COKE PLANT: We thought it was an open-and-shut case as to where
that Coca-Cola bottling plant was located in Bradford – on East
Main Street near the Children’s Home, right?

Not so fast.

We got some conflicting information the other day that we can
only attribute to the time period of people’s memories.

Bradford Landry Sr. writes from Kentucky, “The Coca-Cola
Bottling Co. was located between Rink’s Garage and the Children’s
Home at the head of Russell Boulevard.”

“I was born at 12 Russell Blvd. and I lived there until I was 20
years of age. They only bottled Coke there and never manufactured
the bottles. The article brought back good memories of the
neighborhood.”

And Ernie Ishman, who once worked at the Coke plant, stopped by
to tell us that the plant in the early 1960s was where the Toyota
garage is now on East Main. Next door was Lincoln-Mercury dealer
Stan Rink.

As for personnel there was Nunzio “Skinny” Cercone, Tony
Cercone, Bob Henretta and Pete Hvizdzak. Russ Gilliam was plant
manager. A woman by the name Bianca was in the office, Ernie tells
us.

Coke had warehouses in Olean, Wellsville and Coudersport.

Meanwhile, we also heard from Elmer DeLucia – whose memory goes
back a bit further.

In the late 1920s or early ’30s, the Coke plant was on Roberts
Street where Jarrett Machine shop is now located, he says.

We had a report previously about this Roberts Street location so
we must assume it was originally housed there and later moved to
the East Main Street spot.

Incidentally, one of our readers – he didn’t want to be named –
remembers touring the Coke plant on East Main when he was in
elementary school. It left such an impression on him that when he
visited Atlanta, Ga., as a young adult, he was in shock and
disbelief that Coca-Cola was headquartered there – and not in
Bradford!

Hey, Bradford was the home of Zippo, Case knives, Kendall
refinery – also national brands – so why would anyone not assume
that Coke, too, was a local product?!

TODAY’S QUOTE: “There’s no rulebook to turn to for many of
journalism’s tough calls,” said Rem Rieder, editor, American
Journalism Review, 2006.