Anyone here live in Memphis in the 70's? (1 Viewer)

Scott Strang · Dec 24, 2003

My brother lived there for years and my we'd go to Memphis on weekends to see them.

I remember in particular a store called Treasury. It was alot like Service Merchandise and in some ways like Wal-Mart. Also I seem to remember the store being owned by a drug store retail chain named Treasury.

There was some kind of store called Crandelet (sp)Dixie Mart but I don't remember a whole lot about that one.

I also remember a Montesees (sp) grocery store some kind of restraunt that was on top of a structure and rotated while people dined. Also one of the Sears stores almost always had a real arc light out in the parking lot on weekends.

Another great store was Goldsmith's in the downtown Memphis area. That store has long since mutated into a chain owned by some company that the firm that owns Rich's, Gayfors, etc. Now it's called something like Goldsmith's Macy's.

Anyone else remember Memphis of the 70's?

Jack Briggs · Dec 24, 2003

I had a lot of ties to Memphis, and I was there frequently in that decade and the one before.

There was a membership store called Dixie-Mart. I recall it being on Lamar Avenue, at Tulahoma.

Goldsmith's was the major department store of the era in that town, followed by Lowenstein's. And I remember a large Sears, I think in the downtown area.

I also remember the Crosstown Theater and the Paramount -- both of which were 70mm-capable (I saw a scratchy 70mm print of 2001 at the Crosstown back in 1971).

I remember a beautiful, lit water fountain in a downtown park near something called the Ellis Auditorium.

And I remember Coleman's Bar-B-Q (yum!).

Jeff Pryor · Dec 25, 2003

I live just southeast of Memphis. That Treasury is long gone, Fred Montesi stores are history, too. These have been both absent for about 20 years.

Daniel_C_B · Dec 25, 2003

I currently live in Midtown Memphis and grew up in the Whitehaven area of Memphis in the 60's and 70's. There were a number of all-in-one stores here prior to the new trend of Super WalMarts and Targets. In Whitehaven or Southaven there were as you mentioned Treasury, Crondela,also Grants. All are gone now. Even Service Merchandise is no longer in business; they declared bankrupcty a few years ago.

Many changes.

DonnyD · Dec 25, 2003

Yall are talking me back to my 70-72 era when I lived in one of the LARGE houses just off Union toward the Central Ave area......... did a lot of partying back then but I do remember several old goodies......... like the impromptu concerts at a park in East Memphis .... and the short track motorcycle races at the fairgrounds......

Yes, that was Sears that had a very large shopping complex downtown.... kind at the end of one of the Parkways......... and the area left unattended where the interstate halted its building down close to the Zoo.........that became out dirt bike haunt.......

Memphis has changed a lot since then........ and I've lived there again in the 84-91 era and again 97-2000. Totally different.........

Scott Strang · Dec 26, 2003

...also Grants.

Grants. I remember those too. About the rotating resteraunt I'm thinking it was near a Woolco/Woolsworth.
I remember that my brother lived on Pippen Street and I'm thinking it was near Motessi's. They bought all of their grocerys there.
After my parents got married, my mom worked at Goldsmiths.
My brother worked at Crandela Dixie Mart.
Does anyone know where I can find more sites like this on the net?
Dept Stores of the 60's

Click to expand...

Lee L · Dec 29, 2003

There was a national chain called Treasury Drug that sounds like what you described. They were at one time owned by JC Penny (I know they were in the 80's, who knows how long before that). They closed in the 90's IIRC.

Scott Strang · Jan 15, 2004

{quote]There was a national chain called Treasury Drug that sounds like what you described.[/quote]

Yep. I saw one of those in Vicksburg, MS back in the early 90's. Instantly reminded me of the Treasury Dept store in Memphis. I think even the logo was very simular.

I had a Treasury cardboard cutout store model one time too that I got from the Dept store in Memphis.

