JOYCE — You won’t find dozens of name-brand variations of the same item in the Joyce General Store.
Those who shop in this historic store find a place crammed with goods that are only the necessities.
“We provide what this community needs,” said Leonard Pierce, 78, co-owner and operator with his wife, Mary Pierce, of the store in the small community west of Port Angeles on state Highway 112.
“If we don’t have it, they don’t need it.
Mary, 62, responds to the same question just a little differently.
“I carry a lot of this stuff just because I like it,” she said.
The store will celebrate its centennial in 2011.
“We are the longest continuously operating general store in the country,” Leonard said.
It crams 60,000 items into 2,000 square feet of floor space.
Everything is in its place. But Leonard, Mary and their six employees aren’t the only ones who can zero in on a single item, as many of their regular customers also know exactly where everything is.
Much of the stock is expected: beer, candy, dry goods and toiletries.
Other items are surprising, such as basic hardware and plumbing supplies, slingshots and mason jars.
And while you can find a shipping/copy shop in strip malls across the country, the Joyce equivalent is a real live post office and a self-service machine that asks you to place 10 cents in a jar for each copy, using the honor system.
While Joyce has its own small museum next door, the store houses a share of historical artifacts pulled from the wreckage of the town of Port Crescent, once located few miles north in what is now Crescent Beach.
An old post office window and a safe are among these relics.
Some “antique” items are still in use.
A cast iron scale is behind the counter, and is used to weigh produce and other goods. And a large, white metal refrigerator holds soda and beer.
Another curiosity is a two-man chain saw that hangs from the ceiling, salvaged from a neighbor who found it while he was rebuilding a barn.
“The Germans built the world’s first chain saw to use against American tanks,” Leonard said.
“The Americans stole one and build a copy. This is one of them and you can tell, because the engine looks just like it came from an old Volkswagen.”
Antiques aside, the store has generated its own memorabilia.
Inside a glass case there is a gingerbread depiction of the store, with its roof decorated by gumdrops and Necco wafers.
“The ladies at the local church made that for us two Christmases ago,” Leonard said. “I guess we’ll keep it there, until it falls apart.”
Leonard and Mary are only the fourth owners in the store’s history.
The previous proprietors, which include Mary’s father, are all local residents, beginning with Joe Joyce, who gave the town its name.
Leonard won’t say when he and Mary plan to retire, or whether a succession plan is in place — although “we do have a son who lives in Seattle.”
Leonard can’t say how many customers he knows by name, but he batted nearly a thousand during a recent two-hour visit.
Aside from remembering the names, he provides value-added service.
One woman came into the store reporting an unidentified dashboard light.
Leonard determined that she needed transmission fluid, found the correct type and poured it down the right spout — about which the woman had no clue.
Leonard has worked at the store since 1988. In the years prior, he worked as a private investigator and an insurance investigator, among other occupations.
“Working at the store is fun for me,” he said. “There is no stress.
“If you want stress, try spending $20 million of other people’s money. That’s real stress.”
Mary worked as a journalist and is now in a second career as a civil-practice attorney in Port Angeles. She usually works evenings in the store alongside Leonard.
The store is open 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., every day except Christmas.
While many people shop here for convenience and community, there is also a price advantage.
“You can buy 10 things here and the same 10 things at a big supermarket in town and we will cost you less,” Leonard said.
“And we will give you the name brands, like Del Monte, and not those inferior store brands that those places like to sell.”
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Reporter Charlie Bermant can be reached at 360-385-2335 or at charlie.bermant@peninsuladailynews.com.
