The Market Report

Yesterday we saw the independent grocers of eastern Worcester -- some going back decades -- and now it's time to see a few buildings that once were grocery stores but no longer are. A note on historical sources:  To get past stores in each location, I've consulted Worcester city directories going back to the 1910s. Here in the city, I'm drawing from  1916, 1922, 1927, 1931, 1937, 1943, 1959, 1952, 1957, 1962, 1969, 1973, 1979, 1985, 1991, 2000, 2009, and 2017.  Also of note: this is far from an exhaustive listing of all grocery stores that have been in this area, although I'll probably eventually post the full thing, this is just what I've been able to photograph. Reading the captions:  A caption such as the following...          |  John Smith (1926-1937) > Joe Jones (1955-1982) ...means that John Smith appears in the directories in 1926 and 1937, and Joe Jones appears in all directories I consulted between 1955 and 1982. That doesn'...

We're going to take a look at some (almost all) of the independent grocers in the southeastern part of Worcester -- we'll be starting in the Green Island/Canal District area, then Union Hill, Franklin Plantation, Vernon Hill, and finally way out to Grafton Hill. There's a lot of little grocery stores here, ranging from ethnic markets to convenience stores to produce markets, so let's check them out! A note on historical sources:  To get "past stores" in each location, I've consulted Worcester city directories going back to the 1910s. Here in the city, I'm drawing from  1916, 1922, 1927, 1931, 1937, 1943, 1959, 1952, 1957, 1962, 1969, 1973, 1979, 1985, 1991, 2000, 2009, and 2017.  Also of note: this is far from an exhaustive listing of all grocery stores that have been in this area, although I'll probably eventually post the full thing, this is just what I've been able to photograph. Reading the captions:  A caption such as the following...     ...

Original Grocery Tenant: Big Y World Class Market Address: 50 Southwest Cutoff, Worcester, MA Opened:  1994 Closed:  2014 Later Tenants:  Massachusetts RMV Photographed:  January 19, 2019 Can't miss that labelscar! Worcester once had two Big Y locations, with one here in the far southeastern corner of the city and the other up in Columbus Park, east of Webster Square (we'll see that in about a week). This one opened in 1994 and closed up 20 years later in 2014. The store faced route 20, or Southwest Cutoff. Three and a half miles west on 20 is Price Chopper , a mile and a half east is Market Basket , and a mile north is yesterday's Stop & Shop . The 55,000 square foot store is now home to the Worcester Registry of Motor Vehicles office, which moved from downtown right next to the Worcester Market Building in 2022, but when I was at this store back in 2019, it was still very much an abandoned Big Y. And we can get a good look inside from the large windows at t...

Stop & Shop Opened: ca. 1990s Previous Tenants:  Finast > Valley Discount Foods previously on site Location:  949 Grafton St, Grafton Hill, Worcester, MA Photographed:  November 4, 2018 and March 31, 2023 It's time for a look at our first Stop & Shop in Worcester! There are three, and the other two are to the north. Don't worry, we'll get there. We're here at the Perkins Farm Marketplace, a large strip mall that borders the Perkins Farm Preserve between Grafton Street and the southern tip of Lake Quinsigamond. We're at the far southeastern corner of Worcester here, just under two miles from the new Market Basket in Shrewsbury . The mall was built in the mid-1960s and opened in 1967, with a Finast supermarket. That was still there by 1979, but in 1985, it had become Valley Discount Foods. City directories are mum on this property until 2017, when it was listed as Stop & Shop. But from the store model and Historic Aerials, we know Stop & Shop opene...

Price Chopper Opened:  1995 Previous Tenants:  Wonder Markets > Big D Supermarket Location:  29 Sunderland Rd, Grafton Hill, Worcester, MA Photographed: November 4, 2018 Even though Worcester doesn't have the chains it once did, like Big D or Iandoli's, there is actually a lot of mainstream supermarket choice in and immediately around the city. Big Y, Price Chopper /Market 32, Shaw's , Stop & Shop, Market Basket , and Hannaford all have a meaningful presence in and near the city. Plus, there are a few independents like Park 'n Shop . There are also a few supermarkets in and around Worcester that are a bit of a time capsule. The 32,000 square foot Price Chopper at Pozzessere Square (does anyone call it that?) where Sunderland and Massasoit Roads intersect is one of those time capsules. It was built between 1957 and 1962 as a Wonder Market ("Sunderland Wonder Market" in 1969 and 1973). It appears that Wonder Market was affiliated with Big D, so my assump...