Wishing You a Merry Christmas!

Shown above is an early 1970’s edition of one of the largest indoor Christmas trees in the world, and certainly the most famous one of any kind in the Chicago area – the “Great Tree” inside the Walnut Room restaurant at the legendary State Street home of Marshall Field & Company.The Walnut Room (named for its beautiful walnut paneling) and the tree tradition date all the way back to 1907, when

Christmas on Fifth Avenue

“…by night it becomes festive, chic, expensive, for in this season Fifth Avenue is the quintessence of Christmas for adults…it is a scintillating sight, alive with bright movement. And in its own way, it is full of Christmas peace, the peace which makes such elegance possible…The shops of Fifth Avenue are mostly elegant shops offering elegant Christmas gifts for or from elegant people. But a

It's a Wonderful Life at Penney's

Christmas in downtown Lancaster, Pennsylvania, sometime in the late 40’s or early 50’s. The charming Santa decoration says both “Merry Christmas” and “Season’s Greetings”, so everyone is covered. Colorful garland hangs across the storefronts on either side. The building itself easily dates to the earliest years of the 1900’s if not before, and undoubtedly housed other businesses prior to J.C.

Christmas "On The Square" at S. Klein!

So to speak, that is. Regardless of location, S. Klein stores were always “on the square”, even if they were in a mall, a shopping center, or the middle of a field. It was an integral part of the name, dating back to the opening of their famous flagship store on New York City’s Union Square. An engineering square (barely visible below the “L” in the sign) served as a company logo of sorts for

Christmas at Randhurst, Early 1960's

Randhurst. In its early years it was an appealing sight, regardless of the time of year. At Christmastime that appeal was magnified in many ways. A glittering new shopping center it was, the world’s largest…where we lucky Northwest Suburbanites got fresh new gift ideas from sparkling new stores…where we found gifts galore from token to treasure…all under one roof, in 72-degree comfort.

When