Any of the older folk, like myself can remember when ALL store opened at 8 or 9 and closed at 6 PM during the week days and 9 PM on Fridays-Sat was 8 to noon.
Very few gas stations were open more than that during the week and nearly everything was closed on Sunday.
The very ONLY thing open 24 hours was truck stops and Truck stop restaurants along the major four lane highways.
What time period are we talking about here?
I can remember the first time going to a 7/11.. and how my family was able to pickup a jar of dry-roasted peanuts at an unheard of 10pm.. It was on a family vacation in Washington DC.
“...Very few gas stations were open more than that during the week and nearly everything was closed on Sunday....”
Yes Sir...remember those times very well! As a little kid growing up in the mid-50’s, there was many a Saturday evening ride with my dad to the small local gas station to fill up the car and get the windshield washed before they closed, and usually a last-minute stop at the supermarket (which meant one of those big 5-cent candy bars or sometimes even an ice cream for me) to pick up a few items for the regular Sunday after church family dinner get-together. NOTHING was open on Sunday, except for maybe the hospital. Back then, it seemed like everyone, except maybe the transient hobos living down by the tracks, went to church too. Different, but innocent, times way back then compared to now.
* nearly everything was closed on Sunday*
The good news in the old days? Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom came on TV in the afternoon, and Wonderful World of Disney came on at night.