Category:Pollard Tire Company, Allentown, Pennsylvania

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The Pollard Tire Company was founded by Ed Pollard in 1927 at the corner of Front and Hamilton Streets. From its beginning, the company was a franchisee of the Firestone Tire and Rubber Company, selling tires along with providing service to cars and light trucks.

In October 1929, Pollard's moved to a new facility at 13th and Turner Streets, providing a multiple number of services. In addition to the tires and motor vehicle service, the company expanded into selling toys and appliances. In August 1939, the store was taken over, and became a direct factory store of Firestone.

With the change, Pollard moved to a new location at 7th and Allen Streets, although Pollard remained a Firestone franchee. Pollard subsequently built a new facility at 230 North 7th Street in the spring of 1945, moving into it that summer. The 7th street location became the company's home for the next 50 years. At 230 North 7th, the company further expanded into television and large applicances, and expanded its sale of toys with becoming a Lionel Trains franchise. Over the subsequent decades, Pollars expanded with additional locations in Reading and Kutztown during 1979. During the early 1980s, the store also began to sell Michelin tires although Firestores remained the primary brand.

On October 31, 1996, Pollards announced it's Allentown facility was closing citing low sales. It also ended its affiliation with Lionel Trains. However, the Reading and Kutztown locations would remain open and would focus on Firestone tires and car servicing. However, Pollard's closed all of it's stores at the end of 1996, putting them up for sale.

In 1997, the Allentown location subsquently became Atiyeh's Tire & Auto Center. Atiyeh's Tire closed about March 2000 when it declared bankrupsy. Atiyeh reorganized and the faciity reopened in Feburary 2002. Currently it is an auto servicing garage and an independed tire dealership. It also is a U-Haul rental center and apparantly a flea market.

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