Yesterday we saw the independent grocers of eastern Worcester -- some going back decades -- and now it's time to see a few buildings that once were grocery stores but no longer are.
A note on historical sources: To get past stores in each location, I've consulted Worcester city directories going back to the 1910s. Here in the city, I'm drawing from 1916, 1922, 1927, 1931, 1937, 1943, 1959, 1952, 1957, 1962, 1969, 1973, 1979, 1985, 1991, 2000, 2009, and 2017. Also of note: this is far from an exhaustive listing of all grocery stores that have been in this area, although I'll probably eventually post the full thing, this is just what I've been able to photograph.Reading the captions: A caption such as the following... | John Smith (1926-1937) > Joe Jones (1955-1982)
...means that John Smith appears in the directories in 1926 and 1937, and Joe Jones appears in all directories I consulted between 1955 and 1982. That doesn't mean that John Smith opened up shop in 1926 and closed in 1937, he might have started in 1920 and closed in 1941 but since I don't have those records, I don't know for sure. Any questions (or corrections), feel free to drop a note in the comments and I'll look into it!
Vernon Hill
A note on historical sources: To get past stores in each location, I've consulted Worcester city directories going back to the 1910s. Here in the city, I'm drawing from 1916, 1922, 1927, 1931, 1937, 1943, 1959, 1952, 1957, 1962, 1969, 1973, 1979, 1985, 1991, 2000, 2009, and 2017. Also of note: this is far from an exhaustive listing of all grocery stores that have been in this area, although I'll probably eventually post the full thing, this is just what I've been able to photograph.
Reading the captions: A caption such as the following...
| John Smith (1926-1937) > Joe Jones (1955-1982)
...means that John Smith appears in the directories in 1926 and 1937, and Joe Jones appears in all directories I consulted between 1955 and 1982. That doesn't mean that John Smith opened up shop in 1926 and closed in 1937, he might have started in 1920 and closed in 1941 but since I don't have those records, I don't know for sure. Any questions (or corrections), feel free to drop a note in the comments and I'll look into it!
223 Vernon St | Vernon Hill
Carlson & Jacobson (1916) > Ralph Nelson (1922-1927) > Christian Nelson (1931) > Ralph Nelson (1937) > Robert Mandell (1949-1957) > Robert's Market (1962)
It's likely the store was co-owned by Ralph and Christian Nelson, or something like that, explaining the inconsistency in 1931.
145 Vernon St | Vernon Hill
George Gilligan (1916-1922) > John Kenadek (1927) > Wladyslaw Kalinowsky (1931-1952) > John Kalinowsky (1957) > Vernon Market (1962)
The change from Wladyslaw Kalinowsky to John Kalinowsky in the 1950s interests me. My guess is that Wladyslaw's son took over, but it's a fascinating parallel to the way that many immigrants -- especially Eastern European immigrants of the early 1900s, such as my family -- preferred to give their kids very American names and refused to teach them anything about the countries they came from. In my family, that meant that anything my grandmother learned about Poland, she learned not from her family who was from there, but on her own.
17 S Ward St - 3 S Harlem St (?) | Vernon Hill
17 S Ward: Bessie Feinstein (1916)
3 S Harlem: Linderkos Volougeus (1927) > Adam Kudarowsky (1931) > Louis Volungis (1937)
This building is located at 17 South Ward, but it could also be 3 Harlem. There isn't currently a building at 3 South Harlem. I am inclined to believe there once was, and this was unrelated.
2 S Ward St | Vernon Hill
Barney Savitch (1927)
91 Ward St | Vernon Hill
Minnie Gordon (1916) > Joseph Glavickas (1922) > Anthony Gaides (1927)
So interesting that here, it looks like the brick wall originally had windows and doors when it was a storefront, then at some point it was converted to a garage, then those doors were closed up again when these doors were installed.
89 Ward St | Vernon Hill
Benjamin Rosenbaum (1916) > Victoria Golaszewski (1927) > Felix Lembowicz (1931)
92-94 Ward St | Vernon Hill
92 Ward: Charles Lauzikas (1931) > Jochim Burokas (1937-1943)
94 Ward: Arthur Read (1922) > John Dvareckas (1927)
Dvareckas later moved to 99 Ward, where the S&A Mini Market is now.
88 Ward St | Vernon Hill
Joseph Ambrose (1916-1922)
72 Ward St | Vernon Hill
Joseph Szadziewicz (1927-1931) > Bronislawa Szadziewicz (1937-1943) > John Zaleskas (1952-1957)
I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say that this was the Polish neighborhood of Worcester at the time.
66 Ward St | Vernon Hill
Grace Chesney (1922) > John Struckus (1927-1943)
100 Endicott St | Vernon Hill
Ellen Murphy (1916) > Elizabeth Quinlan (1927) > Mary Quinlan (1931) > John Quinlan (1937-1943)
I don't know where the store was, and it's possible -- maybe even likely -- that it was in a separate structure that's long since been demolished.
