Photo Record
Images
Metadata
Title |
Exterior view of Kress back alley |
Object Name |
Print, Photographic |
Collection |
S.H. Kress & Company |
Catalog Number |
1989.13.1.4829 |
Description |
Print, photographic; B&W; exterior snapshot taken at ground level; the picture shows a view looking at an oblique at the back of the store along the alley; freight door is near ground level at left flanked by a metal door; barred windows are seen higher up wall towards right; ordinary sash windows on second floor; extremely faint stamp on back "RECEIVED\IN ARCH. DIV.\JUL 12 1940", inked notation "Shawnee, Okla\12/3/40\Showing new stucco side of\Kress Bldg." |
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 |
Shawnee, Oklahoma |
Additional Notes |
Genesco Store Number: 547 Address: 109 East Main Street Facade Material: 1907 - Brick, cut-stone; 1965 - porcelain enamel Style: Unknown Primary Building Architect: Potentially Seymour Burrell Contractors: |
Date |
12/3/1940 |
Photographer |
Unknown |
Orig/Copy |
Original |
Medium |
Photographic paper |
Object Category |
8: Communication Artifact |
Donor |
Genesco Inc. |
Notes on Related Objects |
Related Units: 45 photographs Book Description: "A Shawnee store opened in 1907 in a two-story brick building on a streetcar line. The building is similar to the Trenton, Missouri, and Anderson, South Carolina, stores, both designed by Seymour Burrell, with an identical parapet and brick- and cut-stone pilasters. The rounded window tops are unusual. New show-windows, entrances, and vestibules were installed during 1940 renovations. The store was renovated again in 1965, when the basement was converted to sales space and part of the facade was covered with porcelain enamel panels. The location closed in 1980." |
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 back alley with loading dock visible. |
Search Terms |
two-story brick streetcar line Seymour Burrell parapet brick cut-stone pilaster renovation porcelain enamel panel Store 547 Shawnee Oklahoma 109 East Main Street S.H. Kress & Co photograph |