Acme Style

2012-01-31T06:37:00.003-05:00

Former Acme Pick of the Day!

Location: 2501 Putty Hill Avenue, Baltimore, Maryland

Opened February 23, 1963. Closing date unknown. Currently occupied by Tall Cedars of Lebanon... "an appendant Masonic organization devoted to fostering friendship and fellowship among Freemasons and to all mankind" as explained on their website. Acme's sign remains largely in place with some alterations done by the current occupants. I discovered this store years ago through my satellite searches. The images above are from Google map street view.

1971

1966

1964

Commenting moderation now in effect

2012-01-31T06:33:00.001-05:00

Going forward, all comments will need to be approved prior to their posting. You will see a notice to this effect when you click the "Publish" button after you've completed your comment. This change is due to a recent barrage of rude and obnoxious comments from one individual.

The moderation process does cause a delay in comments posting to the blog. The delay should be minimal as I am able to approve comments from my phone. Any comments left after about 10 pm at night will be approved first thing the following morning.

Acme — Flourtown, PA

2012-01-27T07:05:00.000-05:00

Location: 1640 Bethlehem Pike, Flourtown, PA

Welcome to the Flourtown Acme, a location I keep coming back to this one when I'm searching for out-of-the-ordinary Acmes. While this store is not wildly unusual, the foot print of the building left me with plenty of questions regarding the layout as well as the evolution of the building over the years. Below is a satellite image to give you an overview of the building and the surrounding property...

What is technically the front of the store, as it faces out to Bethlehem Pike, is actually the side. From the road the store looks to be particularly small. As you can see in the satellite image, the building stretches a good distance to the rear. The left side of the building is the front-end of the interior.

Judging from the exterior, one could easily assume that Acme moved into a preexisting building as it's characteristics are not usual for an Acme. As it turns out, Acme did build this store... directly behind a 50's model that stood in the front parking lot. We'll see evidence of that in the historic aerial images down below. The original store opened in November 1957. Unfortunately, we won't be able to pinpoint a year... or decade for the that matter... when the switch to the new store was made. No historic views are available between the old store in 1971 and the new store in 2002.

Let's head inside...

Floorplan

Above is an approximate layout of the store. The interior shots below might be a little disorienting without seeing the general layout first. Note that Customer Service faces the exit lane of the store. There is no access to it from the side facing the grocery aisles.

The store appears to be freshly remodeled with the brown version of the Premium Fresh and Healthy package. There are some nice touches here which make this store seem nicer than others I've been in with this same remodel. The entrance, just to the right of where I am standing, leads customers straight into Produce. The Bakery and Deli are to the left.

Looking towards the front corner. The vestibule just beyond the far wall. There are a few short windows running along the produce cases to the left which face out to Bethlehem Pike.

The "Grand Aisle" or "Marketplace" area was packed with merchandise. No space is left under utilized. This was just a few weeks before the holidays so an abundance of selection is to be expected. The rest of the store was spacious and clutter free.

Looking down the back aisle, around the corner from the Deli. About half of the back wall is used for frozen food cases. Most of which are for frozen meats. The store does have frozen food aisles so I'm not sure what was in all of these cases back here. Didn't think to take a look. Milk is located along the far wall.

First grocery aisle is "Shop the World". Looking towards the front-end. I don't recall seeing a designated "Wild Harvest" section at this store.

Front-end with registers to the left. Expansive space between checkouts and the grocery aisle.

It appears this location received new flooring with the latest remodel. This is the first time I've seen a tile pattern with the PF&H remodel. The deluxe version of remodel included a neutral floor which you can see at the Feasterville store. Other stores have kept their flooring from previous remodels.

Not sure why these wireless routers wind up right in the middle of department signage. There's one right next to the dairy sign as well.

The last few aisles are split leaving a center aisle.

Another router.

An impressive 17 aisles. I wouldn't have guessed it had that many. I was prepared to peg this location as a "small" Acme but it as big as some of the new stores the company built in the 2000's.

Would love to know how the interior of the store evolved of the years. Reviews I've seen online of the store mention that the layout has recenttly changed, apparently more than once, leaving some customers frustrated with all the changes. Having never been to the store before, I have to say it is well laid out, not to mention exceptionally clean. This Acme is as ready as it ever will be to take on new competition coming soon. (Details below)

Interesting to see 3D lettering on the shopping center sign.

And now for that new competition. A nearby Genuardi's is one of the locations purchased by Giant.

An abandoned Kmart sits at the rear of the shopping center. That building is closer in size to the store Giant operates. The Genuardi's stores that Giant is taking over in the area are closer in size to the stores Giant has been abandoning in other markets for huge replacement stores.

Photo courtesy of JoshAustin

Here's a shot of the store from ground level. Be sure to click on the photo to jump over to Josh's photostream on flickr. Interesting read there on the history of this location.

Photo courtesy of JoshAustin

Ground level shot of the abandoned Kmart. Closed in 2003. Click on the photo for an interesting read on this store as well. Unusual to see a Kmart with so many windows remaining along the front. They were almost always covered over during the remodels of the late 80's/early90's.

And now to head back in time...

2010

We see the roof has recently been painted white to reflect sunlight and heat. A popular community pool just behind the Acme.

2008

2002

1971

Back to 1971 where we see the original store still standing. Looks like the new store was built just feet away from the rear of the old one. Did the new store open the minute the old one closed? Would have left for limited parking for the grand opening. Perhaps that's why there is such a large parking area all the way to the rear of the new store.

1967

1965

1958

1950

Transformation of thePrinceton Junction Acme...

2012-01-24T07:00:00.000-05:00

Photos courtesy of Paul R.

Pictures just in of the current state of the former Princeton Junction store. Paul stopped by just at the right time to get some shots of the store hollowed out. These shots give us a fantastic look at the original pitched-roof building...

After years of speculation as to the fate of this shopping center and the Acme, plans have finally been revealed of the finished product. The former Acme will be divided up into smaller retail spaces but will retain much of it's current characteristics. The mansard roof will be getting dressed up but will surprisingly remain in place. The pitched-roof along the back will also remain visible in the renovated structure. What's seems quite odd is that store fronts will be facing out of the back of the building. Certainly will be a challenge bringing foot traffic around to the other side. Perhaps the spaces in back will be used for doctors offices and such. You can see a rendition of the finished shopping center at Cyzner Properties. Additionally renderings, which include the back, can be seen here.

And now for an update to the original Princeton Junction post. Back when the store first went up on the blog, I was not aware of the Historic Aerial website which lets us travel back to the past to see how a particular store evolved over the years. Unfortunately for me, Blogger has been evolving over the years and has made it extremely difficult to make significant updates to older posts. For that reason, I am including the satellite images for Princeton Junction in this post.

These images offer an accurate time frame of when the pitched-roof model was expanded. I had reported in the original post that the expansion happened during the 80's remodel. It did not. You'll see in the 1979 image down below that the expansion was in it's final stages. To view the original post from 2009 please click here.

2007

2002

1986

This place was jumpin' back in '86. This shot may have been taken after the 80's remodel was completed.

1979

You can see in the image above that the parking lot had yet to be paved along the newly added section. Construction vehicles appear to be in the parking lot to the left of the store. They've been cropped out of the image above.

1972

Acme stood alone in 1972, paired up with a massive parking lot.

1969

I don't have an exact opening date for the store. It may not have been open as of this shot in 1969. It's been reported that the store lasted 39 years.

1963

A peek inside Egg Harbor...

2012-01-17T07:18:00.001-05:00

An Acme Style team member was able to get a camera through a small hole in the front of the abandoned Egg Harbor store. Even with a flash the pictures turned out nearly black, reveling little detail. A run through Photoshop helped lighten up the photo revealing the mess inside. Can't spot any definite clues as to the decor on the walls but it was most likely the Convenience Store package.

2012-01-17T07:16:00.002-05:00

News Break:

A&P closing more stores!

The news is over a week old at this point but in case you missed it, like I did, A&P has announced more closings. 14 to be exact. You can read a short article at Supermarket News which includes a list of all affected stores.

