There once was a time when nations experienced unprecedented prosperity and gave rise to a new era of disposable income.
A time when opulent department stores and exclusive boutiques came on the scene, and the shopping landscape was forever transformed.
Today we are taking you back to the Gilded Age, a period in history marked by extravagant spending, when shopping transcended mere necessity, and became symbol of status.
The mid to late 1800s saw the rise of a new type of shop, one which existed only to fulfill the desires of a growing upper class, and one who happily parted them from their money.
These were the palaces of consumption boasting fabulous architecture, glamorous interiors, while making a grand spectacle of everything. Those who turned the act of shopping into a cultural experience.
If you’re unapologetically bougie, or just plain curious about where high society shopped during the Gilded Age, then you’ve stopped at the right video.
Without further ado, here are the 9 most luxurious shops of the gilded age.
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9 Most LUXURIOUS SHOPS of the GILDED AGE
• 9 Most LUXURIOUS SHOPS...
I was born and raised in Chicago. My dad was an executive with Bacardi Imports, in the SIXTIES. I was an only child and Marshall Field's was my Mom's favorite store when few black women shopped there. That store will forever be in my heart. It was the ONLY major department store in the 1960's where black women could get good quality makeup ih shades that complimented our skin tones. It had to be custom blended, and I remember my mother taking me to the makeup counter of a beautiful, tall, blond clerk who knew my mothet by name. Mom told her I was old enough to wear age-appropriate makeup, and that beautiful clerk mixed and stirred until it was perfect!!! Foundation, powder and blush. I will NEVER forget her! Field's was innovative in a lot of areas, but particularly in recognizing that their clientele came in different sizes, shapes, and hues. And they trained their staff to treat all their customers with the same respect. ❤
I remember Marshall Fields well. I felt so fancy when I walked in there :)
Love that story!
Wow this is such an amazing memory! Thank you so much for sharing. 😊
Beautiful story. Thank you
❤
Joseph Bloomingdale was my great great grandfather. He and his brother actually started their business selling things from a pushcart on the street.
U betta be rich still shawty lol
That's awesome!! What a great piece of your family history!!! 😊
@@leverdia Thank you! 💕
It’s so interesting that he retired on New Years Day 1896. Do you happen to know why? Was he pushed out? I can’t really find a good answer for this question and maybe you can shed some light on this for me.
@@FranticMissyOfficial I know he sold his half to his brother, Lyman. I doubt pushed out, I think just retired. He had made a decent living and, in those days, being in your 50’s was old.
"It’s glamor days are over as now it's occupied by Macy's." Oh the shade in that one sentence!!😂😂😂😂
😂😂😂😂
Nevermind the poshness, stylishness, which I do miss. The thing I like is, as you said, the architecture which had much srylee and perhaps appreciation. Nowadays, we've lost that feeling.
I absolutely love extravagant department stores with actual service, beautiful areas and products and well dressed associates. Straw ridges. Wanamaker's. Bloomingdale's. Miss them
Wish they came back, never saw such a thing 😢
I love those times of elegance. You can see the workmanship in the clothes and the buildings during that time. I love fashion and feel that I was born in the wrong era. 😊
Growing up in Chicago in the 60's, Marshall Fields was a destination. We would dress up in our best patent leather Mary Jane-s with white ruffle socks and velvet trim coats and hats to have tea and cake in the balcony restaurant with my Aunt who was a buyer for the store. Christmas was always the most beautiful with decorations everywhere and the Santa visits were like a dream for a young child. Loved the Marshall Fields experience of feeling like a princess.
❤❤❤
What a magical childhood remembrance-🙋🏻♂️🙌🏾💝🐈🥰!!
I'm old enough to remember the Magnin Brothers in San Francisco: Joseph Magnin was one store, I Magnin the other. They were exquisite and very special. Long gone now.
Worth made my Grandmother's wedding gown, astonishing in it's workmanship and detail.
Marshall Field’s was simply the best. Their Christmas displays and beautiful building was so special. Their chocolates were amazing, Macy’s doesn’t even come close.
Quite right! The vaults with Tiffany glass. The Walnut Room. Frango Mints Chocolate. Marshall Fields was a great department store.
I agree. Here in Detroit our Hudsons became Marshall Fields in the late 1990’s. Then it became Macy’s and it’s never been the same since. Marshall Fields and JL Hudsons were in a class all by themselves. I miss both of them. Shopping 🛍️ isn’t the same since. I worked for Hudsons and Marshall Fields and for a brief time at Macy’s. Things went downhill when they switched to Macy’s. I quit and went to GMAC after college.
I worked for Bullocks and when Federated took over and turned it into a Macys the place took a dive.
@@LUIS-ox1bvFrango Mint Chocolates are from Seattle company Frederick and Nelson. Sadly, Frederick and Nelson met its demise in the mid-1980s. Fortunately, Marshall Field and then Macy’s continued the Frango magic.
I remenber as a little girl, when my mom went into "the City" (San Franvico) to go shopping she wore heels, a hat and gloves. Im almost 80 so this would have been in the early '50s.
My Grandmother and Mother took us twice a year on a train to NYC to buy clothing, they had martinis in the Club Car as I remember. Great fun !
I'm glad you included the social aspects of the great department stores in the Gilded Age. They helped free women from the home and gave them a place they could go, even alone, and shop, have tea and socialize without men. This was a major step back then.
This is such a really good point and something I hadn't realized until I watched this video. It almost provides a reclaiming of power over the women/shopping trope. Shopping was literally the first way that American women could roam freely and gather together. How many Suffragettes do you think came about from those conversations?
