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Nut Shops (page 1)

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The Planters Peanuts Company was established in 1906 in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. The Mr. Peanut character was developed in 1916 and has been used in advertising since then with only a little bit of updating. The company opened hundreds of Planters Peanut Shoppes in the 1930s and 1940s. By 1960, there were stores in more than 200 cities in the United States. The most famous stores in New York City's Times Square and the Atlantic City Boardwalk featured incredible neon signs. In 1961, Planters was acquired by Standard Brands which was not interested in the retail business. The stores were either closed or sold. About a dozen stores continue to operate independently in the eastern United States.

The locations below and on the following page are organized in alphabetical order by state.

A&M Peanut Shop
Mobile, AL
The A&M Peanut Shop was originally part of the Planters Peanut chain. It opened in 1947 as store #135. The store's nuts are roasted on-site in a machine from 1907. They also sell a full range of candies and have lots of old photos of downtown Mobile on display. The building itself is from 1886. [map]

Mr. Peanut
Fort Smith, AR
This Mr. Peanut sign once stood on at the Planters store on Route 1 in Peabody, MA. By the late 1960s, the store had closed and the sign was altered for the Half Dollar Bar. The bar closed in the 1980s and the sign was moved here and restored in 1988. The sign, which is about 30 feet tall, was also manufactured and installed at other Planters locations but I believe this is the only one left. The Fort Smith location is a processing plant which opened here in 1976. There is also a neon text sign on the roof of one of the buildings and smaller Mr. Peanut figures on the fencing at the entrance to the property. The seated, photo-op Mr. Peanut was installed around 2016. His pose is similar to the statue that was in Atlantic City, NJ. For more, see these websites: 1 and 2. [map]

California:
San Francisco [gone]

Maryland:
Baltimore

The Peanut Shop
Lansing, MI
The Peanut Shop in Lansing opened as Planters store #58 in 1937. The interior is nicely preserved and features two Planters roasters which are still in use. [map]

Boardwalk Peanut Shoppe [gone]
Atlantic City, NJ		 Mr. Peanut
Hatch, NM
Planters Peanuts opened its 28th store on the Atlantic City Boardwalk in 1930. It closed in 1978 and was eventually replaced with the Trump Taj Mahal. Some or all of the neon signs are believed to be in a private collection. The Boardwalk Peanut Shoppe opened in 1972 and carried on the tradition. They used the original Planters roasters and sold lots of Planters Peanuts collectibles. This store is gone now. There was also a Mr. Peanut statue on the north end of the Boardwalk which is no longer on public display.

This Mr. Peanut costume is installed inside the Sparky's Trading Post antique store.

More New Jersey:
Ocean City [gone]

M&D-R-Nuts [gone]
Binghamton, NY
M&D-R-Nuts opened in 1939 as a Planters Peanuts shop. M&D-R-Nuts had been here since around 1987. It closed in 2024.

Peanut Shoppe
Columbus, OH
This Peanut Shoppe opened in 1936 as store #42. This sign was built then. The store moved in 1978 and 2014. All three locations have been just a few blocks apart on High St. The neon sign is about 12 feet tall and features red and pink neon. It is the only sign featuring Mr. Peanut still on public display at a former Planters store. During the Columbus sign's restoration in 2014, the opal glass feature behind Mr. Peanut's monocle was repaired. It was backlit originally by a bulb inside the sign. The sign shop also added a flashing mechanism to create the effect that Mr. Peanut is winking. In addition to the store's wide range of nuts and candies, it also features a large display of Planters Peanut collectibles and original roasting machines. In 2024, the store was sold and moved nearby. The sign was installed at the new location. For more, see this website. [map]

Peanut Shoppe
Springfield, OH
This Peanut Shoppe opened here in 1937 as store #50. The original peanut roaster is still in use. For more, see this website. [map]

More Ohio:
Akron [map]

Nut Shops
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