An article over on NorthJersey.com includes a bit more information about the current state of the company. Namely the speculation of analysts that the company will eventually close 100 underperforming stores in order to get things back on track. While all of this is pretty bad news, it is important to keep in mind that a good amount of the store closings, past and present, are due to the overlapping of A&P and Pathmark locations. The article on NorthJersey.com discuses the A&P in Garfield New Jersey but doesn't mention that a Pathmark, just blocks away, will remain open.

Acme — Feasterville, PA

2012-01-13T07:12:00.000-05:00

Location: 105 East Street Road, Feasterville-Trevose, PA

The Feasterville Acme finally makes it up on the blog. I had been here a few years ago and photographed it for a post but the pictures turned out horribly. That was a few cell phones ago, however. So I returned to this location back in December to do it justice. I was also interested in returning to this area to check out the new Giant up the street. One of two Genuardi's stores that Giant acquired back in 2010. The other location is in Warrington, PA. We all know by now that Giant has since acquired additional Genuardi's stores, instantly increasing their presence in the Philadelphia market. The Feasterville Giant can be seen in the "Bonus Store" post following this post.

Interesting and quite attractive facade due to the building originally being a mall... not a grocery store. Acme took over this portion of the mall after vacating it's original store in the same shopping center. We'll take a look at the former location down below.

The Feasterville Acme has the original and deluxe Premium Fresh and Healthy remodel. It's the first... and only... store I've seen in person with the original remodel package. When I was here a few years ago I wasn't terribly impressed with it but have gained more appreciation for it after seeing the brown/significantly scaled down version that was more commonly put into stores. See Woodstown, and Woodbury (at the bottom of the Mantua post). I'm not sure how many locations got the original PF&H remodel. Burlington NJ is the only other store I know of for sure. The package was most definitely an expensive one with all new cases and flooring throughout. Let's step inside and check it out...

I'll never understand the tiny ACME. This wall treatment has seen better days. See West Chester.

The front end of the Acme appears to have been the entrance to the former mall. Nice large windows along the front. The store is looking completely dead in these photos but that was not the case while I was here. I do try to get as many people-free pictures as possible. From what I understand this is a very successful location, hence the extensive remodel. Giant's impact on Acme may be a bit limited due Acme's larger size. The Genuardi's building was not nearly large enough for Giant to offer it's usual array of services and selection.

Cream colored walls throughout with the Albertson's leaf mounted to the walls. Backlit letters for the department signage. The interior here matches closely with stores that were built with the Premium Fresh and Healthy decor.

Neutral floor tiling throughout.

Feasterville is low on clutter which is very appealing to this shopper.

The Wild Harvest department here has much more significant presence than in most other stores.

The very unique front-end.

Notice the fake grass along the top of the freezer cases which was standard in the early days of this decor package.

fresh flowers falls a little flat with it's small letters.

I don't know what decor package was here previously. There are no clues left behind. It does appear that this latest remodel involved a good amount of construction as seen here with the newly curved Pharmacy department.

Final look across the front-end and then back outside for the aerials...

Check out that former A&P back in the corner!

The A&P was the first building on the site but is looking more like an after thought these days.

Now a TJMaxx with plenty of A&P traits still very much intact.

The back of the Acme has been altered from what originally stood here. Some to the structure has been torn down. The grass area is where the original building extended to. You'll see evidence of this in the historic aerials.

The original Acme over on Bustleton Pike.

Now divided between a David's Bridal and another store which I didn't get a good look at. Started out as a Colonial Cottage model. Uncooperative sun on this day. The satellite images below show the store more clearly...

The Colonial Cottage roofline still intact although largely disguised with alterations done to the facade.

Hit the rewind button on this sign by clicking here. Acme wasn't on the main sign but you can see the red oval logo sign back by the entrance) Thanks to Steve W. for the link!

A look through the years...

2008

2002

1971

Compare the 1971 image with the the 2002 image above to see the changes made to the back of the building.

Update 1.29.12: The section that Acme tore down from the back was the Colonial Cinemas. (Thanks again to Steve W. for the information)

1967

Looks like the A&P got a pretty good crowd back in the day!

1965

Standing all alone, seemingly in the middle of nowhere back 1965.

2002

Taking a look a the original Acme in Bustleton.

1971

1967

Looks to be under construction in 1967.

1965

Giant — Feasterville, PA

2012-01-13T07:11:00.000-05:00

Location: 1055 Bustleton Pike, Feasterville, PA

As mentioned in the Feasterville Acme post, this former Genuardi's is one of two locations that Giant acquired back in the 2010. The store was closed for several months as changes were made to the interior. Aside from the signage change, the exterior was left untouched. The grand re-opening was on March 16, 2011. Measuring 55,000 square feet, this location is much smaller than the typical stores Giant currently builds and operates. Surprisingly this location does not have a Pharmacy department.

What the store does have is Giant's latest decor package which may still be in it's testing phase. I believe just a few stores have this decor at this point and that the previous decor package is still being used for new stores. It is interesting to see Giant shed it's signature cartoony look for a much classier, streamlined decor. Here's a quick refresher of Giants standard decor from the Limerick store...

These department logos are also used on the website creating a consistent branding throughout the chain. One of the few grocery store chains to do so. Acme currently has seven different decor packages in wide use with 3 or 4 additional packages used in just a few stores each.

Back to the new look...

Definitely some similar aspects to the Premium Fresh and Healthy decor package over at the Acme.

Big change here... the Corner Bakery now located on the Produce side of the store. Nearly all Giants have the Bakery in the opposite, front corner of the store.

Aisle 1 where we can see the Produce lettering on the other side.

This is the only Giant I have ever been in... and I've been in tons of them... that doesn't have light boxes mounted along the aisles. Notice too that Genuardi's green ceiling and tile floor has not been changed.

Huge frozen food department. Seems like the could have fit a pharmacy in this corner if they had swapped out the coffin cases for upright cases. The front end just to the right was kinda dead space anyway if I remember correctly.

The signature Giant checkout signs not used here. See Limerick.

Just a stone's throw away from the Acme. It's smaller size and lack of a pharmacy will certainly pose less competition to the Acme than if Giant had built a store from the ground up.

2002

1971

2012-01-05T14:16:00.001-05:00

News Break:

Bye Bye Genuardi's,

Hello Giant!

The first big news item of 2012... Genuardi's will become a thing of the past. Safeway has decided to pull the plug on all remaining Genuardi's stores and exit the Philadelphia region for good. 16 of the stores are being sold to Giant. You can read all about the news at
phillyburbs.com.

This purchase will be a huge jump for Giant's presence in the area. The chain has has been slowly but surely moving into the area in recent years. Genuardi's, as many of you know, became the poster child for what goes wrong when a huge corporation buys a small local chain. Safeway's changes to Genuardi's alienating customers and ultimately sent the chain down the road to complete failure.

I haven't thoroughly gone through the list of stores Giant is buying to see how this impacts Acme. I did see that the Newtown Genuardi's is on the list. This store sits just next door to one of Acme's most successful stores. While all of this is not good news for Acme, Giant's impact may be slightly limited since Genuardi's stores are not the necessary size for Giant to provide all their usual bells and whistles. Interestingly we'll be looking at this very topic in the first big post of 2012 which will be going up on January 13. Acme Style will keep you posted on any other developing news stories as they happen. As we all know, this time of year sees big announcements for all sorts of grocery and retail stores. Many of them are unfortunately not good.

Grand Finale 2011... The Abandoned Acme of Paulsboro, NJ!

2011-12-30T07:00:00.000-05:00

Location: W. Broad Street, Paulsboro NJ

For 2011's Grand Finale... and the 100th post of the year... we'll be visiting the abandoned pitched-roof store in Paulsboro, New Jersey. Closed in the early to mid-90's, this store remains virtually unchanged since it's grand opening day back in October 1968. A steady stream of requests for coverage of this store have been coming in since the blog began. The pictures you see here were taken all the way back in February of 2010. I try to keep a couple of goodies in the Acme Style vault so I don't run out of surprises. Despite the pictures being nearly 2 years old, the abandoned store remains to this day in the very condition you see here. joshaustin610 posted a recent picture of the in his Acme collection on flickr which you can see here. We can also hit the rewind button back to 2006 to see the store in better shape in trex354's collection by clicking here. Josh reports that the store closed around '93-94. I have no other information pinpointing the exact date. Judging from the interior, the store has remained unoccupied since the Acme closed.