Gee I wonder whose money were they spending
@@buukaczi Seeing as we are discussing the famous American families that industrialized the country, they were spending generational wealth bequeathed to them by their parents and grandparents. I understand the point you are trying to make; that the women were spending their husbands' money. Don't pretend that the husbands were actually earning their multiple millions of dollars that propelled them to the upper echelons of society. They inherited it and then leveraged it by exploiting the workers who actually performed the labor, the same way the rich get richer today. By attempting to oversimplify this, you're also vastly underestimating the role of women in society at this time. High status married women didn't exist to spend money. Their primary responsibility was to provide heirs to the fortunes that would keep the generational wealth in the family. They were also responsible for EVERYTHING inside the household, meaning the enormous mansions along Millionaires Row and their summer homes in Newport. Paint colors, architectural styles, furniture, artwork, staff, meals, schedules, activities, social events, etc. And of course, properly and carefully selecting the wardrobes of every member of the household (including the staff). That meant summer and winter attire, clothing for receiving guests and different clothes for paying calls to others, walking clothes, riding habits, evening clothes, mourning attire, liveries, and formalwear. For the man, woman, children, and employees. They HAD to spend money because it was directly tied to their responsibilities as homemakers. They MADE their houses into homes.
theirs. because they weren't allowed to work and took care of the home, the household income was the family's. are you dense?@@buukaczi
@@buukaczi probably their inheritances/own wealth which was handed to their husbands?
When I was a little girl my mother worked at the City of Paris in San Francisco. Because of her color she placed in the back as a seamstress. I remember the different languages spoken. Spanish and Chinese. It was the 1960’s
Interesting times. Thank you for sharing!
Now we have come full circle, and with DEI departments in HR of every store, and affirmative Action in colleges we seem to be seeing the reverse.
Oh stop the faux victim hood. Affirmative action was corrective action. Besides White women are the primary beneficiaries of Affirmative Action since 1970. So stop being triggered by this country true history, instead shut up listen and learn something
Was there a Selfridge Department Store in London too?? 😮😊
3rd generation native San Franciscan … remember the hat and gloved ladies !
I can't believe you did ALL of these and left out the ONE that literally started the Department Store trend - Le Bon Marche in Paris.
The bon Marche actually started in Seattle washington and there were many.
@@dw3403 different store - The Bon Marche (Seattle) was inspired by retailer Le Bon Marché. (Paris)
That's THE Bon Marche, it different. Le Bon Marche started in Paris in 1823 and the one in Seattle was basically a copy.@@dw3403
I second that
I could only imagine how fun it would be to go back in time and shop at one of these stores.
What a fun thought!
It would be fun if...You dressed like you had already shopped there. No jeans, tshirts, and sandals. You would have to already own a fancy dress, nice shoes, probably a parasol, gloves, a fancy purse, your hair done up nice, a hat. Otherwise you probably wouldn't get in the door. If you went with a friend they would also have to dress appropriately, as well as your kids if you took them. That's a lot of money to shell out just to go shopping. Also you might be compelled to have a snack or a meal in the store in one of the restaurants. But there was no Food and Drug Administration. And where did the water come from? And did you wash your hands after you went to the bathroom? Do you know about cross contamination?
@@nellgwennpeople like you who act like everything in the past was absolutely bad, are absolutely insufferable, and detrimental to the actual study of history.
@@nellgwennGreat points, especially about hand washing and cross contamination aspects to ponder. I’m not sure if young children were brought into the shops at the time.
Harrods still has some old charm
Surprised that 316 year old luxury department store, Fortnum and Mason, wasn’t included in this video. Up until a few years ago, customers were greeted by liveried doormen and served by clerks in morning dress. One of my favourite shops in London.🇬🇧
Love F&M! Selfridges in London is another one that deserves to be on this list. Still one of my favorite places to go when I'm in London.
Still beautifully carpeted
Selfridges is not included because the subject of the video is Luxury shops of "The Gilded Age." Selfridges was founded after the Gilded Age. @@russcomp1920
Boy I miss Henri Bendels. It was always a great experience. I still have a t shirt from there and a shopping bag. Thank goodness some of these still survive.
It was sad to see it go.
All I have is a polka dot pig from them. A Christmas ornament.
@@LJB1033:05
My sister and I went to Lord and Taylor’s when I was 18. I still remember quite clearly the pink ladies lounge. It had multiple fully stocked dressing tables ladies could use. Fresh and clean combs and brushes, perfume, etc. It was luxuriously decorated, clean and smelled delightful. Today, “fully stocked” wouldn’t last 5 minutes. People who are civilized are treated in a civilized manner.
Mmm I think it's "treat people like animals, they will learn to act as animals"
The world before integration . It's time to start telling the truth .
Must be nice to be among those with the time and money to actually burn like that. The only people who do are those who aren’t working paycheck to paycheck with few to no paid days off or paid sick leave.
While the modernized L&T in the 2000s was quite different from the one of long ago, many of us here in NYC loved to shop there, as it was still a classy store and had some of the best "old fashioned" Christmas windows in NYC. I miss it so much!
Ah, the days before income tax 🎉
I have spent many happy hours looking at the Christmas displays in the windows of Marshall Field's. Thanks for the memory.
My great great grandfather was Theodore deLemos. He was the architect of many of Manhattan's most popular department stores, including Macy's and Spiegel Cooper.
He was a brilliant artist indeed
@@jagmom5164 Thank you. Yes - he was an amazing man.
How is Selfridges not on this list? I loved the pbs series so much I went to the store on a trip to London. It is the most gorgeous store I have ever been in.
Exactly! It’s crazy that Selfridges wasn’t at the top of this list.
I too was looking forward to seeing Selfridges listed; but alas, not even a nod. I've never had the pleasure of visiting, but from all that I've read and heard, I would have loved spending hours and money in that escape from everyday life.
