Encyclopedia Dubuque
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Affiliated with the Local History Network of the State Historical Society of Iowa, and the Iowa Museum Association.
THOMAS MCCOY'S CONFECTIONERY
THOMAS MCCOY'S CONFECTIONERY. Located at 8th and Central Avenues, this soda shop operated from 1911 into the 1920s. Furnishings included vitiolite, a type of glass, tables with twisted wrought iron metal chairs. An electric piano played selections for five cents.
The store was one of the first to offer "Coca-Cola" while sundaes or sodas in your choice of fruit flavors were five cents.
After WORLD WAR I, McCoy had a more elaborate place constructed at 8th and Iowa STREETS. Oak booths with leather cushions offered more privacy that the six-stool counter of white marble in front of a large mirror. Sundaes cost 15 cents, malts were 20 cents, and a four-scoop banana split was 25 cents.
The third establishment built for McCoy was on 14th Street and Central Avenue. The furnishings included beamed ceilings, indirect lighting, oak booths, silk curtains, a 12-stool counter of onyx manned by four full-time employees.
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Source:
Gomoll, Rob. "When a Sundae was More Than Dessert," Tri-State Over 49 News & Views, May 1993, p. 1