Old Supermarket Mystery Hazleton, PA

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Ephrata1966
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Old Supermarket Mystery Hazleton, PA

Post by Ephrata1966 »

There is a Foodtown at Church Hill Mall in Hazleton, PA which is an enclosed "mini-mall" built in 1967. I am dying to know what the Foodtown used to be, if it was any other supermarket at all. A&P, Acme, and Food Fair/Pantry Pride all come to mind. Grand Union may also have once operated in this region. What is most odd are the 90's Genuardi's checkout light poles! At least they match the ones my Genuardi's used to have, I am thinking pre-Safeway? Or perhaps this was a common design made for independent grocers? Maybe, just maybe, they were salvaged from the Genuardi's in Springfield, PA after last year's remodeling. Better yet, they could have been just shipped from the Genuardi's that closed in Newtown Square! The building shape in Google Maps also looks similar to the 1973 Genuardi's in Eagleville, PA. That shopping center also had a Grant City, then a Kmart which closed last year.

The mall however has a CVS which was most likely a Rea & Derick drugstore in a previous life. That would imply the grocery anchor was Acme. There also is a PA Wine & Spirits store which may not be original, and there was a Gaylords. Both of them were often paired with A&P, Acme, Food Fair, etc.
JoshAustin610
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Re: Old Supermarket Mystery Hazleton, PA

Post by JoshAustin610 »

Articles on Google News Archives list this as being an Acme; it converted to Insalaco's in January 1995. There was also another Acme in the Hazleton S.C. at 530 W. Broad St; that one closed about six months after the acquisition by Insalaco's/ Penn Traffic, and is now a Save-A-Lot. There was also an existing Insalaco's that opened in the late 80s in West Hazleton, that closed in 1998 and is now a Big Lots. The Church Hill Mall location became a Thomas' Family Market in late 1998, which became part of the Foodtown chain in 2006.

The CVS was a Rea & Derick; there used to also be one in the Laurel Mall that closed approx. 2000. The other CVS on the south side of town opened post-Peoples Drug acquisition, around 1992-93.
Ephrata1966
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Re: Old Supermarket Mystery Hazleton, PA

Post by Ephrata1966 »

Thanks! That does actually seem odd it was Acme. I am thinking it was a Food Fair first, like the Cobbs Creek Great Valu. Food Fair however had slowed down building new stores by 1967. Their glory days were mostly the 1950s. But in fact Shore Mall (a real mall) in South Jersey was built with a Food Fair (built as Pantry Pride?) in 1968. That mall started as a "Searstown" shopping center. Maybe the Pantry Pride was not even built until it was "malled" in 1974. This store later became a Foodtown too. The Foodtown must have lasted no more than ten years, since it became a standard Circuit City around 1988. They closed before the chain, and this store is now a K&G. The Sears which originally anchored the mall is long gone.

Meanwhile, in 1967 Acme was busy building you-know-what type of store, and few others. The Acme in Woodlyn was most likely built before 1972. I would say 1964, with the rest of the center added later. The very first Wawa was built just down the road in Folsom that year, and one of the first Arby's which is now closed. Both Folsom and Woodlyn (Holmes and Secane too, but not Ridley Park) are in Ridley Township. But Woodlyn Shopping Center really seems like Chester. For that matter, I believe the Penn Fruit in Cheltenham was in Cheltenham Township. The CVS however is Philadelphia County. So are the houses across the street. And the nearby mall I thought was Cheltenham proper, but the A&P/Aldi across the street is Wyncote. Perhaps there was some kind of tax incentive for "building on the line" back then?

And both the Woodlyn Acme and Cheltenham Penn Fruit were likely Thriftway at one point. Save-a-Lot of course had not reached the area yet during the Food Fair/Penn Fruit bankruptcy. I doubt Jewel-T would have picked up such prime locations, nor would they have been empty that long.
Lenny
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Re: Old Supermarket Mystery Hazleton, PA

Post by Lenny »

The only old store up there I can help you with in Hazleton is that there was an old Weis on the main drag that was replaced by their current store around 1996. I believe it is now an Ollie's. I think Hazleton is one of the worst towns to drive through, with all the traffic lights and walk signals to wait through, ugh. But I love going to Harry's every couple of years!
Served 10 years at Weis Markets (June 1995-July 2005)
maynesG
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Re: Old Supermarket Mystery Hazleton, PA

Post by maynesG »

Hi, The Woodlyn Acme is two blocks from Chester. When Acme closed it was purchased by Sav a Lot and then by Aldi. Both of thenm failed at that location, as did Aldi in Upland Township at the former Acme and now S&S Market. ( Great Meat and Deli and good prices).
Gerry
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