Crossroads Center Mall 1970s

Waterloo, Iowa - circa early '70s

Four vintage seventies photos of the Crossroads Center mall on one postcard, with exterior views of Sears, JCPenney, and Osco Drug all visible here, as well as a couple really groovy interior mall shots, too!

Some of Crossroads Center mall's current anchors and stores include Dillard's, Gordmans, the aforementioned JCPenney and Sears, Old Navy, and Younkers.

Mall history: 1970 - present
Current website: here
Info from Wikipedia
Previous entries: 1

The Daily Mall Reader: Fall Of The Mall

A daily dose of mall-related reading...

"The fall of the mall: We are still shopping, but the citadels of retail are fast becoming irrelevant"

The National Post - June 15, 2004

(Excerpt) My first and last visit to the gigantic West Edmonton Mall, around 1990, compressed into two hours the feelings that people have been reporting since the original enclosed shopping mall opened in a Minneapolis suburb in 1956. First there was fascination, then a certain amusement (how often do you see an indoor swimming pool with a sandy beach and a wave machine?) and finally ennui. It was a fast-forward history of suburban retailing; West Edmonton, which is just like a mall only more so, demanded attention, then quickly deadened it.

It now seems possible that West Edmonton Mall and lesser citadels are on their way to becoming historical artifacts. No one could have predicted this three decades ago, when surveys said that Americans spent more time at the mall than anywhere else except home and work, and The Economist praised the controlled environment of malls as a "potent device for generating sales."

Today we are apparently living through the twilight of the malls. They remain essential in many places, and some still prosper, but they long ago lost the charm of novelty, and social change has eroded their economic base.

Read the full article here.

Retro Mall Video: Slim Jeans Commercial

Slim Jeans commercial (early '80s)

Behold, it's Slim Jeans! "The uncommon jeans for people with a common problem!" :D

Wow, I remember seeing these commercials on late night TV back in the day, and even remember seeing these, uh, "jeans" in stores and at the malls. They're actually still sold today in one form or another, especially in the backs of magazines and in gift catalogs and whatnot. Can't believe the stuff we buy sometimes (especially with this kind of ridiculous pitch in mind)!

The quality of this video is terrible, I know, but it's the only full-length one I could find (there's a much better version here on YouTube, but it's missing the beginning and I'm kind of a stickler for that sort of thing).

Stonestown Shopping Center (aka Stonestown Galleria)

San Francisco, California - circa 1950s

Swanky '50s postcard photo of the Stonestown Shopping Center (now Stonestown Galleria) in San Francisco, California. Lots of vintage store signage on display in this shot, including Walgreens, JM (was this the clothing store?), and The Emporium department store (with the distinctive "E" logo) in the background.

Thanks very much to, Brian Neuroth, for pointing me to this one!

Mall history: 1952 - present
Current website: here
Current aerial view
Reference links: 1, 2
Previous entries: 1, 2

Northway Mall: Mountain of Merchandise Auto Show

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania - circa 1960s

Vintage photo of an auto show underway at Northway Mall in the 1960s (most likely around 1964, I believe). Judging by the pic's label, I'm guessing this was taken during a "Mountain of Merchandise" promotional sales event at the mall. And in fact, if you look real close, you can actually make out what appears to be a literal mountain of merchandise in the middle of the cars.

Either way, guesses aside, what I do know is that this is a cool image showing some of Northway Mall 's interior decor in this spacious court area, as well as a Woolworth store and National Record Mart shop, in the background.

Mall history: 1962 - present
Current website: here
Info from Wikipedia
Current aerial view
Previous entries: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

(Study image courtesy The Shoppes at Northway)

The Daily Mall Reader: Malls Marketing For The Net

A daily dose of mall-related reading...

"How The Net Is Remaking The Mall'"
To lure Web-savvy shoppers, retailers are turning to "lifestyle centers"

BusinessWeek - May 9, 2005

(Excerpt) The landscape of America is the store. Drive anywhere, and you will see mile after mile of mammoth malls, big-box retailers, and local supermarkets. There are more than 1.1 million retail establishments across the country, an average of one every three square miles.

