Quik-Trip (Demolished)
Tulsa, OK
Photo and info courtesy Chris King

This modest Tulsa storefront was where Quik-Trip began on September 25, 1958. Founders Burt Holmes and Chester Cadieux each invested $5,000, launching a business that eventually spread across much of the country.

Originally called Quick-Trip, the company dropped the “c” after a designer suggested it would improve the sign. Early road construction nearly finished the business, but homemade signs guided customers through the alley. Gasoline came later, with the first pumps added at another Tulsa store in 1971.

UPDATE: The original storefront has been demolished. Today’s Store No. 1 operates nearby, while the original sign’s fate remains unconfirmed. 06-26

Safeway (Gone)
Tulsa, OK
Photo courtesy Chris King

This Safeway featured the sweeping roofline and glass front that made the chain’s “Marina” stores stand out. Introduced in 1959, the design brought a little space-age styling to an ordinary grocery trip.

Tulsa received several examples before Safeway left Oklahoma in 1987. Other operators took over, often remodeling the buildings and covering their distinctive features.

UPDATE: This store has been demolished. Other Tulsa examples have also disappeared or changed considerably, making the old curved-roof supermarkets an increasingly uncommon roadside sight. 06-26