[Ephrata1966]

Safeway had stores in Chambersburg, Waynesboro, York and Harrisburg. All were closed in the mid-80's, even though they had a close proximity to the still existing Mid-Atlantic division stores in Baltimore.

Chambersburg? Do you know what happened to that store(s)? Was it this store (Sunnyway of Chambersburg)?: http://www.greatvalu.com/Locations

This store, along with the identical store in nearby Greencastle, I thought was a Grand Union. These stores are similar to the Grand Union/Westlawn Great Valu in Falls Church, Northern Virginia.

There was also a Food Fair from about 1953, and two Acme A Frames from about 1963 in Chambersburg. None of those stores survive as supermarkets. Safeway rings no bells.

[danielh_512]

The former Chambersburg Safeway was built in the 70's and probably closed in the 1985 contraction of the Mid-Atlantic region. It was not the Sunnyway. As far as I know, the Sunnyway has no connection to any chains. That Sunnyway design resembles a 1960's era Weis more than anything to me, although far more elaborate with the details.

The Safeway was located on the North side of Chambersburg along US 11 in the Norland Shopping Center. It sported a flat roof, and the very thin facade Safeway used after the marinas. The store was similar to the Winchester one, although I think the Chambersburg one was bigger. This center has been dead for a long time. A couple years ago, Orrstown Bank bought the old Safeway and began converting it into an operations center. It was empty for a very long time. I'm not altogether positive of any tenants after Safeway.

A lot of old supermarket chains in the Chambersburg area. As you said, Acme was there. A&P was too. There's an old Food Fair along US 30 that's a Dollar Tree now. The now very large Giant chain opened an early store there in the 50's. I don't know of Grand Union being there but they were along the I-81 corridor. They did operate beside the old Nichols discounter in Winchester, VA. A&P, Acme and Safeway all had long histories along the I-81/US 11 corridor.

A&P and Safeway retreated from Hagerstown very early for this region. Both were gone in the 80's. That's a little odd considering that 20 miles to the east, A&P and Safeway both operate to this day in the Frederick area, although the population center and market demographics are very different between Hagerstown and Frederick, although less so now. Acme made it to 1990 in Martinsburg at the Berkeley Plaza in a gabled store. Safeway lasted into the late 90's in Winchester. A&P lasted until 2002-2003 in an old centennial store in Berryville. Even into the 1990's out in the Cumberland area, there were 4 A&P's as SuperFresh. The last one which opened in 1974 closed in 2003.

I don't know of Weis having any history in Chambersburg other than the existing store which opened in the 90's on Wayne Ave.

[Ephrata1966]

Wait a minute. Are you sure the Dollar Tree was the Food Fair? What about the nearby "Super Shoes" store with a tower sign? This store looks like an early Food Fair (early 50's). Example: http://dcgrocery.multiply.com/photos/al ... on#photo=1 I believe at one time, they owned shoe stores. Perhaps they converted this older store? But both this and the Dollar Tree look like early Food Fairs. Were either of them later Pantry Pride?

Also, do you know what the large vacant store was on US 30? This building resembles another one in Lebanon, PA. Was there a Jamesway in Chambersburg? Like the Safeway, this store appears long-vacant.

[danielh_512]

Both of them were old supermarkets. Whichever one wasn't the Food Fair was the Giant, I believe. It's hard knowing Giant anything from that period because they were so small back then, and the modern Giant is quicker to shelve old stores than anyone, even Walmart.

The large store on US 30 being across from the Aldi/Dunham's, before Walmart, but after Lowe's?

That was a Nichols and Pharmhouse. Ollie's Bargain Outlet was in there (the part with the major glass overhang) until they moved down US 30 into a closed Food Lion. That Franklin Square center where Ollie's is has hit rough times. Tractor Supply used to be in the old Pharmhouse section until they moved right down the road to a new freestanding store.

[Steve Landry]

"I believe at one time, they owned shoe stores"

Yep............Ideal Shoe Company

A company that manufactured the shoes and sold them via their retail outlets: Ideal Shoes

They were stand alones (in centers) and sometimes inside large Food Fairs/Pantry Prides and J.M. Fields. There was even one inside a Fredericks Supermarket in Miami Fl. along side a company owned shoe repair section.

[Ephrata1966]

Both of them were old supermarkets. Whichever one wasn't the Food Fair was the Giant, I believe. It's hard knowing Giant anything from that period because they were so small back then, and the modern Giant is quicker to shelve old stores than anyone, even Walmart.

The large store on US 30 being across from the Aldi/Dunham's, before Walmart, but after Lowe's?

That was a Nichols and Pharmhouse. Ollie's Bargain Outlet was in there (the part with the major glass overhang) until they moved down US 30 into a closed Food Lion. That Franklin Square center where Ollie's is has hit rough times. Tractor Supply used to be in the old Pharmhouse section until they moved right down the road to a new freestanding store.

Was there a Kmart in Franklin Square? Food Lion has a store across from the Sunnyway now. As for Ollie's, the former Kmart in Hazleton, PA became an Ollie's in 1995. More recently, it relocated into part of the former Gaylords/Gee Bee/Value City.

[danielh_512]

Nope. Kmart has always been on Wayne Ave. in Chambersburg for 30+ years. Franklin Square wasn't built until the early 90's but reached a worse fate than older centers in the Chambersburg area.

To get this back to supermarkets, the old CVS behind Main St. in Waynesboro was the old Safeway. And in the Waynesboro Mall where Kmart is, a very obvious centennial A&P existed at one time.

[Ephrata1966]

Around when did Nichols open?

[danielh_512]

As an update on a recent visit to Chambersburg, the Super Shoes was the Food Fair and the Dollar Tree was the Giant. Seeing these stores again made it very obvious.

And Nichols probably opened in the early 70's, they went out of business in 1990. The Nichols is being overhauled for Pennsylvania's first Hobby Lobby as we speak. Nichols was a New York-based discounter that had stores well into Virginia and North Carolina.