Now this sprawling tapestry of retail space is being rapidly rewoven. In 2004 developers poured $18 billion into new and renovated enclosed malls, open-air shopping centers, and warehouse stores, up 17% from the previous year. So far, 2005 is ahead of that pace, in part as a response to the continued strength of consumer demand.

But there's something new going on as well: Bricks-and-mortar retailing is furiously recasting itself to compete in the world of the Internet.

Read the full article here.

Broadway Plaza Shopping Center

Walnut Creek, California - circa 1950s

Vintage postcard depicting the Broadway Plaza Shopping Center (and its very distinctive sign!) in Walnut Creek, California, which is currently anchored by Macy's & Nordstrom's. Other retailers comprising this venerable upscale open-air regional shopping center include: David M. Brian, The Gap, Banana Republic, Ann Taylor, Victoria's Secret and Build-A-Bear Workshop. The above photos are from early on in the Broadway Plaza's retail life.

Mall history: 1951 - present
Current website: here
Current aerial view
Info from Wikipedia
Previous entries: none

Retro Mall Video: '70s Sears Optical Department

Sears Optical Department (1970s)

Here's a retro '70s TV commercial for the Optical Department at Sears, in all its weird retro '70s glory. Man, I remember the catchy little jingle in these Sears ads very well from when I was a kid. As for the woman in this one... can you say Stepford Wives?

International Malls: Place Ste-Foy Shopping Centre

Quebec, Canada - 1965

Old multi-view postcard of the positively retro-beautiful Place Ste-Foy Shopping Centre in Quebec, Canada, back in the mid-sixties--when it still looked this Swinging (it doesn't today, in case you were wondering), before its many makeovers and modernizing over the ensuing years. Check the huge birdcage there in the bottom picture!

Below are links to my previous entries on this cool Canadian mall (or Shopping Centre, as they like to refer to it), which was originally built in 1958. Here's Place Ste-Foy's current website (which I can't read).

More Place Ste-Foy: 1, 2

Altamonte Mall Interior

Altamonte Springs, Florida - circa 1970s

Do not adjust your computer monitor... but do enjoy Altamonte Mall's funky '70s color design, which includes blood-red carpeting, hickory paneling, and yellow and red colored fountain lights (the red one's a groovy dandelion fountain, too), which probably changed to other colors as well! Spectacular, I say.

This is a view from the mall's center court area, and I actually featured this same photo before, however that version was black and white, and also reversed!--which I (and no one else), ever noticed back then. Whoops. Well it's fixed now with this entry, and in Living Color to boot! :) A reader reminisces about Altamonte Mall as a kid:

"The center court was filled with fountains (one more is to the right and there was another fountain underneath the stairs just off center court)... the large fountain to the left, along with the other fountains, were lit with multi-colored lights and there were plenty of seating areas around the fountains. At that time, it seemed like the only 2 level mall in the Orlando area. Today, this mall is quite sterile the center court area is totally different."

Mall history: 1974 - present
Current website: here
Current aerial view
Previous entries: 1

The Daily Mall Reader: Garden State Plaza, A Potemkin Mall

A daily dose of mall-related reading...

"Welcome to the Potemkin Mall"

The New York Times - December 20, 2005

(Excerpt) PARAMUS, N.J. - At the Garden State Plaza, a sprawling marble and skylight-filled shopping center just outside Manhattan, discriminating consumers can find a $400 fur-trimmed handbag at Coach, a $60 pair of distressed jeans at American Eagle Outfitters and a $25 make-your-own giraffe at Build-a-Bear.

And, if they look closely enough, they can also find dozens of retail analysts, hedge fund managers and institutional investors, their telltale briefcases and BlackBerries in hand, as they rummage through clothing racks to calculate markdowns, count shoppers to gauge a chain's popularity and quiz managers about sales.

