Gadsden - Gadsden, AL | Fmr Winn-Dixie #1905 - Fort Payne, AL
Sing Food Store | Deli
1895 Noccalula Road
Gadsden, AL 35904
Scroll Down for today's MTC post on former Winn-Dixie #1905 for a taste of the 1980's
Welcome to this week's feature on The Sing Oil Blog! Following the Marketplace Madness-adjacent double feature last time and the brief hiatus taken to cover my Publix #172 auction adventure, I'm back in the saddle to showcase Sing Oil Company's only ever station (that I'm aware of) in North Alabama. After that, you'll also want to stick around for today's More Than Convenience feature, located just 30 minutes north of here on I-59 (hint: it showcases our best look yet at a 1980's Winn-Dixie).
Of course, that will have to wait until after we visit the Sing.
The former Gadsden location for Sing Oil Company has confused me for years: first of all, why did the company skip over towns like Anniston, Auburn, and Birmingham to build a station here, and second, why does this building look like no other Sing Store we've seen?
I may not be able to answer those questions, but I can still try to make sense of the decision to build here.
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| The Gadsden Times (Google Newspaper Archives) - December 3, 1958 |
When I sat down with former Sing Executive Vice President Tom Perry several years ago, I asked him specifically about the history of this location. He said that the Sing real estate team found this site while flying over the area and thought it would be a worthwhile location for a convenience store.
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| The Gadsden Times (Google Newspaper Archives) - March 4, 1962 |
Sing purchased the property on August 8, 1978, and before this, it was home to a Sinclair service station from at December 4, 1958, through at least 1969. It was listed as Noccalula Arco Service Station from 1971 through 1977.
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| The Gadsden Times (Google Newspaper Archives) - July 24, 1983 |
By 1980, several classified ads began mentioning the "Sing Store" on Noccalula road when giving directions, so the station likely opened sometime around 1979 just as the property records indicate.
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| The Gadsden Times (Google Newspaper Archives) - April 11, 1989 |
I'd imagine that this Sing continued on with its original look and circa 1964 logo until 1987, when the company filed for a $10,000 remodel permit in June – it's a shame that the photo above doesn't give us a better look at the store!
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| The Gadsden Times (Google Newspaper Archives) - February 10, 1990 |
One of the most substantial mentions of the station came in February 1990 when local gas prices suddenly dropped by an average of five cents over ten days. The piece specifically includes a quote from then-manager Karen Duke who said that any price changes at the Sing were only performed at the blessing of her bosses in Thomasville. Her price per gallon at the time was listed at $1.02 for regular unleaded.
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| The Gadsden Times (Google Newspaper Archives) - February 10, 1990 |
I find it interesting how station managers had no freedom to adjust prices by a few pennies in order to keep up with competition, but maybe that's how most of the gasoline industry did and still does operate. Sing was still one of the cheapest options in the area.
Also, who has ever heard of an orthodontist who does fillings? That ad seems oddly targeted.
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Just like so many other former stations, Amoco sold this property in March of 1993 as the oil giant was looking to focus its efforts on its core growth markets, like Tallahassee.
Now that we have some backstory on this location, let's take a look inside. Today's post contains a combination of photos taken by yours truly and the Sing Oil Sidekick on two separate occasions. I initially asked the S.O.S. to snap his photos as he was traveling to visit family but then couldn't resist taking a road trip of my own several years later. The more photos, the better!
Interestingly enough, the Sidekick and I chose different sides of the store to enter from, with the S.O.S. taking this photo from the eastern side of the building.
I was honestly shocked to learn that Sing built this store since it doesn't match any other station I've seen. In a sense, it is like a wider version of Thomasville #6, except with the pumps on the front of the building. I'm sure the architects went with this unconventional design due to the land constraints, but I'm still surprised Sing didn't opt to use the standardized small format design it debuted a year or two earlier. Maybe Gadsden was a trial for a concept that didn't take off?
Stepping through the door, we find that the Rainbow Food Mart had obviously outgrown its conventional drink cooler space since it had installed these portable units along the front wall.
