Soda Fountain in West Virginia Appeals to Nostalgia, Memories
2023-04-27
LRC
TXT
大字
小字
滚动
全页
1In 2023, if you visit a pharmacy, you might be sick and in need of medicine.
2If you were to visit a pharmacy 100 years ago, you might go there to buy medicine.
3But you might also go there for a soda or tonic - drinks with carbonated water from a soda fountain.
4You might also even eat lunch while waiting for your medicine.
5These businesses, called soda fountains, were widely popular in the first half of the 20th century.
6But over the last 70 years, most soda fountains have closed.
7There are still a few soda fountains out there, however.
8One is in Kenova, West Virginia.
9It is called Griffith and Feil Drug.
10The business is 131 years old.
11Ric Griffith is the owner of the soda fountain.
12He is keeping the tradition going. He explained that soda fountains were not just a place to eat lunch.
13"It was a place where you had an experience.
14When you had a soda fountain, people would stay longer, they'd sit down, and they'd share stories," Griffith said.
15Both Griffith and his daughter Heidi are pharmacists.
16Pharmacists are people who prepare and give out medicines in a store or hospital.
17Their pharmacy employees work in the back of the store, while the front is a restaurant and soda fountain.
18The restaurant offers daily lunch and dinner choices.
19People go there not just for the food and drinks, but they also take in the retro surroundings.
20There is a jukebox that plays music, neon-pink signs, vintage chairs, a metal ceiling and black-and-white pictures.
21Carbonated drinks became popular in the 1800s.
22Acid phosphate drinks were later developed.
23Pharmacists would mix acid phosphate into the drinks for those seeking treatments.
24This is why soda fountains were often found in pharmacies.
25As soda fountain manufacturing improved, so did the recipes and flavors.
26Food choices were then added.
27As customers waited on their prescriptions, they were able to eat and have a soda.
28Behind the soda fountain counters are soda "jerks" -- the people who prepare old-fashioned phosphate drinks.
29They are not called "jerks" because they are mean; the term "jerk" also describes the movement that is used to pull the device on the soda fountain machine that makes liquid come out.
30Malli Jarrett and Nathaniel Fornash are the soda jerks at Griffith and Feil Drug.
31"It's fun working at a place like this, watching all the customers come in, looking around, taking a step back in time and telling me about how a lot of them used to work here when they were younger," Jarrett said.
32During the late 1950s, many small family-run pharmacies started changing their business practices.
33Soda fountains were replaced with shelves for food and home supplies.
34Government rules became stricter. And fast-food restaurants and large pharmacies became the norm.
35Pharmacies with soda fountains could not keep up and many closed forever.
36A few stayed open as either ice cream places or gift stores.
37Some closed either the soda shop side or the pharmacy side of the business.
38In the past five years, many of the country's oldest soda fountains, like The Highland Park Soda Fountain in Dallas, Texas, and The Central Drug Store in Bessemer City, North Carolina, shut down.
39But in recent years, there has also been a return of soda fountains.
40Ric Griffith does not have any memories of his father's original soda fountain.
41That is because it was removed in 1957, when Griffith was just 9 years old.
42In 2004, he put another soda fountain in his store.
43After he reopened the soda fountain, he recalled a man and his granddaughter sitting in a booth.
44The man shared stories about his younger self many years earlier.
45He would sit at the same booths after school and order a cherry Coke.
46Griffith recalls the look on the granddaughter's face as, "...wonderful... She'd never thought of her grandfather as ever having been young. He was always her grandfather."
47Griffith is glad to offer a place for people to sit around the soda fountain and share stories, instead of just getting fast food.
48"And so, when we preserve history, we're not just preserving artifacts," Griffith said.
49"We're preserving a style of living, a way of interacting. The soda fountain has blessed me in many ways."
50I'm Faith Pirlo from Morgantown, West Virginia.
51And I'm Anna Mateo from Weirton, West Virginia.
