Stanford Shopping Center & Emporium Department Store

Palo Alto, California - late '50s early '60s

Colorful postcard view of the Stanford Shopping Center in Palo Alto, California (now a Simon mall anchored by Neiman Marcus, Bloomingdale's, Nordstrom and Macy's), with a nice shot of the mall's old Emporium department store facade/entrance as well. Some Wikipedia history notes on the mall's store lineups over the years:

"Macy's California joined the center in 1961 and Saks Fifth Avenue opened a store in 1962. Further expansion came again in 1972 with the addition Los Angeles-based Bullock's, owned by Bloomingdale's parent company Federated Department Stores. Bullock's only lasted eleven years, closing its Northern California stores in 1983 and selling its Stanford location to Nordstrom, which opened in November 1984. Neiman Marcus became the sixth anchor in August 1985.

Saks Fifth Avenue closed their store in 1994 and was replaced by Crate and Barrel and Andronico's food market. By 1995, Federated Department Stores had acquired the Macy's, I. Magnin, and Emporium chains. As part of the company's rationalization, the I. Magnin chain was closed, and the location at Stanford became a separate Macy's Men's Store in 1995. The Emporium store was shuttered and rebranded as Bloomingdale's in November 1996, this being the first northern California location for that division of Federated."

For an added bonus, check out this cool "virtual reality" panorama view of the Stanford Shopping Center.

Mall history: 1956 - present
Current website: here
Current aerial view
Info from Wikipedia
Reference links: 1, 2, 3
Previous entries: none

Stonestown Shopping Center (aka Stonestown Galleria)

San Francisco, California - early '60s

Vintage fifties exterior photos of The Emporium department store (which became Macy's in 1995), among others, at the venerable old Stonestown Shopping Center (aka Stonestown Galleria, or just "Stonestown") in San Francisco, California.

At first glance, these pictures kind of remind me of a drive-in movie theater--especially that first shot. Probably could have shown movies on that Emporium "E" storefront facade if they wanted to! At any rate, very cool and swanky design here, from the Golden Age of retail.

Mall history: 1952 - present
Current website: here
Current aerial view
Reference links: 1, 2
Previous entries: none