Euclid-Richmond Shopping Center Opens - September 18th, 19th, & 20th 1952

On September 18, 1952 the Euclid-Richmond Shopping Center opened on the corner of East 260th and Euclid Avenue. It was quite the event that morning with Euclid Mayor Kenneth J. Sims leading the ceremonies that showcased the new plaza with city officials from Wickliffe, Willowick, Willoughby, and Richmond Heights making appearances.

Clarkin's Department Store in Euclid - 26100 Euclid Avenue

Also see: A Brief History of Clarkin's Department Stores, Part I

A little about the Euclid Clarkins at 26100 Euclid, and an image of the steel structure

In August 1971, the announcement of a new Clarkins opening in Cuyahoga Falls was published along with construction of the Bedford, Euclid, and Elyria locations being noted.

 

The Euclid, Ohio Clarkins location officially opened Wednesday, October 27, 1971.

 

Jesse Carden, Jean Gandee, Frank Ring; employees. Joyce Ellis, wig sales.

 

Clarkins employee Edith Kreckal

Clarkins employee Joyce Ellis

And closed it's doors for good Saturday, December 29, 1973.

The Euclid Avenue Clarkins store was open 2 years and 2 months! How funny that to this very day (December 23, 2014) that the roof facade is still that of the original Clarkins.

Evidently, Unishops was having some financial troubles and shuttered some stores as a result.

Still, there was a 25 year agreement in place, and no one seemed too worried of what would become this behemoth on the hill because only 2 of those years had been fulfilled.

Clarkins as a whole came to an end in May 1981, as part of one of many restructuring efforts by its parent company.

 

What happened to 26100 Euclid avenue after the December, 1973 closure of Clarkins Discount Store?  It would sit waiting for a new tenant until Kmart moved in and opened on November 20, 1980, nearly a full seven years later. 

Merkel Family Home to The Lakeshore Shopping Center - 1945

The planning of the Lakeshore shopping center began in 1945. It's near the corner of Babbitt and East 222nd St.

In 1945 plans were made to build a shopping center at Lakeshore Blvd. The land was owned by the Merkel family for many years. Wilbur Merkel was the real estate investor for the shopping center. The land was valued at $750,000. The plans in 1945 were to build 26 stores. Parking was for 350 cars. The Merkel family home had recently been demolished in 1945.

The first Department Store that opened in the shopping center was the Burr Department Store in 1948. On the left was W.M.Mullen, Assistant manager and on the right, W.C Croswell, Manager.

The Grand opening of the store was a big event. Mayor Sims was to cut the ribbon for the opening. Dale Harper and the Euclid High marching band was to perform. The Grand Opening ran from May 22nd to May 29th, 1948. Two "Grand Awards" were given out, an RCA Radio and a two-piece living room set.

One of the first restaurants in the shopping plaza was a Howard Johnson's in 1947. It was later replaced by the Tasty Shop and then Charlites.

This picture from the 1955 Euclid High yearbook shows the Tasty Shop, Fisher Foods and Krogers, which were grocery stores. This was around Christmas Time.

This is the August 2014 view with Aldi's, Radio Shack, H.R Block and Subway. The Center is now known as Shore Center Shopping Center.

Making Sense of Place - Cleveland: Confronting Decline in an American City

Jump to 33:58 to see Euclid and Euclid Square Mall

So this was a thing: Euclid Square News

Here's an edition of "Euclid Square News" from September 8th, 1983.

Inside it has advertisements of stores in the mall (The Craft Showcase, Doctor Pet Center, So~Fro Fabrics, Fun n Games, Susie's Casuals, Father & Son, Winkelman's, Stride Rite Bootery, Kay Bee Toys, Chess King, Kinney, World Bazaar, Bermans, Musicland, DOC Optical, GNC, Zondervan Family Bookstores, Rogers Jewlers, Foxmoor, Hit or Miss, Koening Sporting Goods, Regal Shoes, Merry Go Round,  J. Riggings, Broadview Savings, Continental Federal Savings, Bakers, Frederick's of Hollywood, Jeans West, Thom McAn, Gift Garden, Small Stuff, Things Remembered, American Girl, Dunkin Jewelers, CVS, the Diamond Company, Faflik Shoes, Guys n Gals, the Gap, Homemaker Shops, Flowerama, American Dental Centers, My Fair Lady)

A restaurant guide (Bresler's, Beef Corral, Burger King, Carousel Snack Bar, Frontier Fruit & Nut Co,, Helen Hutchley's, Hickory Farms, Higbee's Atrium Restaurant, Hough Bakeries, Karmelkorn Shoppe, May Company's Three Crowns, Orange Julius, Red Lobster, York Steakhouse)

And some upcoming events.  If you're a mall nostalgic like myself, download and enjoy your trip back into retail nirvana.

Euclid Square (Mall) News

Dillards Euclid Square Mall CLOSING September 2013

A long time coming, it seems Dillard's will be closing their Euclid Square Mall clearance center.

