SMITH UNION MARKET in Carroll Gardens was founded by Placido Scopelliti on February 22, 1945

His grandson, Vincent Taliercio has been managing the business since 1986.  We have interviewed Vincent SMITH UNION MARKET in Carroll Gardens was founded by Placido Scopelliti on February 22, 1945. His grandson, Vincent Taliercio has been managing the business since 1986.  We interviewed Vincent in 2009 when we took this photo and he told us, “This was originally a meat market opened by my grandfather after World War II ended. We had a large showcase for the meats and butcher blocks, where all the meat was cut by hand. We also had grinding machines and a large hand-crafted wooden walk-in-box, which I still use today to store beers. It works great and keeps everything super cold. After my brother the butcher retired, I told customers that I simply replaced the meats with many varieties of beer.”

• Photo and full interview with Vincent appear in our book, “Store Front II-A History Preserved”.