STORY — Have you ever wanted to own a town? Now is your chance.
The historic town of Story, founded in 1851, was put on the market March 25. The price for the 17.4 acres and multiple buildings is $3.8 million.
Story Inn, the business most closely associated with the town, is not for sale, however. It will continue to operate as it has in the past under the same ownership. It is owned by Story Bed & Breakfast LLP, which also currently owns the entire town of Story including many historic structures, according to an email sent out to the inn’s customers and vendors.
Rick Hofstetter and former co-owner Frank Mueller purchased the town in 1999.
[sc:text-divider text-divider-title=”Story continues below gallery” ]“I bought the town to save it from becoming a Yogi Bear Campground. If Frank Mueller and I had not stepped in when we did, the foreclosing bank would have carved the town up into pieces without regard to its place in history or its unique architectural features,” Hofstetter said.
Mueller and Hofstetter had saved the Athenaeum in Indianapolis — another historic landmark — from possible demolition in the early 1990s.
“Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine myself working as an innkeeper more than 20 years later,” Hofstetter said.
The town was initially established with a land patent from President Millard Fillmore to Dr. George Story. The local economy was fueled by timber harvests, then agriculture, before the Great Depression hit in the 1930s.
In 1980, Benjamin and Cynthia Schultz bought the “ghost town” and created the Story Inn, according to a press release.
The town was finally placed on the National Register of Historic Places as a historic district last month.
“This has been my goal for a very long time,” Hofstetter said about the designation.
“The listing means that Story, Indiana, is the real deal. The listing is forever. After I lie down to take my eternal dirt nap, Story will go on.”
Hofstetter now co-owns Story Inn with Jacob and Kate Ebel, who run the inn. The inn is the town’s only employer.
The inn buildings and the land they sit on are for sale with the town, but the business itself is not, Hofstetter reiterated.
In addition to offering overnight lodging, the Story Inn is a farm-to-table restaurant.
Hofstetter said the decision to sell the property was a “difficult, but necessary decision.”
“This town is a lot bigger than I am. It needs to be wrapped in a protective cocoon and preserved for generations of people yet unborn,” he said.
“The national register listing was a good first step, but ultimately, the town needs to stand on its own. Right now, that town is hitched to a business and that ownership structure makes no long-term sense. Macy’s doesn’t own the mall, does it?”
Under Hofstetter’s ownership, several buildings in the town have been converted into a restaurant, tavern, 14 guest cottages and venues for weddings or other special events.
Each spring, the Story Inn hosts the Indiana Wine Fair, which is the state’s largest public wine event with 6,000 visitors attending. The inn was also home to the National Maple Syrup Festival earlier this year.
The town itself consists of the old general store, which Hofstetter said many people think of as Story Inn because the restaurant is in there. The town also features an old grain mill, sawmill, several barns, homes, gardens, fenced horse pastures, tool shops, wells, an orchard and outbuildings.
Once the town is sold, the Ebels will continue to own and operate the business as tenants on the property, signing a lease with the new owner or owners.
“They were nervous about how their clientele would take this. They don’t want a bride to be nervous. The bride has no reason to be nervous. Nothing is happening to the business. We’re only selling the real estate,” said listing agent Chris Cockerham of F.C. Tucker.
Hofstetter said the town is not for sale “to just anyone with a checkbook.”
“This acquisition will be the right one only for the right person. I am very proud of what we’ve accomplished here, but Story the town is unfinished business,” he said.
“It will take a special person to truly love this unique place and fully comprehend its potential. If I could wipe 20 years off of my odometer, I would be delighted to step into my own shoes.”
Cockerham said he has experience selling large properties costing up to $100 million, but he’s never sold a whole town.
After it went on the market March 25, Cockerham said he sent emails to over 3,000 people. Within the first hour, he said he received five calls wanting to know more.
The property is zoned general business. Cockerham said it also has land that could be developed and used for more guest cottages, for example.
There will be stipulations to what can be done with the property because it is on the national register. “You can bet your life there will be restrictive covenants,” Hofstetter said.
“It’s a vibrant town,” he stated in a press release about the sale.
“When we say ‘one of a kind’ we’re not kidding.”
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Anyone interested in learning more about purchasing this town can contact listing agent Chris Cockerham at [email protected] or 812-330-7568.
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