Turning to the right, we see yet another portable fridge was installed, along with some ice cream chest freezers. It looks like they have quite the selection of wine here!
How could I forget to mention the square terra cotta tile! If anything, at least we know the flooring here is original.
Looking at the back wall of the store, we can see all of the built-in drink coolers which are now stocked full of beer.
Oh, and there was even a walk-in beer cave.
Chips and snacks filled the center aisles of the store, as expected.
Likewise, more chips and snacks were on the next aisle over. (This is where I picked up a bag of Gardetto's snack mix – it's like somebody decided to put all of the best parts of Chex Mix in one bag! I guess it helps that they are both General Mills brands . . .)
What is that I see on the far wall? Why, a piece of Sing's old trim, of course! If you look just above the water bottles, you can see the thin piece of molding which separated Sing's blue border from the rest of the wall.
Let's take a quick look back toward the door we entered through before continuing on.
Spinning around, we can see the edge of the cashier counter which was mostly centered along the front wall. Neither I nor the Sidekick got a good picture of it, presumably because we noticed the giant TV monitor of security cameras right in front of it. I know that I didn't want another encounter like Columbia!
Let's take a look down one side of the pop tart / granola bar aisle . . .
. . . before turning around to see the candy on the opposite shelf. Sweet!
That aisle leads us to the last of the built-in coolers and the small coffee / fountain drink counter.
Gee, I wonder where I've seen those orange-topped Formica cabinets before . . .
My guess is that the neon and tile décor was added after Sing sold to Amoco because I feel like I would have seen that in at least one other store if it was from Sing. It feels very '90s to me.
My guess is that whoever installed the tile also ripped out part of Sing's extended ICEE / soda fountain counter. The scarred concrete left behind even makes a Kroger's floor look nice!
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| How often does this convenience store sell a bottle of apple cider vinegar? |
Just to the left of the Pepsi fountain was a small corridor leading to the restrooms and some storage space.
Here's a look from said hallway back toward the store.
What do you say, shall we discretely check out the cashier's counter one last time?
Na, let's just get out of here (using the opposite door from where we entered, of course).
Toodle do!
In a strange way, I can see how this store was an adapted version of the small-format square stations.
The window centered under the canopy most certainly allowed motorists to pay for gas before the days of credit cards, and the entrances on either side of the building are even configured like the square stores, with a single door flanked by a large bank of windows.
The similarities don't stop there, though, because I noticed how there was a trough for fluorescent lights running around the perimeter of the sore. Maybe that was added during the 1988 remodel? Or better yet, maybe this store featured one of the cool backlit canopies toward the end.
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| See the Shell sign through the trees? |
The best part about my trip to this station, though, was the fact that it is directly across the street from Gadsden's Noccalula Falls Park.
Sing did pick some prime real estate for allowing access to the attraction; furthermore, the area was pretty crowded on the Saturday I went due to its close proximity to downtown Gadsden.
The hike through the gorge to the base of the falls was breathtaking, and it was amazing how much the temperature dropped as the humility rose from the mist.
It is also crazy how you have no idea there is a Shell station and a Jack's restaurant roughly 200 yards from where I was standing when I took this photo. They better hope that the waterfall doesn't erode the rock too soon!
Let's take a look at some street and aerial views before heading up I-59 to our next destination.
Street Views
Google Street View - January 2014
Google Street View - August 2024
Aerial Views
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| Historic Aerials - 1965 Noccalula Sinclair Service Station |
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| Historic Aerials - 1981 Newly-constructed Gadsden Sing Store |
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| Google Earth - March 1998 Former Noccalula Sing Station |
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| Google Earth - September 2024 Noccalula Shell / Rainbow Food Mart |
Parcel ID: 10-09-29-4-000-077
Etowah County Property Records
Down Home Winn-Dixieland Delight
Former Winn-Dixie #1905
United Grocery Outlet #13 | Former Bruce's Foodland
DeKalb Plaza
1000 DeKalb Plaza Boulevard
Marketplace Madness 2025: Alabama (the band)
Okay, now for the meat (specifically the beef) of this post: former Winn-Dixie #1905.