Read the full article here.

Winter Park Mall (now Winter Park Village)

Winter Park, Florida - circa 1960

Vintage postcard view (shot dates to around 1960) of Winter Park Mall, with it's incredible spilling chalice fountain--this was the way it originally looked when it first opened. It's since been completely redeveloped and transformed into a sprawling open-air lifestyle center dubbed, Winter Park Village. Below is a quote on the original mall's demise, from the website of Dover, Kohl & Partners, one of the firms involved in the redevelopment of Winter Park Mall in the late-'90s:

"Winter Park Mall, located in the heart of Winter Park, Florida, was hailed in the 1960s as a symbol of progress. The Mall was designed to compete directly for customers with nearby Park Avenue, the City's traditional Main Street. Starting in the 1980s, however, Winter Park Mall steadily declined in sales and lost tenants, while Park Avenue maintained its vitality and grew stronger. Park Avenue is now known as 'the Main Street that killed the Mall'."

Mall history: 1950s - late '90s (redeveloped)
Current website: n/a
Current aerial view
Previous entries: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

Retro Mall Video: Members Only Jackets - One Jacket To Rule Them All

Members Only Jackets (1982)

Remember that hip and trendy must-have fashion accessory so popular in the '80s--the "Members Only Jacket"? If you were a teen back then living in the U.S., you definitely do. Especially if you were one of the "cool kids" who's parents could afford to get you a Members Only jacket.

I didn't have one.

Well actually, I had a Members Only knock-off version from Kmart or Montgomery Ward at the mall or something. While I certainly fancied myself as relatively cool (OK, very cool), the jackets came along at a really tight financial time in our household (and I couldn't wait, like every other cool kid I needed one NOW!) so I settled for a jacket that looked very similar to the real thing--unless anyone looked real close at the little front pocket label tag which was on the outside of all genuine Members Only jackets, bearing The Name.

That tiny little tag was quite the status symbol in those days. I forget what my knock-off said, but from a few feet away it looked close enough (and no one ever called me on it either). It was like "Member Only" (singular not plural) or something like that. Close enough. I felt cool (or cooler) and all was well.

So here's a 1982 TV commercial for Members Only Jackets, with Anthony Geary of General Hospital, who was a really popular daytime TV sex symbol in those days. Just look at him, can't you tell?

"When I put one on... something happens."

You look like an uncool idiot?

Watch more Retro Mall videos here!

JCPenney Store At Fremont Mall

Fremont, Nebraska - circa 1960s

Greetings from Fremont, Nebraska and the Fremont Mall... where shopping in the mall is a family affair! I know that because it says so on this cool vintage postcard, which shows not only the exterior of the Penney's (or JCPenney if you prefer) store at the mall, but also a good portion of its sign (the mall's).

I don't know a heck of a lot about Fremont Mall, but I don't have to, because Labelscar has my back on this one. They have both a great post on the mall with lots of info and contemporary photos, as well as a more recent shot taken from almost the same spot as this vintage one (and it still looks surprisingly similar!). Check it out.

Mall history: 1967 - present
Current website: here
Current aerial view
Previous entries: none

The Daily Mall Reader: Gruen & Retail Shopping Nirvana

A daily dose of mall-related reading...

"Filling the Doughnut"

TIME Magazine - Friday, Apr. 20, 1962

(Excerpt) For years, downtown storekeepers in the nation's cities have been standing morosely watching all the ladies go by—to the suburban shopping centers. It is the city's biggest dilemma in the age of the automobile: the stores have the goods, but where does the shopper park? After a few more years of this, says Planner-Architect Victor Gruen, the cities of America are going to be like doughnuts—"all the dough on the outside, and a hole in the middle."

To Victor Gruen, 58, a lively Vienna-born leprechaun, solving the problems of the deteriorating downtown has become something of an obsession. The automobile, he says, is downtown's most virulent enemy. "No automobile—not even the most elegant Cadillac—ever bought a thing." Dismount the shopper, free him of driving and parking worries, give him a modern version of the old town square, and the city will be born again.