It's really a shame! It was pretty common knowledge the lease was up in 2013, but I'm still a little surprised they're closing this location. The prices were amazing and they appeared to do a steady business.

 Architectural drawing of Higbee store exterior at Euclid Square Mall. Source: Cleveland Memory Project

The Euclid Square mall Dillard's store opened as a Higbee's in 1977. The transformation to a Dillard's started in 1988 and was complete by 1992.

The other major anchor was long gone when Dillard's officially closed it's second floor in 2002.

Dillard's circa 2005. Source: me

The store is selling off remaining inventory and is expected to be closed by the end of September 2013.

Lakeshore Blvd. Blockbuster Closing

I got an email a few days ago from a reader alerting me to the closing of the Blockbuster Video at 22320 Lakeshore, it reads:

Hello, My name is Ted I used to live in Euclid. When I went to the Euclid Blockbuster today I found out they are going out of business. I thought that would be something you would like to put on your blog.

Thanks for the heads up, Ted. I guess it makes sense, after all they didn't get a new sign on the pretty facade!

The Plaza on Shore Center Drive

Here's a few pictures I shot off the same day I took the Arthur Treachers photos. This plaza is where Dave's supermarket was before it took over the old Tops grocery store building. This is on Shore Center Drive in Euclid, Ohio.

Lake Shore Plaza's Facelift.

Looks really great. Posting these for those readers who are curious about how Lake Shore Plaza looks now.

Lake Shore Plaza is home to Euclid Marc's and a state beverage store amongst others I can't remember. Formerly home to a social security office and I-deal Tobacco.

In case you had forgotten, and I already had, here's a glimpse of just how nice the new facades actually look, from September 2006:

A Brief History of Clarkins Department Stores, Part I

Clarkins stores, 1971 and 2004.
Clarkins was a chain of discount department stores that was headquartered in Akron, Ohio. Co-founded by brothers-in-law William Clark and Elza Hopkins (Elza E. Hopkins 27 Aug 1921 - 15 Nov 2004) in 1946, the origin of Clarkins name can be quite easily guessed.

Clark was a tire builder at the time and Hopkins, a University of Akron Alumnus, a mechanical engineer. The chain started out modestly by selling surplus materials at what was at one time a filling station in Akron. In that first year of operation the men had begun to add more to their inventory, including tools and other hardware, and moved to a larger location. In addition, they opened the Canton location.

In 1950 an entirely new store was built in Akron while the Canton store was expanded. May 1959, the Kent, Ohio Clarkins was opened, making three locations in total. The Kent store moved from University Plaza in 1968.

1965 saw another company purchasing Clarkins, Unishops. The purchase didn't seem to change much, at all, from November 23, 1965...

2 more years passed and in 1967 Clarkins opened offices and a large warehouse on Arlington Road, also in Akron. Stores were then opened in Cuyahoga Falls and Canton. In November of 1970 Clarkins in Youngstown opened.

Construction on three more locations, Bedford, Elyria, and Euclid, Ohio happened and two of those locations opened on October 27, 1971. By Christmas 1971 Bedford and Euclid Clarkins were in full operation. These two locations were ninth and tenth for Clarkins. Elyria Clarkins opened later.

Regular business hours at Clarkins in the early 1970's in the Cleveland area were 10 am to 10 pm Monday through Saturday, and Noon to 7 pm on Sundays.

What did Clarkins sell? You can pack a lot into 100,000 square feet, and departments included: Clothing, housewares, health and beauty, domestics, tools and paint, toys, auto parts, photography equipment and cameras, jewelry, pet supplies and live fish, lawn and garden and of course, records.

Clarkins department stores were located at the following addresses:

Akron, Ohio
3200 Arlington Rd.

Bedford, Ohio
380 Rockside Rd.

Canton, Ohio
3200 Atlantic Blvd.

Canton, Ohio
2905 Whipple Rd.

Cleveland, Ohio
12800 Brookpark Rd.

Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio
4075 Akron-Cleveland Rd.

Elyria, Ohio
1016 East Broad St.

Euclid, Ohio
26100 Euclid Ave.

Kent, Ohio
1600 S. Water St.

Lorain, Ohio
3000 Leavitt Rd.

I'm primarily interested in the Euclid, Ohio location, as you can probably guess, and for now I will leave it here. A very brief (and partial) history of a rather long standing company that seems to be almost completely forgotten about 39 years later.

Look for Part II very soon.

September 26, 1971, a Clarkins store is coming soon...

Burlington Coat Factory

Burlington Coat Factory at the old Euclid Value City. Click them for bigger versions.

Euclid Square Mall Truckin' into the Future!

I wish they'd just tell me this stuff, seriously. NO THEY MAKE ME GOOGLE FOR IT.

A critical jump-start Tri-C eyes truck driving school at Euclid Square Mall - Read the full article here.

Nothing set in stone, according to the article, but an interesting read nonetheless.

