Window
Shopping
Let's go window
shopping. Our two historic Michigan retail stores feature items
popular during the decade.
J. L. Hudson's
 In
1928, Detroit boasted the world's tallest department store. The J. L. Hudson Department Store took up the entire downtown Detroit block bordered by Woodward, Farmer,
Gratiot and Grand River Streets. Its tower soared 25 stories high.
Trips
to Hudson's were often daylong excursions for back-to-school or holiday
shopping. Shoppers found merchandise from the United States and other
countries, as well as services such as shoe shines, tea rooms and beauty
and barber shops. When making a purchase, customers could charge items
by showing a numbered metal tag—a forerunner of the credit card.
The
Hudson's store in downtown Detroit was abandoned in
the 1980s. The building was demolished in 1998. But you can peek into a
bit of Hudson history at the museum.
What's in Hudson's window today?
Kresge's
 Sebastian S. Kresge started the first S. S. Kresge Store in 1899 in Detroit. By
1912, there were almost 100 Kresge stores spread throughout the
United States.
At
Kresge's—and at other "dime stores" such as F. W.
Woolworth—people could buy varied household and personal items costing
no more than a dime. The ten-cent limit was abandoned after World War I, but the name
"dime store" or "five-and-dime" stuck.
In
1977, the S. S. Kresge Company became the Kmart Corporation, headquartered
in Troy, Michigan.
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