I’ll let you come up with your own adjective to describe this gasp-worthy (ok, that’s mine) group of four Class A Sears stores, which opened between August and October, 1964 and are pictured here shortly after opening. Showing a wide spectrum of architecture and (almost) every Sears logo combination, the individual charm of each of these stores speaks for itself.
The first store pictured is the now torn down Columbus, Ohio Northland Mall store. Columbus had an Eastland, Westland and Southland Mall as well, which still exist in various states. On my earlier post about the Oakbrook, Illinois store, Steven Swain pointed out the similarity in concept to that store albeit with a more substantial steel structure supporting the awning. The store, shown here in a 2003 photo, was razed along with the rest of the mall in 2004.
The second store is the Hicksville, Long Island, New York store, which held the distinction for a great many years as Sears’ top-grossing store. This store was built adjacent to Mid-Island Plaza (now called Broadway Mall) and is still going strong. Check out the sweet two-tone Rambler wagon in the foreground of the parking lot. Here is a page of not-too-shabby photos of a Cadillac collectors’ show that show the store as it currently appears for a backdrop.
The third store is still humming away in Albuquerque, New Mexico in a shopping center that was originally launched by Homart, the development division of Sears. Original plans called for a 124,000 square foot store, but Austin T. Cushman, Sears' chairman at the time, professed confidence in Albuquerque's future and personally ordered the store's size hiked up to over 170,000 square feet. Provisionally known as “Homart Shopping Center”, it opened as the Coronado Shopping Center, and is now more fittingly referred to as Coronado Mall, reflecting the large enclosed portion that was added some years later.
The last store, from Decatur, Georgia’s Columbia Mall, which was later renamed Avondale Mall. The store closed in 1984 and finally met the wrecking ball last year. Note the presence of a “key-osk” (my apologies.) out front, a not uncommon feature of Sears and other chains (note the fourth photo here) during that time. I mean seriously, why would someone want to go inside a store to have a duplicate key made- the idea itself is just tacky, don’t you think? Those booths were definitely the way to go. Here is a nice photo page from a great site with extensive photos of the store (and its destruction) and history of the mall over the years, and there is also a video (please see disclaimer below) showing the store’s final moments.
*****************NOTICE*****************
The attached video link portrays the destruction of a classic retail property. More sensitive retail fans will want to exercise caution in deciding whether or not to view said video. Ok, you’ve been warned.
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