Location: 1212 O'Neil Highway (just off of Route 81)
Dunmore, PA
Classic Acme photos courtesy of Mike in Nanticoke PA.
Acme Style would like to give a shout out to TW-Upstate NY...
this one's for you!
The Dunmore Acme opened back in 1961 and, like Clarks Summit, was among the 45 stores that were sold to Penn Traffic in September 1994. Does anyone know if Penn Traffic converted it to one of their banners or abandoned the location after the acquisition?
The building is now split between an Advance Auto Parts store and a doctor's office. The Days Inn sign was located behind the store during Acme's days as well (with an older version of the the logo). I photoshopped it out of the Acme pictures above because it was too distracting but now see I should have left it in one. Oh well... gotta keep these old Acmes looking as good as possible!
The two photos above have been matched up as closely as possible so you can see how the store has transformed into it's current state. The Acme entrance along with it's lower awning section is where the peaked section is today. Looks like the doors the Auto Parts store are in the same place as Acme's. The tall windows on the Acme have been reduced in size. The new awning erases all evidence that this building was ever an Acme. I didn't take any interior shots of the Auto Parts store... the inside looks to have been mostly gutted and rebuilt.
The Acme Super Saver sign! When the "Super Saver" concept was initially rolled out, the Acme logo was not included. Super Saver stores started out as discount stores and did not carry Acme branded products. As the allure of the Super Saver concept faded, stores were returned to more Acme-like supermarktes. (Thanks to Bill Haines for the history lesson on the Super Savers!)
A closer look at the Super Save sign. Albertons resurrected this logo after purchasing American Stores. I believe it was used on stores in Florida. You can see the updated logo by clicking here.
The Acme is almost unrecognizable from the front with the updated awning. It isn't until you walk along the sidewalk that you start seeing some remnants of the ol' Super Saver.
Hard to see here but the Acme flood lights along the awning appear to still be in place.
This door was added after Acme left. The brick work looks updated as well.
Not sure which side of the store the Produce department was located on. Most likely this side although stores with similar entrance configurations sometimes had the Produce aisle on the right side. TW could probably give us a detailed tour of the interior.
Around to the back... looks to have had a minimal amount of changes. A nice wooden staircase has been added for the second floor door which would not have been there in the Acme days.
Now over to the neighbor's...
A Big Lots today but take a closer look and you'll see a Jamesway label scar! The store looks small from the front but extends pretty far back. There is access to basement levels stores from the rear.
Looking up to the former Acme from the Jamesway parking lot...
Huge Price Chopper next door.
Check out how the Price Chopper dwarfs the old 50's styled Acme. Too bad bigger isn't always better!
Great start to the New Year. and Always nice to see another Super Saver. It seems as if the Super Saver Brand lived on in the Central PA/Wyomming Valley area even after the Philly/NJ stores switched back to plain "Acme" during tehe 80s remodel era. Nice classic Jamesway too. A bit of Info about Super Saver post-Acme Days. In the mid 1990s American Stores (pre Albetsons) used the Super Saver name for a new discount food store concept in the Los Angeles (California) area (Lucky territory) It was never used in Florida AFAIK. But American and later Albertsons kept using the name under various format premutations from traditional discount formats to Hispanic themed stores in California and other Western markets umtil the breakup of the old Albetsons in 2006. the Cerebus-owned Albertsons LLC (the other owner of the Albertsons food assets besides Supervalu) now owns rights to the name "Super Saver" but has since closed most of the Super Saver locations.
ReplyDeleteAs I was looking at the photos of the Super Saver logo, I was thinking how it wouldn't have looked out of place today... then you talked about how it was actually used by Albertsons in recent years. IMHO, they should have left the cart alone. It looked sufficiently modern just as it was.
ReplyDeleteThis store leads me to believe that Acme was indeed building two different kinds of stores in the late 50's/early 60's. There were the stores like Newton and Sparta with the entrances on the left side of the building, complete with canopy extending over the area for the doors, and then a design with a smaller footprint that usually featured the doors in the opposite corner. I'm thinking stores like Union (Magie Avenue), North Plainfield and maybe even Secaucus had that layout... and Dunmore, of course. Anyone know more? Maybe Bill?