Store #1047 had an unusual layout compared to the standard issue pitched-roof model. The entrance, down at the right corner of the building, leads directly into the Produce side of the store. Customer Service and the bread delivery room are on left side of the store, opposite the entrance side. Another unusual aspect is the lack of Produce delivery doors at the front or side of the building. It appears that all back room space is to the rear. This breaks from the more common layout which lead customers along the back of the registers to the Produce Department. This store also lacks the produce back room area which ran along the side of the store just behind the Produce aisle. I have been in a couple other pitched-roof stores that had this same type of layout... the former Reading store at Greenwhich and North 6th street and the former Williamsport PA store on East 3rd Street next to the Kmart. I believe the Phillipsburg store also had this layout.

Many pitched-roof stores stared out with this turquoise color scheme. The tiles were often painted red in later years. You can see the red paint wearing off at the Parkesburg store to reveal their original turquoise colors. The fish-eye logo sign long gone here. The Parkesburg store helps remind us of what this store looked like back in the day...

My chance to say it once again... this is the BEST grocery store sign EVER! Now back to Paulsboro...

The additional tiles stacked up on the far left windows cover the store office area in the corner.

No support columns for the the awning over the entrance. Earlier, more deluxe pitched-roof models had an awning extending across the entire front of the store as seen at the Clayton location. Strangely the pitched-roof model shrank in size and became less deluxe as newer stores were built.

No magic carpets! Notice too how the doors are not designated as entrance and exit. As in other pitched-roof models, the doors would have remained opened for the entire day until the store closed at night. There was no second set of doors inside. A powerful blast of air greeted customers upon enterting which would keep the outside air out and the inside air in.

Now for a fascinating look inside...

You can see here that there was not a second set of doors.

The department signage on this side of the store is a bit puzzling. This is the first time I've seen cursive lettering for an Acme of this particular era. I would venture to say that the original Produce lettering was switched out at some point. The Deli sign in the back looks to be an after thought rather than the more commonly seen "Corner Deli" lettering.

Notice the drop ceiling tiles at this location. Nearly all pitched-roof stores have exposed ceilings. Some ceiling tiles looks to have been replace after the Acme closed. Can't image they would be looking so white after all these years.

Pretty incredible produce graphics in the front corner...

Looks like the second bowl lost it's fruit. Can't tell what the box to the left is. Notice the banana standing all the way to the right.

Odd to see no Meat Department signage in the back of the store. Perhaps it was removed. The sign all the way to the left read "Satisfaction Guaranteed".

As best as I can count, the store had seven aisles. About the going rate for pitched-roof stores of this size.

The lettering on this sign as well as the Delicatessen sign appear to be more contemporary than the other signage in the store. Doubtful that these signs are original.

Far more interesting signage at this side of the store. Essentially an early version of the 70's Colonial Decor package.

"Smoked Meat" department back in the corner leaving a very limited space for Dairy. The shapes used for the Smoked Meat sign were common in the decor of the 60's through early 80's stores. You can see them at the former Somers Point store by clicking here. A colonial light fixture may have hung from the bracket there on the right up at the ceiling line.

Some scars left by removed signs or graphics on either side of the Dairy Department.

And now for a look at the Virginia Lee Bakery!

Virginia Lee was busy back in the 60's. Baking bread and cranking out the stockings...

Photos courtesy of Dave W

I'm not familiar to the extent of the Virginia Lee branding throughout the store. Seems to be Acme's answer to A&P's "Jane Parker" private label brand.

Ahhhh... the good ol' days!

Customer Service office. The bread delivery room is behind the brick wall. Customers look to have been served from this side of the office. The "front" which faces down the Dairy aisle may have been covered over to allow for shelving to be added to that side.

The office here is eerily similar to the one I spent many a year in counting out tills.

Notice at this store how the pitched-roof extends to to the Dairy wall. In most models there's a drop ceiling added over the Dairy aisle. This was done in stores who's pitch was much higher than the one here. You can see an example of this at Parkesburg...

The small room just beyond the shelf and cabinets is were cashiers would come to pick up and drop of their register drawers.

Cabinet added when register and computer systems were upgraded.

And one final look of the store through the eyes of the Head Cashier.

Now for a brief look around the store...

These shots were taken back when I was a little less adventurous with taking pictures, hence the lack of closeups. Can't even spot any second floor windows here.

Aeriel views...

Information on this store comes to us from joshaustin610: Began as a Grant City when the center openend in the 60's. Then became a King's in the late 70's until that chain folded. Ames later took over the space. Josh isn't sure if the store remained open until the chain when under in 2002.

Historical aerials...

2007

2002

1995

1971

1970

Acme drawing a decent crowd back in 1970.

1965

As the sun sets on the former Paulsboro store, Acme Style signs off for the year 2011.

2011 Grand Finale coming this Friday...

2011-12-28T17:37:00.002-05:00

Check back to this very spot, starting 7 am Friday for this year's final post. Below is a sneak peak. Hmmmm... where could it be? Guessing the store's location is not permitted as the commenting for this post has been disabled. See you Friday!

2011-12-27T14:52:00.000-05:00

100,000 Now Served at Acme Style!!

Thanks for helping Acme Style

reach this momentous millstone!

Happy Holidays from Acme Style!

2011-12-23T07:00:00.000-05:00

Video courtesy of WhatsAYak on youtube

Wishing you all a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

2011-12-20T07:30:00.000-05:00

Former Acme Pick of the Day!

Location: 676 Lincoln Highway, Fairless Hills PA

You are NOT looking at a former Acme! The 50's/early60's flat-roofed model that existed on this site is to the left side of the church. I get a lot of emails about this one being a former pitched-roof which certainly makes sense. A closer look reveals, however, that the building is far too large and tall to have ever been a pitched-roof Acme. Additionally, the piteched-roof stores were not paired with the giant sign towers you see on the right. The signs were discontinued along with the flat-roofed 50's models.

Upon my visit here, I thought that the former Acme stood right where the church is now. It wasn't until I returned did some aerial research that I discovered the Acme building is still standing next door. Thing is, from the ground you would never know the other building was an Acme. It's been converted to two stories and has a new facade disguising any evidence of it's origins. Unfortunately, I didn't take any shots of that building because there wasn't much to see. Plus, I was a little too distracted by the former Acme sign...

The aerial images tell a more complete story compared to what's now seen on the ground...

The weathered grey roofs are the former Acme and what appears to have been a small store next door. We'll see in the historical images that the property that a strip mall may have been planned but never came to fruition.

If you look closely through the trees to the right you can see the 2nd floor break room and bathroom windows. No way to tell from here if any delivery doors or docks are still intact.

Heading back in time...

2008

2002

Looks as though construction is wrapping up on the church here.

1995

The grassy area extending to the top of the photo seems to suggest more stores were planned for this property. Looks as though just one additional store was built just to the left of the Acme. I don't have information on when this Acme opened or when it closed.

1971

Another 50's Acme with a mind-bloggling amount of parking.

1965

1958

Classic Acme! Dresher, PA

2011-12-16T07:00:00.000-05:00

Location: 524 Twining Road, Dresher PA

Time now for yet another of Acme's oldest stores still in operation. In fact, nearly all of the oldest (pre-1960) remaining stores stores now appear on the blog. Two exceptions that I am aware of are the Westmont and West Chester stores. Those two store, however, look nothing like they did originally due to expansions and renovations. There may also be a store or two in Philly which date back to the 50's but they too no longer resemble their original form.

The Dresher Acme opened in May 1958. At first this location threw a bit of a wrench into the timeline I have come up with for the various models of stores over the decades. The Dresher Acme is clearly the "Colonial Cottage" model which I have pegged at debuting near the end of the pitched-roof era. The Dresher store predates that era by a decade. It looks as though this store was remodeled and upgraded to the Colonial Cottage look sometime in the 60's. It's front end switched from the 50's layout to the 33M format. Customers enter straight into Produce with Customer Service just to the left of the entrance. Changes to the store's original layout and exterior design may have happened around 1966 when a small addition was added to the right side of the store. The expansion, while extending along the whole right side of the store, allowed only for a Produce alcove in the front corner. The rest of the addition is back room space.