Read the full article here.

Two Guys Discount Store 1977

Middletown, New Jersey - June 3, 1977

Here's a beautiful, almost dreamlike late-seventies snapshot of the Two Guys discount store at a larger Two Guys shopping center arrangement in Middletown, NJ. Thanks to ever eagle-eyed MOA reader, Patrick Richardson, for spotting this one for me!

"Hi Keith. Here's a cool Two Guys picture I found on Wikipedia. It's from the town I grew up in in NJ. This was part of the Two Guys shopping center. It was replaced in the early-80's by a Bradlees and is currently a Kohl's."

As well, here's a related snippet from said Two Guys stores entry on Wikipedia:

"Many locations originally included a discount store with a supermarket, as well as complete Hardware, Major appliance, and Automotive Service departments. The Two Guys Supermarkets were full sized 'stores within a store', and they competed directly with large Supermarket chains like A & P and Shop Rite. The Supermarkets used the tag line, 'Two Guys, The Super, Supermarket', while the main store used the tag line 'We Save Money For You, Naturally'."

Retro Mall Video: '80s Korvettes Toy Land

Korvettes Toy Land (1982)

Korvettes discount stores "Toy Land" TV commercial from 1982, featuring Mego and others! This is a fun companion piece to the other Korvettes commercial I featured before (and I have yet another vintage Korvettes spot on the way next time).

Watch more Retro Mall videos here!

Oxford Valley Mall 1973

Langhorne, Pennsylvania - circa 1973

Oxford Valley Mall interior circa 1973, around the time it first opened. Man, every time I feature this mall I fall in love with it all over again! Its vintage self looked so beautiful and sexy! Well maybe you should marry it, Keith?

Maybe I will...

"(via Wikipedia) The Oxford Valley Mall is a two-story Simon Properties shopping mall located next to the popular amusement park Sesame Place in Langhorne, Middletown Township, Bucks County, Pennsylvania. Its department stores are Sears, Boscov's, J.C. Penney, and Macy's. There is a food court on the second floor. The food court was originally the second floor of a Woolworth store.

The mall itself acts as an anchor for the huge local conglomeration of shopping centers, such as Target Center, Lincoln Plaza and The Court at Oxford Valley."

Mall history: 1973 - present
Current website: here
Current aerial view
Info from Wikipedia
Previous entries: 1, 2, 3

International Malls: Sherway Gardens Shopping Centre

Toronto, Ontario, Canada - circa 1970s

Colorful retro '70s postcard view of the entrance sign and interior of the Sherway Gardens shopping centre in Toronto. I'll refrain from calling the interior "gaudy", but I'll just say it's definitely some bold '70s mall decor style at its finest! And I mean that in a good way. :)

More Sherway Gardens: 1

Miracle Mile Shopping Center (Monroeville, PA)

Monroeville, Pennsylvania - circa 1950s

Vintage postcard view of the bustling Miracle Mile Shopping Center in Monroeville, PA, which opened in November of 1954, and was originally officially named Pittsburgh Miracle Mile Town & Country Shopping Center Inc.--thank the Shopping Gods it got shortened! Cool shot here of the mall's S. S. Kresge and Sun Drugs stores

Mall history: 1954 - present
Current website: here
Current aerial view
Previous entries: 1

The Daily Mall Reader: Monroeville's Miracle Mile

A daily dose of mall-related reading...

"Still going strong at 50: Location, adaptation aid Miracle Mile's success"

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette - Wednesday, December 01, 2004

(Excerpt) Monroeville's Miracle Mile wasn't the first or the biggest or most innovative shopping center, but it has thrived.

In a business that favors the new and the trendy, Miracle Mile is observing its 50th year.

Now the Casto-Silken Group is investing in improvements to enhance the curb appeal and maintain its popularity.

