Payne Drug Co


Company Names, addresses, dates: 1
        Payne Drug Company
  Payne Drug Co, 1418 Granby Street, Norfolk VA (1919-1933) 1,2
  Payne Drug Co, 1200 Granby Street, Norfolk VA (1934-1964) 1,3
        Willard Drug Company (John W. Payne Sr. owner)
  Willard Drug Co, 451 Granby Street, Norfolk VA (1947-1949)
  Willard Drug Co, 455 Granby Street, Norfolk VA (1951)
  Willard Drug Co, 451-457 Granby Street, Norfolk VA (1952-1954) 1,2

Notes:
John Willard Payne Sr. (1889-1954)4 started the Payne Drug Company at the corner of 15th and Granby Streets in 1919.2
The store operated at that location until about 1933/34, when it moved to 1200 Granby Street.1
Note that 1200 Granby Street is on the corner of Granby Street and Princess Anne Road, so it matches the address on the labeled bottle depicted below.

John Sr. ran the store until the end of WW II, at which time he turned the Payne Drug Company over to his son, John Willard Payne Jr. (1889-1954)5
John Jr. ran the store until 1964, when he decided to become a stock broker. 3

Meanwhile, at the same time he turned the store over to his son, John Sr. opened a second store, called the Willard Drug Company. I wonder if the store was named after his middle name? In any case, he was the proprietor of that store until his death in 1954.2

Bottles:
payne_01 This is a clear 5" machine-made bottle with a label:
label: PAYNE DRUG CO. / REGISTRY NO 3976 / PRINCESS ANNE ROAD AT GRANBY ST. / NORFOLK, VIRGINIA / ... / OPEN ALL NIGHT - DIAL 27568 OR 23245


1 Norfolk City directories, 1900-20,22-25,27-28,30,33-35,38-40,42,44,46-47,49,51-52,56,58,60
2 Virginian-Pilot, 12-Sep-1954, p.20 (obituary for John W. Payne Sr)
3 Virginian-Pilot, 28-Dec-2004, p.23 (obituary for John W. Payne Jr)
4 Find-a-grave entry for John Willard Payne Sr.
5 Find-a-grave entry for John Willard Payne Jr.


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This page last updated on March 2, 2026.