This year in Marketplace Madness, we've traveled back from the futuristic chrome look of the earliest Marketplace concepts to the twice-made mistakes which led to the 2005 bankruptcy. Last time, we got our best look yet at how a Winn-Dixie during the 1980's would have looked; however, today, I plan to blow that timeless store out of the water. Remember the teaser photo I planted in my post covering Publix #1119? Let's find out where it came from.
I stumbled upon this store by mere accident as I was planning a recent trip to Huntsville. I had finished scoping out the immediate area for stores of interest and felt I was coming up largely empty handed. Sure, I found or had been told about a few interesting Publixes, an old Kroger Superstore, or an Appliance-Dixie, but nothing quite hit the right balance of vintage yet approachable. I remember specifically researching old Bruno's stores in the region when I came across mention of several old Food World stores that I wanted to add to my list. It was upon clicking through the current "grocery store" listings on Google Maps when I found the Fort Payne United Grocery Outlet: I simply couldn't believe my eyes.
In the company's 1986 annual report, Winn-Dixie claimed that, "The size and design of stores are determined by the neighborhood they will serve. It's not just the merchandise selections that are customized. Accordingly, the Company continues to seek prime locations within all of the 13 Sunbelt states in which we operate. We build the size store that meets the requirements of the individual location, be it 25,000 square foot facilities for a bustling rural community or for a particular metropolitan neighborhood; or the 30,000 to 35,000 square foot facilities which make up the majority of our new stores. In the last two years, we've introduced 45,500 square foot Winn-Dixie Marketplaces in three locations. This concept encompasses all of our specialty departments and sometimes a pharmacy. We will continue to renovate and enlarge our stores every year."
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| Winn-Dixie Annual Report (Pleasant Family Shopping) - 1980 |
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| Winn-Dixie Annual Report (archive.org) - 1986 - Greenbrier Shopping Center (Anniston, AL) |
As I mentioned during my origins of the Marketplace post, Winn-Dixie's competition was opening stores that were double the size compared to The Beef People, and that strategy was working.
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| Winn-Dixie Annual Report (archive.org) - 1986 - Greenbrier Shopping Center (Anniston, AL) |
Meanwhile, the Jacksonville-based supermarket still claimed that, "Convenience, competitive pricing and accessibility are the primary factors in the continuing appeal of such Winn-Dixie locations. Particularly in the Southeast, there were many towns where initially a single store could adequately serve the area. Now, because of the growth in population and job opportunities in this area, several of these mid-sized, neighborhood-oriented stores may be needed to serve our customers. And all can be quite profitable."
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| Winn-Dixie Annual Report (archive.org) - 1986 - Greenbrier Shopping Center (Anniston, AL) |
It may have been profitable at the time, but as we all know, complacency provides a window for other forces to sweep in like a thief in the night.
And they did just that.
On the flip side, by now we know that times were still pretty good for the company during the decade. The "shopping spree" clip above shows us how The Beef People were wholly committed to their wood interior which featured blocks of bold colors. Does this remind anyone else of Family Feud's look from the era? Survey Says!
For those who aren't familiar with the area, the city of Fort Payne serves as the county seat of DeKalb County, Alabama, and is situated aside I-59 between Birmingham and Chattanooga. The town, dubbed, "the Sock Capital of the World," continues to host other industries like steel, transformers, garbage truck bodies, playground equipment and prefabricated homes.
Fort Payne is also known as the hometown of the country group Alabama, with the band's museum and fan club residing directly across the street from the store we'll tour today.
Based on the DeKalb County property records, this particular Winn-Dixie was built in 1972 along with the rest of DeKalb Plaza. I specifically found a deed dated February 26, 1972, listing Winn-Dixie Montgomery as a party, which helps to back this up.
