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High Low Grocery Stores
Posted by:
CHR00226
()
Date: July 11, 2012 01:30PM
My Father was a store manager and raised 9 children on his salary. Stores were closed on Sundays back then and all 9 of us went with him on Sunday to restock the shelves, while he cut meat for the counter. We moved out to Elmhurst when High Low opened a store on St. Charles Road and Rt. 83. I remember old Mrs. Roaney the owner, I think.
Re: High Low Grocery Stores
Posted by:
Elf Odin
()
Date: July 11, 2012 03:44PM
"Roney", not "Roaney"; as in "Roney's Ice Cream", the store brand.
I worked at store #5, at Lincoln and Belle Plaine, from 1970 to 1975. I left in June 1975, shortly after Retail Clerks International managed to become the employees union, replacing the company union that we previously enjoyed. Once RCI took over, my formerly 35+ hours per week of part-time dropped to 12 hours -- if I was lucky.
Coincidentally, the company closed down in October 1975. I was in California by then, but I heard that the reason for closing was that they couldn't afford the wages and benefits that had been demanded by RCI.
Ed.
I worked at store #5, at Lincoln and Belle Plaine, from 1970 to 1975. I left in June 1975, shortly after Retail Clerks International managed to become the employees union, replacing the company union that we previously enjoyed. Once RCI took over, my formerly 35+ hours per week of part-time dropped to 12 hours -- if I was lucky.
Coincidentally, the company closed down in October 1975. I was in California by then, but I heard that the reason for closing was that they couldn't afford the wages and benefits that had been demanded by RCI.
Ed.
Re: High Low Grocery Stores
Posted by:
celticjunker1
()
Date: July 13, 2012 09:29PM
My mother used to send me to the High-Low Grocery Store on 99th St. just east of Beverly Ave to pick up odds and ends for her all the time. I think the owners names were Tom and Art. I'm sure of Tom. They were very nice fellows and at least one of them was a butcher.
Re: High Low Grocery Stores
Posted by:
tomcat630
()
Date: July 20, 2012 01:40AM
The Elmhurst Hi-Lo turned to Kohls Grocery in '75, then Eagle, and Dominick's. Building was torn down for a new Dominick's a few blocks away. Now, site is a Kohl's Dept store.
Re: High Low Grocery Stores
Posted by:
fraser3823
()
Date: October 31, 2012 10:10PM
I'm hoping someone out there might be able to help solve a bet. Does anyone know what the approximate address was of the High Low Store that was between 69 & 71st & Halsted.
Re: High Low Grocery Stores
Posted by:
shekaago
()
Date: November 01, 2012 05:53PM
fraser3823: Here is an ad from 1959 (from the Chicago Tribune Historical Archives) which shows the various locations of High-Low Food Stores with one at 7008 S. Halsted.
[url=http://www.keepandshare.com/doc/4945098/1959-high-low-ad-7008-s-halsted-74k?da=y]High-Low Ad[/url]
[url=http://www.keepandshare.com/doc/4945098/1959-high-low-ad-7008-s-halsted-74k?da=y]High-Low Ad[/url]
Re: High Low Grocery Stores
Posted by:
ambrosemario
()
Date: November 01, 2012 11:45PM
To best of my recollection (1950’s/1960’s), the grocery store located on 99th street, east of Beverly Avenue was Longwood Certified, although I concede it may have been a High-Low before that. The owners were Art & Tom. They closed that store and re-located just a few blocks further west on 99th street near Longwood Drive, just past the Rock Island station. Their older location has been many things since, i.e. church, day-care, etc. and is now vacant. Last time I drove by, their store near Longwood had also been turned into a daycare center. I worked there on Sunday mornings putting the insides into the Sunday papers. It took 30 minutes and they gave me a dollar and a carton of chocolate milk. Art & Tom were both good guys.
Re: High Low Grocery Stores
Posted by:
Scott1964
()
Date: December 26, 2012 05:35PM
If I recall, there was a High-Low store on the 3100 north block of Harlem. This must have been in the early 70's or so. Now its a group of apartment buildings right across the street from the original Caputo's Market.