53 Ward St | Vernon Hill
Shocik & Sianiaski (1922) > Peter Antoniewicz (1927) > First National Stores (1931-1937) > William Nowicki (1943-1949)
A recently boarded-up corner storefront, representing the first chain grocer we've seen so far in this area.
48 Ward St | Vernon Hill
William Zinkiewicz (1916-1931) > William Baranowski (1937-1943)
43 Richland St | Vernon Hill
Beatrice Wolanin (1927-1931)
This is the back of 8 Dorchester St, a house actually built back in 1870. So it's likely this little door here was for the grocery store, and the house faced the other way.
50 Vernon St | Vernon Hill
Scandinavian Cooperative Grocery Union (1916) > Community Stores Co (1922-1937) > Pay 'n Takit Food Stores (1943-1952) > Souda's Market (1957-1962)
Several recognizable names here, although I can't say I'd ever heard of the Scandinavian Cooperative Grocery Union before. Souda's moved from 49 Vernon around the mid-1950s.
51 Vernon St | Vernon Hill
Matthew Toomey (1916-1922) > Vasil Nachu (1927-1937)
13 Granite St | Vernon Hill
This one is tricky. I don't have any listings for 13 Granite, but this obviously used to be a store. Looking at a map, it seems like Google Maps might have the address wrong for this building. The white house to the right is 67 Granite, and to the left across the street is 57 Granite. I don't see how 13 could be between 57 and 67. So I'm going to guess that this is actually 65 Granite...
65 Granite St | Vernon Hill
Jack Ulman (1937) > Vaha Margosian (1949) > Liberty Market (1952) > Joseph Burack (1957)
Union Hill
56 Dorchester St | Union Hill
Mary Quinn (1916-1922) > Frank Ladizinsky (1927-1937)
97 Providence St | Union Hill
Community Stores Co (1927)
86 Providence St | Union Hill
First National Stores (1931)
This building dates back to 1898, so it was definitely standing in 1931, but I'm not sure where the grocery store was. Possibly there was once an annex on one of the sides that's no longer standing.
76 1/2 Providence St | Union Hill
Julian Twarouski (1937) > Red & White Stores (1943) > Ted's Cash Market (1949) > Burack's Market (1952)
It's not clear to me where this store was. The ground floor of the yellow house, the tiny blue outbuilding, or what looks like an enclosed porch on the back of the big blue house all seem like reasonable guesses. All these buildings were here long before any of the grocers were.
66 1/2 Providence St | Union Hill
Louis Smith (1931)
Again, not clear on where the grocery store was. It's possible it was once in this small yard to the left of the house, or was somehow worked into the ground floor of the house.
8 Penn Ave | Union Hill
DS & DF Donahue (1916-1922) > Shaker Gazal (1927) > Community Stores Co (1931)
24 Penn Ave | Union Hill
Anthony Pauliukonis (1916)
I'm betting that what's now the garage was the storefront.
Grafton Hill
252-258 Grafton St | Grafton Hill
252 Grafton: Salem's Market (1952-1957)
256 Grafton: Dave Gould's Honey Farms (1962)
258 Grafton: First National Stores (1931-1937)
I'm not clear on who Dave Gould was, or the relation of his store to the Honey Farms convenience store chain once owned by the Iandoli family, who also owned Iandoli Supermarkets.
264 Grafton St | Grafton Hill
Popular Market (1922)
284 Grafton St | Grafton Hill
A&P (1927)
319 Grafton St | Grafton Hill
Bresnahan Co (1916) > Worcester Economy Stores (1922) > Community Stores Co (1927-1931)
321 Grafton St | Grafton Hill
Napoleon LeBeau (1937)
329 Grafton St | Grafton Hill
Cloverdale (1931)
333 Grafton St | Grafton Hill
Julius Goldman (1922)
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342 Grafton St | Grafton Hill
Albert Iandoli (1927-1943) > Mary Iandoli (1949-1952)
This is where the Iandoli chain started at Billings Square -- later moving across the street and expanding to multiple locations in and around Worcester.
Franklin Plantation
3 Wall St | Franklin Plantation
George Fozy Toklo (1937)
10 Wall St | Franklin Plantation
Peter Vigliateura (1927) > Philip Bolduc (1937-1943)
Bolduc moved from what's now John & Sons Market a block north in the mid-1930s.
17 Wall St | Franklin Plantation
Bashara Forzly (1922)
54 Wall St | Franklin Plantation
Anthony Grabiella (1927)
And that wraps up our look at the former grocers of Eastern Worcester! I hope you enjoyed it, and tomorrow, we'll look at our next set of neighborhoods in central Worcester!
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