I believe this location was considered part of the Chattanooga / Huntsville region based on its store number being in the 1900's. I'm not entirely sure if the area had its own division, or if the operations were simply a part of the neighboring Montgomery Division.
The store expanded in 1986 following the neighboring Goody's move to a new building at the north end of the plaza, which was likely when the current façade was installed. I'd imagine the building originally looked something like this.
Goody's move also enabled the other anchor tenants, namely Wal-Mart (formerly Big K) and Sears, to expand their footprints within the shopping center. Harco Super Drugs #211 was the plaza's pharmacy during this time.
This store is listed as first accepting SNAP benefits on December 1, 1986, which would have coincided with its expansion. The Winn-Dixie closed sometime before November 18, 1998.
Nearby Rainsville got the brand-new Winn-Dixie Marketplace #1916 in 1998, which seems to have either directly or indirectly replaced store #1905 roughly nine miles away. Winn-Dixie #1916 seemingly closed between 2002 and 2005 as Winn-Dixie was scaling back its presence in North Alabama.
Following Winn-Dixie's departure from DeKalb Plaza, Bruce's Foodland Plus took up residence in the building from sometime in late-1998 through roughly 2003. After this time, United Grocery Outlet moved from their existing circa 1996 location to this presumably larger store.
Based on a piece from Tomorrow's News Today - Atlanta, "United Grocery Outlet got its start in Etowah, Tennessee in 1974, and today . . . includes forty stores in Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia. More than half of United Grocery Outlet's stores are in their home state of Tennessee but the company has a limited presence in northwest Georgia including stores in Dalton, Ringgold, Summerville, and Chatsworth." That article was published several weeks after my trip to Fort Payne and caught me by surprise when it stated that United Grocery Outlet had been purchased by the California-based Grocery Outlet. Let's just say that the news made me worried about this rare interior's longevity.
Both chains operate as off-price grocers, specializing in closeout merchandise of brand-name items, much akin to the Big Lots of yesteryear. I have never seen another grocery store like this, so I was intrigued to see what kind of items were in store.
Let's see what I found on the ground.
The plaza is located at a bit of an odd intersection between Glenn Boulevard, Gault Avenue, and Plaza Road with all of the entrances being oddly situated on the old Wal-Mart end of the complex. I learned this the hard way as I followed the signage on the red light at the Northwest end of the triangle stating "No left turn" and ended up passing the center only to turn back around. In hindsight, I should have just continued south on Gault and turned in next to Tractor Supply. Oh well, I made it there anyhow.
The closer you get, the further I fall
I'll be over the edge now, in no time at all
I'm falling faster and faster and faster, with no time to stall
The closer you get, the further I fall
Alabama - "The Closer You Get"
Walking up, I immediately recognized the 1980's Winn-Dixie façade I spotted online: while not uncommon, it is still nice to see this distinctive style of building with its brick "notched" pillars, centered transom windows, and steel skinned mansard-style face.
Inside, however, is where all of the magic happens. Upon walking in, we are greeted by the reason those transom windows exist: the elevated manager's office centered in the vestibule. This "room" lacks the upper portion of the wall and allows somebody standing inside to have a clearer view of the sales floor from a higher vantage point – essentially a simpler implementation of the security catwalk or one-way mezzanine windows that would become more common in supermarkets in the late-1980's.
We also find a fleet of Sam's Club-style buggies with "Marc's" etched on the red plastic handle piece. I'd have to assume these were acquired second-hand, and a quick internet search seems to indicate Marc's is a grocery chain in Ohio that does use red as its primary color. An odd choice for sure, but not the strangest thing we will encounter here.
Moving on, we'll take a low-quality glimpse at the door to the manager's cove hidden behind several displays of boxed snacks.
I always get spooky when I'm around the customer service department, so my pictures always turn out poorly.
And what do we find . . . a banana tree just like the one in the Sylvester Piggly Wiggly (well, almost). The main difference being the Sylvester one remained a very tropical teal and ivory while the one we see today is all black. It may be hard to tell, but this one had obviously been painted because I saw several places where the original green was beginning to shine through. Anyway, I applaud the effort because the black display blends in much better than the teal one!
