Strolling Through the Tower: Chicken Pies and Community Ties
by Tom Sims
At the corner of Olive and Wishon in Fresno’s Tower District, there is an institution dating back to 1956. Family and community legend date it back even earlier to the Great Depression when Mary Richardson made chicken pies and put them in the window to cool. The undisputed truth is Grandmother, Mary Ross (AKA Grandmarie) did provide the influence and flavor that still lives on this corner. The Chicken Pie Shop is one of the few institutions in Fresno with continuity of ownership and management that dates back well over 50 years.
