Fill in the blanks: It was a small town 50 years ago. There was a supermarket but there was/were ... was/wasn't a circus then, but there was/were small houses.

1. The first blank should be 'was' because 'supermarket' is singular.
2. The second blank should be 'wasn't' because 'a circus' is singular and the context implies absence.
3. The third blank should be 'were' because 'houses' is plural.

Answer: was, wasn't, were