Take Your Beer for a Walk: Liberty Plaza

Jeff McCullor

Visit the ghosts of Liberty Plaza past with local brewer Jeff McCullor as he explores the area and digs into its origins and more-recent history, while also offering cheers to the businesses thriving there today.

You know what's really scary? Going out of business! This month we're taking a very pointed walk through the Liberty Plaza while gently reminiscing about some of the businesses that were once there and touching on current residents, because who doesn't love a good nostalgia story?

First, a brief history. The plaza itself spans nearly four city blocks between West 38th and 34th streets, and was originally planned out as an L-shaped building with a walkway bisecting the northwest corner, according to an Erie Times-News article from 1952 when the plans were unveiled to the public. The plaza cost a whopping (for the time) $2.25 million to build, officially opening in October 1955 as the sparkling "Liberty Shopcenter."

The plaza served as Erie's largest shopping center and included such fine retailers as: Adeline Shoppe, Brown-Jones, Grants, Liberty Hardware, Miles Shoes, Nu-Way Markets, Quaker State Finance, Trask's, Woolworth's, and Zehe's Bakery – a really nice mix of stores that would honestly be a perfect fit in its modern-day iteration. Later stores included Peggy's Restaurant, Crazy Mazeez, Carlisle's, Blockbuster, D&K, and PNC Bank to name a few. We all rode our bikes to D&K for gum, right? Philip J. Levin, original owner and developer of the plaza, had the right mindset saying, "What better city is there, if handled right!" Say it louder, Phil! Cheers to you!

Speaking of cheers, back to the beer. The Liberty Plaza is private property but we're going to ignore that little detail (or stay on Liberty's sidewalk) and pour up a pint for our walk. We'll stroll past some key landmarks along our route. Alright, let's roll!

First up is Stumpy's Hatchet House where you can make your own "AXEperience" for large or small groups and is conveniently BYOB – like our walks! Cheers to you, Stumpy's!

Next we'll mosey on down to Werner Books & Coffee. Peek in the window and you'll probably see owners Kyle or Lauren manning the front desk greeting everyone stopping in for their next Tom Clancy novel (I'm not the only one am I?). They expanded the store two years ago, moving from a few doors down and now serve as a solid middle-anchor retailer in the plaza. Cheers to you, Werner friends!

Finally we'll shuffle over to the AMVETS Thrift Store, where you can easily pick out some vinyl records, secondhand clothing, or furniture for your man cave/she shed. One hundred percent of their proceeds directly support a wide range of programs for veterans. Cheers to you, AMVETS!

Thanks for coming on a walk with me. Keep drinking, and walking, local.

Jeff McCullor is the co-owner of Erie Ale Works. He can be reached at jeff@eriealeworks.com