Photo Record
Images
Metadata
Title |
Exterior view of Kress construction site |
Object Name |
Print, Photographic |
Collection |
S.H. Kress & Company |
Catalog Number |
1989.13.1.4859 |
Description |
Print, photographic; B&W; exterior photo taken at ground level; the picture shows a view looking across a construction site; the camera looks straight down into a large deep rectangular excavation; workmen are building forms for footings at bottom of pit; photographic inscription in lower right corner "Salem, Oregon - S. H. Kress & Co.\Contractor - L. H. Hoffman\Date (inked) 4/13/49"; stamp on back "RECEIVED\MAY 2 49"; numerous sign-off intials |
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 |
Salem, Oregon |
Additional Notes |
Genesco Store Number: 937 Address: 430 Capitol Street, Northeast Facade Material: Cast-concrete Style: Unknown Primary Building Architect: Unknown Contractors: |
Date |
4/13/1949 |
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: "In 1949 Kress built an unusual two-story concrete building in Salem's Capitol Shopping Center. The first story was largely glass, with large show-windows and a pair of double entrances. Above, the structure was almost all concrete, interrupted only by the horizontal red sign and by second-story strip windows. The cast-concrete facade had deep horizontal grooves across the central section, low-relief squares at the right, and incised interlocking triangles on the left. The store closed in 1981, and the small shopping center was demolished after a fire." |
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 construction site |
Search Terms |
unusual two-story concrete Capitol Shopping Center glass concrete sign cast groove low-relief square triangle incise interlocking demolish fire Store 937 Salem Oregon 430 Capitol Street northeast S.H. Kress & Co photograph |