Re: High Low Grocery Stores
Posted by:
Pvonseeger
()
Date: June 13, 2013 10:53PM
My father, Tom O'Shaughnessy, opened the High Low Foods in Elmhurst some time around 1954...he remained Manager until his death in 1969...his aunt was Genevieve Roney, who was owner of High Low Foods..her nephews owned the Roney Ice Cream company...smart business woman.
Re: High Low Grocery Stores
Posted by:
Hugh Manatee
()
Date: June 15, 2013 04:16PM
High Low had an Ice Cream Called Roney's . I always wondered where the name came from. I also remember the red High-Low Flyer wagon I had from the late 50's until the late 60s.I delivered Sun Times and Tribune papers out of it.
Re: High Low Grocery Stores
Posted by:
Jim L.
()
Date: November 14, 2013 11:36PM
I remember the H-L at Green Bay Road and Isabella St (the Evanston-Wilmette border) where Dominick's (soon to be extinct itself) now resides.
I would shop there religiously for our monthly Boy Scout weekend camping trips. Boy, you could really stretch a buck at H-L. I remember the manager was a commanding looking bald headed man by the name of Edward Kleinhammer who was there for many years and was a nice guy. The flooring had these large checkerboard tiles. The tops of all the floor freezers had H-L red wagons back-to-back on top of them and every kid wanted one...talk about impulse shopping. Then you could get a nice cheap lunch there too, something like 15 cents for a hot dog, pop or an ice cream cone was a dime. They also featured one of the first diet pops that was put up in quart bottles for a dime,Diet Svelte,it was horrid.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/14/2013 11:38PM by Jim L..
I would shop there religiously for our monthly Boy Scout weekend camping trips. Boy, you could really stretch a buck at H-L. I remember the manager was a commanding looking bald headed man by the name of Edward Kleinhammer who was there for many years and was a nice guy. The flooring had these large checkerboard tiles. The tops of all the floor freezers had H-L red wagons back-to-back on top of them and every kid wanted one...talk about impulse shopping. Then you could get a nice cheap lunch there too, something like 15 cents for a hot dog, pop or an ice cream cone was a dime. They also featured one of the first diet pops that was put up in quart bottles for a dime,Diet Svelte,it was horrid.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/14/2013 11:38PM by Jim L..
Re: High Low Grocery Stores
Posted by:
querencia
()
Date: November 15, 2013 12:31AM
I shopped at the High Low that was either on E 63rd or near it, don't remember. What I do remember is the bins of ten-cent items. One of these was cans of Apple Bay Applesauce, the best canned applesauce I have ever tasted, faintly pink and very apple-y tasting. Another was cans of mashed sweet potatoes. Two lovely products in #2 cans for a dime, a very useful mainstay of our student budget.
Forgotten Illinois Central RR Stations
Posted by:
Paul Petraitis
()
Date: November 15, 2013 12:32AM
After the Race Riots of 1919 it seems like the ICRR began to decrease service to "Bronzeville" 31st, 35th etc but also there used to be stops at 123rd Street (a huge beer garden that served THOUSANDS called "Gardner's Park (from 1880-1900), a private "flag stop" at 18th St (for George Pullman)and a similar "vanity stop" for George's business partner Col. James H. Bowen at 126th St.called Wildwood. Any Illinois Central experts out there?
Re: High Low Grocery Stores
Posted by:
Jeff_Weiner
()
Date: November 15, 2013 01:31AM
querencia Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I shopped at the High Low that was either on E
> 63rd or near it, don't remember. What I do
> remember is the bins of ten-cent items. One of
> these was cans of Apple Bay Applesauce, the best
> canned applesauce I have ever tasted, faintly pink
> and very apple-y tasting. Another was cans of
> mashed sweet potatoes. Two lovely products in #2
> cans for a dime, a very useful mainstay of our
> student budget.
There was a High-Low on [u]W[/u] 63rd, west of California on the south side of the street. My mother used to visit there every now and then. Don't remember when they went away, but we moved in 1969.