The layout of the doors and window here is very similar to the former Port Reading store.

I'm not sure what these doors were originally used for. Double doors such as these are most often found on the Produce side of the store. An in-store Bakery is currently in this corner. These could very well have been the original entrance and exit. The former bread room, which was often a companion to the Customer Service office, is also on this side of the store.

Notice the added detailing on and around the doors, common to the Colonial Cottage model.

Colonial light fixture still above the former bread delivery door.

Looks to be a sign scar just above the entrance.

Stepping inside for the interior tour...

Wow, nearly missed this! Had to do a double take. Wasn't sure if I was imagining it or not. We'll se it again upon exiting the building.

Industrial Circus decor here. This store was probably remodeled a good ten years ago and has aged extraordinarily well. The Dresher Acme has been meticulously maintained since it's last remodel. Floors, walls and most cases all looking virtually brand new. I have to say, I think Albertsons did a pretty good job updating these smaller stores. They're never going to be able to compete with supermarkets of today but Albertsons did make them they best they could be. Too bad they didn't give this sort of treatment to some of our favorite old stores that were allowed to die off. Interesting to compare this store with a similar model in Manasquan NJ, which to this day is still all American Stores inside and out.

Produce is small but sharply organized and well stocked. This store is surprisingly short on clutter despite it's small size.

Decent Floral department to the left here. Produce would have run along this wall prior to the added alcove.

The original Deli recessed spot lights still intact.

This place is seriously clean and well maintained.

One of the few signs in the store that hasn't completely survived. It's lost it's meat illustration square which would have been mooted to the left side. (See Deli above.)

The store tops out at 10 aisles.

Decent Bakery here considering the size of the store.

Customer Service to the left of the entrance. Shoppers exit on the other side...

With one last look at this classic door panel.

The loading bay section added on sometime after 1971.

Looking at this shopping center I can't help but to think an A&P should be here rather than an Acme. Looks more like an A&P set-up. Acmes of this ear so often stood alone.

The angled wall at the right corner is the addition added in the mid 60's.

And now to the rather interesting historical aerials...

2002

1971

1967

Dresher must have done some serious business back in the day. Expansions weren't all that common in the 50's and 60's, especially considering this stores relatively large size to begin with!

1965

1958

Even from the air all the way back in 1958, this store looks more like a Colonial Cottage model than a standard 50's model.

1950

2011-12-06T07:00:00.000-05:00

Bryn Mawr opening to be delayed!

BrynMawr Patch has reported that the construction of the new Acme has been delayed due to record rainfall over the past few months. The store, which was scheduled to open on March 2, has no opening date set at this time. You can read all about and see some pictures at brynmawr.patch.com. Acme Style is planning full coverage of the flagship store when the big day does arrive.

In other Acme Style news... just a few more posts coming your way this year. Look for the "Big Post of the Week" to go up on December 16th (classic location!) and December 30th, which will be 2011's Grand Finale. A few small posts are also in the works before year's end. Acme Style will then kick-off its 4th year on January 13, 2012.

Former Acme — Dover, NJ

2011-12-02T07:00:00.000-05:00

Location: 23-29 Basset Highway, Dover NJ

A few weeks ago I mentioned my plan of doing a double post for November 18th. The plan was to pair the new store in Randolph with this former store in Dover. Turned out I went a little to crazy taking pictures that day and couldn't get everything up in time. So today we're returning to this area of New Jersey to check out the former Acme of Dover, which only recently was it confirmed to me that this was in fact an Acme. I had passed this building a million times back in the 80's and 90's. I suspected it might have been an Acme but the blue tile threw me off. I had gone inside a couple of times to explore and did see the classic Acme air vents along the ceiling. Still, I wasn't convinced. At the time I knew of the former Rockaway Acme over on West Main Street and had never heard a mention a former store in Dover. When the Rockaway stores went up on the blog, PennFruitFan mentioned this location in the comments section. I have been trying to get back here ever since. Finally made it while I was en route to the Randolph store.

The Acme anchored the Dover Shopping Center, which extends to the left of they store. We'll be getting a look at that area below. Now for a look at PennFruitFan's informative contribution over on the Rockaway post...

"This Acme -- easily recognized from the blue panels and window-wall -- was one anchor of the Dover Shopping Center, a major downtown strip center built in the late 1950s. The center also included FW Woolworth, JC Penney, WT Grant, and (at the opposite end from Acme) one of the more architecturally-unique Food Fairs I have seen, in addition to smaller stores and a (now-gone) parking deck.

The entire DSC met its demise when the nearby Rockaway Town Center was built. The Acme was briefly an A&P when a nearby location of the latter burned; today it is a Goodwill-type store. The Food Fair exists today as a State of New Jersey Unemployment office -- with the original terrazzo floors! Most of the other buildings still stand, but the stores have been converted to agency and office space -- don't know if the second-floor bowling alley is still in business. The site is worth a visit if you are in the area."

We'll head down the strip in a bit to see the other buildings PFF is referring to. For now, a ton of pictures of this former Acme (maybe a bit overkill here but I love seeing these virtually frozen-in-time former stores)...

The original recessed lights still intact. Bread delivery door next to the entrance. The store also had an entrance at the rear.

Looking in the windows to the left of the entrance. Notice the air vents along the top of the left hand wall. I would guess that the checkouts were along this side of the store. The Meat Department was along the far back wall there.

Looking over towards the entrance and second set of windows along the right hand wall.

Here we've gone around the corner...

Guessing again... the aisles of the Acme ran the same direction as these clothing racks.

Meat Department is still intact...

The rear entrance. The rear parking lot is through the gate. Lots of activity going on at the back of the store. Appeared to be some clean up and repainting of the parking space lines. Didn't head in to take pictures of the back doors.

Back around to the other side...

Looks as though the Acme had windows along this wall.

And now for the aerial portion of the post...

Interesting angle to the front of the store.

And for a look down the street...

I believe this store was the JCPenney.

The former Food Fair. There are also some interesting stores to see across the street. The sun glare was making pictures taking a little difficult.

Historic Aerials...

1987

1979

A full look at the shopping center as is today.

1970

There was a drive-in movie theater to the rear of the stores. You can see the screen all the way to the left of the lot. A clearer shot of it below...

1963

1957

The Acme was the last to arrive on the strip.

The image above shows the proximity of the former Dover Acme to the now-closed Rockaway Acme. I imagine Dover remained in business until the new Rockaway store. The old Rockaway store in just south if this satellite image.

The Rockaway Acme still sitting empty. The snow is leftover from the October 30 storm. Can't figure out why Whole Foods doesn't jump on this. Rockaway has all the low-end food retailers covered... from ShopRite to Costco, Walmart to Target. Whole Foods would do booming business here with the crowds that the Rockaway mall draws from all the surrounding areas. Clearly I'm not all that familiar with Whole Foods criteria for locations to open but it just seems to make sense. The closest Whole Foods to this area is half an hour away in Madison township.

2011-11-29T07:00:00.000-05:00

Former Acme Pick of the Day!

Photos courtesy of Charlie T.

Location: 115 Bellevue Avenue, Penndel PA

The Penndel Acme opened in August 1941 and closed in March 1966.

Update 11.30.11: It's looking from the comments that this store actually opened in 1951.

Below is an image of how this store would have looked...

This illustration is from Acme's 100th Anniversary Calendar which you can view in its entirety by clicking here. An actual photo of this style of store can be seen below...

(Photo courtesy of the Wildwood Historical Society/

George F. Boyer Museum.)

This store was located in Wildwood, New Jersey. You can check out the full Wildwood post by clicking here. And now back to Penndel...

Update: 12.05.11: Here's a look at the pitched-roof replacement store, which is now a Planet Fitness...

Photos courtesy of Steven W.

