Author and historian Leslie Goddard’s fascination with department stores runs in the family. Her grandfather was a department store lifer, working first for Marshall Field’s then Carson Pirie Scott.

The first object you see in “The History of Department Stores” at the City of Architecture and Heritage museum is a larger-than-life plaster caryatid. This draped female figure, familiar from ancient ...

Before online shopping and big-box domination, department stores were the heart of the American retail experience. In the 1970s, these stores offered everything from fashion and furniture to lunch ...

The Elmhurst History Museum’s newest exhibit, “Lost Chicagoland Department Stores,” opening Oct. 6, will honor the heyday of such Chicago area department stores as Marshall Field & Co., Carson Pirie ...

Before malls and online shopping, downtown San Diego was the city’s retail heart. Fifth and Broadway teemed with families, teens, and neighbors drawn to polished wood floors, glass display cases, and ...

Today, it's easy to go on a shopping spree without leaving your couch, but it wasn't long ago that shopping was an event, and heading to a fancy department store might even require getting dressed in ...

Editor's note: This story originally appeared in 2017.Herman Wilhelm Bloch left Budapest, Hungary, at the age of 17 and headed to the United States with $1 in his pocket. Bloch sold lace and linens ...

DALLAS — The Neiman Marcus Company has been a staple in Dallas for over a century. Today, with rival department store Saks Fifth Avenue buying the company for $2.65 billion, the future of the store's ...

The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade began in 1924 and has become a national holiday tradition. Macy's was an influential early department store that helped revolutionize the American shopping ...

There was a time when shopping was an edifying experience, mostly because of the exquisite architecture of department stores. The banal act of buying clothing, sporting goods or cosmetics was elevated ...

The first South Bay History blog post I ever wrote way back in 2009 had as its subject the discount chain White Front, which opened a branch in Torrance in 1963. But Zodys discount department store ...