-------------------------------------------------------
> I shopped at the High Low that was either on E
> 63rd or near it, don't remember. What I do
> remember is the bins of ten-cent items. One of
> these was cans of Apple Bay Applesauce, the best
> canned applesauce I have ever tasted, faintly pink
> and very apple-y tasting. Another was cans of
> mashed sweet potatoes. Two lovely products in #2
> cans for a dime, a very useful mainstay of our
> student budget.
There was a High-Low on [u]W[/u] 63rd, west of California on the south side of the street. My mother used to visit there every now and then. Don't remember when they went away, but we moved in 1969.
Re: High Low Grocery Stores
Posted by:
davey7
()
Date: November 15, 2013 02:12PM
I think the IC posting is in the wrong thread here.
Re: High Low Grocery Stores
Posted by:
Dunning1
()
Date: November 15, 2013 06:48PM
The High Low on North Harlem Avenue in Elmwood Park was in the 2600 N. Block, not the 3100 N. Block. The site is now taken up by several large apartment buildings. Just south of it, on Harlem, is the original Caputo's site, now a Planet Fitness. I remember that my grandfather would drive my mother over to High Low to do her shopping, and my grandfather would then wander over to Caputo's, which was then little more than a garage, and give some unsolicited advice as to how to display their merchandise. My grandfather had owned a chain of grocery stores on the West Side for years, and was looking to help them out.
Re: High Low Grocery Stores
Posted by:
Mr.D
()
Date: September 16, 2014 12:07AM
In response to Jeff_Weiner's November 14, 2013 10:31PM post:
Actually that Hi-Low food store was east of California. It was on the southwest corner of the intersection of 63rd Street and Talman Ave, facing 63rd Street. My mother would frequently send me to that store as a small boy by myself. The highlight of my experiences there as a kid was waiting in line at the checkout as two guys with nylon stockings pulled over their faces came in with guns in their hands and robbed the cashiers and tried to get the safe opened. That was unheard of in the area and definiely scarey for a small child!
I think the building is still there. I have a Google Maps photo of the building, but don't think I can post pictures on this site. I moved out of the neighborhood in 1975.
Mr. D
Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 09/16/2014 12:23AM by Mr.D.
Actually that Hi-Low food store was east of California. It was on the southwest corner of the intersection of 63rd Street and Talman Ave, facing 63rd Street. My mother would frequently send me to that store as a small boy by myself. The highlight of my experiences there as a kid was waiting in line at the checkout as two guys with nylon stockings pulled over their faces came in with guns in their hands and robbed the cashiers and tried to get the safe opened. That was unheard of in the area and definiely scarey for a small child!
I think the building is still there. I have a Google Maps photo of the building, but don't think I can post pictures on this site. I moved out of the neighborhood in 1975.
Mr. D
Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 09/16/2014 12:23AM by Mr.D.
Re: High Low Grocery Stores
Posted by:
Jeff_Weiner
()
Date: September 16, 2014 12:40AM
Mr.D Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> In response to Jeff_Weiner's November 14, 2013
> 10:31PM post:
>
> Actually that Hi-Low food store was east of
> California. It was on the southwest corner of the
> intersection of 63rd Street and Talman Ave, facing
> 63rd Street. My mother would frequently send me to
> that store as a small boy by myself. The
> highlight of my experiences there as a kid was
> waiting in line at the checkout as two guys with
> nylon stockings pulled over their faces came in
> with guns in their hands and robbed the cashiers
> and tried to get the safe opened. That was
> unheard of in the area and definiely scarey for a
> small child!
>
> I think the building is still there. I have a
> Google Maps photo of the building, but don't think
> I can post pictures on this site. I moved out of
> the neighborhood in 1975.
Whoops! My mistake, I meant to say [u]east[/u] of California!
I had a look at the image, and it looks like the west half of the building was still a grocery store, at least when the image was taken.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/16/2014 12:46AM by Jeff_Weiner.