Selfridges opened in London on 15 March 1909 however the gilded age ends around 1900 so although seemingly to appear to be a shop of the gilded age it is a little more modern.
Agreed 😸
@@1966midgesorry didn’t read your pot first
Still blown over with my granny old Sears catalog. SanFrancisco in house.
I have actually been to Harrod's in London and it's a beautiful store to this day! Plus I actually worked at Lord and Taylor for many years until unfortunately it's been closed down. We need to get the fancy schamcy back to the retail market!!
I shopped at Harrods while in London and the day before I went to tour Windsor Castle and couldn’t get in because that was the day it was on fire 😢😢
As a teen, my Mom took me to NYC to shop at Macy's for some school clothes for me. We also went to the sewing department -- a whole floor of fabulous fabrics, Parisian clothing patterns, and every type of trim, ribbon and button. The fabrics for wedding and evening dresses were just mind-blowing. I will never forget that wonderland for the seamstress. I wonder if all those sewing items are still sold there. Probably most ppl buy their clothing already made.
Unfortunately, that department is long gone!
@@georgesanchez1952too bad it’s gone. So hard to find quality fabric today.
I’m a San Francisco native and I loved the City of Paris. I still remember their deli in the basement, Normandy Lane, where my mother, big sister and I would stop for lunch while shopping. At Christmas every year they would have a huge Christmas tree in the center of the store. Joseph Magnin’s, I Magnin’s are gone too. Sigh.
You brought back a great memory of traveling from Palos Verdes in southern California every year in early December back in the 50s so mother could shop at the City of Paris and we use to go down stairs to have French onion soup with SF sourdough then go to Blums for sweats. Thanks for the memories
I meant to ask do you remember a restaurant called the Pink Poodle?
@@optitom9033 We used to go to Blum’s too. Yummy.
@@optitom9033 Don’t remember it right off-hand. Where was it?
@@margo3367 I know we walked there from the Sir Frances Drake
Thank god the buildings of ladies mile were never torn down! They are still magnificent to look at!
I would have loved to shop at these stores. Shopping back then was an art. Having tea with my friends while my outfits get hand made. Ahh luxury.
That would’ve been a long tea if you were waiting for a dress to be handmade
When I was seven years old 1966, my mother, her parents and three of my older siblings when into Chicago and spent about five hours shopping and dining at Marshall Fields. I still remember seeing the big corner clock at State and Randolph, the Tiffany ceiling, the very posh restaurant and since it was the Christmas season, the humongous Indoor Christmas tree and all the Christmas displays (especially the toys) and all the decorations. My grandfather died the following spring and my mom three years later. Whenever I think back on those early years of my life, I fondly recall that trip of an elegance now so sadly missing and cheapened today. Thanks for bringing that memory back to the forefront of my mind.
Ahh yes the times before people cheapened and ruined everything. Today I went into a Dunkin’ Donuts and purchased a few things for me and my mother. As I was standing there a disheveled woman who I’d describe as obese trailer trash came in, and didn’t buy anything and screamed out “I’m just using the bathroom!” To the employees as she walked by. She didn’t politely ask. She demanded. Loudly. Ofc she went in and decimated the bathroom and i made the mistake of trying to wash my hands afterwards and it smelled like a NYC landfill. People just have zero respect for places of business anymore. I get you gotta go sometimes but save your nasty ness for your own space! Don’t come in and blow up a single stall restroom for paying customers! 🤦🏻♀️ I hate everything now lmao
Absolutely fascinating! I grew up in the 1950s and 60s and my late beloved mother took me to the great department stores in NYC before some of them moved out to the suburbs! We had lunch at gorgeous Lord & Taylors that had the best creative magical Christmas windows! B. Altmans was also on 5th Ave. a very classy store as well. Best and Co. and Bonwit Tellers were not to far away on 5th near Saks Fifth Ave. We shopped at Bloomingdates after it opened a branch in NJ! I went on to become a NYC fashion illustrator so it was fun to see all the fashion art of the Gilded Age as well. Bonwit's lovely logo was a nose gay of purple violets, their shopping bags with violets and a purple ribbon handle were delightful looking! Thanks for the grand tour of dept. stores from the Gilded Age, much appreciated!♥💜
Would so love to hear more about designing Fashion..thanks for popping in to comment..🌹
I loved Bonwit Tellers I had a charge card with them and I remember even the card had the violets on it.
Being from Chicago, I loved Marshall Fields! It was the ultimate shopping experience. I enjoyed having so many options under one roof, from Frango mints to clothes to the dining hall upstairs. Such magnificence! You just felt rich walking around.
I forgot Frango mints!
Sad to hear Marshalls Fields/Chicago where many of my kid cloths, gifts came from my grandparents, old aunts and uncles, and Henri Bendell/NY. close their doors. Grand stores in the US are dying fast! Where will the 1% buy from now? What a loss of extraordinary experiences. I am glad I was able to shop at most of these locations and experience the civility of life. Internet shopping just isn't the same experience.
I grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area and “City of Paris” was an iconic landmark. After it shut down, it was taken over by the Hawaiian retailer “Liberty House” Than afterwards by Neiman Marcus. I’m glad they saved that beautiful ceiling!
I grew up on the island of Oahu and Liberty House was situated in the Ala Moana shopping center. 👍
I grew up in Concord/Clayton. Where did you grow up?
in Marin County, East Bay and in the City itself. @@robertachurchill1100
I loved Liberty House. Well made, fairly priced, lovely designs - and clothes that actually fit petite ladies.
