Wrinks Food Market - Lebanon, MO
N 37° 41.079 W 092° 38.562
15S E 531503 N 4170888
Just down the street from the Munger Moss Motel is Wrink’s Food Market.
Waymark Code: WM1V0J
Location: Missouri, United States
Date Posted: 07/10/2007
Views: 189
The 8 July 07 issue of Lebanon Daily Record "Living Section"
Headline: "A new generation continues Wrink's Market traditions"
Terry Wrinkle will soon reopen his late father's Route 66 landmark store
For 55 years Wrink's Food Market was a landmark on Route 66 in
Lebanon. It continues to be one of the main attractions for the many
tourists driving the Mother Road.
The business was established in 1950 by Glenn Wrinkle, an icon to the
many people who visited the store through the years and its local
customers.
The business has been closed since his death on March 16th, 2005.
Two area women leased the building for many months and planned to
reopen it, but that never materialized.
Wrinks Market will be reopened soon by his son, Terry Wrinkle.
Terry's mother, Katie, said she is very happy that the store will
reopen and be kept in the family.
Wrinkle, who is retired from Coca-Cola, has been painting the store
with "retro" colors and having the building's awnings and neon signs
repaired.
Wrinkle said that a grand reopening will be held sometime around
Labor Day.
The business will feature a deli and diner in the back of the
building. In the front will be a convenience store. Wrinkle will
also sell Route 66 souvenirs that were popular in later years.
He worked in the store from the time he was a small boy until he was
24 years old.
"We all worked there", he said.
They worked after school and on summer vacations. Each took turns.
His brothers and sister are Eddie, Rodney, Chris, and Tommy. Tommy
was the last to work in the store and helped his dad in later years.
Wrinkle remembers helping hand cans of vegetables to his Aunt Flo
(Florine Johnson) to put on the shelves.
As he got older he started carrying out groceries and soon was strong
enough to lift 60-pound bales of sugar and flour. His other duties
included checking out customers and pricing goods.
He has many fond memories and has many stores to tell. The many
customers they served each day became like family.
As a young boy, he was a "hit" with all the area salesmen, who gave
him food each day. He knew he was going to get free chocolate milk
from the milk man, a Twinkie from the Hostess man and the Coca-Cola
man would give him a ride around the store on his cart.
"I was a little beggar", he said.
According to Wrinkle, Route 66 is still as popular as it has ever
been. During the time he has been working in the store the last few
weeks, several tourists from overseas have stopped in. He said in
recent weeks, people have been from Germany, Australia, France and
all over the United States.
According to Wrinkle, Route 66 is very well published in other
countries where travel agents sell Route 66 packages. These packages
include a flight over to the United States, a car for people to drive
Route 66 all the way to California, and a flight back home.
Wrinkle said that when his father established the business 57 years
ago, he carried everything imaginable. It was like a general store.
The store was originally build in 2946 by his grandfather, G.E.
Wrinkle. It was to have been a hotel on Route 66. However, his
grandfather became ill in 1947 and was never able to finish the
second story. The Wrinkles previously operated the Jefferson Hotel
and Cafe on North Jefferson Avenue.
G.E. Wrinkle planned to have a cafe in what is now the store building
and rent rooms upstairs.
The building sat empty until his son, Glen, opened up the store on
June 10, 1946. The day that Glenn and Katie Wrinkle's son, Eddie,
was born on Sept. 12, 1946, his grandfather wrote his name in the
concrete slab in front of the store.
This old block was saved and Terry Wrinkle plans to have it restored
and on display. He also wants anyone who has ever traded at Wrink's
to bring their pictures in and they will be displayed on the walls in
a "special friends" display.
He and his mother, Katie, recall that Glenn helped many people
through the years and sold items on credit. No one was turned away.
He kept a lot of people from starving to death.
Wrink's was also noted for the meat, which was purchased from Lebanon
Packing Co., in Lebanon. The store was like a "Harter House" in the
1960's and he said that his dad would only sell the top quality.
Instead of hamburger, ground chuck and ground round was sold.
The store's original Masonite counter was stored when the store
closed and will again be used. He plans to operate the store from 7
a.m. to 7 p.m. six days a week and hours may be extended on
Saturdays. The name will be Historic Wrink's Market.
Many famous personalities have visited the store through the years.
Wrink's Market boasted Clint Eastwood as one of it's customers, and
radio personality Paul Harvey touted the store.
He said sports broadcasters Mike Shannon and Jack Buck would come to
Lebanon and park in the lot across from the store to eat at Wyota
Restaurant and purchase John Ellis' homemade coconut cream pie.
When he was growing up a lot of famous sports players came by the
store, as they traveled by road and not by air.
Terry Wrinkle said his experience and his father's business
principles helped him considerably in his business career and he was
the only one of his family to stay in the business field.
After graduating from Lebanon High School, he got a music scholarship
at Southwest Baptist College. He later attended Berkley College of
Music in Boston. During high school he was active in sports. He
also was in the All-American Band his last three years in high school
and in the popular jazz band. He said he still enjoys music and
writes music.
When he was 24 he left Lebanon and moved to Kansas City where he
managed Quick Trip convenience stores for three years.
He came back to Lebanon in 1978 where he was a Frito-Lay route
salesman in Lebanon. After being promoted five years later, he drove
to Springfield each day for nine months.
The drive became too much and he and his wife Cheryl, moved to the
Marshfield area.
Cheryl taught school nine years in Lebanon and has been a counselor
several years in Marshfield. She is now the director of special
services in the Marshfield school district.
In addition to Frito-Lay, Wrinkle also was a regional manager for
Guy's Foods until they closed and later went to Ozarks Coca-Cola
where he was an account manager until his retirement.
Wrinkle is looking forward to seeing customers from the past and re-
establishing old friendships. And, at the same time, preserving the
famous landmark on Route 66.
Americana: Store/Curios Shop
Significant Interest: Other Icon
Milestone or Marker: Other Icon
Address of Icon:
135 Wrinkle Ave
Lebanon, MO USA
Web Site Address: Not listed
|
Visit Instructions:
To log a Visit, please make every effort to supply an image of yourself at the site. The standard GPS photo may be used as well, or even just an image that you took when you visited the location. If you do not have the option to provide an image, please provide a detailed description of your visit so we can form a 'mental image'.