Location: 1405 Lincoln Highway, Levittown PA

Steven reports that this store opened in 1966 in the Langhorne Square Shopping Center. Acme later replaced this location with a new store in Lincoln Plaza across from the Oxford Valley Mall. That building no longer stands. It was torn down to make way for a Circuit City which has since become a hhgregg.

A Redner's Warehouse Market is now located next to the former pitched-roof Acme.

2002

1971

1965

Happy Thanksgiving from Acme Style!

2011-11-22T07:30:00.000-05:00

Acme — Randolph, NJ

2011-11-18T07:00:00.000-05:00

690 Millbrook Avenue, Randolph NJ

The Acme in Randolph, which has also been referred to on the blog as the Mount Freedom store, has two strikes against it. First, it's a 2000's model. We have seen on the blog that many stores built in the early to mid 2000's have struggled with many stores of this recent era closing down. Second, it's located in North Jersey, which is an area that was once an Acme strong-hold but is now a region that Acme has virtually retreated from. Today only 3 stores remain in the northern most part of the state... Randolph, Morris Plains and Clifton. Former power house stores like Rockaway and Succasunna are gone, both surrendering to nearby ShopRites. Classic 50's models like Newton and Sparta which were institutions in their respective towns for 40-plus years, met their demise in the 2000's.

Despite these challenges, the Randoph store is very successful. Certainly proof that Acme hasn't completely lost out on North Jersey just yet. The store also happens to be among the nicest Acme's I've encountered in my travels. Ten years after opening, it still looks brand-new inside. Impeccably clean and maintained.

I first stumbled across this store by accident, way back in the early 2000's, long before this blog was born. Must have been right after the store had opened. My first visit here was the first time I had been to a an Acme of the 2000's era. At the time, the exterior was not as attractive as it is now. Actually I thought it was pretty ugly and plain compared to the 90's models. (You'll get a glimpse of its original look down in the satellite photos.) The exterior design is most likely due to the fact that this store was not originally planned as an Acme. It was going to be a Grand Union. Unfortunately GU went under before construction began. Rumors began to circulate that Acme would be picking up many Grand Unions but sadly wound up with just this location. Acme may have decided to keep GU's exterior plans for the building rather than design something different. It does match some other Grand Unions that were built during the company's final years.

The interior here is an interesting version of the "Alberton's Marketplace". Rob Ascough had told me a while back that Acme's original plan was to put the "Acme Theme Park" (officially know as Grocery Palace) decor in this store but that plan was reconsidered due the decor package's high cost. We'll see some evidence of the Theme Park influence in the interior structure.

The store is located at the intersection of Millbrook Avenue and Sussex Turnpike. This picture is taken from Sussex which sits higher than the store's property.

This alley leads out to Sussex Turnpike. The clock is a nice feature here but would have been even nicer with a bit more design.

Lettering here now converted to white. The interior has the Premium Fresh and Healthy aisle and category markers. The front of the store was also painted with a warm beige color which replaced white which remains along this side of the store.

The ACME sign started off right where it is. It was then moved to the left to make room for the Sav-on sign. Sav-on has since been bumped down to the awning just to the right edge of this photo with ACME being moved back to the center. The pyramid topped box over the entrance was common in other Grand Unions built around this time. The pictures for this post were taken during two different visits which is why you see leaves in some and not in others.

In we go...

Newly added ala carte station just inside the entrance. This shot is looking across the front-end of the store. Behind where I'm standing is a Seattle Coffee shop (formally Starbucks). This area of the store was very busy during my visit so it was difficult getting pictures. The coffee shop appears to be a huge draw here. It was very busy.

Deli and Bakery line the left wall. Prepackaged deli foods and bottled drink cases are located in the front corner behind this shot. Notice the floor here... not the usual tiling for an Albertsons Marketplace store. We'll be seeing even more interesting tile treatments during our tour.

Bakery in the back corner. The structure seen in the corner very closely matches those of the "Theme Park" decor package. You can see examples here and here.

Fresh Seafood has been tilting for quite a while. Guess it's not getting any worse. Holiday signage now hanging from the ceiling. Notice the Premium Fresh and Healthy store directory hanging down by Dairy. There is one in the front of there store as well.

Oops. Category markers are all hanging backwards. The curved section should be hanging out over the aisle. Here's a look at Lincroft were they're having the right way. Nice to see the update "Wild Harvest" signage here.

Interesting tile treatment in the soda and snack aisle. Many aisles here have unique tile treatments which is a feature seen in the Acme Theme Park decor.

Frozen Food with unusual category markers not matching the rest in the store.

Snowflake tiles on the floor which we have seen in other stores. The more commonly seen floor in Frozen can be seen here.

Very cool pet aisle tile treatments...

And onto the baby aisle...

Bold and colorful treatments in the cleaning supplies and health & beauty aisles...

On to Dairy...

Deli meat located all the way over in the Dairy aisle.

This store tops out at 15 aisles. A much smaller store than Acme was building throughout the 90's.

Pharmacy in the front corner paired with a small Floral Department. Photo and Customer Service along the front behind the checkouts.

Checkouts to the right of this photo...

Now to the satelite images...

The Acme is located in a largely residential area. The lack of nearby competition iHere we can see the original white facade. Zooming in closer just brings us to the current look...

A few historical aerials of the store...

2006

2002

1995

The first 2000's era Acme I had ever been to. Just as impressive today as it was back then!

Clementon is comin' down!

2011-11-13T12:10:00.001-05:00

The former Clementon Acme, which has been abandoned for about 2 decades, is about to be a thing of the past. The property's fate has finally been decided. Check out this Facebook to see the plans.

Today's post rescheduled for next Friday

2011-11-10T21:35:00.001-05:00

The post I've been working on for today did not get finished in time. It has been reschedule for next Friday. Bad news, I know. The good news is... there will be a double post next week! We'll have a very successful 2000's model paired with an interesting and former store, the likes of which have not yet been seen on the blog.

Update 11.14.12: My plans are proving to be too ambitious this week. The former store posted planned for next Friday has been put on hold. The 2000's store will still be going up with lots of pictures. There will be an additional post which will wrap up some unfinished of a previously visited former store. The other former store I mentioned will be going up in the very near future.

Classic Acme — Middletown, Delaware

2011-11-08T09:40:00.000-05:00

Photos courtesy of Acme Markets

The current Middletown Acme will be making an appearance on the blog in the near future. For now, we have some classic photos of the former Middletown Acme which have been provided by Acme Markets for our enjoyment! Discussion of the Middletown stores erupted in the commenting section for the Hamilton Square NJ post back in March. One commenter was so interested in seeing pictures of this store, he called up Acme and asked for some.... and here they are. This store no longer stands. It has been torn down and replaced with a new town hall.

A surprise return to the Clayton Acme!

2011-11-03T21:37:00.001-04:00

Photos courtesy of John aka JSF0864 on Flickr

Well this was an unexpected arrival in Acme Style's inbox... pictures of one of the greatest and most classic Acmes still in existence . I have been hoping to get back here myself to put together a more extensive post than was originally done on the Clayton store back in Acme Style's early days. While those plans are still in the works, in the meantime we're being treated to spectacular photos that John took just this week. He posted on his flickr photostream and kindly allowed me to post them here as well. Please check out John's collections by clicking here for fascinating pictures and ads from such classic chains as Two Guys, Nichols, Kmart, Clover... A&P/Super Fresh fans most definitely need to to click here.

The ceiling inside is covered with plastic while work is being done on the roof. Creates a cool lighting effect in these photos.

Fantastic shot of the interior sign. Hard to believe this sign is still going strong after 47 years!

This photo brilliantly captures the grandeur of the pitched-roof stores. Clayton remains the only structurally unaltered pitched-roof store in the entire chain.

Thanks again to John for sharing these photos with us. You can visit his Clayton collection here and which includes additionally commentary for each photo.

Price Fighter Matchbook

2011-11-01T08:09:00.000-04:00

Former Acme revisited, Wilkes-Barre PA

2011-10-28T07:00:00.000-04:00

Classic pictures of
Wilkes-Barre stores now included!

Location: 372 South Main Street, Wilkes Barre PA

Present day photos courtesy of Ross K.