I’m from Hawaii my Tutu lived at Liberty House and took me shopping there all the time. I have a vintage aloha shirt with their tag still. Macy’s replaced them and it’s far from the same
Bonwitt Teller❤
I visited Henri Bendel in the Chestnut Hill Mall near Boston about 25 years ago. It was sumptuous and expensive. The only thing I could afford was an eye liner which I happily bought and proudly showed off my bag while shopping for the rest of the day
I bought an eyeliner there, too! So posh! ❤
You can feel like a lady of leisure there by buying just an eyeliner!
😂😂😂😂😂
Marshall Fields holds a very special place in my heart. There was a small one in the town I grew up in, Lake Forest. IL. It always felt special to go into such a fine quality store and at Christmas, a trip to the Walnut Room for lunch and a visit to the "real Santa " , plus seeing the animated street windows was a treasured tradition. My grandmother's best friend was in charge of all of the store's food offerings, both bakery and restaurants, having to taste test everything! I have a silver charm of the State Street building clock and am so sad that's all that remains of a fabulous store and shopping experience.
I loved the toy department as a kid in the70's.
Thank you for sharing experience!
Loving Your silver clock charm story ..treasured times we were so.lucky to even.had a peek at the opulence of it all ..thamks for Your lovely Rdmbrance🌹
Yes! Marshall Field's of Milwaukee. Best times......
Kathy I said the same about our Marshall Fields on the Square! Not been the same since it closed! And of course State Street!!!
I worked at B. Altman in my late teens taking phone orders from customers from the store's catalog. Us employees would have to enter & leave the store through a side-door, not the front entrance. We ate in the cafeteria in the top floor. I loved living in NYC. I miss those days.
No store ever allowed staff to enter via the main entrance.. It is a security issue, always a "staff entrance / exit"...
I thoroughly enjoyed this! Thank you. As a native Chicagoan, I grew up with the luxury and the 'magic' of Marshall Field & Co. particularly at Christmas. To this day, I have never experienced anything to match it.
In the 60s, my older sister worked in the design department at Fields. We'd eat in the Walnut Room at Christmas time and she'd point out the ornaments she'd made.
Yes! Loved the giant tree, the beautiful architecture.
It makes me sad to see what Macy's has done to Marshall Field's.
@@thatjpwingI never got to visit the building until after Macy's took it over. Some long-time Fields employees were still there and expressed their dismay at what Macy's did. They all emphasized that the store I was in was a far cry from the original. There are some movies that show some of the Field's experience like "Christmas Vacation"
This is a great piece. I would have like to have seen others in other locations like Woodward and Lothrop in Washington DC and John Wannamakers in Pennsylvania USA
Marshal Fields in Chicago was our favorite place to go in the 60s and 70s! You didn’t even have to buy anything! People watching (see how the other half lived) and looking at what they sold! It was like going to a lovely museum! They had a whole floor for miniatures and another one of musical instruments! You could spend the entire day there! I used to love going there!
We used to go there right before Christmas to see the store decorations. Yes, you could spend most of the day in Marshall Fields.
I remember Marshall Fields in the Bay Area. They ran Black people out of the store & refused to wait on them as late as the 1980’s.
@@jaemegrrl, That's horrible.
Been to London many times and have visited Harrod’s, of course as a yank my nephews first Teddy had to come from there, but I was bummed that each time I never had time to visit Harvey Nicolas… albeit to recreate a great AbFab moment. I was surprised Liberty’s was not listed. It remains one of my favorite places to shop when I do go to London. It offers tours and history, lots to buy, of course a Liberty print, plus I love the restaurant!
Ooh.Yes Liberty of London and its fab rotunda..now William Morris Fabrics there are even More famous..the patterns so sought after I have met people.all over the world..from London..Paris and even the usually too cool New Yorkers s
Who.greet someone wearing.a.fabric from Liberty's collection as a friend..mine was wool challis.shawl..and a.Grench styled.neck scarf..what fun..and Harrodpeople.proudly wore their yearly designer created tote bags to every wherethey traveled!!
This video forgot to mention A. Sulka & Co., the haberdashery most famous for luxurious silks and Cashmere or Vicuña apparel for men. Most coveted (and extremely pricey) items were also sleepwear, dressing gowns/robes and bespoke underwear.
Love the name Schmancy. Despite being a New Yorker, I had no idea that Bloomingdales is that old or started selling hoopskirts. Thank you for this informative video.
Henri Bendel "did its own brand in" when they started mass producing their bags, expanded their stores all over the country, and they were no longer exclusive or one of a kind bags. They had some beautiful bags though. I got the opportunity to shop and buy items at Marshall Fields before it closed. It was a beautiful store (especially during Christmas) with couture items. I remember trying on my first Oscar de la renta coat there. Sad it was bought out by Macy's.
Lol sort of like Halston “heritage” the low label brand of Halston.
I love the grand old stores and have mourned the loss of so many of them and am grateful that a few remain. I used to shop fairly regularly at B. Altman which was a gem that retained its old venerable atmosphere. Dining in a large store’s tea room is a particular joy. Are there any tea rooms left, I wonder?
In my late teens I worked at B. Altmans as someone who takes phone orders from customers ordering from the catalog. That store smelled great... like luxury.
Harrods and selfridges still have tea rooms
Same 😢
Thank you for this foray into shopping in the past. I'm glad so many of the buildings were saved from demolition. It's always heartbreaking to see beautiful architecture destroyed.
Glad you enjoyed it. Thank you!
Elites regularly destroy architecture to hide their real history
Except for Lord and Taylor's, the 1960s-1970's Ladies Mile was 57th Street with Bloomingdale's, Bonwit Teller, Bergdorf and small boutique shops all close by. I bought an outfit on 57th Street to meet my soon to be husband's family. I bought the dress I wore to my son's wedding at Bloomingdale's.
