What is a passport? In short, a passport is merely a few leaves of paper marked with photos and stamps. In modern legal terms defined by U.S. Department of State, it is “a request to foreign governments to permit you to travel or temporarily reside in their territories and have access to lawful local aid and protection.” While extending us welcome to a new place, passports also offer their holder the services of the U.S. embassy or consulate as a sort of diplomatic home-away-from-home.
Much more than covering basic legalities of travel, a passport tells us about ourselves. Passports record our most memorable journeys and help us recall our experiences. We can define our lives one decade at a time by opening them to look back on the markings they contain. Where did we go? What did we do? Who were we with? These reflections lead us to perhaps the biggest question a passport asks at our journey’s end: How did our travels transform us into the people we are today?
How did we get here?
United States passports are older than the nation itself. The National Archives and Records Administration holds U.S. passport applications dating back to 1795, but passports have been issued since the federal government was established in 1789. It was at this time that the Department of State began issuing passports to U.S. citizens traveling abroad although the State Department did not have that sole authority until 1856.
Before the United States as we know it existed, however, American consular officers issued passports to citizens of (only) some of the original 13 colonies during the Revolutionary War. These earliest passports included a written description of the bearer and were valid for three to six months. That short timeframe would hardly be worth the trip to your local drug store for a passport photo today. At least ours are valid for ten years.
Interestingly enough, U.S. citizens were not required to carry passports while traveling abroad until 1941. The law tightened further with a 1978 amendment to the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952, making it illegal for citizens to enter or leave the country during war or peacetime without a passport.
The point of all this information is that passports have changed, at least in our country, in form and function since they were first issued. Surely, they’ll continue their evolution as our country and the nature of travel – the technologies that take us places, the accessibility of destinations, and the purposes of our journeys – change, too.
Where are we going?
For all its tranquil settings and proud traditions, Mast General Store is not unaffected by the changes history so dependably brings about. The Original Mast Store has stood in Valle Crucis since 1883, and Mast’s other locations have been fixtures in their regions nearly as long – or longer in some instances. In their time, they’ve all witnessed and withstood monumental events.
While time rolls along, the Mast Store constantly redefines itself as new associates come and others go, as new locations open and Mast becomes a part of new communities, and as new local partnerships are forged. This may sound odd for a place that prides itself on tradition, but isn’t that why traditions exist in the first place?... To provide consistency and connect people to one another across days, years, and generations as change takes hold.
Traditions preserve daily practices that allow each Mast Store to remain a place where locals can pick up the week’s provisions, find gear and goods to face the season ahead, and run into neighbors and hear the talk of the town. Visitors, too, take part in the long tradition of the store’s hospitality as they stop in on their travels to resupply and get to know an unfamiliar place as something more than the space that lies between points A and B on a map.
These traditions are what make the Mast Store a destination, whether it’s just down the road or miles from your home. Traditions ensure each Mast Store marks a familiar and friendly outpost on your journey where memories, stories, and a sense of belonging make you feel at home.
A Traveling Tradition
The Mast General Store Passport program launched a year ago this month. Since the passport was introduced, six families have “completed” their Mast Store tour by visiting each of our 11 locations. In our calculations using Google Maps, the most direct route between all Mast Stores covers 770.9 miles. That doesn’t include pit stops and side trips for all the fascinating things you’ll discover in and in between our Mast Store communities along the way.
The most recent completed passport sent to Mast Store’s Home Office contained photos from several stores and a heartfelt handwritten note, which read:
"We thoroughly enjoyed the journey! It was great to see all the different stores in all the different towns. And wherever we went, staff was always friendly and happy! What a great idea this passport is. Thank you!"
Congratulations to all who’ve completed the Mast circuit, and thank you, too, for making Mast your destination!
In case you’re already asking, the answer is, “Yes! There is, indeed, a prize for anyone who receives a passport stamp from every existing Mast Store location at the time they purchase their passport.” The reward is an exclusive Mast General Store-branded product, which isn’t available for purchase.
A complete list of eligibility requirements for this prize is posted at Mast Store Online and is available with the passport and store passport stamp at the designated register in each Mast Store location. You’ll find helpful answers to several questions about the Mast Store Passport program there, too.
First and foremost, in order to have your own passport, you must purchase it for $5 (tax not included) from any Mast Store location. Each passport includes a $5 coupon applicable to any one in-store purchase of $25 or more until December 31, 2026. In the program’s first year, Mast Store guests purchased 321 Passports! We’ll look forward to seeing your Passport when it arrives at our office once it’s complete (Don’t worry, we’ll send it and any photos or notes back to you along with your prize.), and if you haven’t picked up yours yet, it’s never too late to begin your Mast Store journey.
Whether you choose to go for the grand prize and visit each Mast Store location or you’re simply excited about finally having a way to “officially” document your Mast Store visits across our region, we hope that the Mast Store Passport offers you a new way to remember your Mast Store experience.
Similar as to how we record our travels as Americans has changed throughout our nation’s history, maybe the Mast Store Passport will encourage both our regular visitors and our first-time guests to ask themselves what it means to be a living part of an ever-changing history. Now, there’s a destination that brings us all closer and transforms us for the better.