Any thing you need to know about Watertown, NY?

[david121]

I'm 19, and have fond memories of Ames.

I can tell you what I know.

There was an Ames near my house... it was the store at144 Eastern Blvd. It is now a Hacketts/True Value Hardware store. It's a clothing and a hardware store, and they did a very good job of moving in, and it is a lot better than one of those daff retailers who move it and treat it like crap.

The ames in Salmon Run Mall. It was a Hills store, and then changed to a Ames, and closed down. Now it is a Gander Mountain store. They did expand it, so they could move it. I think it was something else in between being an Ames store and the current Gander Mountain.

The Ames on 1283 Arsenal St. I bought a Sega 32X addon for my Sega Genesis for $20, and a copy of Doom for $20 more on either June 18th-20th 1996. It was a really big store and it closed down a little earlier than most stores. It is now a Herb Philipsons store, and I think it was something else after Ames went under.

[shakethis1234]

wasnt their a big fays drug store in state way plaza but i havent been their since eckerds took it over do they still sell sporting goods

[mikey7290]

Originally posted by david121
I'm 19, and have fond memories of Ames.

I can tell you what I know.

There was an Ames near my house... it was the store at144 Eastern Blvd. It is now a Hacketts/True Value Hardware store. It's a clothing and a hardware store, and they did a very good job of moving in, and it is a lot better than one of those daff retailers who move it and treat it like crap.

The ames in Salmon Run Mall. It was a Hills store, and then changed to a Ames, and closed down. Now it is a Gander Mountain store. They did expand it, so they could move it. I think it was something else in between being an Ames store and the current Gander Mountain.

The Ames on 1283 Arsenal St. I bought a Sega 32X addon for my Sega Genesis for $20, and a copy of Doom for $20 more on either June 18th-20th 1996. It was a really big store and it closed down a little earlier than most stores. It is now a Herb Philipsons store, and I think it was something else after Ames went under.

The old Ames on Arsenal Street was split into a Herb Phillipson's, a Dollar Tree and a Michael's Crafts.  Years ago, I recall this store was a Weston's, Zayre, then Jamesway.

[mikey7290]

Originally posted by shakethis1234
wasnt their a big fays drug store in state way plaza but i havent been their since eckerds took it over do they still sell sporting goods

The big Eckerd store is still there.  For a time, part of it was used as a Ben Franklin Crafts, which closed when Eckerd bought out Fay's.  Here is a pic that I took last year of the store.  The windows at the far right are the old Ben Franklin Crafts, which Eckerd is now using for storage.

[shakethis1234]

do they still sporting goods

[mikey7290]

Originally posted by shakethis1234
do they still sporting goods

I'm not sure.  I haven't been in there in quite a while but I know they did reduce the size of the store in recent years.  The next time I go to that plaza I will find out for you and let you know.

[david121]

No they don't sell them any more. I went in the other day looking to use the bathroom - I had to go to the grocery store next door and was in a hurry.

They don't even have any craft items either. The whole store is pretty damn small now. When it was fays, it was HUGE. Now it's a stick in the pants.

[Ames303]

The Arsenal Street store was a Westons, which was bought up by Jamesway. Then it became a Zayre (#155 or #153, I can't remember) before becoming an Ames.

I remember loving Westons as a kid. There was a Westons in Oswego too.

I used to buy school clothes at the Fay's at Stateway Plaza. That Fay's was HUGE! A similar Fay's existed in Ilion (near Utica).  It was the anchor for the "Fay's Mall".

[shakethis1234]

did rite aid keep that eckerd open that westons in oswego became jamesway in now P&C Fresh Market if u ever in oswego JC penny use to be Grants on the side of the store Garage is still but is used fore storage. Salon was the resturant when it was grants

[Ames303]

Actually, the Jamesway in Oswego used a different entrance than Westons did. Westons used that big sloped entrance with a sign that said "Welcome to the Wonderful World of Westons". The one in Ithaca had the same entrance.

[shakethis1234]

Jamesway used the same enterence  in oswego for a few years then they did a completly renovation on that store.

[shakethis1234]

Jamesway bought the weston chain idk if they also bought the barkers chain but I know they bought the barkers store in Fulton

[shakethis1234]

Gander Mountain never expand the store they just toke over 80% ames Hills store and Steve Barrys just recently open in the rest of the space

[Ames303]

The Ames over on Eastern Blvd was a Big N acquisition. I vividly remember it had NCR cash registers (before the chain went to IBM) while all the other Ames in the area had Sweda cash registers.