I immediately wanted to reread Emile Zola's novel "Ladies' Happiness"
When I attended university in NYC, Bloomingdale's was the place to shop. I remember when they used to feature goods from Ireland, China, Italy, etc. with the ad campaign "Come to (fill in the country) at Bloomingdale's." A buddy of mine became a buyer for Bloomingdale's after he graduated, and he loved working there.
Yes now they would probably have a whole section with signs about how cultural appropriation is evil, and all the shoppers of the past are bigots lmao 😂 🤦🏻♀️ I hate the woke modern world!
This was delightful. Marshall Fields use to have the best selection of marzipan during the Christmas season and the City of Paris was the go to department store for Christmas shopping.
I went to Bloomingdale's with my daughter July 2005. it was marvelous. we spent hours shopping, having tea. a wonderful experience.
I just can't even imagine being born into one of these ridiculously wealthy families. Imagine NEVER having to worry about $$
They have to worry about money. It's just means bigger problems.
Rich people have more problems than you can imagine so please don't hate them for being wealthy but they got a lot of responsibilities and that's what you have bread in your cable
@@flordelrio57 you must live in a third world country.
@flordelrio57 OH I'm not jealous at all. If anything I'm envious. I just really can't imagine that kind of lifestyle. I do agree that we ALL have problems, it's just $$ isn't one of theirs. Ps....I never said they don't have any problems
@@sherisworld8552I am lead to believe you live in a land that exploits countries for their resources that make the land you live in the real 3 world land. Think of France for instance
Geez, these stores are HUGE! Imagine a mall anchor store, but the size of an ACTUAL mall…all one store with multiple floors. I wonder what all they contained, cause there can only be so many fashion and houseware/furniture departments before it starts getting overwhelmingly redundant. I read about one store (forget the name) that was so lavish, it had a mini zoo on one floor with elaborate animal exhibits.
I think that was Harrod’s in London.
After watching this video l felt l had no choice. I had to subscribe, so l did. I live in Toronto where Eaton's, Simpson's and the Bay ruled the shopping roost. I remember, as a poor, immigrant child, being taken downtown at Christmas to view the huge windows with mechanized displays of Santa, elves, and reindeer, all of whom made slight movements. For me, it was magical.
I too am from Ontario Canada. I miss those stores. Eaton's Christmas windows were the highlight. We were so poor we shopped at Eatons' annex with the wooden escalators! Always went skating at Toronto City Hall public outdoor rink afterwards. What a special day for my sisters and myself!!!
There was a fabulous department store in Indianapolis, Indiana(there was/is more than corn in Indiana) The William H. Block Co. The most beautiful art deco building, they carried French couture and handmade shoes, jewelry(Cartier and Rolex...) The department store is no longer; but, the building was made into condos -wonderful art deco condos. They kept the marble floors, all of the walnut staircases, some of the condos still have tubes that sent money and receipts from floor to floor. Thanks for the video-I miss Marshall Field!!
My favorite store is Harrods in London . My husband took me forva High tea for our anniversary and we brought some perfumes and special chocolates the service was incredible. Wonderful memories. Thank you for a great vidio. Regards from California ❤
You need to make it a top ten and add San Francisco's beloved I. Magnin...
I loved I,. Magnin - we used to shop at the one in Seattle.
My daughter has just purchased an antique sewing machine and I was shocked to see on your photos of the seamstresses in these opulent stores working on such a machine. Just think if they had our fancy dancy electric machines then what they would have created. It’s amazing their creations were so stunning probably a lot of the fancy work was done by hand. So interesting thank you for posting.
I remember the City of Paris when I was a little girl, it was a magnificent place. Back then SF was such an elegant city! Also, was in Marshall Field's in the 1980;s, an amazing store as well.
How times have changed in the city from the time of City of Paris and I Magnin to the disaster it is now...sad!
And the crash and grab robberies disgust me.
I remember going to The City of Paris store in college. It was in December and there was the most beautiful Xmas tree in the middle of the building! It was hard to decide in the tree there was a beautiful as the trees at Podesta del Baca ( ?) del Baca down the street.
Truly a tragedy beyond belief what has happened to San Francisco...and California
@@mariad3431 I live in a beautiful area in California, in a rural location, overlooking the Pacific, so its beautiful. But SF is a lesson in what not to do.
It's funny when I was little I had family who worked in Harrods and the other side of the family worked in Selfridge's they hated each other and endlessly went on proclaiming they worked in the best department store. It was a deep rivalry. At weddings we had to have to separate tables of food and each side always called the other side peasants. It was some of my happiest childhood memories. My mum's best friend was the manager of Channel which would be huge now but we just didn't care and took the Mickey out of the snobby customers at lunch. I remember her doing my make up with full Channel in the boutique at age 12 which was fun.
What a.fum life .wonder what sort of Makeup look She gave You..loved Your comments..thanks !!!
I love Bloomingdale's! When in New York I go there and just wander around to experience the ambiance of a classic department store.
There is a fabulous location in Cleveland, Ohio, called the Arcade. It is one of the first indoor shopping malls in the USA. Funded by John D. Rockefeller, it is a masterpiece of Romanesque architecture. Located on lovely Euclid Ave. in Downtown Cleveland, it stands as a estimate of the grandeur and opulence of Cleveland.
Thank you, Edwin. I was also going to mention Halle Bros. I loved going to downtown Cleveland in the 50s and early 60s.
@@charlynegezze8536 That’s wonderful! Although people may not believe it or choose to write off Cleveland, it is truly a glamorous and beautifully historic city
I live in Eastlake a Suburb 20 minutes from Downtown, I worked Downtown on 9th St near the Cleveland Press, my First job was Revco Retail Office, I was 18 yrs old & started at a Salary of $2.25 an hr. that was 1973. I remember Halles, Higbees & May Co Downtown at Christmas time my Mom & Dad wld take us & we ate at the Cafeteria for lunch & saw Mr Jingaling at Halles & shopped in the little Santa Shop for kids to buy gifts & also the amazing windows that mesmerized my Brother's & Sister & me. Lots of Memories, Cleveland has many Historical Bldg's & Homes. ⚘️
My happiest memories are of shopping in Downtown Cleveland in the late 1950s and through the 1960s
I’ve stayed in the hotel there many times. It’s an incredible building!
