Land dispute doesn’t stop the Old Perma Store

There is character in abundance at the Old Perma Store.

From owner/operator Harold Shaw to the shelves inside the walls of the store that has been a long-time fixture along Highway 200 near the bridge to Hot Springs 19 miles east of Plains, the entire operation oozes character and charm from years gone past.

Shaw, who has lived in Western Montana for the vast majority of his 80-plus years, ambles down a dusty path from his nearby century-old cabin home whenever a visitor or customer succumbs to curiosity, thirst or the need for fishing gear and pulls up in front of the store.

There is also an interesting mix of this and that in the old store. Need beads or something beaded? He’s got it. Maybe a hunting or fishing knife? Yup, it’s right over there.

“I’ve been collecting old articles and pictures for a long time,” Shaw says as he scans the eclectic mix of things for sale. “Lots of people have brought me stuff to sell here over the years.”

The very fact that the building sits in its current location is a tale in itself. About 20 years ago, Shaw said, he was embroiled in a land dispute with an “out-of-stater” who refused to sell the small piece of land east of his log cabin residence where the store originally stood.

A mix up in property paperwork and property lines led to the dispute, which brought about the need to relocate the store.

After coming out on the losing end, “that a-hole refused to sell me the small lot I needed to keep the store where it was”, Shaw was forced to move the store or tear it down.

He did both.

“With the help of some friends, we disassembled the whole building and moved it here,” he said with a decades old tone of defiance. “We just put it back together over here on this side of the cabin.”

That was 20 years ago and the store is still open for business seven days a week.

A product of the booming railroads of the late 19th century, Perma at one time was more than just Shaw and his store. Historical records show the town, which was established as a railway station in 1883 by the Northern Pacific Railroad, once had nearly 100 residents.

“I’ve heard there was a barbershop and I know we used to have a post office with a lot of post office boxes,” Shaw recalled. “Now there are probably 10 people living in the area that was the town of Perma.”

A mechanic who worked throughout the Northwest for most of his life, Shaw was searching for a place to live that was like what he calls the real Montana. He found that in the ground he now owns.

Shaw said about eight to 10 people a day stop by the store, most curious as to what is inside and others drawn in by the days-gone-by look emanating from the store and nearby cabin.

“Every now and then I will get a group of bicyclists who stop by all at once to take a rest and get a can of pop,” he said with a Montana-size grin. “Those can be pretty busy times. You just never know how many folks will come by.”

With walking stick in hand, and silver hair flying in the wind, Shaw covers the approximately 100 yards between home and store several times a day.

Often it’s to say hi and shoot the breeze with old friends.

Keeping things to sell on the old style wood shelves is often the most challenging part of operating the store these days, Shaw said.

“Not as many people bring stuff in here to sell these days,” he said. “Pretty much always have a can of Coke and some snacks here and a mixture of other things.”

For those fishing the Flathead River, literally across the street from the store, there is also always a good selection of lures, reels and even worms. The store does not sell beer or alcohol, nor is there a meat or produce section.

“I do the best I can to maintain the stock,” he says. “I try to keep beads for the women and knives for the men, and there’s always a can of pop.”

When asked if how long he plans to keep the business going, Shaw both bristles and laughs as he unleashes a series of answers.

“I didn’t know I had retired,” he said. “I hope to keep this going for as long I can. This keeps me going, gives me something good to do every day and keep me out of trouble.”

As to the topic of working in his 80s, Shaw has an answer to that too.

“I like to tell people I’m in my metallic age. I’ve got silver in my hair, gold in my teeth and lead in my ass. I’m not going anywhere.”