A VA/WV-area Acme Markets chain?

Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia.

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Steve Landry
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Re: A VA/WV-area Acme Markets chain?

Post by Steve Landry »

Side note and probably not helpful but........Food Fair / Pantry Pride had stores in W. Virginia. In fact when the company divested itself of these stores, there was a group of store managers who bought them cheap. They retained the P.P. name and ran them for a few years. I don't know the areas of operation but a good guess would be that they competed with ACME of PA.
The Food Fair Empire
rich
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Re: A VA/WV-area Acme Markets chain?

Post by rich »

Acme of Philly had stores in the Pittsburgh area and probably extended down into northern WVA. They didn't give S&H Green Stamps (Thorofare did), unlike the rest of the chain. Acme also had a couple stores in Erie, which would have been part of their Buffalo division. They had stores in obscure places like Meyersdale, PA. They still have a few stores in the Eastern Shore region of MD.
maynesG
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Re: A VA/WV-area Acme Markets chain?

Post by maynesG »

Hi, As far as I know these units in Berkely and Jefferson Counties were built by Acme and
not aquired via purchase of another chain. You are correct that sometimes when a chain purchases another chain they do inherit that chains union contract under a sucession clause.
I believe that these stores closed in the late 1970!S early 1980!S. The Baltimore Division closed about this time. The last City of Baltimore Acme closed in 1988 it was doing and average of 900,000 dollars but was sold to Giant because it did not fit in. Interestingly enough
the other four Baltimore area Route 40 Stores that stayed open untill last year ( Falston is still open as of today) combined didn!t do 900,000 Dollars.
As to when they first opened in West Va any one that I have asked seems to think the mid 1950!s but `i am not sure
Hope It Helps
Transit Road
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Re: A VA/WV-area Acme Markets chain?

Post by Transit Road »

Where was the last Acme in Baltimore?
krogerclerk
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Re: A VA/WV-area Acme Markets chain?

Post by krogerclerk »

Acme of Philadelphia I believe had stores in Cumberland, MD, which is on the Potomac River with West Virginia on the other side. Keyser, WV may have had an Acme/American Stores unit as well.
The only other areas that would have fit with Acme's presence would have been the "dog ear" counties which were not yet in the process of exurbanization/suburbanization of the DC metro, but would have been the hinterlands for the region. Acme. like Grand Union, Food Fair/Pantry Pride, and A&P managed to survive many decades in the region despite the dominance of Safeway and Giant-MD, as A&P is still present as SuperFresh in the MD suburbs and I believe still has a DC proper location.

The Acme chain of Southwest Virginia and Eastern West Virginia appears to have been a chain never associated with Acme Tea or American Stores. Big Star, Stop-n-Stop, Big Bear and many others are examples of non-related chains existing around the country.Unlike the others, the geographic distance between the coalfields Acme and the Mid-Atlantic Acme is relatively small, but you must remember much of Appalachia was if not truly isolated, was connected by poor winding roads making logistics difficult until LBJ created the Appalachian Regional Commission in the mid-60's.
Kroger had distribution facilities in Charleston, WV and Roanoke, VA, continuing today as the MidAtlantic KMA, which served this region as well as A&P also having had a strong presence in this area of Appalachia. I believe A&P utilized Richmond, VA Louisville,KY and Columbus, OH distribution centers to serve the Southern Appalachian coalfield communities. Prior to the entrance of Food City, Food Lion and Wal-Mart Supercenters, Kroger, A&P and the local Acme were the primary grocers in the area immediately southwest and west of Roanoke.
maynesG
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Re: A VA/WV-area Acme Markets chain?

Post by maynesG »

Hi, i am not sure of the street Adress never having been to that store but it did exist and the shock and disbelief that Acme would close such a store was amazing at the time. I amoff tommorow I will call and old friend that still is in management with Acme that I belive worked in that store. If any body should know he would. I will get back to you tommorow
jimbobga
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Re: A VA/WV-area Acme Markets chain?

Post by jimbobga »

It's interesting to read all of this again after six months.

