In my recent column on Margaretta Furnace in Lower Windsor Township, I mentioned that the York County History Center has some examples of scrip issued by the company in the 1840s, and that it could only be used at the company store. I am sharing images of these notes as well
When I was growing up in Chanceford and Windsor townships, we did our much of our weekly shopping for groceries in Red Lion, but we traveled to York for serious shopping. I was quite familiar with Bear’s, Bon Ton and Wiest’s department stores, as well as the more specialized shoe
We lament, and rightly so, the loss of impressive York buildings, such as City Market and York Collegiate Institute. Still, it could have been worse. Here is an example of one urban renewal project that thankfully didn’t happen. While looking through the York Square file at the York County History
Aren’t those fresh summer vegetables wonderful? Especially if they are locally grown, perhaps in your own back yard. By now, you have a good idea of how well your garden has fared. You know if you have more squash than you can use, or not enough tomatoes for your homemade
The full page ad from Joe the Motorist Friend (see below) is almost exclusively for Lionel trains, a specialty of the Joe’s stores. The address at the bottom of this ad and the toy ad in my last post, both from the December 13, 1956 Gazette and Daily, cite the
My previous post showed a December 1956 Gazette and Daily full page ad for the one-year-old York County Shopping Center. It listed the 28 stores and businesses and stressed the free parking. Downtown businesses did try to counteract the shopping drain that year by placing a real carousel in the
It was Christmas season 1956, and the battle lines were drawn between downtown and suburban shopping centers. The first stores in the York County Shopping Center in Springettsbury Township probably opened in the fall of 1955, since the center celebrated their second anniversary in October 1957 by giving away a
Here is a tour of York’s Center/Continental Square, featuring the big star that was the centerpiece of the decorations from the late 1940s through the 1950s. I’m not sure when the star was first fabricated and when it was replaced with other decorations. These photos, showing the square from various
The photo above could have been taken about the same time as the one I recently posted of the Davy Crockett merchandise. This one is also from the Simon Collection at the York County Heritage Trust Library/Archives. It is identified as McCrory’s toy department and is probably from the 1950s.
In my York Sunday News column few months ago I wrote about the wealth of local history you can find in City Directory Collection at York County Heritage Trust. The advertisements alone paint a picture of how our families lived and how they spent their hard-earned wages. The directory references