by Hampden Simmons

The Woolworth brothers started it all in 1879 when they opened their first Woolworths store in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.  They hatched the idea to have a ten cent table and a five cent table, and the idea was so successful that the store quickly became a chain and the term "five and dime" came in to being.  

Meanwhile, a mail order wholesaler out of Boston called the Butler Brothers was building a substantial customer base.  They kept a close eye on the Woolworth boys over the years and decided to jump in to the business with the first Ben Franklin store in 1927.  The stores experienced quick success and became a mainstay in many small and mid-sized towns around the U.S.  At its peak, there were 2,500 stores in operation!

While the company was sold in 1959 and again in the mid 1990s, some stores continue to operate to this day.  We always loved going down to the 5-10 as a kid, so we wanted to take a walk down memory lane...

We love this photo from DeLeon, Texas of a Ben Franklin tucked right in to the next to the E.E. Dabney Saddlery.  Photo from the late 1930s or early 1940s.  Hit "Next Page" to see the rest...

A Ben Franklin store, likely in Hopkins, Minn., photographed in May 1950. Courtesy Minnesota Historical Society

 

This 1940's postcard shows the inside of the main Ben Franklin store in downtown Chicago. You could get lost in there!

 

This great photo courtesy of Deb Wilson shows the Ben Franklin 5-10 in downtown Dushore, PA.  The location was the busiest in town as it was the only red light intersection in all of Sullivan County!

This Ben Franklin store came to Duncanville, Texas in 1964 and was a local favorite through the years.  Today it has kept the name, but expanded the business and is now called the Ben Franklin Apothecary.  

 

This sign in Chariton, Iowa points to one of the few remaining Ben Franklin stores in operation...

 

This should bring back some memories!  Here's the Chariton, Iowa Ben Franklin in all of its glory in downtown.  You can walk in and be ported back in time!  Photo credit:  99CountyTour.