostly for storage of who knows what now!
Columbia is fun! They have all sorts of fun things there and it’s just up the road from Sonora which is a good sized town and also full of old buildings with fun little shops.
It looks pretty cool!
It was so much fun to see and Teresa Torbett who runs the place was so nice and friendly. She took the time to talk with each and every customer.
Until the store closed about eight years ago, our town had a store that had been there for years. It still looked like the old time store similar to the pics you have above. It had the wooden counter with the can goods on the shelf behind it. It had the old looking scales, hunks of cheese to be cut from a whole round in a wooden box, farming implements, nails and screws sold by the pound from a revolving bin, the wood stove complete with the old timers sitting around it, men and ladies clothing, rubber boots, bins of candy, and lots more. The wooden floor was old and worn and full of squeaks when you walked on it. When you had trouble locating an item at newer stores, you came to this place and most of the time you found it. You questioned yourself why you just didn’t go there to start with.
Stores like that are a dying breed and it’s too bad too. They were always a hub for the community. But at least there’s still some around to enjoy!
I live in Arizona and have visited many small towns here where it feels like you are walking back into the 1800’s. Tombstone, Jerome and Bieber ate just some of them.
The book sounds really good.
Someone else mentioned Oatmen, AZ. She said it was like that. Have you ever heard of it, Joye?
I live in AZ and we have several places to visit such as you describe. I have been to Columbia but it’s been many years ago. My Great Grandparents, who emigrated from Norway, owned a mercantile in Minnesota back in the day. I only have one picture of it (and them) but it looks like the one you described above.
Folks are commenting about Arizona! Makes me want to visit. That’s so cool that your great grandparents used to own a store!
Columbia sounds like a lovely town. I’ve been to Mast General Store in NC. Part of a regional chain of old General stores, you can find a mix of old-fashioned stuff and new things, too.
But, when I was a kid, I remember shopping at several real old-fashioned stores that were true general stores. I don’t think any of them are still in business as their true function, and the rest closed when newer, bigger grocery stores came in. I especially remember one called The Trading Post.
I had to double check your characters last name. That’s my family name. Stout. I’ve never seen it used for characters in a book before.
I can’t remember how I came up with the name Stout, Denise. I have name books for first and last names, so I may have gotten it out of there.
Cool. There are English Stouts and German Stouts. I’m from the German line.
Columbia sounds like a lovely town. The books sounds interesting. Thanks for sharing
Columbia is super cute, Linda!
Growing up there was a little corner store that we would go to, but it was not really an old-fashioned store. I remember going and getting penny candies occasionally.
There was a store like that where my Grandmother lived and I loved going there whenever we went to see my grandmother. Also, there was a “dime store” in my hometown that was similar to the old mercantile stores.
We had a dime store where I grew up too, Molly. We just called it the Variety Store.
Here in the Midwest, we have Amish stores…if you want to buy that kind of thing like oil lamps/lanterns..try Seaman’s online store.
I’ve been to some Amish stores in Pennsylvania, Kate. They were fun and interesting.
never been
Wonderful post
Hi , Wow, I love going to Mercantiles also. There is a pretty cute one that we love going to in Cloudcroft NM when we have gone to stay at a cabin. It’s been awhile since we last went to Cloudcroft and we are way over due for a trip there. Have a great evening and a great rest of the week. I enjoyed reading your post and I love the sound and look of your book.
I’ll have to tell my friends in New Mexico about it, Alicia. They love this sort of thing!
I went to Williamsburg on a class trip once and a place in Grove City that made their own historical decorations and you could watch them blow glass on site so interesting and fun
I’ve always wanted to go to Williamsburg, Crystal! I bet it was super fun!
We have been to multiple mercantile stores over the years. Many have been pretty close to what they were like in the 1800’s. In 2019, we spent 2 1/2 months on a trip to Alaska and Canada. We visited a re-creation of an early settlement by a lake. It was established during the time of the trappers and fur traders. Their mercantile had tools of the trade (traps, guns, ammo) as well as staple food items. There were clothes, mostly sturdy and warm, which is what they would need. They did have bolts of cloth and other items that families who lived in the village would need. The mercantile/trading post was also where the trappers would sell their pelts. There were many hanging or stacked around the building. This was obviously more primitive than those in towns of the mid and late 1800’s. Our town is the oldest in the state and maintains an historic district in the old part of town. The downtown burned to the ground several times since the late 1700’s. They finally did build all brick buildings along the commercial section of Main Street in the late 1800’s.
Yeah, a lot of towns probably burned to the ground before building with brick, Patricia. I can think of quite a few!
I told my husband we are going to have to go. I love historical towns and had never heard of this one and the fact that it has that many original buildings is so awesome. I can’t wait to check it out. Thank you for sharing!
Columbia is awesome, Nicole! You’ll have to have tea at Columbia Kate’s Tea House while you’re there!