The Retail Cemetery

I recently wrote about some Chicago landmarks that were going by the wayside. This got to me thinking about stores that are no longer around. Once I got to thinking about it, I realized that a whole lot of retail stores that were chains have gone away. Here is just a brief list of the stores that I can remember off of the top of my head that are gone. I am sure I missed a lot of them so please feel free to add your own list.

Service Merchandise – There used to be a lot of these around the Chicago area. The one I used to hit was on 87^th and Cicero. The store had a pretty decent jewelry section, which was very affordable. As a matter of fact I once bought a nice necklace there for a girl I was dating. The one negative was that you had to pay for your merchandise first and then wait in another line to have to pick it up. I guess it saved on a lot of theft but it made shopping there a pain in the ass, which may be one reason why they went away.

Zayre – Ah Zayre, with their orange smocks. Of course this is the store responsible for me being here as it is where my parents met. Again they had a pretty big presence at one time and I usually shopped at the one on 87^th and Harlem. It was somewhat of a discount retailer that went through many changes over the years. However, they just could never compete and eventually sometime in the early 90’s they went away forever. My most memorable trip there was during the Haunted House I used to work at and a bunch of us who were working it roaming the aisles in full makeup and wardrobe. We got some real interesting looks to say the least.

Venture – Or as I used to call it the zebra store, because of it’s black and white stripes on the building. Venture was another discount retailer with cheap merchandise. I used to frequent the store on 78^th and Harlem. Venture carved a nice little niche for itself for a little while. They went away in the late 90’s, succumbing to the Wal-Mart bulldozer. I briefly dated a girl who worked there and I found this cool cd holder there that I had for a number of years.

Goldblatt’s – I guess back in the day it was a really nice store, but all I remember of it was that it was a dump. Crappy merchandise and garage sale shoppers floating around the aisles. The 79^th and Cicero store was the one I would frequent the most. My last trip there right before they finally closed I bought some cheap towels and some bungee cords that I still have in my trunk.

Woolworth’s – The five and dime store as my Grandmother used to call it. My Uncle John started out his retail career for this legendary chain. Woolworth’s was that hodge-podge store where you could buy some yarn and a pet bird while eating at their greasy grill. There were two main Woolworth’s that I frequented as a youth. The one on 87^th and State Road and the one at Ford City. My Mom used to work at the Karol’s Red Hanger Shop and it was right in front of the Woolworth grill. There I consumed many a corn dog and cherry slurpee. Woolworth’s went away about ten years ago, but whenever I eat at a greasy spoon I am reminded of the store.

Karol’s Red Hanger Shop – As I said, this was a place that my Mom worked at for a couple of years. It was a men’s store that sold suits and dress clothes. They had locations throughout the Chicagoland area and of course their signature was that red hanger on all of their merchandise. Ford City had one, as did Orland and Chicago Ridge. It’s been about fifteen years since I’ve seen one.

Montgomery Ward’s – Monkey Ward’s as we used to call it, was once a huge retailer. Ward’s biggest problem was that they never knew what they wanted to be. I used to hit the Ford City location and then when it opened the Chicago Ridge store. There I bought a love seat for $150 bucks that until very recently I still had. Ward’s was a Chicago company so I was sad to see it go, but they could never compete with the Sears, Best Buy’s and Wal Mart’s of the world.

Wiebolt’s – Another long gone department store that was located at Ford city. Wiebolt’s was like a J.C. Penny or Sears type of store. They also had a grill that I would frequent as a youth. The store itself has been gone a long time and I don’t think I’ve seen one in twenty years, but for awhile they had a niche among consumers.

Polk Brothers – Polk’s was an electronics store that sold refrigerators, televisions and washers and dryers. They had a big store on 80^th and Cicero back in the day. I remember my Grandparent’s buying a black and white TV from there a long, long time ago. They were around until the late 80’s when they could no longer compete with the prices that the large chain’s offered.

Rose Record’s – At one time Chicago used to be lined with Rose Record’s. Rose was a place that I would frequent from time to time to get my latest 45's. There was one at Ford City and then when I got to working downtown I used to hit the one on Franklin and Washington. About ten years ago Rode Records closed it’s doors for good, but I still have my Price Purple Rain CD that I bought there.

Phar Mor – As quickly as this placed sprung up it went away. Phar Mor was a discount drug store that offered prices so low that they could not stay in business. When I worked at the Kmart pharmacy a frequent cry I used to hear was how come our prices were so much higher then Phar Mor? The answer was that Phar Mor was selling prescriptions at a small loss hoping consumers would buy other goods while waiting for their prescriptions. They didn’t and were soon closed. There used to be one on Ridgeland and Southwest Highway.

Madigan’s – A clothing store that was located at Chicago Ridge Mall, which had the distinction of giving me my first credit card. I bought a lot of my Kmart wardrobe there because of that credit card. It was a nice enough store but for some reason didn’t last long. In the early 90’s they closed their doors for good.

Track Auto - Before Pep Boys there was Track Auto. Basically it was an auto parts store that had pretty good prices. There used to be one on 8^7th and Harlem, where I bought a lot of windshield wipers and fix a flat. Then sometime in the early 90’s they were gone and never to be seen again.

Sound Wherehouse – Another record store that I used to frequent a lot. They were located in Scottsdale mall on 79^th and Cicero. I bought a lot of music there as they were reasonable and they let you listen to the music first before you bought it. Eventually Blockbuster bought them out when they tried to get into the music business. Once that I happened I no longer shopped there.