Archive Record
Images
Metadata
Title |
Sepia Duplicate of Salesroom Floor Outlets St. Emanuel Street Wing Plan |
Object Name |
Drawing |
Collection |
S.H. Kress & Company Collection |
Description |
Sepia duplicate copy of black ink drawing of salesroom floor outlets St. Emanuel Street wing plan. |
Context |
The S.H. Kress & Company, founded by Samuel H. Kress, opened over 300 5-10-25 cent stores in thirty states from New Jersey to Florida and across to California, Oregon, Washington, and Hawaii. The first Kress store opened in Memphis, Tennessee in 1896. Many of the early Kress stores started out in rented spaces. By 1909, the Company began to open its stores in new structures created by S.H. Kress & Company architects like Edward F. Sibbert and Seymour Burrell, or built for it by contractors and held under lease. The Kress stores particularly thrived during the Great Depression, as they sold inexpensive products in luxurious spaces. Kress stores ranged in architectural styles, from Neoclassical to Art Deco to Modern and International. Towards the end of the S.H. Kress & Company life, shopping centers and malls overtook free-standing commercial buildings as the preferred retail locations, and new Kress stores were placed in large multistore structure. In 1964, the S.H. Kress & Company was purchased by Genesco, Incorporated, and the company was liquidated in 1980 and 1981. Some of the buildings have been demolished, while others have been renovated and adapted. The documents, plans, photographs, and objects that were gifted to the National Building Museum by numerous donors provide a rich array of information relevant to business, social, architectural, land use, race relations, and commercial history in the United States. |
Catalog Number |
1990.4.129b |
Credit Line |
Gift of Mobile Historic Development Commission |
Area / Region |
Mobile, Alabama |
Building Information |
Building Style: 2 Neoclassical façades, 1 Art Deco façade, 1 Modern façade Façade Material: Brick, terra cotta, block glass Genesco Store Number: 19 Address: 115 Dauphin Street Drawing Number: None |
Creator |
S.H. Kress & Company |
Other Creators |
Drawn by B.G.L. |
Year |
1942 |
Donor |
Mobile Historic Development Commission |
Medium |
Sepia Copy |
Scale |
None |
Dimension |
20 3/4" x 12 5/8" |
Lexicon category |
8: Communication Artifact |
Related Publications |
Wilkerson, Susan, and Hank Griffith. A Guide to the Building Records of S.H. Kress & Co. 5-10-25 Cent Stores at the National Building Museum. Edited by Joyce Eliiot. Washington, DC: National Building Museum Publication Office, 1993. |
Search Terms |
1942 sepia copy duplicate electrical salesroom floor outlets plan diagram soda lunch panel wing brick terra cotta block glass neoclassical art deco modern Store 19 St. Emanuel Street Royal Street 115 Dauphin Street Mobile Alabama S.H. Kress & Co attached downtown Mercantile area district terracotta Classic Revival decorative elements addition entrance cruciform modernization vacant marketplace drawing |
Address |
Mobile, Alabama |