Photo Record
Images
Metadata
Title |
Arial view of East Orange NJ |
Object Name |
Print, Photographic |
Collection |
S.H. Kress & Company |
Catalog Number |
1989.13.1.4072 |
Description |
Print, photographic; B&W; exterior photo taken from an aircraft; picture shows a view looking down at an oblique at a city; a cluster of high rise buildings show in forground and another further back; photographic inscription in lower left "FAIRCHILD AERIAL SURVEYS INC. NYC" elaborate stamp 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 |
East Orange, New Jersey |
Additional Notes |
Genesco Store Number: 251 Address: 580 Central Avenue Facade Material: Terra cotta Style: Art Deco Primary Building Architect: Edward F. Sibbert Contractors: |
Date |
3/2/1932 |
Photographer |
Fairchild Aerial Surveys |
Studio |
Fairchild Aerial Surveys |
Orig/Copy |
Original |
Medium |
Photographic paper |
Object Category |
8: Communication Artifact |
Donor |
Genesco Inc. |
Notes on Related Objects |
Related Units: 18 photographs, 130 plans Book Description: "Edward F. Sibbert was the architect of this 1933 two-story Art Deco building, the first Kress store in New Jersey and one of the opulent Class A stores. The pale and richly ornamented terracotta-clad façade consists of nine bays, with the appearance of towers created by each corner section projecting forward and above the rest of the building. The parapet surface is diamond patterned. Pilasters of clustered shafts flank the windows, which have decorative spandrels, and the abstracted foliate capitals atop the pilasters reach out to touch one another, forming a band of ornament. The marquee, in contrast, was dark and streamlined. The main sales area had columns and pilasters with acanthus leaf capitals, decorative grills, and zigzag plaster moldings. The store closed in 1980, and the building now houses a Wonder Store, part of a local variety store chain." |
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 an arial view of East Orange NJ |
Search Terms |
Edward F. Sibbert two-story Art Deco Class A opulent pale ornamented terracotta terra cotta decorative spandrel foliate capital pilaster ornament marquee dark streamlined column acanthus leaf grills zigzag plaster molding Wonder Store variety store Store 251 East Orange New Jersey 580 Central Avenue S.H. Kress & Co photograph |