website watertownhistory.org
ebook History of Watertown, Wisconsin
National Tea Grocery
Tom's United Foods
Breselow's Family Market
Occupants of this site:
Manz-Hartig Brewery 1884
- 1896
Hartig Brewery 1896
- 1947
National Tea Grocery 1954 - 1977
Tom's United Foods 1977 - 2007
Breselow's Family Market 2007 -
1922
11 24 NATIONAL TEA COMPANY WILL HAVE GRAND OPENING OF ITS STORE
What is often referred to as the "Stettler Place"
[1] at 116 Main Street has been remodeled for the new store.
[1] 1841, Cole Brothers Store, First store in
Watertown. Later location of Bittner and
Tetzlaff's Drug Store
1928
07 05 NATIONAL TEA CO RELOCATION ON MAIN STREET
The new Penney Company store will consist of present
quarters of the Olympia Candy Store and Bittner and Tetzlaff's Drug Store [201
& 203 E. Main]. The main floor and
the second floor are to be used for the business. A balcony is also to be constructed. The third store in the block [205 E. Main]
which now houses a fruit market will be taken over by the Olympia. The quarters of the Pythian Lodge located on
the top floor of the block will continue to be the lodge quarters. Bittner and Tetzlaff's Drug Store will be
moved to the building at Main and N. 2nd Streets [116 E. Main] which is now
occupied by the National Tea Co. The National
Tea has purchased the building located at 2nd and Main streets [117 E.
Main] which is now occupied by the Penney store.
1953
09 04 RAZING THE OLD HARTIG BREWERY BUILDING
The first walls came crashing down today in the
demolition of the old Hartig Brewery Co. building
on Cady Street to make room for the new and modern supermarket which is to be
constructed on the site.
Workmen for the Allen Wrecking Co. of Madison started
demolishing the huge structure this morning.
The start of tearing down the building is being made at the north end of
the structure, in what was once the bottling department of the brewery. A truck, with cable, was used to bring down
the first wall this forenoon. Later on,
as the work proceeds to the higher sections of the building, special equipment
will be brought in to speed the demolition.
Ray Kern, Watertown businessman, purchased the
property some weeks ago from the Merchants National Bank, and announced that he
will erect a 70 by 135 feet supermarket building which he has leased to the
National Tea Co. In addition to the
building, plans call for parking space for 100 automobiles on the property.
10 18 HARTIG BREWERY SITE CLEARED
1964
01 21 ADDITION TO THE NATIONAL FOOD STORE
The addition to the National Food Store was opened
this morning with a ribbon cutting ceremony with Mayor Robert P. White cutting
the ribbon. A feature of the grand opening
is a sale which got underway this morning immediately following the ribbon
cutting ceremony. The store has been
enlarged from 10,000 square feet of floor space to 14,500, which increases the
floor space by approximately 50 per cent.
In the expansion program the width of the building was extended 20 feet
at the west, and 20 feet were added to the rear. WDT
1969
10 04 TV PROGRAM ON BETHESDA
A
television crew from the National Broadcasting Company [NBC] finished taping
and recording a color telecast in Watertown.
The
telecast, a documentary on the Bethesda Lutheran Home
in Watertown, will be shown on Milwaukee television, station WTMJ, channel
four, on the evening of June 14, 1970.
Doris
Ann, producer of the documentary film, along with the camera and sound crew,
were in Watertown the past several weeks shooting scenes at the Bethesda Home
and several areas of the city. Miss Ann
said she got very good cooperation from the officials of the home as well as
the patients at the home and found it a joy to work in Watertown.
The film,
being shot in 16mm color, shows the various aspects of the life of the patients
at the home. Several scenes were made at the National Foods Store. The scenes
showed how some of the patients are allowed to do their own shopping and use
the public facilities in Watertown.
One of
the scenes shot was made at the Classic Theatre showing the patients entering
the theatre to view a film. The
management of the theatre allows the Bethesda to view the movies free of
charge.
2000
02 11 SPACE NEEDS WATERTOWN MUNICIPAL BUILDING
A new concept for solving the city's space needs at
the Watertown Municipal Building was proposed by Mayor Fred Smith at Tuesday evening's
meeting of the public works committee of the Watertown Common Council. Smith suggested the city purchase Tom's
United Foods, located at 100 E. Cady St., renovate it and use it as offices for
the city's administrative departments. He said he would only pursue the plan with
the support of the “full (common) council.”
Smith suggested that if the food store, located across the street from
the municipal building, could be purchased for an acceptable price, it could be
renovated for municipal offices. That
would leave the existing municipal building for police and fire needs. WDT
2007
03 19 TOM'S UNITED FOODS SOLD / BECOMES BRESELOW’S
After
serving the Watertown community for over 30 years, Tom and Lynda Frakes, the
owners of Tom’s United Foods on East Cady Street, have decided to sell the
business. Tom Frakes told the Daily
Times this morning that he and his wife are selling the grocery store to
Watertown residents Dennis and Patricia Breselow. He added the Breselows will assume ownership
on March 31. Once the sale is complete,
the grocery store will be renamed Breselow’s Family Market. Frakes said the
Breselows are planning to remodel the store, which will include an addition to
the north end of the building. Watertown Daily Times
story, 03
19 2007 [WHS_005_546]
10 10 BRAND NEW GROCERY STORE
Breselow's begins
$1 million addition and remodeling; building will look like brand new
grocery store.
11 18 BRESELOW’S ADDITION
A
building addition to Breselow’s Family Market on East Cady Street topped the
list of new construction in October. The
addition to Breselow’s Family Market is valued at $600,000 and is being handled
by Emrath Construction of Helenville.
The 2,560-square-foot addition is being constructed on the north end of
the store and will include space for new offices, compressor and electrical
rooms, freezers, a dairy cooler and a liquor storage area. WDT
2008
08 15 BRESELOW’S GRAND OPENING
After
almost a year of construction and renovations, Breselow’s Family Market on East
Cady Street is celebrating the grand opening of the grocery store. The construction project, which got under way
in October of last year, includes a 2,560-square-foot addition and remodeling
of the building, according to Patricia Breselow, who owns the store with her
husband, Dennis Breselow. Dennis
Breselow has over 40 years experience in the grocery store industry. The new addition has been constructed on the
north end of the store and includes space for new offices, compressor and
electrical rooms, freezers, a dairy cooler and a liquor storage area.
Breselow's
Family Market since April 1, 2007.
Purchased the store and added on and remodeled the store starting in the
fall of 2007 and did the final touches by July 2008. We NEVER shut the store down through all of
that, we felt it was important to stay open for our customers. Some of the back history of our location
is: 1884-1947 it housed the Hartig
Brewery; 1954-1977 National Tea Grocery;
1977-2007 Tom's United Foods; and 2007-current Breselow's Family Market.
Cross reference
note:
I
remember the store very well as my dad worked there shortly after it opened,
for a few yrs. Then when I was in 5th
grade my mom worked there. In 1968 I was
starting my own home & went there shopping to buy groceries & all the
things you need to keep a home clean. I
had 2 shopping carts FULL & the price for it all was $50. Yep, 2 full shopping carts for $50! We're lucky to get 2 bags of stuff for $50
today. - Lynda Eicher, 02 19 2022
History of Watertown,
Wisconsin