On this date in 1950, a teeny, tiny ad appeared in the Gift Shops section of Long Beach Independent for the Friendly Nook at 137 ½ Main Street offering 24 hour service on hemstitching.
I received an e-mail from Michelle (Ward) Williamson in 2017 with a little more information about the owner of the Friendly Nook:
“My grandmother Grace Marie (Ward) Knighten was a longtime resident of Seal Beach until her death in 1986. Her first marriage was to Kenneth Lenton Ward. Her second marriage was to Sperry Knighton, who eventually became the Fire Chief for Seal Beach. She told me once that she had a store called “The Friendly Nook” it was probably open around 1940 to 1949.”
Ms. Williamson also believes it’s possible the store may “have been a craft store centered around Native American beading, rugs and such.”
I can confirm that the Friendly Nook was around from at least 1950 (when these ads ran to 1954 (when a news story about three juvenile burglars on a minor crime spree broke into Vogler’s Market at 1510 Pacific Coast Highway, Joe’s Market at 216 Main Street, and the Friendly Nook.)
Here are two Main Street photographs that include the Friendly Nook from the same era as the one included in this May 15 post.
– Michael Dobkins
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