Oak Street Market
Nine Oak Street was built in the 1800's with a retail space on the ground floor and two stories of apartments above. The store entry door was cut into the corner of the building, making it somewhat sheltered from the elements. A single light bulb suspended on wires would light up the doorway in the evening hours, and earlier in winter. An advertisement for Salada Tea was attached to the door so you could push it open without pressing against the glass. The brick building had two front display windows that were covered with various posters for Fab detergent, Moxie soda, Dreikorn’s bread and various other sundries stocked inside. Stone window sills, hand chiseled by masons, who had long passed on, ran under each window.
Ornate wood carvings ran along the top of the display windows and the entry door, all painted a dark green, a nice contrast to the old red brick walls, worn smooth by years of rain and wind. The Salada Tea advertisement on the door, with its bright yellow background and red lettering, stood out in clear contrast, as the door was painted the same dark green as the wood trim. Above the wood trim over the front windows, and around the corner, running down the side of the building, were metal signs with the name of the store, chosen by Aldo, “OAK ST. MARKET”. At the far ends of each sign were metal “Coca Cola” signs in their traditional script, white lettering on fire engine red background. On the corner of the building, directly above the door, was a three foot round metal sign, white, with a bottle of Coke on it. The stone threshold of the doorway, worn and shaped by thousands of footsteps crossing over it for many, many years, was the passage into a uniquely American neighborhood grocery store, commonly known as “Aldo’s”.