This century-old general store could be haunted but still attracts Albertans

So you're asking, do we have ghosts? Everybody hears things all the time and it's not just the wind blowing around. Yeah, I think we've got ghosts. No, I don't think so. We've got ghosts for sure. The countertops, the shelves, the flooring, the smell, everything, it embraces the history. What is the role of this little store in the middle of nowhere? I really do believe this is the living history of Alberta Alberta and Canada to a larger extent. You can feel it. Is it really the oldest general store in Alberta? This book here is the Big Hill Country Book, the Bottrell brothers. So we have the Bottrell brothers all the way to current time, and they purchased this land from the CPR Rail. I've read this building was either built from anywhere from 1893 all the way up to 1908. If it actually isn't the oldest general store in Alberta, say if it's not, it actually is the oldest continuously run general store. For 125 years, the doors have never closed in this place. And this cabinet is original to the building. Pretty much, I'd say 98% of everything in here was found in the store and is original to the store. This is the Corticelli. This was made in Italy and then brought over in the early 1900s. This scale here was used when we had the creamery. And when the creamery was here, they were also making cheese rounds. And they would cut up the cheese rounds, weigh it, and sell it. We had a post office here. It's gone. You can see the split in the floor. That's where it was. And then this is the entrance to the basement. Most general stores don't have basements. I'm talking about rural general stores. Back where this closet is. It looks like a closet space, but apparently it was used as a jail cell. We have two older gentlemen that grew up in the area, and they say they remember coming down here. There was like wire bars. I would love to see a speakeasy down there. Is that clear? This is actually one of the initial halls in this area, and when I bought this place the windows were covered in wood on the inside and the outside. Since then, in two years, we've completely cleared it out. Every Sunday we have our jam sessions, and then we have people like George, George Rogers, who is 94 and he's looking at me. He probably doesn't want me to tell you that. Thank you. My wife and I when we lived in Springbank we used to come over here the odd time and cowboys and ranchers would come and sit around have a cup of coffee and tell a bunch of lies and then they'd move on their way. It's always been a community hub at some level and Beverly's just increased that tenfold I think in the last couple of years. Look at the place. It's every Sunday is filled. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. And Saturdays too. Two. We have so many people who come through here that are regulars, people who are new to the area. It is the it place. So I bought it two years ago, June 24th. When I came in here, I felt like it was home. I saw the potential. I've always been a bit of a nerd when it comes to history. I get to walk through stories every day. And thanks to the good people out here sharing their stories and their personal history out here. We have had some people who have come in who say that there's some ghosts around. Whenever it gets cold out, that kind of walks back and forth here. I remember this, no wind, no nothing, but the bell kept on ringing. Have I seen things like on this peripheral? Sure, but I'm also old and have floaters, so who knows. And some people say rap is bad. My day starts early and my day ends late. This takes a lot of work here. A lot of hours. It's a lot of hours. It's not me, okay? It's the boss. I am the boss. No sane person, I think, would do it. But it is because there's a lot of passion. There you go. I really do love this place and I love the people out here. We get to be part of history. Yeah, I think it's awesome.