Acme opened here in the Penn Plaza back in September 1966. Although not obvious from the front, this store began it's life as a pitched-roof model which was expanded and updated most likely in the 70's. This location made it's debut on the blog as part of the "Wyoming Valley Tour" which was done back in the early days of the blog. Last week, we recently visited the demolition of the Plains Acme which was part of the tour as well.

We've headed back to this particualr location thanks to Ross K, who is a new contributor to the blog. He visited the store this past summer and photographed it more extensively for the blog. His coverage includes photos of the interior which are extremely fascinating. Despite the fact that this location has been 3 different retailers since the Acme vacated the space, the interior is has changed only slightly with much of Acme's decor items left behind. This Wilkes Barre location, along with 44 other Acmes in Northern Pennsylvania and New York, was sold to Penn Traffic back in 1995. Many of the stores, including this one, were converted to Bi-Lo.

Classic photo of the Acme still open! Thanks to Mike for sending them in! The red oval logo looking great here as a separate sign mounted to the facade as opposed to the more commonly seen panel inserted into the old fish-eye sign frame.

Update 10.29.11: As we see here, this Acme was converted to an Insalaco's, not a Bi-Lo as reported above. Both banners were part of the Penn Traffic company which bought these locations. Many NEPA Acme's were converted to Bi-Lo's.

Update 10.31.11: Turns out this former Acme sported both the Insalaco's and Bi-Lo banners. Ross K provided a link in the comments section of the store as a Bi-Lo. Click here to have a look.

Back to the original post...

This side of the store was the original Produce aisle. Delivery doors were most likely here on the front of the store, although we have seen them along the side as well. Check out this pictures of Parkesburg for an example.

The store's original windows remain intact. As noted in many previous posts, the window covers seen here were installed often during remodels to increase sales floor space.

This store received a small addition to the left side. We'll have a better look at it in the aerial iamges. The exit area here would have been the store's original entrance and exit as they both shared the same vestibule in the 50's and 60's stores. As Acme moved into the 70's the entrance and exits were spilt to two different areas. The entrance here, to the left, would have lead right into Produce. Walking along the entire front of the store to get to Produce was now a thing of the past.

Awning still 100% intact! You can see the middle section there as it dips down. This awning would have been identical to the one at the Clayton store.

Magic carpets in the vestibule. The triangle section seen often in Acmes where carts need to make a turn. In we go...

Remnants of the Checkerboard Arch decor! The Produce aisle would have been located to the right under the lower section of the ceiling. Customer Service all the way to the front right before the windows start. Pitched-roof disguised by a drop ceiling.

Seafood and the Deli would have been located to the right side of this picture, which is the rear corner of the store. This angled corner so common in the 33M styled stores. Check out this shot of a former Acme in Philly which will give you a good idea of how this area looked in the 80's.

Deli here along the left wall with the Meat Department extending across the back of the store.

The checkboard arch trim all painted white along with the wall. You can check out both the Middlesex store and Manasquan store for the Checkerboard Arch decor. The last two stores still open to have it as far as I know. Always on the hunt for others but I regretably believe they are the last.

Wow! Blue light boxes remain over what would have been the Frozen Food department. They would have been located over the check outs as well but have been removed. Produce would have had green light boxes but they are clearly gone as well.

Gotta say, they still look sharp here. The front corner was home to the Bakery.

The in-store Bakery Departments didn't get the arch treatment or the checkerboard print. You can take a look at the Bakery in Middlesex to see the decor that would have been here.

Heading over to the front end...

Thank you for shopping ACME... but ACME is gone. You can see a similar treatment at the Manasquan store. Interesting that the the 3 former retailers in this location kept those words on the wall.

And now to the back of the store.... staircase added at some point. Possibly due to fire regulations. Notice the beam above the compressor door is missing. You can see it still in place at the Princeton Junction store.

We see the rear of the addition here, taller than the left side of the original building.

The other side of the store appears to have had a small addition affecting only back room space.

Side shot.

The original Acme parking lot sign has been through a lot of changes of the years but is still standing.

This shopping center is in the planning stages of a full make over. Property owners have been looking for a grocery store to move into the center and the have finally found one... Sav-a-lot! It will not be moving into Acme's old space. The Salvation Army is staying put. The discount grocer will occupy other space in the center. You can read more about it at citizenvoice.com by clicking here.

Up for some aerials of the store. Historic aerials are not available for this area which is often the case for for the Acmes of Pennsylvania.

Aerial images appear to have been taken before post furniture store and pre-Salvation Army. You can see a small addition was added to the left side of the store allowing a switch from the original 50's/60's layout to the 33M layout seen in the interior picures. While there wasn't enough room to double the size of the store, which was commonly done to expanded pitched-rood stores, it does seem there was enough space for a larger addition that was done here.

Hard to know for sure if any additional space was added to the right side. Looks as though the delivery bays may have been added.

Now over to Wilkes-Bare other former pitched-roof Acme which is less than 2 miles away. This location was expanded to nearly double it's original size much like the Princeton Junction store.

Location: 950 Wilkes-Barre Township Blvd (Route 309), Wilkes Barre PA

Update 10.29.11: Beautiful classic photo of the Route 309 store! As mentioned in the comments section, this store had the 80's remodel until it's final days. The sign here is the panel style that was most likely installed in the former fish-eye sign frame. Judging from the signage, it appears that this store received it's addition and new facade sometime in the 70's or early 80's, while the Penn Plaza store was expanded during the 80's remodel. Interesting that the smaller store of the two stores received a remodel in the 90's.

Image courtesy of Wyoming Valley Blog

A quick check on Google Maps and I discover the old Acme beginning it's transformation into new retail spaces.

Much better shots sent in by Mike of the Route 309 store being deconstructed. A fascinating look at how these pitched-roof stores were expanded and disguised.

Image courtesy of Wyoming Valley Blog

This image was included in the original post and shows what the former Acme has become.

Back in the day there was only a 5 minute travel time between these 2 Acmes. Now Wilkes Barre has none.

Step inside the Beach Haven Acme...

2011-10-26T12:44:00.000-04:00

I have no idea what the point of this video is, apparently some sort of inside joke that's lost on me. All that aside, the video gives us a nice look inside the Acme in Beach Haven, New Jersey. Particularly the script logo on the door handles as the camera exits the store. I would suggest letting the video load and then jumping to the 2:50 when the camera finally heads indoors... unless of course you enjoy watching traffic lights change from green to red. Hitting the mute button wouldn't hurt either. Thanks to Barry Caselli for sending it in!

Abandoned Acme! Pennsauken NJ

2011-10-25T07:00:00.000-04:00

Photos courtesy of Cpt. Cranky

Location: 4675 River Road, Pennausken NJ

The abandoned Pennsauken Acme. Closing date unknown. Exact opening date unknown but we'll see the store under construction as of 1970 in the historical aerial shots. Pennsauken had an Acme at 4900 Westfield Ave store which closed in March of 1968. That Acme is unrecognizable today. Even has a barrel roof which may indicate that Acme took over the location from another company. The former Acme seen here is the "Colonial Cottage" model which was built in the late 60's and early 70's. A relatively short lived model of Acme as it appeared towards the end of the pitched-roof era and just prior to the 33M models of the 70's and early 80's. Other examples of this model include the former Acme in Belmar and the "World's Most Classic Acme" in Manasquan.

Built in the very edge of town (in the upper left-hand corner). Very similar in style and location to the Port Reading store.

Yet again, Acme prepared for massive crowds at this store. Parking for 320 cars! (It's true, I counted.)

Historical aerials...

2002

1995

The Pennsauken Acme appears to have been open in 1995.

1970

Under construction as of 1970.

Demolition: Former Acme, Plains PA

2011-10-18T07:27:00.002-04:00

Location: 16 South Main Street, Plains PA

The former Plains PA Acme, which was featured on the blog way back in the day as part of the Wyoming Valley Tour, is being torn down. These pictures were sent in back in late August while the demolition was in progress. This location had become and Eckerd Drug Store but had been abandoned in recent years according to Google Maps street view. A Turkey Hill convenience store and gas station will be built in it's place.