Two comments: West Virginia is an oddly shaped state, and the eastern panhandle counties that are a part of the DC metro area are at least a five hour drive from the Bluefield/Princeton area. In the fifties and sixties when Acme was a thriving chain in the area, the drve would have been more or like ten hours. Since the WV/VA Acmes were based in North Tazewell, VA, it even adds more proof to the fact that these chains weren't related.

The store in the picture above is the Acme in South Bluefield. The shopping center was built just inches west of the WV/VA line and is in Bluefield, Virginia. [By a strangte quirk of geography, Bluefield, Virginia, is actually WEST of Bluefield, West Virginia.] Acme built this shopping center about 1960, and also operated the chain's first A-Mart store here. The A-Mart was located immediately to the left of the Acme store. The only other store the center was an S&H Green Stamps redemption center located to the right of the Acme. Originally, the sign was simply four blue capital letters that simply spelled
A-C-M-E, and in no way resembled a logo. This picture makes the store look very small, and it might be. I was in there when I was 10 years old, and it was a huge supermarket from my point of view.
maynesG
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Re: A VA/WV-area Acme Markets chain?

Post by maynesG »

Hi,i contacted my friend with Acme management but he did not work in that unit having been transfered to New jersey at that time. To the best of his knowledege that store was located over the Baltimore City line on the Pulaski Pike ( U.S. route 40). It closed in early 1988, the other Baltimore units in 1987 after negotiations on givebacks with the union broke down in April of that year. I was able to google it and found a Library who had a record of raw footage of reports on wmar tv with "jane" that listed April 19 as a live peport with Acme and a synopsis, but no way to actualy acess the report.
Ill keep asking around perhaps oneof the companies older Drivers will know the answer.
wvwag29
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Re: A VA/WV-area Acme Markets chain?

Post by wvwag29 »

I have the down-low info on the Acme chain in Southwest VA and Southern WV.
This Acme chain was not affiliated with the Acme chain in PA and OH etc. The Acme of VA/WV was based in North Tazewell, VA and the corporate name was Acme Markets of VA., Inc. The birth of the company was in 1887 as the Tazewell Supply Co. owned and operated by the Peery family, which sold dry goods and such, as most dry goods companies during that time frame.
I'm not exactly sure when, but the name Acme was adopted definately before the 1950's.
During the sixties Acme began building new stores and some shopping centers. The original Tazewell store was renovated into the Acme Main Offices and Warehouse. The building still exists today as well as the original Acme Warehouse which still has the branding although faded and marked with graffiti. Ironically, the Deskins Main Office and Warehouse sits directly across the street, however the two companies were not affiliated. The company owned the shopping centers with Acme / A-Mart as the anchors although not all locations were shopping centers, for example Princeton and Lebanon. Acme for groceries and A-Mart for everything else. Kinda like a Wal-Mart for the 60's and 70's. The stores were side by side and shared an entrance but not a floor plan, a wall seperated Acme from A-Mart. Sometime in the early 80's two stores, Princeton and Chilhowie, would be closed for a short period and re-opened as BIG A Warehouse. Until the early 90's the company operated 8 stores (possibly a couple more between the 50's and 80's as well as Blue Prince Shopping Center location), Beckley WV (orginally on Harper Road then Beckley Plaza on Eisenhower Dr), Bluefield VA (originally on "The Avenue" and then Westgate Shopping Center), Richlands VA, Tazewell VA (flagship store, originally on Railroad St. and Riverside Dr. then moved to FourWay Shopping Center), Chilhowie VA (BIG A Warehouse), Lebanon VA, Princeton WV (BIG A Warehouse), Wytheville VA. The Peery family owned and operated the stores until the company was sold to Tom Allen, owner of East Coast Oil out of Richmond, VA between 1988-1992(?). When Tom Allen bought the company Acme went under a change. A-Mart stores were closed and the walls were busted and Acme became a Supermarket. Acme also acquired two more store in the Princeton area Allen's Crossroads and Allen's Glenwood that had been previously owned by Allen Griffith (Mecer Grocery,Inc.). By the end of 1995 all stores were operating under the Acme banner, and the BIG A's and Allen's were renovated and updated. In the few years following, Acme acquired a store in South Williamson, KY, Collinsville, VA, two more stores in the Bluefield VA/WV area, as well as a store on Lee Highway in Wytheville, VA. Around 1999 a new president was named and Acme bought several Community Cash stores in the NC SC area as well as some other real estate. Acme eventually sold or closed all of the NC SC stores. The original 10 stores were sold to a company out of Mebane NC in 2000 and the company New Acme Markets, LLC went bankrupt by Sept 2002.
Acme's hey-day was definately during the 1990's everyone shopped at Acme and everyone or someone they knew worked for Acme. I worked for the company until the closure in 2002 and I have a truckload of 'stuff'.
Since then some locations were sold and some are still vacant.
I hope I have helped.
I did find a link to a couple photos posted online of Acme one is a shot of the back of the store at the lunchmeat case and the other is a shot of the cafeteria.
the address is