mjl1297 · Nov 4, 2010

I saw this thread some time back and have been meaning to respond for a while even if the OP no longer bothers to check it since the posting date is late 2003.
I've been living in and around Memphis since the mid-sixties and most of the stores mentioned above resonate vividly in my memory as I can recall going there as a child.
The store that everyone is having such trouble with the spelling on was Corondolet. They usually, though not always, set up operation with a Dixie Mart located next door. They were the Wal-Mart Supercenter and Sam's Club of their day although to be perfectly honest the comparison is something of a reckless one as comparing C/DM to Wally-Sam's besmirches the memory of those stores. They wouldn't have sold the cheap Chinese shite that the corporate vermin at Wally world peddle without shame today.
Anyway, the stores were massive. Corondolet catered to the average consumer. Dixie Mart was more of a wholesale oriented affair selling to retail businesses and if I'm not mistaken operated on a membership basis. Corondolet and Dixie Mart survived into the early to mid seventies. After they ceased operation Corondolet continued for a short time as a shadow of itself in the form of a business called the Corondolet Treasure Chest. Their buildings were then parceled out and were so large that when re-tenanted they generally hosted two or more businesses in the same space. Central Hardware (now also defunct) located almost every one of their stores in a former Corondolet location when they came to Memphis.
The grocery store chain mentioned above was Montesi's. They experienced a rather dramatic shutdown a few years back when the employees went home one night and then the next morning found themselves locked out of the store when they reported to work. Today only one store of that entire chain remains in operation.
The Sears store mentioned above was probably the Broad street location near the old Crosstown theatre. The restaurant that rotated was likely the Pyrenees.
Treasury was the next mega-store to come along. They were known for the distinctive roofs of their buildings. Their squiggly shape even figured in the store's logo and today as you drive around town it is difficult to miss one of their former locations if you pass one. Treasury did (and does in some small towns) survive as a drugstore chain and they do use the squiggly roof logo on their signs. I wouldn't compare Treasury to Service Merchandise though. Service Merchandise had a different business model. Comparing Service Merchandise to Fred P. Gattas would be an apt pairing however. Indeed they were so similar that for a while I thought they were owned by the same outfit. How the mighty have fallen. It's a shame stores like the Treasury aren't still around.
There are so many others like Grants, Welles, Zayre, J.B. Hunter, Kat's drugstores, and the list regrettably goes on.

Robert_J · Nov 5, 2010

Originally Posted by Scott Strang
Another great store was Goldsmith's in the downtown Memphis area. That store has long since mutated into a chain owned by some company that the firm that owns Rich's, Gayfors, etc. Now it's called something like Goldsmith's Macy's.

My wife works in the old Goldsmith's building in downtown Memphis. It's a beautiful, old building with huge, display windows on the 2nd floor overlooking the downtown trolley. When the big earthquake hits, it will be one the first to collapse. It is definitely not seismic proof like the newer buildings.

I haven't seen Jeff's name in thread in years even though I see his name occasionally on Facebook. Every time I saw it I would say to myself "Hey. I know that guy from somewhere."

mjl1297 · Nov 9, 2010

Originally Posted by Robert_J
My wife works in the old Goldsmith's building in downtown Memphis. It's a beautiful, old building with huge, display windows on the 2nd floor overlooking the downtown trolley. When the big earthquake hits, it will be one the first to collapse. It is definitely not seismic proof like the newer buildings.

I haven't seen Jeff's name in thread in years even though I see his name occasionally on Facebook. Every time I saw it I would say to myself "Hey. I know that guy from somewhere."

What is in the old Goldsmith's building now? I haven't been downtown in ages.

Scott Strang · Nov 9, 2010

My wife works in the old Goldsmith's building in downtown Memphis. It's a beautiful, old building with huge, display windows on the 2nd floor overlooking the downtown trolley. When the big earthquake hits, it will be one the first to collapse. It is definitely not seismic proof like the newer buildings.

Then your wife's employer needs to move to another building. When my brother was living there I remember them having tremors at least once.

Jack Briggs · Nov 9, 2010

Hello.

Visiting a place like Memphis from a place like Los Angeles was a bit, oh, unhinging. You would have to adopt almost a different personality it seemed. But the things I remember best about the so-called "Bluff City" were nice: It was such a nicely manicured town, and the people seemed to take pride in how they cared for it. I suppose it's the same now in that regard (I haven't visited Memphis since around 1973).

One thing I do remember, however, is that Memphis is located in an area of the country noted for its seismic activity. In fact, I've heard that Memphis could be prone to an earthquake just as devastating as those that occur here in California. What's more, Memphis is not as prepared for such an event as we are in Los Angeles. I shudder to think about what could happen to that town if hit by something like the 6.7-level Northridge 'quake that rocked us in 1994. Everything here is built with seismic activity in mind. Not so in Memphis.

Robert_J · Nov 18, 2010

Scott Strang said:
/forum/thread/157292/anyone-here-live-in-memphis-in-the-70-s#post_3748779
Hello.