1In 2023, if you visit a pharmacy, you might be sick and in need of medicine. If you were to visit a pharmacy 100 years ago, you might go there to buy medicine. But you might also go there for a soda or tonic - drinks with carbonated water from a soda fountain. You might also even eat lunch while waiting for your medicine. 2These businesses, called soda fountains, were widely popular in the first half of the 20th century. But over the last 70 years, most soda fountains have closed. 3There are still a few soda fountains out there, however. One is in Kenova, West Virginia. It is called Griffith and Feil Drug. The business is 131 years old. 4Ric Griffith is the owner of the soda fountain. He is keeping the tradition going. He explained that soda fountains were not just a place to eat lunch. 5"It was a place where you had an experience. When you had a soda fountain, people would stay longer, they'd sit down, and they'd share stories," Griffith said. 6Both Griffith and his daughter Heidi are pharmacists. Pharmacists are people who prepare and give out medicines in a store or hospital. Their pharmacy employees work in the back of the store, while the front is a restaurant and soda fountain. The restaurant offers daily lunch and dinner choices. 7People go there not just for the food and drinks, but they also take in the retro surroundings. There is a jukebox that plays music, neon-pink signs, vintage chairs, a metal ceiling and black-and-white pictures. 8Carbonated drinks became popular in the 1800s. Acid phosphate drinks were later developed. Pharmacists would mix acid phosphate into the drinks for those seeking treatments. This is why soda fountains were often found in pharmacies. 9As soda fountain manufacturing improved, so did the recipes and flavors. Food choices were then added. As customers waited on their prescriptions, they were able to eat and have a soda. 10Behind the soda fountain counters are soda "jerks" -- the people who prepare old-fashioned phosphate drinks. They are not called "jerks" because they are mean; the term "jerk" also describes the movement that is used to pull the device on the soda fountain machine that makes liquid come out. 11Malli Jarrett and Nathaniel Fornash are the soda jerks at Griffith and Feil Drug. 12"It's fun working at a place like this, watching all the customers come in, looking around, taking a step back in time and telling me about how a lot of them used to work here when they were younger," Jarrett said. 13During the late 1950s, many small family-run pharmacies started changing their business practices. Soda fountains were replaced with shelves for food and home supplies. Government rules became stricter. And fast-food restaurants and large pharmacies became the norm. 14Pharmacies with soda fountains could not keep up and many closed forever. A few stayed open as either ice cream places or gift stores. Some closed either the soda shop side or the pharmacy side of the business. 15In the past five years, many of the country's oldest soda fountains, like The Highland Park Soda Fountain in Dallas, Texas, and The Central Drug Store in Bessemer City, North Carolina, shut down. 16But in recent years, there has also been a return of soda fountains. 17Ric Griffith does not have any memories of his father's original soda fountain. That is because it was removed in 1957, when Griffith was just 9 years old. In 2004, he put another soda fountain in his store. 18After he reopened the soda fountain, he recalled a man and his granddaughter sitting in a booth. The man shared stories about his younger self many years earlier. 19He would sit at the same booths after school and order a cherry Coke. Griffith recalls the look on the granddaughter's face as, "...wonderful... She'd never thought of her grandfather as ever having been young. He was always her grandfather." 20Griffith is glad to offer a place for people to sit around the soda fountain and share stories, instead of just getting fast food. 21"And so, when we preserve history, we're not just preserving artifacts," Griffith said. "We're preserving a style of living, a way of interacting. The soda fountain has blessed me in many ways." 22I'm Faith Pirlo from Morgantown, West Virginia. 23And I'm Anna Mateo from Weirton, West Virginia. 24John Raby wrote this story for The Associated Press. Faith Pirlo adapted this story for Learning English. 25_______________________________________________________________________ 26Words in This Story 27pharmacy - n. a store or part of a store in which drugs and medicines are prepared and sold 28carbonated - adj. bubbles created by dissolves carbon dioxide 29soda fountain - n. a small soft drink dispenser; a place where one can buy soft drinks and food 30retro - adj. clothes, furniture, music and pop culture from an earlier time that are in fashion again 31jukebox - n. a machine that plays music when money is put into it 32acid phosphate - n. neutral flavor mixture used to make drinks slightly acidic; adds bubbles and helps carbonation of drinks when mixed with soda water 33recipe - n. a set of directions for making something, especially food 34prescription - n. a written message from a doctor that officially tells someone to use a medicine or therapy 35customer - n. one that buys a product or service 36booth - n. a small area that is enclosed in order to provide privacy for a person 37preserve - v. to keep (something) in its original state or in good condition 38interacting - n. communication and reaction to the people you are involved with 39____________________________________________________________________ 40What do you think about this story? 41We want to hear from you. We have a new comment system. Here is how it works: 42Each time you return to comment on the Learning English site, you can use your account and see your comments and replies to them. Our comment policy is here.