TONAWANDA, N.Y. — Louie's Hot Dogs in the Town of Tonawanda has a lot of history.
In 1949, Louie Turco opened the location as a diner.
In 1951, he and his wife, Josephine Turco, decided to turn it into a hot dog stand, which is what everyone has known and loved in the neighborhood for 71 years.
When it closed last spring, it devastated the town. In fact, the history is one of the biggest reasons it's not going anywhere.
"My dad (Louie Turco) was in World War II, and while he was in the war, he would send letters back to my mom because he went into the army, and they were going to send him home because he had bad eyesight. He wore thick glasses, and he didn't want to go home, so they said, 'Can you cook?' He said, 'I can learn,' " said Angelo Turco, Louie's son.
Louie Turco's learning curve ended up making him the creator of the footlong hot dog and curly fries.
When Louie Turco retired in 2010, it was his son Angelo who took over. Then Louie Turco passed away a month before he turned 85.
And last May, Angelo decided to retire, while also facing a staffing shortage as most industries.
There was no other option: He would have to close.
Now on Friday, the iconic hot dog stand is fully staffed to serve Western New Yorkers once again.
"(My dad) would sleep here. This business meant everything to him. It's who he was," Angelo Turco said.
It's all because Angelo Turco's cousin, Aaron LaMarca, will help keep Louie's legacy alive in Tonawanda.
"I am not changing a damn thing," LaMarca said. "This is living, breathing, growing nostalgia. I've talked to grandparents here, whose parents brought them here, who are now bringing their kids and great grandkids here."
LaMarca says he hopes to someday give the hot dog stand over to his daughter.
Louie's Hot Dogs will officially be back open Friday at 10:30 a.m.
It will close around 7 or 8 every night this week, but when the weather gets warmer, it will be open until 10 p.m. every day.