We can buy everything but alcohol here on Sunday. We still have several stores that are not open on Sunday and quite a few that don't open until 1:30. Took some getting used to when we moved here from California!

Trish in SC

I grew up in Connecticut. We had what they called "blue laws" on Sunday. One was you couldn't buy alcohol on Sunday. Bars had to close at 9pm. Funny, those are the only ones I remember. What does that tell ya?

Here in Fremont, Nebraska, you can't buy wine or hard liquor until after 12:00. I'm not sure if the bars are open or not on Sunday.
Leslie

I remember the Blue Sunday law. Nothing was open here on Sundays except the movie theater. I was raised in that environment so didn't think anything about it. It was kind of nice to have such quiet Sundays. Now it would be hard to get used to again.

So. CA--you can buy anything anytime.

The pacifier incident would have made me furious too. That's just stupid.

I'm 49. When I was a kid, convenience stores were only open until 6:00 at night. They were not open on Sundays, or on Wednesday afternoons, neither were grocery stores. We also had a 9:00 curfew. The whistle at the Inco plant went off and kids were not allowed to be out after that time.

In Pennsylvania, they were called the "blue Laws".

We didn't have blue Sundays...but everything, including grocery stores were closed on Sunday. So families could/would spend their Sunday's at church and with families.

They didn't start staying open until the 1960s

Last week I went to Hobby Lobby (new in our area) There was a sign on their door that said they were closed on Sunday's so their employees could go to church and spend the day with family.

I thought that was great.

patti

Live close to a river!
If you go to a restaurant before THE River, you can be served your favorite beverage, Sundays

I grew up in Memphis, graduated from high school in 65. Blue laws closed all stores except for grocery and drug items.

There were no bars serving liquor by the drink anywhere in the state anyway, not at that time, and I am pretty sure that you couldn't buy beer on Sundays either, but could get it at a restaurant, maybe. I was too young for such things!

The Blue Laws go much deeper than any of us are old enough to remember. At 67 years old the part that I remember most was that in the area of PA that I grew up in, no stores were open on Sunday. The purpose was to keep Sunday as a day of worship and family time. That is the part that I would like to see us go back to. Probably not practical with this "must have it now" generation.

Here is a link that might be useful: Blue Laws

Oh, yes! I grew up in Illinois, worked in a Five and Dime store - we couldn't sell MANY things on Sunday.

The city I live in here is still for the most part "dry"
Meaning no alcohol can be sold here. Just in the last couple of years did they pass a beer and wine sales only in the stores. Any liquor has to be bought in the next city over. Restaurants are allowed to serve, without purchasing a membership card now, which is nice. If I remember correctly, back in the 80's K-mart decided that they were going to pay the fines and remain open on Sunday's especially during the Christmas holidays. They made headlines, but it wasn't long before the other chain discount stores followed suit.
I was really relieved, I think I was still tramatized by the pacifier incident!
I do realize that Sunday should be a family day, but we all know that between the bootleggers and the under the table outfits that worked behind closed doors, Sunday and Wednesday nights were alive and well!
I too have a hobby lobby near my house and was a bit put out when I found they were closed one Sunday. But when I read the note on the door that they close to allow their employees family time off, I left with a smile on my face.....and headed to Walmart!! LOL

Trin

I remember visiting my Cuz in Oklahoma. I wanted a Souvenir from Oklahoma. My Aunt took me to a store that had lots of "neat" stuff on a Sunday. I couldn't believe they let you buy "neat stuff" on a Sunday. I was about 12.

Liquor Stores are still closed on Sunday here. But, you can buy Beer and Wine at a Grocery Store. Go figure?

We visited Dean's Son at Beaver Lake, Arkansas. We wanted to go to the Liquor Store for a Host Gift. LOL! We had to cross over to the Missouri Border to a Store there.

We had the blue laws for Sundays here in Ohio too. I can remember when you made sure you got gas for your cars on Saturday because very few were open on Sundays. You just didn't 'shop' on Sundays. Since that's the way it was, I don't remember hearing much griping about it.

Shirley

Sure, I remember that. I guess we were used to it and our mothers were organized enough to not need anything like that on a Sunday. Even after they changed the law, our big grocery chain here stayed closed on Sundays. No more. I think Pro cuts is open on Sundays. I respect the decision to keep Hobby Lobby closed on Sundays.

In 1969 I moved from CA to Arlington, VA and was so surprised about the blue laws. I had never heard of them before. Once in a while I would read in the paper that the manager of a large drug chain was arrested because the store sold a "non essential" item on Sunday. I was so surprised that all department stores were closed on Sundays. As far as I know the blue laws are no longer in effect. Oh, and I lived in a large townhouse area. One Sunday I hung my wash on the line and a neighbor lady knocked on my door to tell me that it was against the rules to hang laundry out on a Sunday so I had to take it all down and put it in the dryer.

I, too, was surprised that Hobby Lobby closes on Sunday but it must be nice for the employees.

When growing up in Massachusetts they had blue laws in the 1950's & 60's. Nothing was open on Sunday, if I remember correctly. We were so surprised when we moved to Illinois and everything was open.
Clare

There were blue laws in MN in the 60's. The only things open were gas stations and they had those roped off inside, so you couldn't buy anything other than auto products. No other stores open, not groceries, shopping centers, nothing.
JoanMN/FL

Don't recall it being called Blue Sunday, but we always stayed in our church clothes, went for Sunday rides in the country, and back to church again.
No Sunday movies. Back then stores were closed.

Family time and visitation.

I grew up in Buffalo NY in the 50's and 60's. All stores wer closed all day Sunday, not even a drug store was open. Then they started opening from noon to five, that's all. Now everything is open all day Sunday. One vestige of the "Blue" laws is you can't buy beer or wine coolers or any other liquor before noon on Sunday.

I remember those days. And the stores closed early every night except Thursday evenings. And we could leave our doors unlocked. And children could play outside blocks from home as long as they came home by dark. Life sure is different now.

I remember. Blue Laws. Certain parts of the grocery store would be sectioned off so you couldn't buy non food items.

I was born and raised in Holland Michigan. Been here all my life. Holland has about 60,000 population now, back when I was little more like 35,000.

When I was young there was only little store open on sunday in the "bad part of town" LOL. NOTHING was open and I do mean Nothing!!!! We did not leave our yard except for a ride to the country with Mom and Dad. Everyone did it so it wasn't anything unusal. We did not know any different.

Our county just passed a new law to allow alcohol sales on Sunday. It went into effect December 1st, 2008.

Things are so different now, everything is open and now you can drink on Sunday! I love it!

I remember blue laws here in NC in the 70's & 80's. I think some of them persisted into the 90s. I remember that you couldn't buy any type of alcohol on Sundays, even beer. Most of the stores in the smaller towns closed on Sundays, but in the larger places most were open.

Being a native Texan, they were Blue Laws. No stores except for a grocery store was open on a Sunday.

Gee, this is so strange, because I was just mentioning old Blue Laws "back when I was growing up" to my teenager before church this morning!! How certain aisles of the grocery stores would be roped off, and you weren't allowed to buy certain things...
Seems like you could buy nails, but not a hammer??
(Texas)