Category Archives: businesses

The McVicar Hardware Store in Wedgwood

Posted on June 4, 2012 by Wedgwood in Seattle History

After Grant McVicar finished service with the Navy in World War Two, he returned to Seattle and went into business with his father.   The McVicars rented a brand-new storefront on the west side of 35th Ave NE between NE 85th … Continue reading →

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Wedgwood’s First Business District

Posted on May 31, 2012 by Wedgwood in Seattle History

The development of Wedgwood’s first business district began with J.W. (Joe) Shauer, an enterprising businessman who moved his family from Greenwood to Wedgwood in 1918.  Mr. Shauer (pronounced shower) paid $1,000 for an acre of property on the west side … Continue reading →

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The Ida’s Inn Beer Parlor in Wedgwood

Posted on May 28, 2012 by Wedgwood in Seattle History

On January 12, 2020, a car swerved off the road and struck the northernmost corner of the building at 7500 35th Ave NE, in the block to the north of the Wedgwood Safeway.  The incident has caused renewed interest in … Continue reading →

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Bud Gagnon’s Wedgewood Pharmacy

Posted on May 17, 2012 by Wedgwood in Seattle History

Bud & Dolly Gagnon were the owners of the WedgEwood Pharmacy from 1952 to 1972 (spelled with that extra “e!!”) The Gagnons saw the drugstore business evolve from old-time traditions into the streamlined service of the modern era.  Note the … Continue reading →

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Groceries and Growth in Wedgwood

Posted on April 6, 2012 by Wedgwood in Seattle History

Grocery stores in Wedgwood expanded with the growth of the neighborhood in the post-World-War-Two period of the 1940s and 1950s. Beginning with the economic downturn called the Boeing Bust in the 1970s, grocery stores and some other kinds of stores declined … Continue reading →

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McGillivray’s: the Biggest Little Store in Wedgwood

Posted on March 31, 2012 by Wedgwood in Seattle History

In the 1940s Arthur & Dorothy McGillivray decided to move from Minnesota to Seattle along with their daughter, Bette, while Bette attended the University of Washington.   With past experience in merchandising, the McGillivrays were ready to try their hand at … Continue reading →

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The Gateposts of Wedgwood

Posted on March 22, 2012 by Wedgwood in Seattle History

When Albert Balch, the developer of the Wedgwood neighborhood, put up stone gateposts at the entrance to his new housing area, he tapped into the gateposts’ symbolism of permanence and protection, qualities desired by young couples in search of homes.

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The Wedgwood Broiler

Posted on February 29, 2012 by Wedgwood in Seattle History

This article gives the history of the Wedgwood Broiler restaurant in Wedgwood at 8230 35th Ave NE, in a two-acre shopping center at Wedgwood’s main intersection at NE 85th Street.  In 1959 a grocery store (Tradewell) was the first building … Continue reading →

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Becoming Wedgwood

Posted on January 26, 2012 by Wedgwood in Seattle History

The Wedgwood neighborhood in Seattle was created by a bold and optimistic developer, Albert Balch.  On July 31, 1941 Balch filed a plat for forty acres of land from 30th to 35th Avenues NE, NE 80th to 85th Streets, which … Continue reading →

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