Friday, December 19, 2008

Drugstore Lore

BJ has a question:

I realize its off the subject of the CB Bank dime-savers, but theChurchGuy's comments about baseball cards got me to thinking. In 1959 I used to purchase my cards and stale gum at Herriman's drugs on Dayton and Detroit (now MLK, I believe) Street or Herlich's Rexall drugs in downtown. I use to splurge once a month on a 10 cent Superman comic while shopping there. Do either of those stores still exist in some shape or form? Or did I miss their abandoned, burnt-out wrecks during the street scenes of Roger and Me?



14 comments:

  1. Herlich's has a new facade and I believe a habidashery or men's clothing store in it. I haven't been down Detroit street in ages (my mom lives a few blocks south of Dayton off Iroquis still). I know the Dayton/Dupont drug store where I purchased my comics is long gone called Lemieaux's (spelling?). I used to hang out there while grampa shopped the A and P across the street. Then we would walk home together or I would go round the corner to the old dime store on Dayton. A friend of mine lived upstairs there in an apartment over the store. I need to get out and see the nasty snow today-maybe its a good photo day?

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  2. Gordon,
    Thanks for spotlighting my question. In trying to brush out some cobwebs from the old memories, I now think Herrimans was on Dupont and Dayton. There I once bought a Davy Crockett hat and at their soda fountain drank many cherry or lime Phosphates (a drink I have only seen in Flint) ; whereas Heinamann's was the one located at Dayton and Detroit.

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  3. My grandma's house is just around the corner from Le Mieux's. It was a Rexall Drug store and it had a soda fountain in it. (says my mother) I loved going there and to the A&P. Herriman's was on Clio Road btw. It closed about 5 years ago...I loved that place too!
    Sigh! Another childhood memory gone!
    RoadsideDinerLover

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    1. What street was Le Mieux Pharmacy on. Was it Detroit street?

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  4. I appreciate BJ taking the fall for "getting off the subject," (an honor usually reserved for me, I suppose), but after my baseball bubble gum flashback, I was relecting on the number of "corner stores" there were in or near my neighborhood back in the 50s. There were four such establishments that come to mind:

    ...the corner of Ohio Ave. and N. Franklin
    ...the corner of Ohio and Cronk
    ...the corner of N. Franklin and Nebraska (I'd sneak down to this one on occasion from Sunday School at Bethany United Presbyterian Church)
    ...and another across the street from above (my usual supplier for baseball cards and gum)

    The first two stores were conveniently located en route to and from Kearsley Park and my house at 2314 Ohio--which "used to be" just three blocks down the street from the AC plant. As far as I know, the house--unlike the plant--is still there.

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  5. forgot a Herlich's was downtown. we had across from Shumaker's where i always filled up my lemans and bought stale bubblegum! went to school w/Leslie Lemieux, from Zimmerman up to when I left Flint in '70. She always liked stale gum also.add cherry phosphate to the want list, Ken...Anon.-you probably knew the Hill's, Hickocks, Hennesy's?

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  6. Herrlich's was an easy walk from home in the late 50s/early 60s.
    We'd get film there and have it sent out for developing.

    theChurchGuy mentioned corner stores and I remember three:

    -- First Avenue and Grand Traverse
    -- Southeast corner of 3rd Avenue and Grand Traverse
    -- attached to the Hamady Brothers store on 3rd Avenue, between Mason and Grand Traverse. This is where I bought the gum and baseball/football cards. I didn't like chewing gum, so I traded the gum to friends for other cards.

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  7. Did anyone ever hear of a "Germer's Drug Store" Know anything about it? My last name is Germer and my Grandfathers Family lived in Flint.
    Thanks

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    1. Germer drugstore was on Carpenter Rd & College St. Fred Germer owned it, pretty nice fellow, he was there back in the 60's

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    2. Yes, I remember Germers drug store very well! We used to ride up there on our bikes!

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    3. Was there a Rexall on the corner of Carpenter & Saginaw?

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  8. https://www.huffpost.com/entry/career-lessons-from-fred_n_363981 I went to Germer's as a child.

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  9. Does anyone know the name of drug store on Corunna rd. across Downey st. From Zimmerman school in the 1950's

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  10. Does anyone remember the name of the drug store with a soda fountain on Detroit across from a Sinclair gas station

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