Wick’s Seafood is still an active business in the city of Trainer, Pennsylvania, the town right next to Chester, and Bostwick fami- ly still runs the place. My son, Steve, met the sons and grandkids. After introductions, they handed him a folder of ads they ran back in the day. They used the same layouts I created for Shooster’s and just changed the name. One ad was particularly interesting, a full-page arti- cle clearly mentioning, ‘formerly Shooster’s Drive-In.’ FOREVER CHANGED On April 4th, 1968. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., was assassinated, and race riots broke out across America. By April 9th, racial tensions exploded in nearby Wilmington, Delaware. Everyone expected riots to spill over into our neighborhood since Dr. King trained at the Crozier Theological Institute, of Chester. Trouble came, but nothing in proportion to the government’s counteraction. To restore order, The Governor of Pennsyl- vania enlisted The National Guard and deployed 500 men to Chester. They remained in place for nine months until the next governor was elected. During those tense times, many people moved out, further exacerbating the tax roles of Chester and plunging the city into decline. This action became the longest occupation of an American city since the Civil War, damaging race relations for many years. As the races began to polarize, the Italian, Jewish, and Irish immigrants moved into the new subdivisions just outside of Ches- ter, leaving Chester to become a predominately black community.
Delaware County Times, Chester, Pa. - May 1st, 1964
George Bostwick, Jr., [age 10 at the time] was there. He said, “Local blacks threw rocks at the cars of white drivers who came to pick up a burger. Wick’s erected barricades of tires and fences allowing traffic to continue safely around the restaurant. The customers would order using a speaker and then drive up to the window to get their food. It was the beginning of the modern- day drive-up window. We couldn’t keep the retail business going anymore. At that point, we started a catering company and used the facility for preparations.” EXIT RAMP My brother Harry built a small row home near the restaurant. He sold it and made a little profit, learned some lessons, and then did it again. Next time he built 10-row townhomes in a line and sold 7 of them quickly. They were all low-income housing projects. Harry’s homes were marketed to lower-in- come families. After quickly selling the first seven places, he went to a nearby rent- al complex and talked to the people about buying the remaining homes. He explained, “When you rent, you end up with nothing. These homes are affordable.” He sold the last three. Harry repeated that simple formula
Morning Headline, April 5th, 1968
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