More delectables at the Edw. Neumann grocery in Detroit's Broadway Market circa 1910. 8x10 glass plate negative, Detroit Publishing. Superjumbo full size. Note the artfully arranged pickle slices in the big apothecary jar to the left.
Submitted by Rob Banzai on Thu, 05/01/2008 - 1:39pm.
I work at an ad agency and I just showed the upper left corner of the large image to one of the copywriters. I said "This is a grocery store from 1910. Quick! Who makes those products?" And of course he knew it was Heinz. Almost 100 years and their brand is immediately recognizable.
Submitted by shefindsu on Wed, 01/16/2008 - 9:18am.
There seems to be a lot of variety here but the food looks quite scary. I wonder what most of it is. Makes you thankful for today's food production and safety.
Submitted by Anonymous Tipster on Wed, 01/16/2008 - 6:39am.
The first self-serve grocery store was the Piggly Wiggly store on 79 Jefferson Street in Memphis, Tennessee. It opened on September 6th, 1916 some six years after our photo above was taken.
Just wondering how fast the inventory turnover was. There's quite a lot of 'fresh' packaged/canned meat and fish products stocked, and a good portion of them seem to be only for display rather than sale (buried inside cabinets as they are).
Were there "sell by" dates back then, if not, how much product was already 'spoiled' by the time it was finally purchased?
[This is before grocery stores were self-service -- before markets became "super-markets." Generally speaking, you had to ask the man behind the counter for whatever you wanted: "Sam, I'd like a pound of butter, five-pound bag of flour and a pound of coffee." - Dave]
Submitted by Anonymous Tipster on Sat, 01/12/2008 - 3:29am.
I can barely read the label on the big jar, but it looks like the rectangular label says "Preserved With" and the Heinz label below it says "White Premium Table Vinegar." So it really could be pickled anything.
[Including sliced pickled cucumbers -- pickles -- as we see below. - Dave]
What a fantastic store! The cabinetry alone is mind-boggling. Someone did a really good job designing and building the display cabinets and shelving. The only thing that seems to be missing is a rolling ladder to retrieve items from the upper shelves. Maybe it's out of sight.
Those jumbo Heinz apothecary-type jars are spectacular. Besides Heinz 57, did you notice how many brands of sardines they have (bottom left)?
