The Ames Fan Club

DISCUSS!

hears lechmere

Electric AVE

and wards

Here's a pic of the old Albany, New York Lechmere, still standing, although recently, the logo was taken down.

Here's a shot of the logo on the West side of the building

wards

QuoteOriginally posted by amesman
Here's a pic of the old Albany, New York Lechmere, still standing, although recently, the logo was taken down.

Board rules...  You need to resize this picture.  Sorry, but i's really annoying when it expands the page beyond the threshold of the window.

Can you get more picture of the Electric Ave store and the Very nice looking Wards location?? I would love to see more of them both.

hears anouther Electric Ave picture

During GOB sale at Wards...

ooooo!!!! Awesome!! Also, Electric Avenue was also the name of  the electronics department in later Wards stores.

were is that Wards store:huh:

I worked at the Lechmere at the Walden Galleria in Buffalo. We weren't told that the stores were closing. Everybody first saw it on the local news. After that, they had to tell us. Towards the end, there were rumors that Best Buy was looking at location and we were hoping that would happen because they might hire us.

After closing, the store was a JC Penney Home store for a while, but it's now split between a DSW shoe store and a Steve & Barry's.

Hears A WARDS logo that still lights up at night since it's 2001 closing

Same with the sign at my former Ames... hehehe.  If I owned the property to a former Ames or something, and had the free cash, I would still light up the sign...

An old Auto Express / Montgomery Ward building behind University Mall in Tampa, Florida ... 19 February 2005 ... (I hope this works!) ... the Mont. Ward itself was converted to a Burlington Coat Factory about a year after Mont. Ward closed.

Okay, let's try this (can't you tell I'm a rookie??) ...

(http://cnurse.photosite.com/nc27/wards2.jpg)


(http://cnurse.photosite.com/nc27/wards.jpg)

hears a G O B sign at mountgomery ward back in 2001

QuoteOriginally posted by Caldor1999
hears a G O B sign at mountgomery ward back in 2001

and the wards in the regcy mall

QuoteOriginally posted by Caldor1999

QuoteOriginally posted by Caldor1999
hears a G O B sign at mountgomery ward back in 2001

and the wards in the regcy mall

heats how the store looks now

hears a cool looking M WARDS STORE MALL EN

same store only the outside en

Nice pics, here's one of a Wards (auto center) with the old logo.

QuoteOriginally posted by nibbick40
Okay, let's try this (can't you tell I'm a rookie??) ...

(http://cnurse.photosite.com/nc27/wards2.jpg)


(http://cnurse.photosite.com/nc27/wards.jpg)

Montgomery Ward and Toys R Us together in one store:holysh::holysh:

QuoteOriginally posted by Caldor1999
Montgomery Ward and Toys R Us together in one store:holysh::holysh:

lol i love this pic it a Itanian Montgomery Ward:bigsmile::insane::insane:

Just remember....You can't shop smarter than Wards! ;)

QuoteOriginally posted by Caldor1999
hears a cool looking M WARDS STORE MALL EN

:holysh::holysh::o:o:cool::cool:

They used to have two of them by me. one in springfield mall in springfield,virginia, & one at wheaton plaza, in wheaton maryland.

springfield mall makes me want to cry every time i go past it because it was five minutes away from my grandmother, who recently died of cancer.

BTW,i know that Monkey wards/toys r us store!!!!! it's across the street from, a mall in gathiersburg maryland. The store is now a Burlington Coat Factory

QuoteOriginally posted by Anonymous
Just remember....You can't shop smarter than Wards! ;)

'


that brings back fond memories...............

Actullay, the last Wards store i knew of in virginia & maryland that hadn't been turned into something else, was......

The big Lechmere in Newington closed in 1997 about. Now it is a Jo Ann Etc Superstore and a Big Lots (the same plaza that Toy Works was in and Modell's is coming in). We actually have a small TV/VCR from there that still works fine.

Also don't forget, TGIF fridays is also moving into the plaza. they sre constructing a new building for them. Also, sometime this spring or summer, the plaza is going to get a new makeover, new facade, repaving of parking lot and some tress are coming down to.

I heard about that. I like to read the Town Manager's Reports on the Newington Homepage. It was thought that TGI Fridays was going to be where Panera Bread is now when Wal-Mart opened in 2001. I think that if they do over the JoAnn Plaza, the turnpike will look great and re-vived as a whole. Between 1999 and 2003, you could easily find an empty store on the pike, but now retailers are seeing the central advantage of the pike in Newington. The only store they're clear on not putting on the pike is Christmas Tree Shop.