Now, for the reason why we are here: Winn-Dixie's 1970's interior. INTACT. IN AN ACTIVE SUPERMARKET.
I'll admit that this interior isn't in pristine shape, but any example of the décor surviving until 2024 is well worth noting. And for what it's worth, the United Grocery Outlet did seem to maintain this building much better than most discount grocers I've seen. After all, look at how shiny these circa-1972 vinyl tiles are (especially compared to Big Lots)!
Continuing on down the right side of the store, it's worth noting how the adornments on wall don't exactly match the rest of the space. It appears that in 2019 the exterior of the building was subdivided for a new gym, but this interior wall may have been added long before. I'd even go so far as to say that Winn-Dixie's produce department was probably where the physical therapy and financial offices are by the time The Beef People left the Sock Capital.
Turning to my left, I spotted something on the shelf that caught my attention: Kroger brand no sugar added ketchup. I didn't really know what United Grocery Outlet was about before I stepped foot in this store, but it didn't take me long!
It turns out that the chain brings its discount prices by purchasing overstock or near-expiration product from a whole host of vendors. While I'm not sure I'd do my regular grocery shopping at a store like this, it was a fun adventure to see what all I'd find while wandering through the aisles (I picked up a bottle of that Nando's Perinaise shown above; a little taste of the Portugal – or South Africa – in North Alabama. I also only opened that bottle a month ago . . . who cares about expiration dates). Add to that the Wahlburgers sauce or the commercial-sized tubs of tartar sauce and you have quite the mix of sauces!
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| "Sweet potato pie and I shut my mouth" |
Taking a quick overview of the first half of the produce department, we see the vintage mirrored produce cases lining the wall complimented by an assortment of Gaylord boxes occupying the middle of the aisle.
But wait, there's more! Gracing the partition wall was none other than what appears to be a banged up produce sign from Albertsons' Industrial Circus package. While this view may not be as grandiose as Retail Retail's album featuring a deluxe, new construction store, the sign is still more of said package than I ever thought I'd see in person.
Now that brings the question as to why in the world it is here? My best guess is that United Grocery Outlet went to one of the auctions in 2001 for the several Tennessee FoodMax Albertsons stores that closed. Maybe since the Chattanooga-area locations were all acquired from Bruno's, they only received cheap versions of Industrial Circus as this sign seems to reflect? I don't know if that scenario is even plausible, but I know one thing for sure: this Fresh Produce Market was pretty banged up!
Something that surprised me is how UGO put in a decent amount of effort to finish out the wall trim in this corner following the installation of the partition. I'm assuming they were just able to cut down a piece of trim that was removed from the subdivided portion of the store, but it's still nice that they put in the effort.
I'll also point out Winn-Dixie's original reddish/orange meat department flooring that remains over here. This interestingly matches what was also used with the Chrome Marketplace package.
So how do I know this décor is original? Well, the keen-eyed amongst you may already spot some tell-tale hints, but I'll wait to point those out until later. For now, let's just take in the scenery of the unvarnished wood trim, vintage coolers, and mirrored walls (Winn-Dixie was a huge fan of mirrors back in the 1970's & 1980's. Maybe they should reflect back on some of those choices today).
Hopping into aisle 2, we find our next supermarket surprise: Food Lion-brand canned yams. It appears that Kroger isn't the only one who offloads excess product to UGO!
While this store did employ the Aldi/Walmart/Kroger stocking tactic of leaving every item in its cardboard box, the shelves seemed to be fairly well kept and arranged. That's a lot more than can be said about some of the others who seem to recently have standards that are lower than low . . .
I'll also take a minute to discuss the department lettering. While I wish I could make an argument for it being vintage, every picture I've seen of a Winn-Dixie with this package showcases smaller letters attached to the wall. Also, I'm inclined to say that the off-white paint is not original based on all of the bright colors left behind in the former Eden, NC, store, and the fact that I noticed several splotches of white paint that found its way onto the wooden trim.
