Today I will be writing about my memories of shopping at the A&P in Chicago. A&P founded as The Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company in 1859 in New York City. I’m not sure when A&P opened in Chicago, but by 1930, there were 16,000 stores nationwide. At the time they traditionally consisted of small grocery stores and by the late 1930s, they started being converted into local supermarkets.
My earliest memories of A&P were when I lived in the Roseland neighborhood in the early 1970s. The most convenient one from our apartment was located on E 112th St between State St and Michigan Ave. My mother shopped there frequently and also shopped for groceries at Gately’s Peoples Store, which was located in the basement level. When she wanted to shop for Greek imports, she shopped at a local store at 113th St & S Michigan Ave, right next door to Legion Magnanox TV store.
When we went shopping at the A&P, I remembered some of the brand names and items there. There was Ann Page and Jane Parker. I remembered Jane Parker bread and donuts were so good. The one thing that stood out was Eight O’Clock coffee and its grinding machine. Most of them were located at checkout lines. My mother never bought that coffee and I don’t know why. I guess she wanted them prepackaged or at the time, she didn’t know how to operate the coffee grinder. Once I saw someone used it and I remembered the selector had those choices: Open Pot, Percolator, Electric Perk, Drip Pot, and Vacuum Pot. I guess Automatic Drip came much later. There were brands of A&P Coffees. Eight O’ Clock, Bokar, and Red Circle. The aroma of those coffees in the stores was so heavenly. I was too young to drink it because I was in grade school at the time.
Eight O’ Clock is still manufactured and sold at other supermarkets. I remembered the Jane Parker Pound Cake. It tasted better than Sara Lee’s. When we moved to Ashburn in September 1974, my mother asked people in the neighborhood if there was an A&P store nearby. There was one at W 79th St & S Pulaski Rd, but it burned down the previous year. So my Mom shopped at the Jewel/Turnstyle and National Foods at Ford City, the Jewel on 84th St & S Pulaski, and a few years later, Dominick’s Finer Foods at W 71St & S Pulaski Rd. There was one at 95th St & S Pulaski Rd in Oak Lawn, but it was too far from my house.
The only A&P TV commercials that I remembered were the two men as Price and Pride in the 70s. The trading stamps at A&P were Plaid Stamps. When they were phased out, S&H Green Stamps took over. I remembered Sunnybrook Eggs and Our Own Tea.
A&P was closing its local stores around 1981 or 1982 in Chicago. The last A&P store that I visited when I went to New York City for a vacation in 1988. It was very different, and most of their brands were gone. A&P was in business throughout much of the East Coast and Canada. The remaining ones were closed around 2015.
A&P was very special to most people in Chicago. It had memorable brands, items and there were located in practically every neighborhood in Chicago and its suburbs. I liked it very much, but it wasn’t my favorite. High-Low Foods was. A&P is mentioned and shown in old movies and TV shows and in 1961, John Updike wrote a short story called “A&P”. I have one word to conclude this story if anyone remembers this, “WEEEEOOOOOO!” Thank you. Pete Kastanes-Admin for Vanished Chicagoland Facebook Page.
The best thing about A&P were its house brands: Jane Parker, Ann Page, Eight O’Clock, and their house branded canned fruits and vegetables. They were as good as the national brands and a whole lot cheaper.
Where Economy Originates?? wweeeeeeeoooooo!
If it is the location I believe it is, it is on Belmont Avenue. Just East of Cicero Avenue. Currently it is a Tony’s Finer Foods.
My brothers printing company printed the window signs for both A and P and high low foods, I worked there for a short time in the 70,s
My Dad was a meat cutter at A & P till they closed the Chicagoland stores.
Thank you for this website.
My grandfather’s WWII draft card had A&P for his place of employment.
1542 Devon Avenue. East or West wasn’t annotated. Looking at online maps & his listed home address off 5800 block of Indian Road I’m thinking it was 1542 West Devon Road.
I never met the man. He passed 29 years prior to my birth. I’ve been told by my late-Aunt I look a lot like him. I’ve never seen a picture of him, either.
Though I’ll receive a picture of him through the mail from a cousin.
Take care everyone.
My Dad was an A&P manager. At 1850 E 71st and 2601 E 79 St. I worked at both stores in the late 50’s and 60’s. I remember all the great A&P brands. Unfortunately after WW II A&P started a slow and steady decline with outdated and dirty stores. My Dad already said it was due to the US Government’s anti trust suit against the chain. But, I think it was many reasons: the control of the Hartford family, A&P’s reluctance to build stores in the suburbs after the war and worrying more about their stock price than their stores. So, as so many iconic have, the line cycle of A&P came to an end about 150 years after being founded as The Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company.
My grandfather was an A & P manger for several Chicagoland stores in the 40’s thru the early 70’s. Does anyone have photos of any A & P grocery stores from this time period?
What was his name?
*manager
My dad was a union carpenter for A&P until 1972, when the shop closed up. Does anyone remember or know where in Chicago the building or carpenters’ workshop was located? I only remember going there as a little kid once. He used to drop off his time sheets there.
While taking a stroll down memory lane this evening, I came across this website. I worked at the A&P at State & Division in 1973/74. As a sophomore in High School I took Public Transportation from 71st/Pulaski after school and on weekends. It was the start of a great career for me as I continued to work at many different locations. 95th/Pulaski, 22nd western, an Archer Avenue location, etc. I loved being an A&P employee and always cherish really good memories of some great friends I made!
I worked in that store in the 60’s while in high school and Ed Jackson was my manager.