It's gonna be cold!

[tiny update]

I contacted Burlington Coat Factory. They have no info on a Burlington opening in Euclid. I think they understood what I was asking correctly, but I can never be sure in an email.

[/tiny update]

Here's What's up at the Toys R Us

Capped this video today. Please pardon my shitty VCR that has trouble playing VHS tapes.



I'm just curious to see the old Euclid Square Toys R Us store. The whole empty buildings/urban decay thing is like crack to me. Word is they've got the building rented for 1 month. The sale runs January 4, 5 and 6, 2008. It may be open other days (I would assume if they have it for a month).

I don't particularly consider this the big, developmental step forward that was mentioned almost 2 years ago in this blog, though.

So... Anybody gonna go?

2 Euclid establishments closing; BP expanding...

Alexanders Restaurant, located at 22305 Lake Shore Blvd. closed, serving their last supper (ah ha ok bad joke) this past December 24th. BP bought up the property and they're set to expand that BP. Next to a Walgreens?... That was my first thought.

More here: http://blog.cleveland.com/euclidsunjournal/2007/12/euclid_alexanders_restaurant_t.html

Leah, a reader, said Value City at 22400 Shore Center Dr. is also closing. I googled and someone said it was slated to become a Burlington Coat Factory. This doesn't make a lot of sense, seeing how buildings in this area usually stay empty, but I realize "downtown" Euclid is much different from my neck of the woods (you know, the East end), so thanks to Leah for the heads up.

Hope everyone has a happy and safe New Year.

A bit of nostalgia and a whole lot of foresight.

Published in the March 3, 1977 edition of the Euclid News Journal.

I've had a copy of this for a while and the first time I read it it was almost too ironic to believe.

Maybe they should have used ALL CAPS.

Own a little piece of that "old mall"

That's right! The castle and huge tree that once stood at center court of Euclid Square Mall is for sale!

To quote the site it's listed on, "This display used to be the center court Christmas display at the old Euclid Square Mall. The Christmas Tree stands 25 feet tall. All items in this photo are included in this sale. Asking price is $20,000.00. Call for details..."

Oh, that old mall. The mall is 3 years older than I am, almost to the day. I request from now on that you all call me the old Jen. Thanks.

If you've got 20 grand burning a hole in your pocket... check it out and scroll down. You can't miss it. It's got a pic, too!

Aren't you guys sweet.

A nice anonymous commenter told me the giant, empty building at the corner of East 260th and Euclid Avenue was built as a Clarkin's (good luck finding anything out about this place if you're simply not old enough to remember it yourself) turned K-Mart. Closed as Clarkin's in the mid to late 1970's, vacant for a few years and then opened as a K-Mart in the 1980's. I have no clue when it closed and I don't think it's been anything since.

So of course, I uploaded photos. Click the picture to get there:

Also! The boy toy found this link which I think a lot of readers will find interesting... we certainly did: Municipal Finance and Sustainable Development, a case study of Severance Town Center and Euclid Square Mall.

It's a PDF so have Adobe Reader blah blah blah you should know how to use the Internet by now.

Additionally, the Wendy's turned soul food restaurant has closed as of April 2007. The grand opening sign is still hanging on the building.

Oh, and if you have any photos of anything that would excite me and is related to Euclid, please, send them to me.

Ok, that's all. Have a good holiday and don't blow all your fingers off.

Some Photos.. and a Video!

Last night, Dick Goddard told me we'd be getting 1 to 4" of snow today. He was right. So we decided to go out in it and take some photos. I get strange urges at stupid times because I'm an odd little monkey like that.

At any rate, have some visual candy compliments of me and my really understanding boyfriend who drives the very light red coupe in the snow for me.

Here's the old Wendy's fast food burger joint. Like I said a few entries back, it's back in business, just not as a Wendy's... so A+.

Here's our new Dollar General. This was a Euclid PD substation for a little while. Again, A+.

They knocked down our ratty old Taco Bell and built this shiny new one. I love tacos, and I love our new Taco Bell. They still mess up my order but that's become part of the Taco Bell Experience. A++!

Here's the old familiar exit sign that's adorned the top of this blog since 2005. If they ever decide to get rid of it, I hope they give it to me (and I'm a nice girl, so they should).

And here's a video, just driving around the mall with me running my mouth. I figured since a lot of visitors used to live here, they might get a kick out of seeing the mall again.



Also, I get a ton of comments at my Fotki photo albums... don't be afraid to comment here as well! I want opinions, memories, information or just yell at me, whatever peels the banana!

Notice I added some new options on every post, be sure to digg the post once in a while!

Thanks and enjoy!

Arabica in Euclid

Driving by the old Waterfront Cafe on Lakeshore Blvd. today, I noticed a huge sign in the window. An Arabica Coffee House is going in soon. I was thrilled to see this! I know the coffee house was empty for at least 3 years.

Also, ESM management has contacted me regarding this blog. More information as it becomes available.