"Miracle Mile is one of the pre-eminent power strip centers in the Pittsburgh region," said broker Herky Pollock, of CB Richard Ellis/Pittsburgh, a commercial real estate brokerage. "Historically, it's been one of the entry points for national retailers in the Pittsburgh market."

Read the full article here.

Mall Sign: Edgemoor Plaza Shopping Center

Wichita, Kansas - circa 1956

Swanktastic sign (designed and built by Claude Neon Federal Signs) at the Edgemoor Plaza shopping center in Wichita, KS. Edgemoor Plaza originally opened to shoppers in 1954. Not sure if it's still there today (and if so, under what name).

See more mall signs here!

(Study image courtesy of the Howard Eastwood Collection, Wichita State University Libraries' Department of Special Collections)

Mesabi Mall Woolworth Store

Hibbing, Minnesota - 1971

Woolworth store at Mesabi Mall, right around the time of the mall's original Grand Opening in 1971.

Note that this Woolworth facade is sporting the chain's then-new American style logo with the F. W. dropped from the name (you can also see it here). This is the groovier seventies Woolworth logo design I grew up with and it sure brings back lots of great childhood memories!

Mall history: 1971 - present
Current website: n/a
Current aerial view
Previous entries: none

MOA Galleria - Belknap Mall Zayre Store

Belmont, New Hampshire - April 1978

What lies at the end of the rainbow? A shopping mall of course!

In this case it's Belknap Mall, pictured here in April of 1978, from the parking lot in front of the mall's Zayre department store just after a late-afternoon or evening Spring rain, it would appear. Image via habspuck's photos on Flickr.

More Belknap Mall: 1
See more Galleria here!

Mall Sign: Valley Fair Mall

Appleton, Wisconsin

Recent photo (2006) of an old weather-worn entrance sign at the now-defunct Valley Fair Mall (aka Valley Fair Shopping Center). Don't know how far back this relic actually dates (Valley Fair opened in 1954), but I think it's seen better days (like the mall). Image via Wikipedia's Valley Fair Shopping Center entry.

More Valley Fair: 1, 2

The Daily Mall Reader: Laurel Mall Redevelopment

A daily dose of mall-related reading...

"New Owners to Bring New Life to Laurel Mall"

Washington Post - Monday, February 5, 2007

(Excerpt) The owners of Laurel Mall last week announced a plan to turn the ailing shopping center into a walkable town center with restaurants, a movie theater and national chain retailers.

The mall has been a sore spot on Route 1 in Prince George's County for years, steadily losing traffic and tenants. Sixteen percent of store space is empty, mall owners said, with Macy's, Burlington Coat Factory and International Furniture Liquidators as anchors.

Last year, real estate investment firms Somera Capital Management of Los Angeles and AEW Capital Management of Boston bought the center for $31 million from Blackstone Group of New York. The mall had encountered financial troubles and was placed in a court-appointed receivership the year before.

Read the full article here.

Markland Mall Sears

Kokomo, Indiana - 1993

Outside the Sears store at Markland Mall in 1993. Thanks to, Jay, for another peachy photo submission! Here's Markland Mall's current pitch from their website:

"At Markland Mall, you'll find fabulous fashion, exceptional eateries, delightful diversions and superb shops that entice you to create a new look! Come to Markland Mall where you'll be sure to find what you need with stores like Sears and Target and more than 40 specialty stores, including Aeropostale, American Eagle, Bath & Body Works, Books-A-Million, Finish Line, Old Navy, Maurices, Pac Sun and Victoria's Secret. A surreal indoor miniature golf course under black lights adds to the attractions."

OK, now that "surreal" indoor black light golf course sounds cool! Anyone here tried it? More shopping malls need those now that they mention it. :)

Mall history: 1968 - present
Current website: here
Current aerial view
Previous entries: none

Winrock Shopping Center

Albuquerque, New Mexico - circa 1960s

Winrock Shopping Center interior in the sixties--before falling on hard retail times in more recent years. This classic, but now-defunct shopping mall's ultimate fate seems to be in limbo these days according to a December 2, 2006 user submitted entry on DeadMalls.com:

"About two years ago stores started closing up in Winrock. It seems the owners had decided to redevelop it as an open sky, town center style mall so they were not allowing tenants to renew their leases. One by one all the stores closed (except for Dillard's who owned their space).