Photo courtesy of Wyoming Valley Blog

The home owners here in the lower right corner must not have been happy when Acme built their store. The Acme had no doors or driveway along the back of the store. Looks as though the only delivery bay was on the left side of the building...

Classic Acme! St. Michaels, Maryland

2011-10-14T07:00:00.000-04:00

Photos courtesy of George from Ashburn

Location: 114 Talbot Street, St. Michaels MD

The St. Michaels Acme has finally arrived! I've been hoping to get this store up on the blog since day one. Never got to it myself but thanks to George for doing an excellent job photographing it for us. One of Acme's oldest and smallest locations still in operation today. It may, in fact, be the smallest Acme out there. It's closest competitors for the title include Maple Shade and Sea Isle City. Maple Shade is tough to judge as it does have 11 aisles but they run from side to side rather than the traditional front to back layout. Sea Isle City has 9 relatively short aisles along with a Produce alcove that is in an expanded part of the store. I do not have access to official square footage to declare a winner.

This location opened as an Acme in July of 1959 after previously being an Asco Service Store. The building was doubled in size before being rebranded as an Acme. Thanks, as always, to Bill Haines for these historic details!

St. Michaels is the only store in the entire chain to sport the original cursive sign across the font of the store. (Haddonfield and Wildwood both have cursive logos but they were added in recent years to give the stores a retro feel.) While I can't say for certainty, I am quite sure that this is not the original sign. These signs had deteriorated badly at other Acme locations by the 70's and 80's. This particular one may have been replaced at some point. It isn't looking 52 years old.

Update 10.15.11: The sign is not the original. Update at the end of the post has all the details.

Acme sits right in the heart of St. Michaels whose population is around 2,000 people. The town sits right on a bay and is home to the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum which is a huge tourist draw.

In we go...

Looks to be only 3 full-service registers here. Possibly an express register at Customer Service. Not entirely sure where that's located. Possibly down at the other end of the registers.

A very nice application of the Neighborhood Market decor, especially with the exposed brick at the front of the store.

Check this out... the spot lights along the Produce aisle are on! I've never seen these working in any Acme... or former Acme... I've been in. We saw these lights in the last post of the former Acme in Brick which you can see here. Produce would have origianally extended all the way down aisle 1. It's since been condensed towards the front of the store with multi-teared cases to make way for addictional frozen food cases. Interesting since the Frozen Food department is located at the other side of the store.

Retro script logo looking great along the rear wall of the store. .

The "Delicious Deli" is the only department in the Neighborhood Market decor package to get the department name spelled out on the wall. Here with "St. Michael's Best" added below. You can compare the treatment here with the one at the former Jersey City store and Clayton.

Plain floor tiles throughout. It would be interesting to know the various decor packages that have been here or lack there of. I would guess this store had the 70's Colonial Decor package right up until the Neighborhood Market decor was put in.

Both Dairy and Produce have framed illustrations with the department. Boating and Bay related items help to decorate the store as well.

St. Michaels tops out at 7 aisles!

While we don't see it in any of the pictures, a good amount of shelf space here is dedicated to beer and liquor which is undoubtedly good for business! Is Customer Service behind the "Cold Drinks"? Looks like there's something there between the cases and the vestibule.

Another look at the back wall treatment and then we head back outside...

Seriously faded sign. The red paint is comlpletely gone. While the sign is faded, I doubt that it is the original. Interesting to see all the different versions of the script logo. It's style was never set in stone even back in the 50's when it was the official logo.

Traffic can move around the entire store. One way here to the back which includes a small parking lot.

An old trailer in the back servers as extra storage which is common at these smaller locations.

Heading back out to Talbot Street...

Red paint still intact on this side of the sign.

One of the only satellite views of the store on Google Maps. Bing does not have this area available for closeups. There are no historical aerial images available either so we won't be able to travel back in time for this store.

Still close to the shore! Just not the Jersey shore here. St. Mihaels sits along Miles River which is actually a bay. Graui's Market is another grocery store in town located on Talbot Road as well, one mile and a half miles south of the Acme. The two stores appear to be about the same size. You can visit their website by clicking here. They have six locations in Maryland.

Near the top of this map, you'll see the towns of Stevensville and Centreville. Both homes to Acme Markets. You can visit each store here on the blog by clicking here and here.

A screen grab from Google street view for a feel of Talbot Street.

One final look at one of the oldest and smallest Acmes still open for business today. Thanks to George for providing such great pictures of this extraordinary Acme Market.

Updates 10.15.11: Thanks to Gerry for providing some interesting facts about St. Michaels in the comments section. I'm adding them as an update to the post so they don't get missed.

The over head was originally Yellow tile and had Blue Colored Script, in cursive that was illuminated by and overhead lamps. The "new" sign was added afterwards.

The store was saved because and Acme Vice President at the time lived in St Mikes. The store was renovated with the summer tourist in mind and even had a small coffee bar with stools for a while. The summers as well as the Beer sales keep this store alive. In the winter the staff shrinks with the Grocery Manager running groceries, frozen and dairy himself and the Store Manager receiving. The Meat Manager relieving the Deli Manager on her day off.

The Acme in Easton as High volume store is down the road North of this store.

Announcements, updates, improvements...

2011-10-11T07:00:00.000-04:00

Acme Style Directory: The stand alone directory website, which can be viewed by clicking here, is fully updated! All stores on that appear on the blog are now listed in the directory. The "Specialty Departments" section has additional categories as well as the brand-new "Classic Acme" category.

AcmeStyleDirectory.com

Directory: In addition to the stand alone directory having been updated, the directory list along the right side of the blog has also been significantly updated. The directory categories have been cleaned up and all posts on the blog have been reviewed with all applicable tags added to each.

Acme Style on your mobile deivce! Blogger has launched a more convenient format for viewing blogs on smart phones and tablets. It is now available for Acme Style. No need to download an app. Just visit Acme Style through your mobile device browser and you will see the blog in it's new, simplified format.

RSS feed: Acme Style is now available as an RSS feed for use with Google Reader and other programs that make viewing blogs easier.

Post scheduling: Going forward, the "Big Post of the Week" will now be going up every other Friday. I can no longer pull off a post every Friday. This is largely due to the demands of my day job that have increased significantly over the past year. It's, unfortunately, leaving me much less time to work on the blog. Tuesday's "Pick of the Day" posts will continue a couple of times a month, most likely on the weeks when there won't be a Friday post.

Be sure to check back this Friday for

one of Acme's most extraordinary stores!

2011-09-16T07:26:00.000-04:00

Will Return Oct 14th

Friday, October 14, 2011

With our jam packed summer tour now complete, Acme Style will be on break until October 14th. During that time I will be plotting our adventures for the Fall and doing some much needed maintenance behind the scenes. Catching up on emails too, since I have fallen sorely behind yet again. The summer tour turned out to be busier than I originally planned but am very pleased that nearly every single Jersey Shore store is now represented on the blog. For the fall season, we'll return to jumping around to random locations for the most part. Looking very forward to sharing photos sent in by several new contributors to the blog. The first location to go up next month is an extraordinary one and will be well worth the wait!

Let's go back to the shore!

2011-09-13T07:50:00.000-04:00

It's that time of year again... Acme Style is heading to the Jersey Shore! Last year's tour was a huge success, driving visitor counts here on the blog to record levels. While the 2010 tour covered all of the classics that remain along the coast, there are still some interesting locations left for us to visit. The first stop will be the Lincroft store with coverage provided by our Jersey Shore contributor Rob Ascough. Classic pictures included! From there we'll be jumping up and down the coast to see what stores are still in operation, as well as some interesting former Acme locations. Enjoy the tour! Acme Style will return to regularly scheduled programming in September.

V Scroll down for the Jersey Shore Tour V

Former Jersey Shore Acme, Brick NJ

2011-09-13T07:45:00.000-04:00

Location: 1890 Route 88, Brick NJ

The sign may say JoAnn Fabrics and Crafts but the building still screams Acme inside and out! I ventured out to this store on one of my road trips not expecting to find much of anything. I had this location originally penciled in for a a quick Tuesday post. Didn't even bother doing much research on it before I arrived. Once I got here, I realized I found the Grand Finalé for this year's Jersey Shore Tour! Now I know some of you may not agree that this store is finalé worthy and that's totally understandable. For me personally, my absolute favorite locations to visit are former Acmes that remain ghosts of Acmes past! I find them incredibly fascinating and it's the main reason why I wanted to start a blog on Acme in the first place. The former Brick Acme us among the coolest I've discovered.