City of Paris was a destination that I loved as a little girl. At Christmas time there was a very tall Christmas tree. One mezzanine had beds beautifully dressed with lovely linens and graced with French bed dolls. I was so sad when this store closed.
I must say that I am dismayed that "Grace Brothers," in London, was not included in this list. One would think that it was a fictional store, created for a classic English sitcom.😉
@jeraldbaxter3532: “Are you free?”. “Yes, I’m free!” 😉😂
Phone rings “Men’s wear ! “ in my most possible deep voice .
@@donnaleach8119 Over twenty years ago, I worked in an art & craft supply store and one coworker, who was one of the witiest people that I have ever known, when asked if he was free, would bat his eyes, simper and say, " I'm not free, but I'm reasonable..."
😂😂😂😂😂
@@jeraldbaxter3532 : lol. My sister and I have always used this phrase to see if each other was ‘available’. 😉😂
I remember going to Harrods when I visited the UK when I was 18 in 2005. I'm from New Orleans, and it was the first time I'd ever seen champagne being served in a department store. my mind was blown!
With$$ who knows, someone can come up with that business model again?
Marshall Field's was just the best. It's so sad that it's now Macy's. It was so wonderful to go to MF shopping or to eat at one of the restaurants. I spent many hours there. It was always the most wonderful store!
And Marshall Fields was a far classier store then Macy's. Chicago lost another one of its unique qualities when Marshall Fields morphed into Macy's. Marshall Fields IS Chicago.
Yes, Macy’s carries Chinese polyester clothes.
The last time I was in Macy's in New York was the day they had a ticker tape parade for the POWs coming home from Vietnam.
Macy’s is a dump and doesn’t deserve to be in Field’s space.
@@LUIS-ox1bvMacy’s in NYC in the 50’s was a much more beautiful store than it is today.
What about Carson Pirie Scott & company in Chicago! The only store that could really rival Marshall fields in the late 1800s.
There was a Carson Pirie Scott store in a Des Moines mall. I bought a Rolf's leather clutch purse there as a teenager and felt very grown up...
I wish they had included New Orleans..... We had Maison Blanche, Krauss, Godchaux's, D.H. Holmes, Dillards.
I still remember hearing about Marshall Fields when I was a kid in the 90s and early 00s, before sadly it closed for good.
While working at Neiman Marcus, I was standing under its rotunda in San Francisco, during the Loma Prieta earthquake in 1989. I witnessed the building joints moving. The building had minor damage.
Should have been included: Wannamaker's in Philadelphia. They have the largest organ in the world. John Wannamaker took advantage of the Great Centennial Exposition of 1876 - drawing tourists from all over the US to Philadelphia - by expanding his luxurious department store.
My connection with Wannamaker’s is that my great grandfather designed the interior of its Crystal Tea Room.
I thought the same thing. Wanamakers has alot of history to it .... especially the organ which still is being played today. I still love hearing it be played.
@@julesjaay822How fabulous...wish You.could say a bit.more!!
At Wanamaker's there was an eagle sculpture and people would say, "I'll meet you at the eagle at noon" or whenever.
I came here looking for someone to mention Wanamaker's. As a child, on very special shopping trips, my mother and I would dress up and take the el train into town. The subway stopped at 13th street below Wanamaker's, so you could go directly into the store's "basement" from the train. Lots of times, we spent all day shopping there and never went outside. We'd even have lunch in the Chrystal Tea Room, or the cafe in the "basement."
Thank you. Our mother ventured us to Chicago that included shopping @ Marshall Field's. My sister and I had great fun to be in our first big city experience. The restaurant was still serving Easter. The clock remained the land mark of 'its' historical time.' And such disappointment to see this name be replaced by Macy's. I was fortunate to live in NYC, 2 blocks from Bloomingdale's! My sister and I shopped @ lovely Henri Bendel's unique style of taste that surprised us to learn closed. Tiffany's was everyone's must go! I still have my 'Tiffany paper cup' from the water cooler. The only affordable item for me was FREE! The clerks loved that! I have always wondered of the great Harrod's London. What treasured memories that I only wear now in my cataloged mind. 💖
I used to love to go to the City of Paris during the Christmas season. The multi-story Christmas tree was beautiful!
That was fun, thanks, though I think most of the big department stores you mention were aimed at the new urban middle class. In New York, at least, they arrived on the new subway and elevated train lines and on Ladies Mile in Manhattan, the local subway train still stops, unusually, every 5 blocks to accommodate those 19th c. shoppers. The “carriage trade” preferred smaller, more exclusive boutiques. To anyone visiting New York and interested in this era, I do recommend a stroll along Ladies Mile (Avenue of the Americas, between 14-28 Streets) which is still lined with the hulking structures once occupied by these great department stores. The city has marked the route with historical information along the route. Thanks again for that interesting post!
