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On July 3, 1933, Phillips leased the service station from J. F. Bacon. They also established a distribution location on South Royal Street, next to the railroad tracks. J.F. Bacon leased the service station to Phillips 66, and Phillips 66 sub-leased the station to John LeVan. There have been only five owners including the present owner. John LeVan operated the service station from 1933 to 1948. John retired from the service station in 1948, and sold his lease to Gene Diuguid, who then purchased the property from the J. F. Bacon family. Gene Diuguid operated the service station until 1962, when he sold the property to Carl Baggett. Carl operated it until 1977. In 1977, Carl and Gene formed on Oil Jobber Partnership. In the years 1977 to 1985, they leased the station to various operators, among them Bill Baggett and Gene Young. In 1985, the service station was sold to Holliday Oil Company of Marion, Ill., and since has been operated as a Phillip 66 MiniMart. |
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Charlie Taveggia's Grocery Store was located between Ervins Flower Shop and Blue Front Tavern on South Main Street. Charlie first worked at the Royalton Kroger Store in the late 1948 or 1949. After leaving Kroger, he opened his own store at the above location in town. Mr. Taveggie lived in Herrin, Illinois, and drove seven days a week, sometimes hauling his produce from Southern Illinois Wholesale Co. of Herrin, Illinois to provide supplies of groceries and meats to his Royalton Store. There were many times after long hard hours working in the store until late at night, that he would make his bed on the 50 lb. flour sacks in the back part of his store, too tired to drive back home. Rita (Stephens) Brannan, who clerked for Charlie, when she was a teenager, remembers how he would sleep in the back room and give hand-outs out the back door to those too embarrased to ask for food during the day when they could be seen by others. He was very kind to many people of the Village of Royalton and the surrounding towns providing us with credit making sure we had food. Everyone called him Cheatin' Charlie, not in contempt, but in the realization that in difficult times, people need help to survive. Jesse Garavalia, clerk, became manager after Charlie. Charlie Taveggie retired his tired, crippled body in the 60's living alone after doing much long hard work for many friends and families. |
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BY: JESSE GARAVALIA In the early 1930's a Thrift chain store moved to Royalton. It was in the Bobby Enrico Tavern building which is now Lynn and Cobbs. Kroger bought the Thrift Chain Stores and in 1936 opened the Kroger store in the Mannering building located between Mary's Diner and Pecks' Pool Room. Charlie Taveggia was the manager at that time. Jesse Garavalia was the clerk and worked for $5.00 a week, 10-11 hours a day. In those days Kroger wasn't a self service store. The clerk waited on the customers, making many trips back and forth. After World War II Jesse managed the Kroger store. It became a self-service store. After about 20 years Kroger closed all the small stores. Royalton was the last store to close. The Kroger store was sold to Jesse and a co-partner who was working at the Kroger Office. It became Jesse's A. G. Market. After 10 years, Jesse retired. Later the building was demolished. A sales bill was found from Jesse's A. G. Market. It is interesting to compare prices with today's: |
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Boiling Beef 10 cents a lb. Pork Sausage 3Ibs. for a dollar Hams 89cents a lb. Coffee lb.can 49 cents Potatoes 10 Ibs. 69 cents Were those the good old days? |
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BY: Lovean Klein The Roszkowski Grocery Store was owned and operated by Anna and Joseph Roszkowski on the Main Street of Royalton for many, many years. Anna and Joseph were both born in Poland near Warsaw in 1885 and 1888. They came to America at a very young age where they later met and married in Westville, Illinois in 1906. They made their home on Meadow Street just a few blocks from the grocery store. Fifteen children were born to them - 10 girls and 5 boys. They were fortunate to raise thirteen to adulthood. In 1944, a son, Edward, was killed in action during World War II. A daughter, Henrietta, was killed in a car accident in 1964. Some of the children helped out in the grocery store over the years, but from this union they were proud to have teachers, nurses, secretaries, businessmen and even an inventor and a Federal Judge. Many of you may remember that Joseph was an excellent butcher who slaughtered his own cattle and cut steaks and roasts to perfection. He and Anna made sausage and churned butter; always ready to please their customers. LaterAnna would travel to St. Louis to buy materials and patterns for her dry goods store. It was not unusual for her to help a customer cut out a dress and give instructions for making it. She was an accomplished seamstress. Over the many years that the Roszkowskies were in Royalton they were active in the Catholic Church just a block from their home. They will always be remembered for their love and concern for the people of Royalton. |
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My father, Frank Derbak, opened the grocery store on Mannering Street in Royalton, Illinois, in 1922. It was a family operated store, and all the children--Mary, Anna, Helen, Nick, Steve, and John--were involved in its operation. My mother stayed at home with my sister, Sophia. In the early days, the custom was to go to homes, take orders for groceries, and then deliver the groceries to the customers. The deliveries were made by horse and buggy. Our horse, Nellie, was very impatient and wanted to head back home. You could not spend too much time at any house because the horse would start on her way. groceries on credit. In the beginning, payments were fairly good, but as time passed and the coal mines were not working steadily, some customers changed their grocery store patronage and left their accounts unpaid. |
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