Unfortunately, during this time another developer created a third open air mall across the street. Now the Winrock owners have decided not to redevelop their mall. Winrock now sits empty, rotting in the sun."

Mall history: 1961 - present
Architect: Victor Gruen
Current website: n/a
Current aerial view
Resource articles: 1, 2. 3. 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
Previous entries: 1, 2, 3

Mall Sign: Midway Mall

Sand Island, Midway Atoll, Hawaii

Midway Mall sign at Sand Island, on Midway Atoll (also known as Midway Island), Hawaii, snapped in 1999 by Forest & Kim Starr. Because even the smallest and most humble of places must have a mall--though this one's more for the birds these days.

"Midway Mall" isn't really an actual shopping mall in reality, but the sign says that (and it is called that), and since I like the shot, I thought it'd be fun to post here in a quasi "sort of related" kind of way. Midway Mall is an area in the center of the island that once catered to Navy families, but is now largely abandoned. It has a tiny general store, some offices, a bowling alley, and a theater (where Bob Hope once appeared).

Give it a couple years. Some overzealous developer will find a way to turn it into an open-air Lifestyle Town Center. Or a Wal-Mart, take your pick.

See more mall signs here!

MOA Galleria - Sixties Retro Store Logos

House Beautiful - October 1969

From the October 1969 issue of House Beautiful magazine comes this cool retro ad heralding House Beautiful's alliance with 17 of "America's Great Stores", to help with all your various decorating and decor needs. There's some nifty vintage store names and logos here, from The Bon Marche, B Altman Co., and Jordan Marsh, to Gimbels, Rich's, and Bullock's. Thanks, Jay, for another great submission!

See more Galleria here!

Willowbrook Mall Interior 1973

Wayne, New Jersey - 1973

Groovy interior shot of lush (and very Avocado Green-ish) Willowbrook Mall in 1973. Many thanks to, Charles Freericks, for the head's-up on this vintage postcard! Some Wiki notes:

"The opening of Willowbrook Mall came at a time when many shoppers were avoiding trips to downtown areas to shop over safety concerns. Early radio spots for the mall called it 'the new downtown', and it featured anchor stores that were also located in nearby downtown Newark, or within the city limits itself. (Bamberger's, Ohrbachs, and Sears). The large branch of Bamberger's opened in the fall of 1967 (before the rest of the mall), and with Newark just having dealt with race rioting in the summer of 1967, many shoppers defected to the Willowbrook location."

Mall history: 1969 - present
Current website: here
Info from Wikipedia
Current aerial view
Previous entries: 1, 2, 3, 4

The Daily Mall Reader: Winrock Center Redevelopment

A daily dose of mall-related reading...

"Winrock's full-circle face lift"
Tired of being called "Windy-Rock," the open-air shopping center got walled-off and air-conditioned in 1975, one of many makeovers since it opened in 1961. But now those walls are coming down.

Albuquerque Tribune Online - August 19, 2002

(Excerpt) Winrock Center has gone through a multitude of phases and changes in its 41 years. Its next big transformation is set to begin soon, with a wrecking ball.

Winrock's owners plan to turn the state's third-largest mall into an open-air, urban-feeling shopping and office complex.

"This is a new trend that, based on consumer demand, we're moving toward," said Shelton Weeks, general manager of the 900,000-square-foot Albuquerque shopping center. "We're moving toward what we would call a new urbanism or what we call a live-work-play environment."

The new "The Avenue-Winrock" will be an open-air center reminiscent of a downtown shopping district. It will have two "avenues" splitting it in three quadrants. At their axis will be a remodeled Dillard's department store.

Read the full article here.