Lake View Store
Encyclopedia
The Lake View Store was the first modern indoor mall
built in the United States. It was built in 1915, and held its grand opening on July 20, 1916. The architect was Dean & Dean from Chicago and the building contractor was George H. Lounsberry from Duluth.
The mall is located in the U.S. Steel
company town of Morgan Park
in the city of Duluth, Minnesota
. The building is two-stories with a full basement and shops were originally located on all three levels. All of the stores were located within the interior of the mall with some shops being accessible from both inside and out.
The Duluth News Tribune
once reported that the "Lake View Store is the most modern store in Duluth" and "Every business concern in Morgan Park will be housed in a commodious building about 200 feet (61 m) long and 100 feet (30.5 m) wide".
This mall appeared in the November 1916 issue of The Minnesotan and the June 1918 issue of American Architect.
The mall's original business hours were Monday through Saturday from 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM. It was estimated that 10,000 people toured the mall on its opening day.
The first floor had a pharmacy and a department store with groceries, a butcher shop, clothing, hardware, furniture, and a general store. The second floor had a bank, dentist office, barber shop, hair salon, hat shop, billiard room, and auditorium.
The basement had a shoe store and an ice making plant which made eight tons of ice per day for the mall and for Morgan Park residents. The mall building and the department store were owned and operated by U.S. Steel, however the pharmacy, bank, barber shop, hair salon, and dentist were among the privately run businesses.
The 1935 Duluth city directory
lists the following businesses in the Lake View Store: Lake View Lodge, Morgan Park Company Real Estate, Lake View Department Store, Morgan Park Market, Dahl Barber Shop, Doctors Ryan & Elias, Schaefer Dentistry, Gjessing Tailor Shop, Tahtinen Shoe Rebuilder, and Park Pharmacy.
The interior of the mall was later remodeled so that each store was only accessible from the outside. This allowed for more room on the second floor which originally had a balcony and walkway that ran most of the length of the building. The mall still exists today and houses a hair salon, offices, retail space, and apartments.
Shopping mall
A shopping mall, shopping centre, shopping arcade, shopping precinct or simply mall is one or more buildings forming a complex of shops representing merchandisers, with interconnecting walkways enabling visitors to easily walk from unit to unit, along with a parking area — a modern, indoor version...
built in the United States. It was built in 1915, and held its grand opening on July 20, 1916. The architect was Dean & Dean from Chicago and the building contractor was George H. Lounsberry from Duluth.
The mall is located in the U.S. Steel
U.S. Steel
The United States Steel Corporation , more commonly known as U.S. Steel, is an integrated steel producer with major production operations in the United States, Canada, and Central Europe. The company is the world's tenth largest steel producer ranked by sales...
company town of Morgan Park
Morgan Park (Duluth)
Morgan Park is a neighborhood in Duluth, Minnesota, United States.Arbor Street / 88th Avenue West serves as a main arterial route in the community.-Notes:...
in the city of Duluth, Minnesota
Duluth, Minnesota
Duluth is a port city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and is the county seat of Saint Louis County. The fourth largest city in Minnesota, Duluth had a total population of 86,265 in the 2010 census. Duluth is also the second largest city that is located on Lake Superior after Thunder Bay, Ontario,...
. The building is two-stories with a full basement and shops were originally located on all three levels. All of the stores were located within the interior of the mall with some shops being accessible from both inside and out.
The Duluth News Tribune
Duluth News Tribune
The Duluth News Tribune is a newspaper in Duluth, Minnesota. It is published by Forum Communications, which bought it in 2006 after The McClatchy Company acquired the News Tribunes previous owner, Knight Ridder.The present incarnation of the newspaper is the outcome of the merger and takeover of...
once reported that the "Lake View Store is the most modern store in Duluth" and "Every business concern in Morgan Park will be housed in a commodious building about 200 feet (61 m) long and 100 feet (30.5 m) wide".
This mall appeared in the November 1916 issue of The Minnesotan and the June 1918 issue of American Architect.
The mall's original business hours were Monday through Saturday from 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM. It was estimated that 10,000 people toured the mall on its opening day.
The first floor had a pharmacy and a department store with groceries, a butcher shop, clothing, hardware, furniture, and a general store. The second floor had a bank, dentist office, barber shop, hair salon, hat shop, billiard room, and auditorium.
The basement had a shoe store and an ice making plant which made eight tons of ice per day for the mall and for Morgan Park residents. The mall building and the department store were owned and operated by U.S. Steel, however the pharmacy, bank, barber shop, hair salon, and dentist were among the privately run businesses.
The 1935 Duluth city directory
City directory
A city directory is a listing of residents, streets, businesses, organizations or institutions, giving their location in a city. Antedating telephone directories, they have been in use for centuries....
lists the following businesses in the Lake View Store: Lake View Lodge, Morgan Park Company Real Estate, Lake View Department Store, Morgan Park Market, Dahl Barber Shop, Doctors Ryan & Elias, Schaefer Dentistry, Gjessing Tailor Shop, Tahtinen Shoe Rebuilder, and Park Pharmacy.
The interior of the mall was later remodeled so that each store was only accessible from the outside. This allowed for more room on the second floor which originally had a balcony and walkway that ran most of the length of the building. The mall still exists today and houses a hair salon, offices, retail space, and apartments.