http://www.aiplan.com/supermarkets/acme ... lient.html

hopefully the bulk of this is correct with the possible exception of some dates here and there, however, if anyone has any other info I would like to know. I am currently searching for any pictorial history etc. dealing with the Acme of VA as well as the Deskins chain which also was a local chain in Sw VA and S WV.
Last edited by wvwag29 on 16 Oct 2008 10:43, edited 1 time in total.
maynesG
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Re: A VA/WV-area Acme Markets chain?

Post by maynesG »

Hi!
Thanks for clearing that up! That history was fascinating!
Thanks Again!
carolinatraveler
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Re: A VA/WV-area Acme Markets chain?

Post by carolinatraveler »

A note on the Mebane, NC connection. For a short time about five years ago there was an Acme Market in nearby Burlington, NC. The logo matched the Virginia operation. It seems that I read somewhere that the owners of the company (in Mebane) at that time may have had some ties to the old Byrds Supermarkets. Byrds was based in Burlington and sold out to Lowes Foods about a decade ago.
gary
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Re: A VA/WV-area Acme Markets chain?

Post by gary »

On a road trip a few years ago, I spent the night in Wytheville. It seemed like a good stopping point, and I wanted to see the Pepsi plant up close, I had only ever seen it from the highway.

Imagine my surprise when I was driving around town and found the old Acme. I knew it wasn't related to the ones up here, but I didn't know the history.

Anyway, here's a labelscar pic, along with a pic of the entrance lobby (sorry for my reflection!)

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ ... e-wy-1.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ ... e-wy-2.jpg

And in regards to the Ohio Acme chain, it is also unaffiliated with the Philadelphia one, but the owner did take the name from them. There's a good history of the company on their website.

http://www.acmestores.com/history.html

The company is still known as The Fred W. Albrecht Grocery Company. I visited one of the stores (I think it was #1) on a previous trip as well. Good prices, stocked well, friendly employees - they even feature them in their ads.

Lastly, a few bonus pictures from Wytheville - the Dillion's IGA. Walking in the store is like stepping back in time to the 1970's. Old refrigerated cases, old shelving, old registers - I think the cashier had to hand input the prices of the items I bought.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ ... -iga-1.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/ ... -iga-2.jpg
Toby Radloff
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Re: A VA/WV-area Acme Markets chain?

Post by Toby Radloff »

That "Dillon's IGA Foodette" sign looks strangly like it was made from an old Sinclair Oil sign, judging from the shape.
Abso

Re: A VA/WV-area Acme Markets chain?

Post by Abso »

Fascinating to learn so much about ACME Supermarkets, and fun to reminisce a bit. I worked at the Beckley, WV, ACME Supermarket from 1979-1987. Made some good friends and memories. I still have a calendar that ACME created and gave to us. Each month featured one of the chain's stores with a picture of that store's employees posed out front.

If anyone's interested, I can dig up that calendar and post some pics.
jimbobga
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Re: A VA/WV-area Acme Markets chain?

Post by jimbobga »

It would be nice to see pictures of those stores. Acme never really did have an archiectural style, or "look," and so it will probably look as if Acme took over another store. In actuality, they were the original occupant of all of their buildings up until the seventies when names started getting traded back and forth on buildings.
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