The history of Firehouse Subs, Northern Crossing, Glendale, Arizona


Time-travel with me to a time when Firehouse Subs at Northern Crossing, 59th Avenue and Northern in Glendale, was new. That is, yesterday.

Yes, I'm trying to be funny here (hopefully) but I also want to share with you what I see everywhere I go, both in real life and in cyberspace. I see history. And I don't draw an imaginary line in time, to me time flows like a river, which has always been and always will be.

Yesterday, while I was enjoying a delicious sub sandwich, I spoke to the young woman who is the owner of the franchise. As always in situations like this, the conversation started with just talking about the food, and since I'm interested in the history I asked how long the business had been there. I've lived in Glendale for over twenty years, and I had never seen it, or even the building. The building had been built last October. It was all of three months old. Pretty recent history!

If you're a Glendale history fan, you know that area as just across from where Minn's farm was. It's also just west of the Manistee Ranch (the main house is at 51st Avenue and Northern). If your interest in history only goes back to 1965, it's a few blocks east of Parson's Restaurant (originally Big Sam's). It's about two miles south of the Sahuaro Ranch. I could go on and on about my perspective, and I probably will, but that's what I see.

I like to time-travel in my imagination and picture myself talking to the owners of Big Sam's, or the Manistee Ranch. Of course, I was born too late to do that, but there are things that I can do. I can talk to the owner of the franchise of the Firehouse Subs at Northern Crossing. And I just love these stories. They're always stories of what I call "unrealistic optimism", the kind of stories that have been building Phoenix since 1870, and will continue to do so.

I suggest that when you go to the Firehouse Subs at Northern Crossing, you take the time to say hello to the owner, who often works there behind the counter. Like people have always done, she's invested in her business, and has confidence about the future. And when you go there, also say hello to her son, who will taking over the business at one point, and will remember the "good old days" the way that every generation does. The good old days will be before everything changed, when life was more simple, when people were more friendly. So if you've ever had any doubt about when the good old days were, they're whenever you make them. I choose now, and for as long as I can.

Thank you for history adventuring with me!
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