In 1948, the Original Super Garden Market, owned and operated by (my stepfather) Aaron S. Thaler and his father Emanuel, had been open for 7 years. The term "supermarket" was brand new; the Thalers thought the words "super" and "garden" nicely blended the new concept with an old-style farmer's market.
The store was purchased in 1941, an uncertain time when the U.S. was about to put its money where its mouth was and go to war. Shortly after the store changed hands, Aaron himself would in fact leave to spend a few years in the Pacific theatre.
The previous owner did a remarkable job showing his accounts receivables as being income, but the store squeaked through some early tough times, and was on the way to benefiting from the prosperous post-war era, when Arlington would experience substantial residential development.
Super Garden is shown above at the 'corner of Fairfax Drive and Stuart St.' location it would occupy for thirty-nine years. In 1980 the store would move across the street, after DC's brand-new Metro opened the Ballston station. Before the Metro announced its grand intention, no one outside the county registrar had ever heard the term "Ballston."
As luck would have it, a color photo exists, taken in the 1960's from a virtually identical angle.
Arlington VA, 1948
