Dixie Square Mall - 1965

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

A stack of historic photographs recovered from Dixie Square Mall on the October 2010 trip; a haunting reminder that human hands built the mall, but human arrogance destroyed it.

These were originally in the mall office stash, which was located just above the restrooms in City Life. Actually, these particular photographs were found in a black Glad trashbag that someone left behind in City Life, after their own attempt at raiding the stash. Thanks, I guess?

These photographs show the, at the time, brand-new Montgomery Ward decked out in Holiday decor, along with its associated Auto Service Center, Jewel, Block A, Block C, and parts of Woolworth under construction. Block B and Penneys construction had not-yet started.

These clues lead me to believe these were taken in November or December of 1965. It appears they were taken as someone drove around the property. It's entirely possible these photographs have not been seen in nearly 45 years!

In the 1980s, Wards Auto Service was demolished to construct the new Harvey Police Department. 20 years later, Wards accidentally met a similar fate, but the space remains vacant. The rest of the mall stood completely abandoned since 1979.

Plenty more scans coming over the next year! MAJOR thanks to Brian and Paul for helping me clean house that day!