There was a Lechmere at Carousel Mall in syracuse. My Neighbor works at the mall. gutting out closed stores an building new stores in the mall. He took out this huge fire Extinuse gave it to my family. I still have that Fire Extinuse that came from Lechmere

what is Electic Ave

QuoteOriginally posted by shakethis1234
what is Electic Ave

It was a breif store format that Wards had...pretty much the same thing as Service Merchandise, with more electrionics added in. I think they also used "Electric Ave" name on some of their appliances.

QuoteOriginally posted by shakethis1234
what is Electic Ave

that store lasted from 1985 to 1997 or wards might hvae picked it yp along with lechmere in 1994

I remember the Buffalo Walden Galleria Lechmere when I was little. I used to call them "Lechmera's" for some reason. I used to love the sign on the side of the store. That beautiful warm bright red. I would just stand in the middle of the parking and gaze at it while my mom and dad packed their purchases into the car. I wasn't in it much, but I remember once we got stuck in the elavator leading to the store as the mall was closing. I have some good memories of that place. It closed with all the other Lechmeres in 1997, even though the elavator sign stayed up a few years longer.

And if we're gonna talk about Ward's, let's not forget ol' Dixie Square!! Gotta love the psychedelic wallpaper in this place. (I've collected some shots of the interior from the net too.) Closed since 1977!!!

From the DeadMalls.com site.

QuoteOriginally posted by Jag67
I remember the Buffalo Walden Galleria Lechmere when I was little. I used to call them "Lechmera's" for some reason. I used to love the sign on the side of the store. That beautiful warm bright red. I would just stand in the middle of the parking and gaze at it while my mom and dad packed their purchases into the car. I wasn't in it much, but I remember once we got stuck in the elavator leading to the store as the mall was closing. I have some good memories of that place. It closed with all the other Lechmeres in 1997, even though the elavator sign stayed up a few years longer.

And if we're gonna talk about Ward's, let's not forget ol' Dixie Square!! Gotta love the psychedelic wallpaper in this place. (I've collected some shots of the interior from the net too.) Closed since 1977!!!

From the DeadMalls.com site.

that mall closed in 1979 and was rentvaied for the blues brouthers movie in 1980

Yes, the mall did close in 1979, but the Ward's store closed a little earlier because they moved to a new locaton.

It is funny that you mention Dixie Square Mall.  I just watched "The Blues Brothers" from 1980.  The mall they drive through was the actual Dixie Square Mall.  It has allready been closed for a year when the movie was shot and some of the stores shown in the mall really were not the tenants that were there when the mall was open.  I know the mall did NOT have a Toys R Us in it.  I think it was a drug store when the mall really was open.  Does anyone know for sure?

Yes, it was a Walgreens. In the movie it was dressed up as Toys R Us because Walgreens didn't want to be in the film.

Here's some interior shots of the dixie square location. I'm gonna guess this was the electronics department. Groovy!!

Men's Jackets. Strangggggeee.

Funky!!

Imagine the looks wards would get if they had this stuff in their stores "today" (Ok fine 2001).

Can you believe this is ALL gone now????

QuoteOriginally posted by Jag67
Funky!!

Imagine the looks wards would get if they had this stuff in their stores "today" (Ok fine 2001).

Can you believe this is ALL gone now????

from what i heard that Montgomery Ward Rectley Burned Down in 2004:flaming:lol that flames resent the fire lol:bigsmile:

but that mall is so messed up u can hardley tell what stores what lol when i saw pictures of that mall i had no idea were the old montgomery ward was:insane:

Actually, it didn't burn down, it was gutted. That's right, COMPLETELY gutted. Nothing is left of the Wards store except a shell.

Now what if American Kitchen (The tennant who is moving into wards) decides at the last minute to back out?? That means they destroyed a great 60's-70's museum of decor for nothing. I don't see how anybody could move into a store that has been abandoned for TWENTY-EIGHT years with such little renovation, not to mention the store will be "open" while the REST of the mall sits abandoned among weeds (Excuse me, Trees). Who would wanna go to that place?? What about the parking lot?? I think it should have been preserved, as a monument of retail in the 60's and 70's. Too late now.. At least they let the stuff on the pillars, to remind of what once was. Ahh, it will probably be removed soon too. Bummer...

