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Space Age Design

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Shopping

  
The 1950s and early 1960s were a big period of change for shoppers.  Previously, shoppers would go downtown and often spend the day at the various stores.  That changed after the war as people moved to the suburbs and the stores followed.  The new automobile culture meant stores did not need to be downtown anymore. 

One of the most exciting changes was the emergence of the enclosed shopping mall.  While there were a few malls prior to the war, construction started in the 1950s and took off in the 1960s.  Mall construction was facilitated by new depreciation tax laws and the emergence of Real Estate Investment Trusts which allowed corporate retail landlords to avoid paying taxes.  The first suburban shopping mall was Bellevue Square in Washington State built in 1946.  However, fully enclosed malls did not get built until the mid-1950s.  These malls were wonderlands of interior design to shoppers of that era, totally new, and very futuristic in appearance.  They often had water fountains, vegetation, marble walls, seating areas and much more not seen before.  They were cleaner, newer and had easier parking than the downtown stores they replaced.  Malls also allowed shoppers to see more stores in a shorter period of time.

Another shopping area that emerged was the shopping center.  These were outdoor connected shopping areas often anchored by a supermarket or other big box store.  The supermarket itself was a new innovation that was a draw for smaller stores that wanted to feed off it.
  

The Cherry Hill Mall (Cherry Hill, NJ) opened in 1961 and is still going strong, though Bamberger's is no more.  Indoor fountains and vegetation were quite a novelty.  Designed by shopping mall design pioneer Victor Gruen.  His office was the architect for over 50 shopping malls in the U.S.
  
Department stores had been around since the 1800s but were almost exclusively downtown.  In the 1950s and 1960s many moved to the suburbs, in malls or shopping centers and often standing alone. 

Many of the new shopping centers and malls had large space age signs similar to the roadside motels and restaurants. 

Unfortunately, the emergence of shopping malls and shopping centers meant the loss of thousands of downtown stores.  Many of these stores banded together to fight the new shopping areas, but in the end, they were only successful at delaying the inevitable.  The result was boarded up buildings and urban decay which started in the 1960s and hit full force in the 1970s. 

Today the malls and shopping centers themselves are often generic, similar in design and feel to each other.  They have the same stores wherever you are in the U.S.  The age of internet shopping has impacted shopping malls in particular and foot traffic is starting to decline.  Many mall stores are closing resulting in a growing number of malls themselves closing.  The better malls are expected to survive as the convenience of so many stores together with easy parking will not be easily beat for quite some time.
  

Brodie Industrial Trucks store in Jamestown, NY.  A prime example of a new futuristic face on an old piece of real estate.

The Imperial Beauty Salon was at 119 N. Jefferson Ave. in Saginaw, MI.  These typical hair dryers of the age were futuristic, and the chairs are of interest too.  Closed.

Klepinger's West Valley Dodge at 16213 San Jose Ave., in Los Gatos, CA.  This is my favorite Space Age sign, simple but soaring.  Closed.

Madeira Beach Shopping Center at 674 150th St., Madeira Beach, FL. Still open.

Another early mall, the Edgewater Plaza Shopping City is halfway between Biloxi and Gulfport, MS off Highwy 90.  Built in 1963 and still open.

Alpena Shopping Center, in Alpena, MI.  Exact location not given, but near the water.  Unusual shapes in the sign along with a starburst.

Riverside Plaza in Riverside, CA on Riverside Plaza Dr.  One of the first malls, it was completed in 1957.  Initial tenants included Woolworth, J. C. Penney, Lerner Shops, Rexall Drug, Mode O' Day Frock Shop, Security Bank, Foreman & Clark, Thom McAn Shoes, Riverside Plaza Stationers, Gallenkamp Shoes, Baker's Shoes, and Sav-On Drug.  Still operating.
For a good source of historical information on malls go to The Mall Hall of Fame Blogspot  http://mall-hall-of-fame.blogspot.com/​​

The Mall at N. Telegraph & Elizabeth Lake Roads in Pontiac, MI.  Michigan's first enclosed mall.  Opened in 1962.  Later named Summit Place Mall.  Hurt by the construction of another mall nearby in 1998.  The last store, a Sears, closed in 2014.

Westland Center (nka Westland Shopping Center) at Warren & Wayne Roads, Wayne, MI.  Opened in 1965, still operating.

Delray Shopping Center at 1350 N Federal Highway in Delray Beach.  The Food Fair store is now an Advanced Auto Parts store.  It still retains its arch.

Plachter Cadillac Oldsmobile at Torresdale & Frankford Ave. in Philadelphia.  Signs introducing the 1959 Cadillac, the most over the top tail fin car ever made.  Rocket for the Rocket 88 Olds. Closed.

Chris-Town Shopping Center, the first mall in Phoenix, AZ at 1703 West Bethany Home Road.  Built in 1961.  Now called Christown Spectrum Mall.

Pickney General Store in Pinckney, MI, circa mid 1960s.  Another example of an old building dressed up.  The second image is of this building in 1959 without the new front and sign and it looked tired. Second image courtesy of Ann Arbor District Library.  Now closed.

Muellers Flowers at 3555 W Douglas Ave, in Wichita.  Large at 6,500 sf for a florist store.  Still operating.

Hollywood Cleaners at 13951 Triskett Road in Cleveland, OH.  Included a 5000 garment cold storage vault.  Demolished, now a Circle K convenience store.

Everybody's Drugs (Rexall) at Main & Mcdonald in Mesa, AZ.  Now an antique store.

Little America Travel Center in Little America, WY, off I-90.  Advertised as the "World's Largest Service Station.  Had 55 pumps, a 300 seat coffee house and dining room, a 150 room motel, & cocktail lounge.  Still operating.  Love the lights.

Morrow's Nut House in Lloyd's Center (shown to the right).  Yes there is a nut house and it is in Portland.  Operating since 1866, but now in a different location.

Lloyd Center outdoor mall at 2201 Lloyd Center, in Portland, OR.  Built in 1960.  Still operating.