This is a list of all chain grocery locations my research has uncovered in Wichita between 1920 and 2015, 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.

Notes:

• The street and avenue naming convention in Wichita is baffling, with designations changing back and forth over time with no apparent logic. Unfortunately, using “avenue” when “street’ is the current suffix causes big problems for Google Maps in Wichita. The worst offender is Kellogg Street/Avenue/Drive. which is an incomprehensible mess of limited-access highways and access roads constructed out of what apparently used to be a surface boulevard. I’ve tried to pin down current addresses as much as possible, but I may have missed a few.
• Wichita is close to “ground zero” for Dillon’s, which grew substantially through its purchase of the area’s Kroger stores in 1957. A few of these stores were still operating under the Dillon’s banner more than fifty years later.
• Safeway was also strong in Wichita until the unraveling of large parts of the company in the late 1980s. As in Kansas City, many of Safeway’s stores transitioned to its Food Barn brand, which was later sold off as a separate local chain.
• There have also been numerous co-ops and franchises, including a virtual explosion of stores operating under the AG (Associated Grocers) banner in 1949 for some reason. Unlike in many areas, the 1920s Piggly Wiggly stores do not seem to have been absorbed wholesale either by Kroger or Safeway; they mostly just seem to have closed after 1930. But I may be missing something here.

Store tags:

• Albertsons
• Associated Grocers (AG)
• Dillons
• Dunn Mercantile
• Food 4 Less
• IGA
• Kroger
• Piggly Wiggly
• Safeway
• Skaggs Alpha Beta