LEAVE DIXIE SQUARE ALONE!!!!

Can you believe they did this??!!

wards on TV 2001

a verey old old looking montgomery ward

wonder land mall wards

wards in CA

more wards

m w

i wish i hjad a chance to see one of these stores they looked like a cleaner version of Sears

the head quaters this has since become a aprment bulding

hears my drawing of the new Montgomery Ward aka Monkey Ward lol

My local Monkey Wards was awesome! I LOVED Electric Avenue, and I only have very blurry toddler memories of it :( But it closed before the company went out of business, around 1998 or 1999. I think the last thing I ever got from there was an Electric Avenue brand Giga Pet! Now the store is a Burlington Coat Factory and natural market combined. Oh, and this store had an awesome Kids' Store too..had a separate name, can't recall...will try to post pics someday!

QuoteOriginally posted by Jag67
Here's some interior shots of the dixie square location. I'm gonna guess this was the electronics department. Groovy!!

that person must have been high or on acide to make such a crazy looking store like that LOL:insane:

mean while how did they get the name Monkey Wards???????????????????????????????????????????

wards sign

Cool sign, i always thought that the company used Montgomery Ward forever until the move to a shorter name and logo: Wards

Closing sale at Wards...

QuoteOriginally posted by Zayre88
Closing sale at Wards...

were is that wards located lol and how did they get the name monkey wards lol?

hears the logo there useing on there web sight now lol therer useing the old one and not the Wards logo

hears a shutterd Montgomery Ward store

QuoteOriginally posted by Caldor1999

QuoteOriginally posted by Jag67
Here's some interior shots of the dixie square location. I'm gonna guess this was the electronics department. Groovy!!

that person must have been high or on acide to make such a crazy looking store like that LOL:insane:

mean while how did they get the name Monkey Wards???????????????????????????????????????????

Well, that store was built in 1965, and in a store built in 1965 there was gonna be ugly crap like that on the walls. Of course, this was one of the last department stores to feature ALL it's orginal 1960's/70's decor, UNTIL IT WAS GUTTED!!!! This store closed in 1977. Was that kind of decor still accepted by the public?? What's funny, is theis place was open for 12 years and has been abandoned for 28...Funny!!

hears my NEW montgomery Wards ologo:yup:

I think that the name "Monkey Wards" came to be when someone either: a) got sick of saying "Montgomery" and decided that it sounded enough like "Monkey"
or b) Just plain decided that Montgomery sounded a lot like Monkey when you say it sort of fast! LOL it's like a pet name for the store.

2 days ago i saw  a truck with montgomery wards on the side of it

QuoteOriginally posted by Rayco7030
2 days ago i saw  a truck with montgomery wards on the side of it

i saw one last mounth all it sed was WARDS and the logo waz red

hear something there useing on there web sight heh kinds look like a chain they had Elecritce Ave & More Rooms & More heh

Here's an ancient Montgomery Ward sign still up on Main St. in Webster, MA.

why is it still up lol and weres the old Montgomery Ward lol did the close and some ojuther store moved in and dident take down the sign lol

I AGREE TOTALLY!!!

you CAN NOT put a store into a building that has been rotting in decay for 28 years and be sucessful, let alone get people to come to it. It cannot be done. It's just gonna GOB in a few months, destroying a piece of history for no reason. What about the rest of the complex?? I take it that's not gonna be fixed either. So, why would people come to a store in a mall with a forest for a parking lot?? It just cannot be done. The store should've been preserved in it's 60's glory.

What the heck is American kitchen thinking??!!

I wish that people (including companies like those trying to enter a certain old store in the Mall and open their store for business...you know who I mean!) could just accept Dixie Square as it is--a remembrance of the way things were 30 years ago. Some may call it an eyesore, but I call it history. If they can't leave it alone, the best thing they could do is put some sort of sign designating it as something important...which it is!

Also, I too can't imagine anyone wanting to shop there once it reopens as American Kitchen. What will their Grand Opening flyers say? "Come to American Kitchen! We're located in an abandoned mall! Watch out for the big dogs! And please, take a complimentary gas mask as to avoid mold contamination and allergies! Thank you!"

