Post Offices Once Featured Tobacco and Candy Stands

"The candy and tobacco store that opened in the city’s main post office in the late 1940s was part of a nationwide movement to provide work for persons living with a disability," writes Katherine Yamada in California's Glendale News-Press.

According to Katherine, "In 1947, Postmaster Max L. Green, with assistance from the state and federal governments and the Lions clubs of the area, installed and outfitted a candy and tobacco stand in the post office’s lobby."

She goes on to say, "The tobacco and candy stand, which represented an investment of nearly $2,000, was one of several similar stands being installed in other cities throughout the state to provide the handicapped a way of making a living, according to the Glendale News-Press of January 3, 1947."

The stand was stocked with a wide assortment of candies, from Almonets to VitaSerts, along with chewing gum and tobacco products according to the News-Press article.

Shown above, the opening of the candy and tobacco stand at Glendale's main post office in 1947. From left, Mayor Albert C. Lane, Postmaster Max L. Green, Ray Barker of the Glendale Lions Club and, right, Eldon Littell, concession operator. 

Click here to read the enitre article.