Photo Record
Images
Metadata
Title |
Bath Shop Sales Area |
Object Name |
Print, Photographic |
Collection |
S.H. Kress & Company |
Catalog Number |
1989.13.1.224a |
Description |
Color photographic print of store interior taken at ground level. Large suspended sign announces "Bath Shop" in very 1970s fonts. Merchandise is displayed on open pipe rack-like shelves. Decorative cushions and throw rugs are visible in foreground. Hand written notation on back of print bears legend "Enterprise, Ala.\3/72". |
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 |
Enterprise, Alabama |
Additional Notes |
Genesco Store Number: 12 Address: Rucker Road Facade Material: Unknown Style: Unknown Primary Building Architect: M.G. Humphreys Contractors: |
Date |
3/1972 |
Photographer |
Unknown |
Orig/Copy |
Original Print |
Medium |
Photographic paper |
Object Category |
8: Communication Artifact |
Donor |
Genesco Inc. |
Notes on Related Objects |
Related Units: 12 photographs, 47 plans Book Description: "In 1972 Kress opened a discount variety store in the new Morgan Square Shopping Center, designed by architect M.G. Humphreys of Chattanooga, Tennessee. As was typical of many Kress stores of this period, much of the sales area was devoted to clothing, toys, household goods and furnishings, and fabric." |
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 |
Color photograph of interior bath shop sales area, taken in March 1972 (pho |
Search Terms |
bath shop sales area interior sign merchandise pipe rack shelf display decorative cushion throw rug M.G. Humphreys shopping mall Morgan Square Rucker Road Enterprise Alabama Store 12 S.H. Kress & Co discount variety sales area clothing toys household furnishings fabric photograph |