Night exposure of the Lakewood Country Store's pet, patio and garden shop. The shop opened in the former temporary quarters of the Lakewood Puget Sound Bank, across the parking lot from the main store. The store billed itself as an old fashioned country store and the Northwest's most unusual department store. It carried a broad mix of merchandise, a forerunner to today's bargain superstores. To the left of the photo is the pet and patio section, to the right is the garden section. The barn doors are open to the garden section and a rolling cart of plants has been tucked inside. Gardening tools can be seen hanging from the walls through the center windows. The Manager of the new store was Kenneth Wade, a graduate agronomist from the University of Idaho with 10 years of experience with the U.S. Department of Agriculture. (TNT 3/4/1954, pg. A-12)

Lakewood Country Store (Lakewood); Department stores--Lakewood--1950-1960;

The Lakewood Country Store, located in the Lakewood Community Center, was a unique department store of the early 50's; it managed to keep up-to-date inventory in its many departments while keeping the country ambience of the past. A customer could purchase anything from fine gifts to thimbles to hunting supplies at the Lakewood Country Store. View of the Ladies and Sportswear departments; Van Raalte nylon lingerie was listed on sale in newspaper ads at $8.95 for nighties and $6.95 for slips. Stockings, Belle-Sharmeer brand, could be purchased from $1.35 to $1.95 a pair. Graff man-tailored jackets were selling for $12.95 a piece. One-stop shopping, including a stop at the cracker barrel and cheese display, was made convenient for suburban shoppers. (TNT 11-14-51, C-2, C-3-5)

Department stores--Lakewood--1950-1960; Stores & shops--Lakewood--1950-1960; Lakewood Country Store (Lakewood); Lingerie; Underwear; Sport Clothes;

The Lakewood Country Store purchased several full page ads welcoming customers to their new location on Mount Tacoma Dr. in the newly expanded Lakewood Community Center. Headlines proclaiming the Lakewood Country Store as the "Northwest's newest and most unusual department store" ran in November, 1951, newspapers. The Country Store, owned by Ed Stevens, carried such varied items as hardware, notions, paints and women's clothing. View of notions department with napkins, imported towels, non-shrink yarns on display. The old cracker barrel and supply of cheese, a favorite of adults and children alike, would also remain in the new store. Artist Connie Brady's murals also decorated the store; her mural of an old country store is placed directly over a display of brooms and mops. (TNT 11-14-51, C-2,3)

Department stores--Lakewood--1950-1960; Stores & shops--Lakewood--1950-1960; Lakewood Country Store (Lakewood); Yarn; Towels; Murals--Lakewood;

Lakewood Country Store, Gift Department. Tables and walls filled with glassware, games, and other gifts on display in mid-November of 1951. The Lakewood Country Store was located in the Lakewood Community Center which had recently expanded.

Lakewood Country Store (Lakewood); Department stores--Lakewood--1950-1960; Stores & shops--Lakewood--1950-1960;

Lakewood Country Store, Hardware Department. Four counters containing hardware items, paint against wall, tools in the back. Photograph taken in November of 1951.

Lakewood Country Store (Lakewood); Stores & shops--Lakewood; Department stores--Lakewood--1950-1960; Hardware;