Скачать или смотреть No Place Like Home Sisquoc General Store

There are a lot of tourist hot spots along the Central Coast. Most are places locals should, and do, enjoy visiting. But there are some out of the way places that are worth a detour off the beaten path. We found one in this week's No Place Like Home.

There are places you visit for the level of activity and excitement they offer. Sisquoc isn't one those.

There are others that sit as quiet connections to our past. Sisquoc is one of those.

"This used to be a warehouse district out here. The train used to come out drop off supplies, circle around and go back to Santa Maria," says Greg Pfaus, owner of the Sisquoc General Store.

Records show the Sisquoc General Store was build in 1910. "Some people believe it was 1895. But the records go back to 1910," said Pfaus.

Sisquoc is located off Highway 101, about 15 miles southeast of Santa Maria. It is nestled near the intersection of Palmer and Foxen Canyon roads. It is a place where directions are given by landmarks: Like lamposts, oil fields and cattle guards.

Pfaus bought the store about five years ago. It was a dusty time capsule that needed a LOT of work. "I didn't want somebody to buy it and come in and tear it down. I think it's integral to the history of the area, and the town of Sisquoc." Pfaus made the effort to preserve this piece of the Santa Maria Valley's past. "It's going to remain authentic because it's registered as a historical landmark with the county of Santa Barbara," Pfaus points out proudly.

Some of the dust in the nooks and crannys of the exterior could be older than the city of Santa Maria. "The glass in the window is probably a 100 years old," the owner points out. He did his best to save and restore all he could. The inside is tidy as can be, and it still serves up the essentials.

It's a place you pick up things without making a run to town: bread, milk, cold beer, work gloves. "I try to maintain essential groceries, but people go into town now and buy things in bulk. They don't come here very often," Pfaus says with a melancholy feel. But people come to pick up a sense of days gone by, when a trip to the store wasn't just a quick errand to run, but a chance to connect with neighbors and strangers. Folks stayed and shot the breeze a awhile, and on paydays, visits sometimes extended well into the evening hours. "The little town of Sisquoc was a pretty wild in those days," Pfaus chuckles as he recalls some of the stories he's heard. The quiet general store has served a lot purposes over the years, including an un-official watering hole.

Times have changed, but there are still general stores scattered here and there. They serve as quaint tributes to the roots of the communities that grew up around them. And there's one right in our own backyard.