Sweet set, man! I remember seeing that Big Lots years ago. I can't believe the Jamesway labelscar is still there after more than 15 years!
ReplyDeleteDid you go inside by any chance? Any Jamesway vestiges left in there?
Thanks Nintendo85! I did not go inside the old Jamesway.It was a pretty nasty day. Took most of the pictures without leaving my car.
ReplyDeleteNext to the Acme would have been the Rea & Derick drugstore, as one of their many pairs during the 60s and 70s. It became a CVS in 1991, which relocated further into town (Blakely St) around 1998.
ReplyDeleteWe had a few super savers here in the Orlando area. They were in closed albertsons and they reopened them as Supersavers. The second chance did help and they all closed.
ReplyDeleteWish i had a picture
Super Saver's were not limited to flat top buildings, the "A" frame building at 23rd and Ritner in South Philadelphia was a Super Saver for many years. It then moved to 24th and Passyunk Ave. (the old Penn Fruit Co. building)and became Acme again. When driving through the rear lot which is 23rd street, the Acme and the Super Saver were on that same rear street. One building on either side.
ReplyDeleteI think Pep Boys is still located where the Super Saver used to be.
Trex
Does anybody have old pictures of the former Acme on Greenridge Street in Scranton, PA? It was demolished about 10 years ago.
ReplyDeleteOh my, where to begin. I'd just written up a verbose reply and somehow lost it all trying to post it so here goes again. First off, thank you for profiling this location after I practically begged you to do . This is my favorite Acme of all time. The place had character and my Mother did the bulk of our grocery shopping here from late '66 to June of 1980 when we lived in NE Pa. And save for the Woodstown, NJ Acme having the entrance on the opposite side, the two locations could've been twins. My first memories of the store were it having script lettering right up until the remodel of either '72 or '73. And as far as remodels go, it was more of a refresh than anything else. About the only changes I recall were the Colonial Decor wall graphics and new shelving. I don't even think the cases were changed. The layout reamined the same as well. The big change was the unit being given the Super Saver banner and the unceremonious dropping of S+H Green Stamps. Entrance was on the right as pictured and you would walk directly behind the checkouts and produce would be straight ahead on the far wall. Meat of course was along the back and the only reason I mention it at all was because this unit had the metallic tiling you mentioned in the Woodstown store. I even think that remained after the remodel/refresh. Now maybe somebody can help me on this one. Did this unit get a deli during this remodel because for the life of me, I can't ever recall one being in this store. Moving along, Dairy was along the opposite wall along with baked goods as I don't think there was an in-store bakery at least up until the time we moved. That's pretty much it for the store now to the rest of the center. To expand on what Josh had to say, I believe there was at one time a Pic-Way shoe store next door which was there right from my very first memories of the place. Rea & Derick did not come along until probably the mid to very late '70's and was a new build. There was also a bar and restaurant located adjacent as well. Now on to Big Lots. Before it was Jamesway, that building housed a Kings department store. The basement had a bowling alley-MBC Lanes I believe. I hung out there a lot as a kid too. And no Nintendo85, sadly no vestiges of Jamesway remain in the interior. Let's talk about that Price Chopper as well. That building sits on the site of a beverage store called Brewer's Outlet which apparently was torn down to make way for the grocery store. In turn, Brewer's Outlet built a new location adjacent to the Price Chopper complete with a Pa. Wind and Spirits Shop. This brings me back to a question I raised a while back here and I'm glad you brought it up again as well: I did suspect this location was sold to Penn Traffic along with the others. Did they ever operate one of their banners there? Somebody out there has to know I would think. I'm speculating that maybe they sold the location to Price Chopper who then opted to build a new store instead of operating in the old one. Based on a return trip to the area in 1999, they were already in that location on their present site. Anyways, something for us to figure out over time I guess. Again, thank you so much for featuring this store. Great memories of a great store. Look forward to what you have planned for this year.
ReplyDeleteI have pictures of the Green Ridge Acme. I'll find them and e-mail them.
ReplyDelete