-------------------------------------------------------
> In response to Jeff_Weiner's November 14, 2013
> 10:31PM post:
>
> Actually that Hi-Low food store was east of
> California. It was on the southwest corner of the
> intersection of 63rd Street and Talman Ave, facing
> 63rd Street. My mother would frequently send me to
> that store as a small boy by myself. The
> highlight of my experiences there as a kid was
> waiting in line at the checkout as two guys with
> nylon stockings pulled over their faces came in
> with guns in their hands and robbed the cashiers
> and tried to get the safe opened. That was
> unheard of in the area and definiely scarey for a
> small child!
>
> I think the building is still there. I have a
> Google Maps photo of the building, but don't think
> I can post pictures on this site. I moved out of
> the neighborhood in 1975.
Whoops! My mistake, I meant to say [u]east[/u] of California!
I had a look at the image, and it looks like the west half of the building was still a grocery store, at least when the image was taken.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/16/2014 12:46AM by Jeff_Weiner.
Re: High Low Grocery Stores
Posted by:
k.graves
()
Date: November 05, 2014 02:00AM
At one time in the 1950's there was a High Low grocery store in the Brainerd shopping District About 89th Loomis.
Re: High Low Grocery Stores
Posted by:
letsshop
()
Date: November 06, 2014 08:45PM
Does anyone remember Hi-low that use to be at 111th Halsted ?
Re: High Low Grocery Stores
Posted by:
mishadoc
()
Date: December 16, 2014 10:41AM
I too worked at Lincoln and Belle Plaine from 1972 - 1974 and I was one of the idiots that met with the Retail Clerks Union to get them into play in the store. Naive and stupid, I thought I was doing the right thing. But at 16 years old, how much does anyone really know about anything. Chuck Lorenz was the manager and his Irish counterpart, John Lawler who used to fart as he walked down the aisle. I remember crazy Herbie who used to put a bag over his head with eyes cut out and a smiley face and call himself the unknown mopper, after we closed the store for the evening. I remember Ron who went to Viet Nam. I hope he came back okay. He was such a dreamboat. I remember the two Greek brothers who worked the coolers and would make cow noises whenever the old ladies would ask if the milk was fresh. Not sure they believed them though. And there was this heavy guy who wore glasses and used to sing "Down by the Old Mill Stream, not the river but the stream, where I first me you, not your sister but you. Used to talk about the crossing guard who double crossed him. Fun times and great people to work with. I miss them all.
Re: High Low Grocery Stores
Posted by:
southwestside83rd
()
Date: January 24, 2015 11:40PM
I was at the grand opening of the HIGH LOW in Hometown, ILLINOIS around 1953. It is still there, and some windows are bricked up and the Advocate doctors building occupies it. They had clowns dressed up at the opening, it was a big event, because the area was a food desert, only other nearby food store was National Tea. Does anyone remember this at 87th and southwest highway??
Re: High Low Grocery Stores
Posted by:
juliette2939
()
Date: March 28, 2015 09:40PM
I remember the store at 87th and Southwest Hwy. I accompanied my parents there every Wednesday when Dad got paid. There was a matronly lady that would sometimes be there with what I believe was a teddy bear wrapped in a baby blanket. She would walk through the store doing her shopping while holding her 'baby'. As a young kid, I was drawn to stare at her, much to my mom's dismay. Mom had heard that the lady had lost her own baby in previous years. Don't know if that's true or not. Anyone else remember this?
Re: High Low Grocery Stores
Posted by:
WayOutWardell
()
Date: July 03, 2015 12:48AM
I was doing some searching around and found that the High Low at 1210 E 63rd (just east of Woodlawn Ave) was previously a nightclub called Anne Millstone's Rendezvous. It looks like the club changed names by 1957, because Chuck Berry played at the Stage Lounge at this same address. I've got no idea when it became a grocery store.
Re: High Low Grocery Stores
Posted by:
WayOutWardell
()
Date: July 04, 2015 04:14PM
Here's the High Low on E 63rd:
[url=http://www.chicagosextinctbusinesses.com/resources/low15%2063rd%20woodlawn.jpg]Woodlawn High Low[/url]
[url=http://www.chicagosextinctbusinesses.com/resources/low15%2063rd%20woodlawn.jpg]Woodlawn High Low[/url]
