Life at the Grocery Store - 1950s & 1960s America

When I was a kid living in a small agricultural town of about 600 people in southwest Nebraska back in the early 1960's, my mom and I would go to a small market called 'Fitzers'. The size of the store was probably 40' x 60'. We would take our purchases to the check out and the owner of the store would ring us up and call out the price of each item hitting the buttons for the price of each item and at the end hit a button on the cash register and it would make a lot of noise printing out the tape. He would then ask if we wanted to pay for it now or put it on our 'tab'! My mom always paid the grocery bill the first of the month. She would sign the ticket. At the end of the month, we would get a bill. Mr. Fitzer made a very good living out of that little store!

It was FUN grocery shopping in the 1960s. Now its just a hassle and you check yourself out. Some places you also bag your own purchases. These days you just want to get in and out as fast as possible. Back in the day it was a leisurely activity. Those were the days.

With three growing boys born in the 50s, grocery shopping was my mom's hobby through the 60s and 70s. God bless her soul.

As a 16-yr. old teenager in 1980, I worked in a small town grocery store.We still had paper bags and bag boys at every register. We also had a carport for people who wanted their groceries put into their cars for them.

I love these videos looking back on the way things were. So fun to see the prices! And everyone dressed so nicely and were so slim. Sure do miss those times..............

When I was growing up we had three grocery stores within walking distance of our house. Unfortunately, the neighborhood got so bad that eventually all three shut down. They got tired of all the shoplifting and armed robberies. The last one folded in the late 1980s and there wasn't another one in the area until they tore down my old high school in 2012 and a Myers Superstore was built on the old location. And before you say it, no, they didn't close down because of Walmart. There has never been a Walmart in the neighborhood. It was the high crime rate that closed them down. Think about that when a DA talks about not prosecuting theft below $900. Sooner or later, businesses in those areas will leave, just like they abandoned my old neighborhood. In the end, the law of diminishing returns always prevails.

All those "June Cleavers" out buying groceries! What a wonderful time to be a kid!

The paper bags actually held up! Unlike nowadays!

My grandparents had a corner grocery store from the 20's to the 60's. Supermarkets coming to town in the 50's ruined them. They went to their graves despising supermarkets. Ironically though, my parents opened a small meat market/grocery store in 1977, and retired in 1996. They did phenomenal business! Why was that? Because people were tired of the non-personal, piss poor customer service and lousy meat the supermarkets offered.

Shopping carts 🛒 are properly called "a buggy or buggies" in the Southern USA

I remember that horse! God I loved him. Drove my mother crazy, now I am almost 60 and have horses of my own some things just don't change.

I absolutely love how women were always dressed so nice and looked put together… even when going to the grocery store!

Two things are really striking about this (and other videos from this 1950s time period).... how people are so neatly dressed, and also there are few overweight people and no grossly obese people. We may have bigger stores and more choice but we are not healthier.

great video the folks took much better care of them selves back then!!!!!!

The one thing I miss about going to the supermarket is getting S&H Green Stamps after the purchase was made. At least some supermarkets now feature self checkout stations. 🙂

Love the way people dressed up to go shopping , don’t know about in the US but here in Australia you see some sights 🙄 especially in the winter months , people actually go to grocery shops in their PJs and dressing gowns

So many things under one dollar. Thanks for these pics and narration. 😘

I remember the A&P in my hometown. Around Christmas, they would have toys perched above the food shelves in the center of the store. The floors were wood, the ceilings were embossed tin, and there were wooden ceiling fans. At each checkout counter, they had coffee grinding machines for their Eight O'Clock and Bokar coffees. I loved smelling the coffee. Back in the 1960's, Mom always dressed up to go shopping, even in the summer, even if we were far from wealthy. She always had something snarky to say about women who came into the store with curlers in their hair or wearing shorts and tank tops.

Remember when pepsi was 10 cents a bottle plus 2 cents deposit. Find 5 empty bottles and get a soda or pack of ball cards and candy bar.

You know I used to think it was just the way old black and white movies portrayed characters but it looks like in those days people really did dress up to go to the store. That is a novel type of Self Respect and to be commended..BD