Even though it may be kind of ugly on the inside, the old Wards, I think, should stay as it is!

teh resion why the mall colsed in the first place
is because of the crime there i think that mall should berestored with a JC Penny Macys Sears to bring it back to life :yup:

Well, Wards' classic weird interior is gone, how about sparing Penneys, in all it's groovy, weird, psychedelic, acid freak-designed splendor. These stores are preserved history!!! Stores don't look like that anymore, and they never will again. So why can't it just be left alone??

If the mall cannot be saved (which, unfortunately, it probably cant) they shougld at least make a museum ABOUT it, maybe building it using parts of the mall or something.

QuoteOriginally posted by Caldor1999

QuoteOriginally posted by Caldor1999
Montgomery Ward and Toys R Us together in one store:holysh::holysh:

lol i love this pic it a Itanian Montgomery Ward

That's at the Villa Italia mall in Lakewood, Colorado. Indeed, it was designed as an Italian terrace, and this Monkey Wards building was one of the few to hold that look throughout the years.

The mall has since been torn down.

A friend of mine said that although the balconies were not accessible, he watched the demolition, and said that they knocked down the exterior wall exposing a conference room which had obviously not been touched since the late 1960s - complete with a red curtain and who knows-what...

Here's a picture of the attached Auto Center.

I have a few more of this location, and I also have pictures of the demolition of another local Ward's, which survived to see the last remodel for the chain. Anyone want to see these?

I want to see them!!!

QuoteOriginally posted by truviking05
I want to see them!!!

Looking into lower level building. Notice the escalators on the left.

Looking into one of the side entrances.

Demolition of the Auto Center.

The original Auto Center sign, as amesman tells me.

An old Montgomery Ward.

hears a acrtle about Wards closing with was anouther sad blow to the retilr world:(


Montgomery Ward says it's going out of business

Competitors, weak sales doom retail trailblazer

By LESLIE KAUFMAN AND CLAUDIA H. DEUTSCH

New York Times

Friday, December 29, 2000

Montgomery Ward & Co., once the greatest American retailer and the pioneer of many sales practices that became widely accepted, said Thursday that it would go out of business after 128 years.

The company, owned by General Electric, said it would close its 250 stores and dismiss the 28,000 associates who run them in the coming months. It filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection for a second and final time and eliminated 450 national jobs immediately. The company is based in Chicago and operates in 30 states, including one store in Wisconsin, in Green Bay.

Ward said the disappointing holiday season was the final straw. "Sadly, today's action is unavoidable," Roger Goddu, chairman and chief executive, said in a statement. "Overall weak holiday sales and a very difficult retail environment simply did not permit us to complete the turnaround that might have been possible in an otherwise- thriving economy."

Whatever the immediate reason, the demise of Ward was long in the cards. Retail historians dated the start of the decline to the postwar boom of the 1950s, when its rival, Sears, Roebuck and Co., moved aggressively into the then-nascent suburbs, but Ward, under the steely leadership of its then-chief executive, Sewell Avery, hoarded cash and waited for a second Great Depression.

"It has been a slow-motion train wreck," said Sid Doolittle, a Chicago based-retail consultant who was an executive with Ward for 28 years.

In 1872, Aaron Montgomery Ward, a traveling dry goods salesman, started selling to farmers by mail through a one-page catalog list. By inventing the general merchandise mail-order catalog, Ward could keep prices low through bypassing the middlemen, such as small-town shopkeepers and itinerant salesmen. Sears was not founded until 14 years later, and its catalog came years after that.

In 1875, Ward pioneered another practice now taken for granted: "Satisfaction guaranteed or your money back."

A decade later, the Ward book was 240 pages and the shopper's bible for rural folk. The company went public in 1919 and began opening its own stores in the next decade.

Part of Americana

As the company grew into one of the biggest retailers in the country, its colorful history became intertwined with that of the nation.

It was a Ward advertising writer who in 1939 wrote "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" as an illustrated poem to hand out to children visiting Ward's Santa for Christmas.

In 1944, Avery defied the War Labor Board over its attempts to force recognition of a union. President Franklin D. Roosevelt ordered that Avery and Ward's Chicago properties be seized. Many newspapers published a front-page picture of the unflappable Avery, his impeccable double-breasted suit and pocket handkerchief unmussed, being carried out of his store by two soldiers.

But Avery and his company were at their height -- a perch soon to be lost. Avery had saved Ward in the 1930s from bankruptcy by foreseeing the Great Depression and halting expansion and saving cash. He repeated this formula after the war, yet this time Sears got it right by spending heavily to be the first to serve consumers in the suburbs blossoming across the nation.

