J.J. Newberry Co. (Closed)
Oswego, NY Photo courtesy Jay Lin
The J.J. Newberry Co. store features classic 1950s style script neon mounted across its storefront. While often mistakenly cataloged under Oswego, NY, this iconic mid-century five-and-dime is actually located down in the historic downtown village of Owego, NY. The striking turquoise vitrolite tile facade and script lettering are textbook mid-century commercial design, making it an unmissable downtown fixture for shoppers strolling through town.
Built in 1958 during the post-war retail boom, this custom five-and-dime department store served as a primary downtown retail anchor for decades. Following the chain's closure, the building sat through various tenants and survived heavy flooding from the Susquehanna River in 2011 before undergoing a major preservation rescue. The turquoise exterior was cleaned and the long-dormant neon sign was fully restored to glow brightly once again over Lake Street.
UPDATE: The building has been preserved and repurposed as the Early Owego Antique Center, housing dozens of independent vendors and antique dealers while keeping the original 1958 J.J. Newberry Co. script neon sign glowing over the historic storefront. 08-26
King Kullen
Long Island, NY Photo courtesy Louis Di Fazio
Looking for a good supermarket in the East? Then stop by King Kullen of Long Island, NY. This classic vintage photograph captures one of the early storefront locations for this famous regional grocery chain that originally started out in Jamaica, NY.
Founded by former Kroger branch manager Michael J. Cullen back in August 1930 inside a leased vacant garage, King Kullen is formally recognized by the Smithsonian Institution as America's very first true modern supermarket. Cullen revolutionized the retail grocery industry by pioneering a blueprint that unified five distinct pillars under one roof: customer self-service, separate internal departments, high-volume dealing, deep discount pricing, and dedicated customer parking lots. Advertising his innovative operation under the aggressive moniker "World's Greatest Price Wrecker," Cullen took full advantage of the growing automotive culture, giving families a one-stop destination to fill up their cars with groceries at budget-friendly prices. The company name itself came from a playful sketch by Cullen's young son Bobby, who drew his father sitting atop a globe with the caption "King Kullen."
King Kullen
Long Island, NY Photo courtesy Louis Di Fazio
The homegrown enterprise expanded rapidly throughout Queens and out across Nassau and Suffolk counties, opening dozens of neighborhood stores and becoming a cherished, generational shopping staple for suburban Long Island families. Over the mid-century decades, King Kullen continued to pioneer everyday customer conveniences across its store layouts, helping popularize early-generation shopping carts, mechanized checkout conveyor belts, automated entrance doors, and unified background music systems.
UPDATE: King Kullen continues to serve grocery shoppers across Long Island, operating over twenty modern supermarkets and specialty natural food markets throughout Nassau and Suffolk counties. 08-26
Woolworth's (Closed)
Norwich, CT Photo courtesy Richard Weiss
My first thought was of Kresge's but closer inspection proved it to be a former Woolworth's with a facade that was totally intact from at least the 1950s. Norwich was a neat tightly packed downtown built on a hill side overlooking a lake. This Woolworth's is located on Franklin Square. Many thanks to Richard Weiss for info. 08-13
Fitted with its customized post-war commercial storefront back in 1950, this F.W. Woolworth Co. location was a major retail anchor and bustling downtown gathering spot for Norwich shoppers for decades. Sitting in the heart of Franklin Square alongside historic downtown neighbors like the Midtown Theater, Sears, Benny's, and Teppers, the variety store drew in generations of local families looking for bargains, dry goods, and everyday household items.
Woolworth's
Norwich, CT Photo courtesy Richard Weiss
Beyond the retail aisles, the store was best known throughout town for featuring the longest continuous lunch counter in the entire city, serving up fountain sodas, sandwiches, and hot meals to hungry shoppers and downtown workers every afternoon. While Woolworth's, like many of the great five-and-dime chains of the post-war era, eventually closed its doors as shopping patterns shifted, the building managed to keep its mid-century street-level character and classic facade lines intact long after the store went dark.
UPDATE: The former Woolworth's building remains standing on Franklin Square and has since been repurposed for modern downtown commercial use, though the iconic red F.W. Woolworth Co. storefront lettering along the upper facade has been removed. 08-26
J.J. Newberry Co. (Closed)
King Kullen
King Kullen
Woolworth's (Closed)
Woolworth's
