Vintage Johnstown

Monday, February 6, 2012

SOLO - Invisible Nylon Hair Net

SOLO - Invisible Nylon Hair Net - With Tuck Away Elastic In Back

K Street - Morrellville

My Uncle John Cacicia standing on K Street in Morrellville. Not much has really changed on the street - except for the cars.

Sunday, February 5, 2012

Bel-Air Plaza - REPOST

I posted this image of the Bel-Air Plaza - last year. But reader Galen Miller looking for something else - ran into some information on the popular shopping destination. He writes:

I went back in your blog and found the post on the Bel-Air Plaza. That photo must have been taken right around the time of the article I found. The date was February 25, 1959. The article said 5 stores would open the next day, and a formal grand opening would be in the spring.

The five stores were: Fisher Bros. (they were from New Castle--later they were called Fisher's Big Wheel), W.T. Grant Company, The Jenny Shop, Kinney Shoes, and Bel-Air Cleaners.

The article concludes with "In addition to the Acme Market already in business at the shopping center, five other business firms are planning to open in the near future."

Interesting how the shopping districts moved up Bedford Street/Scalp Avenue through the 1960's. First some were in the Geistown Shopping Center, then came Bel-Air, then those around where Team Kia is now (and the opposite side of the street) then on to University Park/Gee Bee, and finally to East Hills Plaza--Grant's/Hill's/Phar-Mor/Ollie's.

Gachees Time - 1934

"Gachees" - what my grandmother always called underwear - even when she worked at Bestform for decades. She'd always ask me - what kind of gachees do you want. When she retired - I had no idea how much underwear really does cost. I'm still not used to the sticker shock.
This page from the 1934 Montgomery Ward catalog was sent in by reader Robert Schneider.