Now, for our pièce de résistance: the deli man. While some (Ehm, the Sing Oil Sidekick) may have thought this was a graphic of Uncle Ben, I immediately recognized this from old WD newspaper ads, deli signage, and uniforms. As to why he is still here or how he got moved to the meat department, I do not know; however, I can assume he is just mounted to the wall with a French cleat (déjà vu?) based on the empty one I see to the left.
Returning to the grocery aisles, we find our next mystery: where in the world did these aisle markers come from? After a quick glance through Google Maps, it looks like the aisle markers in other United Grocery Outlets are wildly inconsistent (with some resembling the Bob Evans logo others looking like they were pulled out of a Millennium Kroger and painted).
I originally thought that these, too, could have come from an Industrial Circus Albertsons, but that doesn't seem to be the case. I'd love to hear your thoughts and theories!
As for cereal, this store had a gigantic selection of Quaker Life cereal. As a lover of Life myself, I couldn't pass up a "Mega Size" box (2 whole pounds!) of the cinnamon stuff myself considering how I believe it was priced the same as a small box at Publix. I just won't pay attention to the expiration date that is less than 45 days out . . .
Continuing on to aisle five, we see another reflection on days gone by and this store's selection of snacks & H&BA products.
On second thought, I wonder if these aisle markers could hail from a Bruno's FoodMax rather than an Albertsons – just some food for thought.
I mean, who wouldn't want a case of soap from the Red Roof Inn! I nearly bought one of these as a joke, but then that little voice in my head reminded me how little space I have for stuff I do not need.
A bit further down the aisle, I found a vast selection of Rite Aid-branded staple removers, complete with the old logo. One could be yours, if the price is right.
That's right, kiddos, this store is frozen in time! Returning to the back wall of the store, we find the restrooms just where Winn-Dixie left them, along with some equally vintage signage hanging above the hallway and another one of those mysterious old backlit number boxes. We typically see these mounted above the customer service desk, and I've oft wondered if they served as a way to page an employee or if they indicated an active phone line.
We'll see one last overview of the rear of the store before continuing on. Note how this package also used a row of angled florescent light to illuminate the wall décor similar to what Publix did in the 1980's and early-1990's. It looks like these lights may be missing all of their bulbs, but at least the fixtures remain, nonetheless.
Ironically, I have a rerun of The Golden Girls on in the background as I write this post, and that show has so much slap-happy humor! I'll admit that I've probably only seen five full episodes in my life, but I remember why the series has such a following every time.
(I'm just cracking up at this episode about "Baby" the pig!) [LOL, I remember writing this post as I was sitting in a Hampton Inn in Chattanooga several months ago with Golden Girls on in the background!]
Furthermore, the tour of the old Fort Payne WD wouldn't be complete without a shot of some Golden Girls-era Rose & Teal Marketplace signage! If only I knew where to find one of these signs . . .
Since the store was condensed from WD's old layout, the freezers were moved from the middle of the store over to the dairy aisle. This honestly makes sense as far as the layout is concerned so I can't blame UGO for the decision. What I can blame them for is making the graphic that used to be hung on the wall in front of us disappear!
This is by far my favorite picture from the store, as it showcases the best remaining representation of how this Winn-Dixie looked over two-and-a-half decades ago. I can't say if any of these wall colors are original or not, but I can say that whichever designer chose them did a good job of matching the colors in the dairy graphics.
For something eggstra special, I decided to take a straight-on picture of the egg graphic for y'all. I've been trying to get better about throwing in a few shots that are framed like this in case anybody cares to vectorize these (hint, hint – I'll always accept submissions).
Is it just me, or does that coffin cooler have red duct tape covering the decorative trim? I can't imagine it using an ugly shade of teal or something.
Notice how the vinyl tile bands transitioned from the blush color we saw in the grocery department to the mustard and brown we see here; just more proof that the proper dairy department color is yellow!
