30 Vintage Photos Of Grocery Stores That Are Beyond Fascinating
Most of us spend at least 30-45 minutes or so every week at a grocery store - the same grocery store, typically - meaning we spend more time there than almost anywhere that's not work or home. That's why old photos of grocery stores spark such intense nostalgia: seeing how grocery stores have changed through the decades is kind of like looking at old family photos.Â
The gallery below of old photos of supermarkets spans from the late-19th century to the 1980s, covering several major evolutions in how grocers got their goods to the people. You'll see the switch to self-service, hand-painted window signs turn to plastic tags, and the aisles getting wider to accommodate those newfangled carts. You'll also see shelves full of soda in glass bottles - the way God intended.
Piggly Wiggly, Memphis, Tennessee, 1918
Photo: Metaweb / GNU Free Documentation LicenseInterior View Of A Chicago Grocery, 1920
Photo: Metaweb / GNU Free Documentation LicenseGrocery Store In Bremerton, Washington, 1925
Photo: Metaweb / CC-BYA Grocery Store In Vancouver, 1940s
Photo: rhubarbish / Search Archives VancouverMan And Dogs In Front Of Grocery Store, Robinson, Illinois, 1940
Photo: flickr / CC0American Grocery Store, Late 19th Century
Photo: Metaweb / CC-BYInterior View Of A Ralph's Grocery Store In Los Angeles, 1943
Photo: Metaweb / CC-BYGrand Grocery Company, Lincoln, Nebraska, 1942
Photo: flickr / CC0Tulip Town Market, Oak Ridge, Tennessee, 1945
Photo: Wikimedia Commons / CC-BYGrocery Store In Elkton, Michigan, 1958
Photo: flickr / CC0Kroger Grocery Store, Lexington, Kentucky, 1947
Photo: Metaweb / GNU Free Documentation LicenseCheckout Lines At Kroger Grocery Store, Lexington, Kentucky, 1947
Photo: Metaweb / CC-BYHouchens Grocery Store, Kentucky, 1950s
Photo: Metaweb / CC-BYJames Dean Shopping For Groceries In Marfa, Texas, 1955
Photo: Wikimedia Commons / CC-BYJayne Mansfield Grocery Shopping, 1959
Photo: Metaweb / GNU Free Documentation LicenseInterior Of A Piggly Wiggly Grocery Store, 1959
Photo: Metaweb / GNU Free Documentation LicenseGrocery Store Parking Lot, West Covina, California, 1959
Photo: flickr / CC0Grocery Shopping, 1960s
Photo: flickr / CC0Outside A Grocery Store In Vancouver, 1960
Photo: Metaweb / CC-BYGrocery Store In Evansville, Indiana, 1960
Photo: Metaweb / GNU Free Documentation LicenseCigarette End Cap At A Grocery Store, 1962
Photo: Metaweb / GNU Free Documentation LicenseGrocery Store In Michigan, 1962
Photo: Metaweb / GNU Free Documentation LicensePaying By Check, 1970s
Photo: flickr / CC0Huntington Beach Grocery Store, 1972
Photo: Orange County Archives / FlickrTotal Discounts Everyday, Huntington Beach, 1972
Photo: Orange County Archives / FlickrGrocery Cart, 1974
Photo: Metaweb / CC-BYWoman In A Grocery Store, 1978
Photo: Wikimedia Commons / CC-BYU-Pak Grocery Store, Pontiac, Michigan, 1979
Photo: Southbeachcars / FlickrGlass Soda Bottles, 1980
Photo: Metaweb / CC-BYConsumers Markets Grocery Store In Springfield, Missouri, 1986
Photo: Wikimedia Commons / CC-BY