As young kids growing up in the 1960s, we used to go on most trips to the grocery store with our Mom. I remember many times stopping at Jay’s on Arch St. It was a neat little store to visit, but the one that impressed me more was Perskey’s on State St. It just felt so big, and was a real bustling place. It`s size and the business it brought in made it deserving of its title as Master Market.
And there were other reasons for the store to deserve that title. Perskey’s had many firsts for grocery stores in Stark County. The following quotes come from v. 4, pt. 3 of The Stark County Story, by E. T. Heald, “The American Way of Life in Stark County, Ohio 1917-1959,” published by the Stark County Historical Society.
“The first part of the present supermarket at 30 E. State Street was built in 1935, and has been expanded four times. The last expansion in 1953 doubled the floor space, and gave it THE LARGEST FLOOR SPACE of any food and provision store in Stark County.”
“Perskey’s was the FIRST self-service supermarket in Stark County, the FIRST to bake its own baked goods in its own bakery, and the FIRST to put in self-service for meats, in 1950.”
As you can see, Perskey’s was a special place during its heyday years of the 1950s and 1960s. It was with a sense of loss when they closed down that location in the 1970’s. But probably the one thing I miss the most to this day are their in-house baked pan buns. Those yummy buns, along with usually chip chop ham, were a staple for us growing up. Oh for a package of those buns one last time.
