Tonawandas Chain Grocery/Supermarket Locations, 1924-2005

This is a list of all chain grocery locations my research has uncovered in Tonawanda and North Tonawanda between 1924 and 2005, compiled from city directories, telephone books, and other sources. There may be some omissions due to incomplete or missing data, etc. and I welcome suggestions and corrections. Please read about my methodology for more information about what I do and do not include.

View and download a copy of this location spreadsheet via Google Sheets.

Updated on 26 November 2022

One thought on “Tonawandas Chain Grocery/Supermarket Locations, 1924-2005

  1. Tim Tielmna

    June 27, 2022 at 8:41pm

    Fabulous and very useful site. I am head of a historic preservation organization in Buffalo, and also studied urban geography, so the mapped data are especially interesting. Fact: in 1930, Buffalo had, apart from chain groceries, almost 2,000 mom & pop delis/groceries, meat markets, and green grocers.

    Checked your map for the spatial history of supermarkets in the neighborhood of the Tops supermarket where the recent mass shooting took place is the only supermarket today, where over a dozen existed in 1950, not including the smaller mom & pops. Depopulation caused by highway construction and urban renewal, plus an emphasis on automobiles, had a devastating impact on the neighborhood’s ability to support food stores of any type.

    Note: While the address entries for the North Tonawanda stories have the correct spelling of the place name, elsewhere it is misspelled as “Tonowanda.”

    Permalink  ⋅ Reply
    • Author

      Groceteria

      June 28, 2022 at 9:02pm

      Thanks for the note! Unfortunately we’ll still be living with the legacy of urban renewal for decades to come.

      Typo duly noted and being corrected!

      Permalink  ⋅ Reply

Your email will not be published. Name and Email fields are required. Comments are moderated and may not appear immediately.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.