Delightful video highlighting these fabulous department stores. The women dressed beautifully during those early years, men too for that matter. You never mentioned Wanamaker's in Philadelphia with its beautiful pipe organ installed on the mezzanine playing music as the shoppers strolled the various aisles. My grandmother worked there as a model in 1910 and 1911. I still have her calling card. On my wall, I have beautifully preserved photos in frames of my grandmother wearing floor length skirts and gorgeous large hats. I lived with her when I was a teenager, and she shared with me memories of her youth during the early 1900s and 1910s. I was amazed as a young boy looking over her old photos and how lovely she looked as a young girl. She would say, "Tommy, I was a looker, wore my skirts clear down to the floor and rode around in carriages drawn by horses. You should have seen some of my beautiful hats. When I worked modeling dresses at Wanamaker's in downtown Philadelphia, I had to parade back and forth in fancy dresses as ritzy dames seated on a divan would select the dress they wanted to buy." I wish I could give these priceless framed photos to some organization that would preserve them. I am old now and have no family or anyone interested in looking at lovely more than one hundred year old photographs.
This story is beautiful! What a blessing you got to have such a fashion forward grandmother that told you such wonderful stories. I am totally in love with the time behind us, and it brings me such peace, compared with the modern world. The end of your comment made me sad that you couldn’t find anyone to take those photos off your hands and cherish them. I’d be willing to display them in my vintage collection if you’re willing but if not, perhaps google vintage collectors in your area! I’m sure someone would love to have them and even repeat your grandmothers story and keep her legacy alive long after you are gone! Bless you! Hope you are not alone and have someone to keep you company! ❤
@@tula1433 Tula, thank you for your welcome offer to display my memorabilia of my beloved grandmother. Please do not be offended, but though I am old almost 89, I am contented to be alone with my memories. Since 1990-91, instead of keeping these old photos wrapped in tissue paper in boxes, I invested in rather expensive frames so I could view them pleasurably anytime I wanted. My walls are literally covered with framed photos of my grandmother, born in 1883 - died in 1966, my lovely mother born 1911 - died 2005. Included in many frames are my great-grandmother, great-grandfather, when they were young. The oldest photo is of my great great grandmother taken in the1860s. Unfortunately, she was not my grandmother's favorite grandmother. This may be difficult for most people to understand, but I treasure my solitude. All these fascinating framed photos, most ranging 90 to 160 years give me pleasure and all the company I need. Not too savvy on electronics. Perhaps, if you have time, you could tell me how to put them into your vintage collection or where to find "google vintage collectors" in the Sarasota, Florida area. I am not selling them. I want them in the hands of someone who will not destroy them.
Look into museums in Philadelphia. At one time there was a City of Philadelphia museum (used to be Atwater Kent). Historical Societies should also have some ideas. Good luck!
Thank you. I am planning to do just that.@@CarolRomanov
The vibe of those stores reminds me of the stores that you would find in the casinos of Vegas these days like the Forum Shops in Cassars Palace. Not just a place to shop but a place to experience things that you would be hard-pressed to find elsewhere.
Similar in concept to 'Ladies' Mile'- the pre-WWI (1870's-1914) custom of the well-to-do of Australia, particularly in Sydney & Melbourne was 'doing the Block'- where they leisurely promenaded around the most fashionable shopping district of their respective towns - such activities essentially came to a halt with the war, & never really came back...
Thank you for a lovely stroll into the past. I still remember the nice department stores in Philadelphia. Wow ! To see those fashions in color! Beautiful! New York was beautiful back then.
Henri Bendel’s in NYC still feels like it’s in the Gilded Age. It’s lovely.
Look how utterly massive these stores were. They were palaces! Even the jewelry section was 15 rows long. It makes me wonder whether today's businesses are either 1) too cheap to do this or 2) can't afford it. Neither possibility sounds good.
I had high tea at the former City of Paris Rotunda in Neiman Marcus in the early eighties. It's striking and makes the store what it is. Thanks for this video.
Another store i London could have been added to this list is Whitely's Shop in Bayswater. In the film 'My Fair Lady' this is where Professor Higgins sends Eliza Doolittle to get a fashionable dress. At one time it had a golf course on the roof. A department store that had a wonderful interior was Jenner's in Edinburgh which sadly closed a few years ago.
Thanks for this mention of Whiteley, the store was started and owned for a long time by my grandmothers grandparents and parents. Unfortunately the wealth that was made by the store and its sale didn’t trickle down to my generation. I still like to hear about this branch of my family though. ❤
Marshall Field's was the only one of these stores that I shopped in during the 1960s and 1970s. Miss it greatly. Noweverything is plastic crap mostly made in China😢😢!!
I read that people were so afraid of the escalator at first that Harrod's gave a free glass of wine to people who were willing to try it. If that was still a practice, going to the mall would be a lot more popular!
I heard today that it was brandy.
@@stephengraham5099 That wouldn't surprise me! I heard about it a few years ago, so I may have gotten it wrong. I just thought it was funny that the store went to that length to get people to ride the escalator!
Agree!!!! I'D GO FOR SURE!
@@barbararupp8814 I'd go just for that, even if I didn't need anything from the store!
Omg...thank you for that info...wow..😸
I remember when I was a kid- we visited New York - I was around 10- my mom bought me a dress at Bloomingdale’s and it was like 40 bucks! That was a lot of money back then. I still remember what it looked like and never forgot the experience!
John Wanamaker in Philadelphia - B. Altman in NYC - Selfridges in London - Kaufmann's in Pittsburgh - Printemps and Le Bon Marche in Paris. This wasn't a department store, but I would have loved to have seen the magnificent silver in the Gorham stores in NYC.
Wanamaker's is a must for this list. I also immediately thought to B Altman, Printemps and Galleries Lafayettes, although I am not certain B Altman was around in the Guilded Age. If Henri Bender makes the list as a department store, shouldn't Bonwit Teller make the list? It seems Bergdorf's and Saks should also make the list, as should La Samarataine in Paris. I don't agree that Kaufman should make the list. Every large US city at the time opened a generally upscale dept store, that all eventually were purchased by Federated (Macy's). But these were often for the middle/upper-middle classes
@@FrankTomaka-ie8fh There are two definitions of the Gilded Age, and I subscribe to the one that takes it to World War I, (and includes the whole Edwardian era) not just to 1900. B.Altman had been around since 1865. If it doesn't count, neither should the 1852 Marshall Fields nor the 1842 Harrods.
