{"id":19714,"date":"2025-10-28T11:53:09","date_gmt":"2025-10-28T11:53:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/19714\/"},"modified":"2025-10-28T11:53:09","modified_gmt":"2025-10-28T11:53:09","slug":"staten-islanders-share-memories-of-boroughs-vanished-grocers-and-historic-moments","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/19714\/","title":{"rendered":"Staten Islanders share memories of borough\u2019s vanished grocers and historic moments"},"content":{"rendered":"

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. \u2014 Recent articles about supermarket prices and nostalgia<\/a> have prompted a flood of correspondence from Staten Islanders eager to share their memories of the borough\u2019s past. These recollections offer a glimpse into Staten Island\u2019s small-town community character amid the big city.<\/p>\n

One reader provided a correction to the previous article<\/a>, noting it was the Bradford Room, not the Bradford House, and identified the staff: Mr. Lezzo as the boss, Mr. Harrigan as supervisor, and Charlie Munch as assistant supervisor. <\/p>\n

The reader additionally wrote, \u201cThere were specials every night. 1\/2 price specials popped up now and then to draw more people for ice cream or sandwiches.\u201d<\/p>\n

A former resident who now lives in South Carolina recalled various shopping destinations. \u201cW.T. Grants or when it became K-Mart, named that dining area to the right, \u2018The Bradford Room,\u2019\u201d they wrote. \u201cI lived in West Brighton\/New Brighton when going to New Dorp was like going to New Jersey. Loved Master\u2019s when it opened next shopping center in New Dorp.\u201d<\/p>\n

The South Carolina correspondent, a self-described \u201chuge music fan,\u201d also remembered where to find the best music: \u201cKorvette\u2019s, Majors\u2019, Masters had the best record collections. Dew and Dale on Richmond Ave., Penney\u2019s and Kresgee had decent [selections], too. Woolworths in Stapleton and Neisner\u2019s on Forest Ave were good too. Until Record Baron opened on Forest Ave.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"ShoppingThis image of the former A&P near Miller Field sparked memories. In 1960, Miller Field became the site of a tragic mid-air collision \u2014 part of one of the deadliest aviation disasters in U.S. history. The crash marked a somber chapter in Staten Island\u2019s past and reshaped national air traffic safety.Staten Island Advance<\/p>\n

Perhaps the most dramatic memories came from Lisa on the East Shore, who shared how the A&P in New Dorp was the setting for two major historical events. \u201cThe photo of the A&P in New Dorp reminded me of two major events that happened in the 60s and my mother was in the store for both,\u201d she wrote.<\/p>\n

Lisa recounted that in 1960, her mother was shopping when a plane crashed nearby. \u201cShe was in there when the plane crashed and large pieces dropped across the street into Miller Field. My mom ran across the street to see the wreckage before any help had arrived.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"MillerFlashback to 1960: A TWA crew member’s hat and watch were recovered at the Miller Field crash scene from that December. <\/p>\n

Three years later, her mother was again at the A&P when news broke that President Kennedy had been shot. \u201cThe news spread throughout the store, Kennedy had been shot and killed. She rushed to school, where we were being let out early by Sister Genevieve,\u201d Lisa recalled.<\/p>\n

That weekend coincided with her father\u2019s birthday, creating an unusual situation. \u201cWe never had the TV on during meals but an exception was made that weekend. So as we were eating birthday lunch and watching TV, we saw Oswald get shot,\u201d Lisa wrote.<\/p>\n

Following the tragedy, Lisa sent a condolence note to Jacqueline Kennedy at her mother\u2019s suggestion and received \u201ca mass produced thank you card, framed in black,\u201d which she still possesses.<\/p>\n

\"St.St. Christopher’s as it looked in Grant City in the 1950s.Advance\/SILive.com File Photo<\/p>\n

Lisa also shared memories of St. Christopher\u2019s School in Grant City, describing an \u201cannex\u201d on Lisbon Place\/Midland that \u201clooked like something out of a Dickens novel\u201d with \u201cbeautiful brass doorknobs with \u2018public school\u2019 written on them in intricate writing.\u201d She noted that the building was eventually demolished for a newer school, which has since closed.<\/p>\n

\"SupermarketHere’s a page from the Advance archives from March 1, 1978.SilvestriJust to recap<\/p>\n

Have you been following our grocery series? Stories are inspired your correspondence that started on the topic with this story \u2014 A walk through Staten Island supermarket history by a food <\/a>from this summer. The followup came with this story \u2014 Supermarket column sparks Staten Island memories<\/a>. Discussion from Beyer\u2019s Market further sparked good vibes \u2014 Staten Island grocer thrives after 43 years<\/a>. Earlier this month, we took a survey of grocery shoppers to yield this interesting article \u2014 Sale-hunting and store-hopping<\/a>. And that led to this conversation. <\/p>\n

Pamela Silvestri is Advance\/Silive.com Food Editor. She can be reached at silvestri@siadvance.com<\/a>. <\/p>\n

If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation. By using this site, you consent to our User Agreement<\/a> and agree that your clicks, interactions, and personal information may be collected, recorded, and\/or stored by us and social media and other third-party partners in accordance with our Privacy Policy.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. \u2014 Recent articles about supermarket prices and nostalgia have prompted a flood of correspondence from…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":19715,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[39],"tags":[9,24,63,134,136,135],"class_list":["post-19714","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-staten-island","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-nyc","tag-staten-island","tag-staten-island-headlines","tag-staten-island-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19714","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19714"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19714\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/19715"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19714"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19714"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19714"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}