Sky City: Southern and Mid-Atlantic Retail History

Nestled in the southeastern corner of Kansas is tiny Meadowbrook Mall.  As the state's oldest operating mall, it still looks that way as well.  While the outside was updated within the past 15...

http://skycity2.blogspot.com/2019/03/meadowbrook-mall-pittsburg-ks.html

The Deep South, unlike other parts of the country, never was featured often in industry retail photography during the golden age of retail. It is difficult to find quality photos of old stores an...

http://skycity2.blogspot.com/2018/01/florence-mall-florence-sc.html

Something that has been very curious to me is the discovery of a defunct discount chain that apparently everyone forgot about: Town & Country.  In 1961, they were purchased by Lane Bryant, which...

http://skycity2.blogspot.com/2018/01/town-country-discount-store.html

Early malls did not always start as fully enclosed malls.  In some cases they started as a strip or open-air mall that was later expanded into a full mall when enough funds or the demand was the...

http://skycity2.blogspot.com/2017/12/parkwood-mallwilson-mall-wilson-nc.html

Tarboro is one of those towns that never should have had a mall.  Far too small to support one, it suggests that life in Eastern North Carolina was once very different when the mall was built. �...

http://skycity2.blogspot.com/2017/12/parkhill-mallriverside-plaza-tarboro-nc.html

The year before Kinston gained its first enclosed mall, Kinston was already enjoying the fruits of what was then a thriving local economy gaining its first modern shopping center with the constru...

http://skycity2.blogspot.com/2017/12/kinston-plaza-kinston-nc.html

Vernon Park Mall deserves a mention as the mall is today sliding into history as yet another mid-century mall unable to survive the post-2008 American reality.  The history of Vernon Park Mall i...

http://skycity2.blogspot.com/2017/12/vernon-park-mall-kinston-nc.html

Town Mall of Westminster is a cozy mall nestled on a hillside on the north side of the the city of Westminster.  Situated at the southeast corner of the intersection of Routes 27 & 97, the mall ...

http://skycity2.blogspot.com/2017/12/town-mallcranberry-mall-westminster-md.html

Near the junction of I-64 and I-81 is Staunton's lone shopping mall, a sprawling mall with three department store anchors and few similar options in any direction, so why is this mall not doing w...

http://skycity2.blogspot.com/2017/12/staunton-mall-staunton-va.html

One of the earliest and most overlooked enclosed malls in the Philadelphia market is Plymouth Meeting Mall, a spacious two-level mall opened by the Rouse Company in 1966 that, like many other mal...

http://skycity2.blogspot.com/2017/12/plymouth-meeting-mall-plymouth-meeting.html

Exton Square Mall is one of very few malls of its design in the country.  Located in the Exton community of West Whiteland Township, this signature Rouse Company mall was built in 1973 with a de...

http://skycity2.blogspot.com/2017/12/exton-square-mall-extonwest-whiteland.html

The sixth mall in the Philadelphia metro area was a one-story mall in Bensalem Township, a fairly typical suburban mall with a few special touches that make it stand out above the rest.  Named N...

http://skycity2.blogspot.com/2017/12/neshaminy-mall-bensalem-township.html

Non-locals and retail enthusiasts seem to have ignored a particular mall in the Philadelphia metro area.  After seeing this mall, we have to wonder why.  Opening in 1965, Concord Mall was origi...

http://skycity2.blogspot.com/2017/12/concord-mall-wilmington-de.html

A few years ago, I had a chance to tour for the first time one of the oldest malls in North Carolina, a simple dumbbell shaped mall that has now reached its end.  Plans to demolish the mall this...

http://skycity2.blogspot.com/2017/11/southgate-mall-elizabeth-city-nc.html

Filed under the most common name for malls is what was for many years a dead mall found between Uniontown and Connellsville, PA that refuses to let go.  In fact, it has found some rather unique ...

http://skycity2.blogspot.com/2017/07/laurel-mall-connellsville-dunbar.html

What if a mall died and nobody cared?  This is how it feels when discussing the rather sad Warren Mall.  Once a proud three-anchor mall featuring Bon-Ton, Kmart and JCPenney, today the mall is ...

http://skycity2.blogspot.com/2017/07/warren-mall-warren-pa.html

A trend in retail that fortunately has proven to be mostly uncommon is the "downtown mall".  An ill-conceived idea by desperate urban planners, the goal was to try to keep retailers from fleeing...

http://skycity2.blogspot.com/2017/07/downtown-mall-meadville-pa.html

Finding old malls that retained their original design from the 60's and 70's is today very rare.  Usually malls like this are small, one-story malls found in cities too small to support them in ...

http://skycity2.blogspot.com/2017/07/cascade-galleriatowne-mall-new-castle-pa.html

The rarest find in terms of retail is the existence of the mythical enclosed strip.  One of the oddest mall types, this design feature seems to exist solely in regions known for harsh winters pr...

http://skycity2.blogspot.com/2017/07/clearfield-mall-clearfield-lawrence.html

The journey to Clarion Mall turned out to be a rather hair-raising experience.  Out of nowhere, severe storms were exploding across the landscape along the Allegheny Front, and the closer we got...

http://skycity2.blogspot.com/2017/06/clarion-mall-clarion-monroe-township-pa.html

Malls like Indiana Mall are why I have not yet given up on retail blogging.  A hidden gem located just south of the downtown in a very quaint borough in the Allegheny Mountains, this mall is one...

http://skycity2.blogspot.com/2017/06/indiana-mall-indiana-white-township-pa.html

Some malls stand out as major landmarks that are impossible to miss.  Cressona Mall is not one of those.  In fact, if you pass it driving along PA 61 you would easily mistake it for a strip mal...

http://skycity2.blogspot.com/2017/03/cressona-mall-pottsville-pa.html

Westgate Mall is one of those malls easy to miss.  From the outside it does not even look like a mall.  From aerials, it is easy to mistake it for a large strip center.  This probably explains...

http://skycity2.blogspot.com/2017/03/westgate-mall-bethlehem-pa.html

The Philadelphia market has to be the most overmalled market in the entire country.  The preponderance of the area's endless suburbs stretching from Wilmington to New York City, its position in ...

http://skycity2.blogspot.com/2017/03/granite-run-mall-media-middletown.html

NOTE: MACY'S HAS ONLY CLOSED 68 OUT OF 100 STORES.  MANY STORES ON THIS LIST MAY YET CLOSE IN THE FUTURE. Macy's red star has been falling in much of the country as the department store indust...

http://skycity2.blogspot.com/2016/08/macys-has-lost-its-magic-speculation-on.html