Loved Kauffman's in Pittsburgh, especially at Christmas time. It had a cafe. And at Christmas you took a narrow escalator up to a winter wonderland. It was beautiful and had Santa.
@@rebeccaharkins2058 I was only in Kaufmann's twice. The 2nd time must have been near its closing because I remember going up to the home boutique and there were so few customers in the store (and none in this department) that my friend and I were brought into the back room to look at the new things. I still have the double old fashioned glasses that I bought that day. I also seem to remember from my 1st time in Pittsburgh that Joseph Horne's was quite nice, too.
I was lucky enough to go into "City of Paris" just before it was demolished. I remember the beautiful interior and the dome. The Needless Mark-up building was not a pleasant addition to Union Square.
In Australia, our ‘gilded age’ department store was David Jones replete with all the finery and food you could wish for. The beautiful building on Elizabeth St in Sydney still proudly stands, though sadly, Woolworths (South Africa) bought it, refurbished it to look like a DFS to appeal to foreign tourists and then promptly sold it at an enormous loss. Like many Sydney-siders my family shopped there for generations and hold out hope for its restoration where you could always rely on the best service and quality - and who needs another LVMH outlet?!
Buckley & Nunn predates it- it's where the phrase 'your chances are Buckley's & none (Nunn)' comes from...
@@OcarinaSapphr- How interesting! I had to look it up - they were in Melbourne right? Do you know if Buckley and Nunn ever had a Sydney store?
I want to visit all of those stores, but only as an upper class person! I'm a sucker for the grandeur of lost times!
If You dress the part and enjoy." Acting. As if"..you can enjoy the rarified.air. without going into debt...plus You..just.learn souch an out human.beimgs...and marketing. bybeing The Mysterious Observer...
@@bethcaswell9670 what exactly do you want to say?!
My great grandfather was one of the original architects of the Chicago Marshall Fields! Bet he'd be real disappointed to find it's gone... 😢
Was he cute
The building is still there. Macy's occupies it.
I recognized it in this video! When I was in Chicago, I went to Macy's. It looks just the same inside as the old store did, and the landmark clock is on the corner outside.
No, he would be proud of his work, that is still mentioned, appreciated & studied today. Not forgotten. He made his mark. He resides in history, at the top of accomplished Architects. In the scheme of such, he has rare privilege. You should be proud. Find his talent in your DNA. It's there. .
Although not quite in the Gilded Age, a few other similar palatial stores I’d include are KaDeWe in Berlin, Hudson’s in Detroit, Stawbridge & Clothier in Philadelphia, and Selfridge’s in London. Hudson’s, whose main downtown location finally closed in 1993, was outdone by all of its suburban mall locations, and even those eventually became Marshall Field’s, and then Macy’s. The enormous downtown location, that set many firsts, was demolished around 1998. But a new high-rise paying homage to it is currently being built. As a person who grew up in the Midwest, I was always a fan of Marshall Field’s in downtown Chicago as well. I still refer to its building as that today, and miss the ways it used to be. KaDeWe, or it’s full name of Kaufhaus des Westens or essentially “department store of the west, is maybe the next best thing to Harrod’s in Europe in my opinion. Just an incredible place.
Quite informative. Thank you for sharing! All noted for possibly a future video.
I agree. I visited the store when I was in Berlin and it was a delight.
Ka-De-We in Berlin is certainly up with Bloomingdales, also let's not forget Les Galeries Lafayette, in Paris.
I miss Wanamaker's
You seem to b very knowledgeable on Department stores : I was wondering if you knew what Dept. store was used in the 1987 movie Mannequin ? Why ? because there is a scene where she glides down the middle of the store and passes a large pipe organ built into a wall ..... WTF ?
I remember, in the 70’s, seeing the neon lights of the House of Paris sign around Union Sq. In SF. I appreciate you revealing the story of the Rotunda on the lovely top floor restaurant of the Neiman Marcus store and glass facade looking out on to the activities in and around Union Sq. 👍🙏😎
I worked at Harrods and Liberty when I was young. Thanks for covering this.
You had me at "gilded!"🎉😅😊
I so miss Marshall fields in Chicago, even the suburban stores were wonderful experiences into the early eighties. Many times my mum, gramma, would shop and make sure to lunch in the tea room, many happy memories.
I loved the Ladies Mile bonus. I used to work in the neighborhood and enjoyed the architecture walking on my lunch break. New York history is so varied rich.
I look forward to our society becoming more cultured and respectful of quality. I shudder to think how much spray paint and other vandalism such stores would endure now.
Americans love to pretend they are royalty.
Love hearing stories about old money when it was new found wealth!!!
Has anyone else noticed, at :49 secs., there is a group scene, with a group of caucasian women (and a very few men in the background) all dressed in dark colors, but in the center, there is an African-American woman, dressed all in white. She does not appear to be a sales clerk, as she is wearing a hat, while most of the other women are hatless. There's an interesting story there, one that I would like to know more about. The past is much more complex than we think.
@jeraldbaxter3532 It could have been Madame C.J. Walker who own a beauty supply company in Indianapolis.
good eye! She certainly stands out and is obviously happy!
I remember Marshall Field’s, or Field’s as the locals called the store. Besides the State Street beauty, Field’s had other stores in neighboring suburbs. I remember treating myself to a birthday lunch at the State Street Field’s. I felt like a princess! And, yes, the Tiffany ceilings are gorgeous. As a Macy’s it doesn’t even approach the grandeur and reputation Field’s had. Sigh!😢
Macy's like dollar stores now!