I knew I was in for a good time when I was getting ready to turn into the entrance and my GPS said "Turn right on Acme Way"! Thought I was hearing things. Looked at the GPS and sure enough the road said "Acme Way". I tried to find a street sign to photograph but there was none. Acme Way is technically the driveway into the parking lot but it does extend past the front of the building and then back out to the left side entrance. You can see this all spelled out clearly in the aerial shots down below.

Just so happened too that the Acme Gods were smiling down on me this day. The JoAnn store was in the midst of a remodel on this particular day. There was no signage on the walls or hanging from the ceiling which made the place feel even more like an Acme. The entire interior structure is still intact sans the Meat and Deli wall which has been removed opening up back room space to the sales floor. Acme lighting remains throughout the store. We'll get a good look inside down below.

This store is a virtual twin to the abandoned store in Woodstown NJ. Compare to the pic below and it looks like a "before and after". Brick had a much larger bread delivery room out the left side but everything else is eerily similar. More similarities to come.

Huge bread room here at Brick. Compare to a similar shot of the Newton store by clicking here. Looked like JoAnn uses this room for classes. Stripes around the building are clearly a post-Acme addition.

Back of the store is still all Acme. Another comparison with the Woodstown store below...

Notice the roof is raised slightly above the compressor room only. Break room and bathrooms are not raised due to the fact the the height of the roof for the entire store is incredibly high. Beams for lifting the compressors still in place at both locations.

The back doors don't quite match up between the two stores. You can still see the scares of the awnings on the Brick store.

A close-up of the second floor.

Pretty extensive remodel going on inside. Must be all the old shelving and signage in these huge dumpsters. Didn't appear to be any structural changes going on inside despite all the construction workers roaming around.

Forgot to head in closer for Produce door scars although they would have been mostly covered up by the stripped refacing around the store. Dumpsters probably blocking some of them too.

The entrance has been moved to the center of the store sans a vestibule. Let's head inside...

Front-end view of the store from the far wall where Produce used to be. Acme's entrance and exit would have been where those green signs are straight ahead.

Acme air vents.. check! Produce spot lights... check!

Former door to Produce back room.

Notice the lack of JoAnn signage hanging from the ceilings and mounted to the walls.

Looking down aisle one to the Deli. Produce cases would have lined this wall.

Here they are again! Those strange boxes mounted to the wall above Deli and at the other end of the Meat Department. Woodstown has similar boxes on the wall. Click here for a view. I speculated on the Woodstown post that these boxes may have been related to the original decor. Upon a closer look here, they appear to disguise large vents on the wall. Perhaps the intake vents. You can see an example of the vents really getting in the way at the former Newton store.

Now we're back in the Deli looking up towards the front.

Stepping back to the service area of the Deli. You can see the Deli spot lights still in place...

In the Deli facing the Produce side of the store. I believe the back wall would have been right where the ceiling raises up to the left.

Looking down towards to the Meat Department.

Here I've stepped back in the Deli to the former back room space.

Meat Department spot lights still intact with bulbs and all!

Looking down towards the Deli...

The Dairy wall with the purple stripe.

We have spot lights along the Dairy aisle which I don't recall seeing very often in these old stores. You can see a couple above the Bakery section at the Woodstown store.

The air vent box... or something... above the Meat Department down by the Dairy aisle.

Full shot of the Dairy and Bakery aisle.

The corner would have been Customer Service with the bread delivery room beyond the wall with the maroon colored ceiling. JoAnn employees roaming around these parts. Couldn't get any better shots.

One more stop at the front end and we're outta here...

Walmart next door. Arrived in the mid 90's, Walgreens built a store in the Acme parking lot. Crazy how our drug stores are about the same size of the "Supermarkets" of the 50's. Notice "Acme Way". Shown here as a nonexistent street which isn't the case. Google Maps has it more accurately labeled as the driveway to the store and then back out behind the Walgreens.

Kmart and Pathmark, seen in the lower half of the image, arrived by the 80's. Probably did the Acme in.

Gotta give props to Kmart for hanging in there with Walmart about 60 seconds away. The Pathmark looks to be doing decent business.

Historical Aerials starting off with 2001 since nothing has changed here in the last 10 years...

2001

1995

The Acme looks to be closed and abandoned by this point. Certainly couldn't have survived with all the Marts and Pathmark nearby.

1986

Check this out! A ghost of a drive-in movie theater where the Walmart now stands. It's long been closed down here this shot. We'll get a look at it open down below. We'll also zoom into the Acme.

1986

Serious competition has arrived by 1986. Both Kmart and Pathmark are jammed with shoppers. The Acme? Not so much...

1986

Acme's days have got to be numbered here.

1972

And as these classic Acmes go, there's parking for about 200 when the store is lucky to have 20. This store could have doubled it's size and still had enough parking!

1963

Not sure of the opening date here. Probably around the same time as Woodstown in 1959.

1963

Drive-in open in 1963! The screen and projection booth are missing from the 1986 image above.

1956

Brick Township is not quite a beach town but certainly a quick drive to the shore. The Point Pleasant store, which lasted into the 90's, was just due east of the Brick Acme.

And that my friends marks the end of the 2011 Jersey Shore Tour!

The Jersey Shore Tour has resumed...

2011-09-11T08:40:00.000-04:00

Apologies for the delay of the "Final Days" of the Shore Tour. Acme Style was out of commission all of last weekend and several days this past week. Add to that the endless hours I have sat in traffic due to flooding for the past 2 weeks, there just hasn't been much blogging going on around here. The posts scheduled for last Tuesday have arrived. Three former locations which are being presented with satellite images only due to the lack of Acme features remaining today. One store has even been long torn down. I wanted to include these locations, as unexciting as they are, in an attempt to present every single Acme and former Acme along the Jersey Shore.

The Grand Finale of the Jersey Shore Tour 2011 will be presented on Tuesday While not nearly as exciting as the Grand Finale from last year, it is among my favorite types of Acmes to cover on the blog.

Former Jersey Shore Acme, Toms River NJ

2011-09-11T08:25:00.000-04:00

Location: 1 Route 37, Toms River NJ

Once a free-standing store, now surrounded by a strip mall. The Toms River Acme opened in December 1954. Closing date unknown. It may have been gone by the early 70's.

Close-up of the Acme now split into 2 smaller stores. While I don't have 100% confirmation that this building was the Acme, the historical aerial photos offer proof that this is the case.

The awnings over the back delivery doors were pretty standard on this era of Acme.

Historical Aerial images starting from the oldest...

1956

Acme opened in 1954 and as of 1956, it remained the only building on the property.

1963

Stores added to the left side of the Acme.

1972

Massive buildings added to the right side with an alley between the Acme building and the new section. The building to the rear, which can be seen more clearly below, is currently a Super Foodtown.

1986

Booming shopping center in the 80's. I'm guessing the Acme was long gone by this point.

Interesting the Acme gave up on this area of the Jersey Shore. The Seaside Heights, which was closed as of 1986, was exactly due west of the the Toms River store.

Former Jersey Shore Acme, Pleasantville NJ

2011-09-11T08:20:00.000-04:00

Location: 700 Black Horse Pike, Pleasantville NJ

The former Acme is the last building to the right, Opened in October 1957. The center store in the angled section to the left may have been a grocery store as well. The relatively small Big Kmart all the way to left had arrived by 1970.

Today the building is some kind of recreation center. The Mays Landing store is 7.5 miles east on Black Horse Pike.

The delivery bay was probably added on years after the building's original construction.

Historical Aerials...

2006

2002

1995

1970

1963

1957

The only remaining Acme in the area is the relatively new Brigatine store, which is just North of Atlantic City. As mentioned above, the Mays Landing store is about 10 minutes west on Black Horse Pike.