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Any photos not otherwise credited are from the personal collection of Frank Passic, Albion Historian.
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Morning Star, February 12, 2017, pg. 3 Albion was once dotted with numerous neighborhood grocery and convenience stores in the early 20th century. This was during the time when our factories were booming and residents didn’t always have the time to walk downtown to the “big name”stores such as A & P, Kroger, and Piggly Wiggly. I’ve got very few photographs of these stores and am always appreciative when someone brings me a photo of one. This week we are presenting one such neighborhood establishment, Tucker’s Store. It was located at 1018 N. Albion St. in a small building erected for that purpose next to the main house. It was operated by William (1891-1947) and Lucille (Israel) (1905-1956) Tucker. Mr. Tucker, a native of Natchez, Mississippi, came to work at the Albion Malleable Iron Company during World War I. He was an accomplished baseball player and played on local black baseball teams for many years. He was also a veteran of World War I and appears in that 1919 panoramic photograph of Albion’s World War I veterans. The Tucker’s Store was in existence only during the 1930s. It was more of a private neighborhood convenience store rather than a full-service grocery, and does not appear in the city directories. Tucker’s mostly sold canned goods, candy, soda pop and snacks, but no meat or fresh vegetables. The family determined their endeavor was not profitable, and so they turned it into a small rental apartment by the 1940s. The structure has since long been demolished. From our Historical Notebook this week we present a 1946 photograph of Tucker’s Store after it had been closed. How many of our readers have photographs of Albion neighborhood grocery stores? Special thanks to Dr. James Curtis for providing information for this week’s article.  Tucker's store at 1018 N Albion St., circa 1946
 Full view of source photograph, Julia Pohachuk, Pauline Kulikowski, then in back Lillian Chopper
All text copyright, 2024 © all rights reserved Frank Passic
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