This store unfortunately neither operates a deli nor a bakery so I couldn't see if the infamous orange tiles were still here.
At least the original vinyl flooring was still here: it received orange stripes with black bands that run perpendicular to most of the other flooring accents. This, too, foreshadows what The Beef People would opt to use with Chrome Marketplace, but looks much more rustic in this implementation (or maybe that's just all of the wood getting to me).
Checking out, the last oddity I noticed were the two-piece checkout fixtures in this store. The idea is that you park your buggy against the flat portion of the table in front of me while the cashier unloads items from the cart and keys them in (on a manual register, mind you). I'm not sure if these are original to WD or if UGO installed them, but they look vintage regardless.
We can also see one of the tan tile bands that runs parallel to each checkout in this shot.
While there may be other bizarre UGO stores out there (like the one inside an old Double Greenhouse Kroger), this one seems to take the cake as far as interiors go. I wish more of this interior was original to Winn-Dixie as well; however, everything I saw here was more than I ever imagined I'd see in an active grocery store.
If you want some other perspectives on how a store like this would have looked, make sure to check out AFB's post on the abandoned New Smyrna Beach store or the Winn-Thriftie in St. Augustine.
Back outside, I noticed that the WD pillars continued past the gym, all the way to the pet store down at the end. This makes me wonder if Goody's originally occupied this portion of DeKalb Plaza before moving to the "new" building off to the right. The shopping center narrows at the section with Pro Health & 1st Franklin and a section of the deeper portion behind Bend the Bar Fitness has a different color roof. This makes me wonder if WD only ever expanded to the leftmost pillar we see here. Then again, the Pet Supplies Plus store previously began the lower section of the façade making the storefronts to the left look like they could have once been one big box. The world may never know.
Anyhow, the latest Goody's building also had these pillars, so it is possible that the whole shopping center just received a facelift in the late-1980's to match the Winn-Dixie.
One thing I can confirm (from another bad picture of mine) is that both an old WD cart return post and a triangular sign still stand in front of the shopping center to this day.
While passing through Fort Payne, I had to stop by the Alabama Fan Club and Museum. If you need help collecting your bearings, just glance across the street to the left and you'll see the shopping center we just came from.
The county music group formed in Fort Payne back in 1969 and celebrated the height of their fame during the 1980's. Alabama is known for their harmonies and celebrated several multi-platinum albums with hits such as "Tennessee River", "Dixieland Delight", "Song of the South", and one of my favorites, "My Home's in Alabama". Former SiriusXM radio host Storme Warren once described Alabama Live as the best (country) road trip album ever released, and I can't say I disagree. I had to listen to it on my drive from Fort Payne to Huntsville! I'm certain the members of the group shopped at this old Winn-Dixie a time or two, but much like their popularity, it seems to have waned over the years.
Anyhow, that will do it for this edition of The Sing Oil Blog – I hope you enjoyed all of this year's madness! I'm planning to go on vacation over the coming days, so I'm unsure whether or not I'll have time to concoct a post for April 20th; I have an idea for an MTC part 2 that I photographed during my trip to Gadsden, but I could also see me throwing something cheeky at the wall for the "special occasion" (which I don't actually condone). We'll just see if anything feels so right.
Roll on!
- The Sing Oil Blogger
Man I’d love to visit this store one day! Also, there’s a Johnson’s Giant Food that from what I can tell on Google Maps, looks like a mid-80s Winn-Dixie inside and out. It’s in Gadsden too!
ReplyDeleteIt is a cool store! I'd still suggest that you try to visit sooner rather than later in case Grocery Outlet decides to remodel the pace now that it has new ownership.
DeleteI've seen several Johnson's Giant Food stores on Google Maps, but I've never stopped in. The Gadsden store specifically does have a Winn-Dixie exterior and a few interior elements (like the produce trellis and some wooden accents), but the walls have been redecorated and flooring has been changed. I'll probably visit one day, but I had other priorities during my Gadsden trip.
I'm glad you liked the post!