Lost chicago department stores - leslie goddard

Within thirty years of the Great Chicago Fire, the revitalized city was boasting some of Americas grandest department stores.

The retail corridor on State Street was a crowded canyon of innovation and inventory where you could buy anything from a paper clip to an airplane.

Revisit a time when a trip downtown meant dressing up for lunch at Marshall Fields Walnut Room, strolling the aisles of Sears for Craftsman tools or redeeming S&H Green Stamps at Wieboldts.

Whether your family favored The Fair, Carson Pirie Scott, Montgomery Ward or Goldblatts, you were guaranteed stunning architectural design, attentive customer service and eye-popping holiday window displays.

Lavishly illustrated with photographs, advertisements, catalogue images and postcards, Leslie Goddards narrative brings to life the Windy Citys fabulous retail past.