When my mother lived in Walnut Creek, California, as a young girl in the 1940s and 50s, there were not many stores in town where one could shop. Broadway Plaza had not yet been built. Instead, what people did was take a trip into the city, either to Oakland or San Francisco.
It was a big deal to go into the city to shop. Shoppers would get dressed up. Some traveled there by car, some by streetcar over the San Francisco Bay Bridge, and others by bus. I never asked my mother, but we have a photo of her and her mother shopping outside stores in downtown Oakland. It was probably taken by a street photographer who left their card and for a small fee, they got a copy of the photograph. My mother looks about high school age.
In Oakland, there were many department and specialty stores. Capwell’s was located at 20th Street, facing both Broadway and Telegraph. It was a large department store with men’s and women’s clothing, household goods, and furniture. Sears was on Telegraph at 26th Street and had a parking lot. Joseph Magnin was at Broadway and 15th Street and carried women’s clothing. Here is a sampling of other stores in Oakland that were promoted by Margo.[1]
In San Francisco, there was the Emporium at Market Street, a department store like Capwell’s. In fact, later the two stores merged. Macy’s was at Stockton and O’Farrell Streets and took up nearly a whole block. Nearby was the City of Paris store. In 1950, it was one hundred years old. It was a specialty store and my favorite place to go was Normandy Lane food shops. They had treats from around the world.
One time, Mrs. Potter, our neighbor across the street, took me to San Francisco to shop during the Christmas holidays. I got dressed up and she drove us in, parking in the garage under Union Square. We looked at the Christmas decorations in the windows and inside the stores. I really loved the inside of the City of Paris and how they decorated the interior.
Shopping is so different now. The stores are different. There are few department stores. People dress differently. However, our descendants will likely remember today’s shopping fondly.
#52 Ancestors: Week 46: This Ancestor Went to the Market
This is my sixth year working on this year-long prompt, hosted by Amy Johnson Crow (https://www.amyjohnsoncrow.com/) at Generations Cafe. I write each week in one of my two blogs, either Mam-ma’s Southern Family or My Trails into the Past. I have enjoyed writing about my children’s ancestors in new and exciting ways.
[1] “Shopping
with Margo,” The Oakland Post Enquirer, 31 May 1950, p. 11.
This brought back many memories I had forgotten.
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