Photo Record
Images
Metadata
Title |
Interior view of Kress fabric section |
Object Name |
Print, Photographic |
Collection |
S.H. Kress & Company |
Catalog Number |
1989.13.1.3387 |
Description |
Print, photographic; color; interior snapshot taken at floor level; picture shows a view looking at the sales floor in the fabric store; multiple swaths of bright fabrics are on display; inked notation on back (see Image 2) |
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 |
Wahiawa, Hawaii |
Additional Notes |
Genesco Store Number: 974 Address: 823 California Avenue Facade Material: Unknown Style: Unknown Primary Building Architect: Unknown Contractors: |
Date |
c. 1960s |
Photographer |
Unknown |
Orig/Copy |
Original |
Medium |
Photographic paper |
Object Category |
8: Communication Artifact |
Donor |
Genesco Inc. |
Notes on Related Objects |
Related Units: 12 photographs Book Description: "Kress opened a variety store in Oahu's Wahiawa Shopping Center in 1967, taking space that a Ben Franklin store had occupied. Two years later a Kress fabric store was added. The last Kress store operated by Genesco, it closed on March 24, 1981." |
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 |
Oahu Wahiawa Shopping Center Ben Franklin variety store fabric store Genesco Store 974 Wahiawa Hawaii 823 California Avenue S.H. Kress & Co photograph |