Photo Record
Images
Metadata
Title |
Exterior view of Kress construction site |
Object Name |
Print, Photographic |
Collection |
S.H. Kress & Company |
Catalog Number |
1989.13.1.3953 |
Description |
Print, photographic; B&W;exterior photo taken at street level; picture shows a view looking down diagonally into a construction excavation; heavy wooden vertical beams have been attached to the masonry buildings that abuts the pit; construction fence and shed covers sidewalk at right; masonry from earlier structure shows along street side of pit; photographic inscriptions in lower left "HAMMOND\PHOTO\A-2335-1" at lower right "S. H. KRESS & Co. BLDG.)\MERIDIAN MISS . Oct. 25 1933\E.F. SIBBERT ARCHITECT\G.A. MILLER BUILDER, INC.\TAMPA, FLA."; stamps on back "S.H.K.A CO. ARCH.DIV\CHECK NO.\11-8-33-1" and "HAMMOND STUDIOS\MERIDIAN, MISS." |
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. |
Credit Line |
Courtesy of National Building Museum, gift of Genesco, Inc. |
Place |
Meridian, Mississippi |
Additional Notes |
Genesco Store Number: 181 Address: 2215 Fifth Street Facade Material: Pale brick, terra cotta Style: Art Deco Primary Building Architect: Edward F. Sibbert Contractors: |
Date |
10/25/1933 |
Photographer |
Hammond Studios |
Studio |
Hammond Studios |
Orig/Copy |
Original |
Medium |
Photographic paper |
Object Category |
8: Communication Artifact |
Donor |
Genesco Inc. |
Notes on Related Objects |
Related Units: 104 photographs, 0.10 inch of documents Book Description: "Built in 1934, this three-story Art Deco building has facades on Fifth and Sixth streets. Designed by Edward F. Sibbert, it is typical of his work in the early 1930s. The facade is pale brick and terracotta with darker polychrome terracotta spandrels between second- and third-story windows and abstract ornament above the third story and on the parapet coping. Elaborate sales area decor includes stylized acanthus leaf sapitals on columns and pilasters, decorative grills, travertine wainscoting, and custom-made light fixtures. In 1957 a two-story addition was built with an entrance placed diagonally, facing the corner on Sixth Street. The addition, although brick and terracotta like the existing buildings, is largely unornamented. The store closed in 1974, and the building is vacant. The city hopes to renovate it." |
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. |
Caption |
Black and white photograph of Kress consturction site during excavation |
Search Terms |
three-story Art Deco Sixth Street Edward F. Sibbert pale brick terracotta terra cotta darker polychrome spandrel abstract ornament parapet coping stylized acanthus leaf capital column pilaster decorative grills travertine wainscoting custom-made two-story addition diagonal unornamented Store 181 Meridian Mississippi 2214 Fifth Street S.H. Kress & Co photograph |