Visiting a place like Memphis from a place like Los Angeles was a bit, oh, unhinging. You would have to adopt almost a different personality it seemed. But the things I remember best about the so-called "Bluff City" were nice: It was such a nicely manicured town, and the people seemed to take pride in how they cared for it. I suppose it's the same now in that regard (I haven't visited Memphis since around 1973).

One thing I do remember, however, is that Memphis is located in an area of the country noted for its seismic activity. In fact, I've heard that Memphis could be prone to an earthquake just as devastating as those that occur here in California. What's more, Memphis is not as prepared for such an event as we are in Los Angeles. I shudder to think about what could happen to that town if hit by something like the 6.7-level Northridge 'quake that rocked us in 1994. Everything here is built with seismic activity in mind. Not so in Memphis.

Neighborhood pride varies by neighborhood. Some sections of town are just boarded up houses and overgrown yards. Other places have lawns like golf courses. And even other places have a golf course for a back yard.

The New Madrid fault doesn't bleed off energy like the California faults. The quakes in the 1800's were up to the 8.0 range according to this - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1812_New_Madrid_earthquake A 6.0 would collapse some older building. A big one will collapse most buildings. They are in the process of retrofitting the I-40 bridge to handle a fairly large quake.
It's the aftermath that will be devastating. Memphis and New Orleans are a lot alike so there will be a section of the population that can't leave. If the bridges are out, then that leaves about 1/3 of the population heading right past my house. I'm ready at a moment's notice to bug out. We have to be like that due to the tornadoes. But I'm also prepared to bug-in and wait it out. We keep 2 weeks of food and water and 2 years worth of ammo just in case.

Steve_Pannell · Nov 18, 2010

Originally Posted by Robert_J
It's the aftermath that will be devastating. Memphis and New Orleans are a lot alike so there will be a section of the population that can't leave. If the bridges are out, then that leaves about 1/3 of the population heading right past my house. I'm ready at a moment's notice to bug out. We have to be like that due to the tornadoes. But I'm also prepared to bug-in and wait it out. We keep 2 weeks of food and water and 2 years worth of ammo just in case.

Well, when the food runs out at least you can shoot something!

Robert_J · Nov 23, 2010

You are just down the road so you should know the local culture.

Jane Vaughn · Jul 18, 2012

Hey guys. Still live here in Memphis in house where I grew up. Montessi's was a grocery store next to the building with the revolving top. They were the first store to have a pick up for your groceries in from of the store. The grocery baskets would fit through a hole in the front wall and the baggers would put your groceries in your car. Nice for the people with children and elderly.
Corondolet and Dixiemart were owned by the same people (I think). When Dixiemart first opened, you had to be a member (like Sam's Club is now). Corondolet was on Summer Avenue where Auto Zone is but you did not have to be a member.
They sold fudge in the front of the store. A woman would sit and make it in a huge copper pot.
the advertisement for the stores were:
Dixiemart and Corondolet
The stores of the future
are here today.
I can't remember the rest.

QLannes · Jun 3, 2014

Hello,

I was born in France in 1989. I'm living in Switzerland since few years.
I got interested in Memphis in the 70's through William Eggleston's photographs but I never had the chance to stop by Memphis during my american trips.
I reproduced on the window of the building I'm living in the neon from a place photographed by Eggleston :

http://dailyserving.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/Eggleston-The-office-lounge-px6501-600x394.jpg

http://thelightcomesfromthewall.tumblr.com/post/87606945191/quentin-lannes-home-work-2014-26-rue-de-la

I'm searching information about this place : The Office Lounge.
Do any of you experienced this place or know where it was?

Thank you.
All the best,
Quentin.

Ron1973 · Jun 4, 2014

I'm from Steele, MO in the bootheel which is about 85 miles up the road from Memphis but I have a lot of memories of Memphis as my aunt and uncle lived there (my aunt still does) and we did a lot of shopping there.

The Sears was in Crosstown. I can remember getting candy there before it turned into an outlet store. Of course no trip was complete until you headed over to Krystal which was really close to the Crosstown Sears. There's talk of renovating the Crosstown Sears into some sort of multipurpose building with an arts center, medical facilities and some sort of grocery store. They really need to do something with the building if they can at all.

No discussion of Memphis would be complete without discussing what happened at 1960 Union Avenue every Saturday morning and on Monday nights at the Mid-South Coliseum! The biggest and the baddest came through trying to take out Jerry "The King" Lawler but he always whipped them hands down. He'd literally be hanging on by a thread until he got mad and pulled the strap down! And if he couldn't get the job done by himself, Billy "Superstar" Dundee was just a call away to help the Kingfish!

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