Piggly Wiggly
Grocery stores in the late 1800s and early 1900s, usually had clerks who would get the groceries for customers and bring them to a counter for them. Self-service stores came along later. One of the first to operate as self-service, was Piggly Wiggly. Here is the story of the first Piggly Wiggly stores according to Smithsonian Magazine.
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/bizarre-story-piggly-wiggly-first-self-service-grocery-store-180964708/
Piggly Wiggly came to Spartansburg in about 1934 on Main Street-probably replacing the Red & White Store-1 store in from the corner with Water Street. The manager was Laurence Winsor. His employees included Clair Lindsey, Mabel Schreckengost and Miss Helen Bates.
The Piggly Wiggly sponsored contests- one prize was $5 and one was a 3 pound cake made by Firch Baking Company.
I haven’t been able to try the recipe for Sweet Pickles because I can’t find any of Aunt Nancy’s Pickle Spice.
The store continued in business until 1938 when Laurence Winsor purchased it and renamed it Winsor’s Market.
Winsor’s was replaced in 1944 by Nationwide Grocery- owned by Helen Bates, who later became Spartansburg’s Mayor.
The store had expanded to include the corner store (noted on maps of the time as the Martin building). Nationwide was a chain store and had been in Titusville and other local areas for several years.