Ward eventually caught on and tried to move to the suburbs, too, although by then Sears was well ensconced in important malls in good locations at intersections of the emerging interstate highway system. Ward could never catch up.

Ward had 16 stores in Wisconsin by 1974, when it employed 1,659 people in the state. The company opened several catalog stores in the state, including the Milwaukee area, in the mid-1930s.

Ad agency off guard

The announcement Thursday will have a major impact on the Milwaukee-based Laughlin/Constable advertising agency.

The agency won the Ward broadcast ad account in 1998, when the account was valued at about $50 million. That account was the largest piece of business at the time for the agency, which handled the work at its Milwaukee and Chicago offices.

Laughlin/Constable spokeswoman Anna Zeck said the agency was surprised at the news of the latest bankruptcy. Zeck was unable to say what effect the bankruptcy would have on agency staffing.

GE takes over

In an attempt to diversify its assets, Mobil Oil bought 54% of Ward in 1974 and then the rest two years later. Mobil invested a lot of money, but Ward continued to struggle. In 1985, it shut down the catalog business that had made its fame.

Three years later, struggling to free itself from Mobil, Ward instead set the stage for another bout of corporate ownership. GE Capital and Kidder Peabody, then a GE subsidiary, helped arrange and finance a $3.8 billion management-led buyout of Ward in 1988. GE Capital retained a 50% stake in the retailer.

Faced with tough new discount competitors such as Target and Wal- Mart, the business continued to flounder and filed for bankruptcy in 1997. By that time, GE Capital had invested $180 million in Ward and lent it far more than that. As part of the bankruptcy reorganization, GE helped recapitalize the company and wound up owning it.

In the years since, GE brought in new management and invested heavily in modernizing the stores, but nothing seemed to pump up sales or profits.

Several analysts recalled a mid-December meeting with GE Chairman Jack Welch and GE Capital Services Chairman Dennis Dammerman at which the two executives acknowledged that Ward would lose $227 million after taxes this year.

"They cited it as one of a number of situations where they were contemplating taking actions to reduce losses," said Martin A. Sankey, who follows the company for Goldman, Sachs.

Analysts not surprised

GE was never particularly enthusiastic about the retail business, and considering the losses, the announcement Thursday did not surprise analysts.

The timing of the Ward closing probably had as much to do with taxes and the reporting of earnings as with stanching the losses. GE reaped $1.4 billion earlier this year from the sale of its stake in PaineWebber, and that gain will probably be used to offset charges associated with the Ward closing.

"The result is that there would be no net impact on earnings from the closure," Sankey said. GE issued a statement confirming that there would be no impact on earnings.

The rough holiday season has already claimed other casualties. Bradlees, a discount chain in the Northeast, said this week that it was going out of business.

Doris Hajewski of the Journal Sentinel staff contributed to this report.

RED-LETTER DAY FOR WARD'S

A Ward advertising writer in 1939 wrote "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" as an illustrated poem to hand out to children visiting Ward's Santa for Christmas.

TIMELINE OF A FADED GIANT

1872: Aaron Montgomery Ward founds the first dry goods mail-order catalog business. The company's first catalog lists 163 items.

1875: Company coins the phrase "Satisfaction Guaranteed or Your Money Back."

1883: Company's 240-page catalog lists 10,000 items.

1900: Records $8.7 million in sales but falls behind Sears, Roebuck and Co., which generates $10 million.

1926: First freestanding retail store opens in Plymouth, Ind.

1928: Opens 244 stores. By 1929, company has 531 stores.

1930: Ward declines proposal to merge with Sears.

1939: Advertising copywriter Robert L. May develops character and illustrated poem "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" for company executives.

1968: Company merges with Container Corp. of America to form Marcor Inc. Mobil Oil Corp. later acquires Marcor.

1985: Company unveils specialty store strategy and discontinues catalog operations.

1988: Management undertakes successful $3.8 billion leveraged buyout, making Ward a privately held company.

1991: Resumes mail-order catalog business.

1994: Ward opens first Electric Avenue & More stores, acquires New England retail chain Lechmere.

1997: Company files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

1999: GE Capital Services purchases Ward, brings it out of bankruptcy. Company abandons specialty store design and begins offering moderately priced apparel, electronics and furniture.

2000: Ward announces plan to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, close 250 stores in 30 states.

2001:Ward closes for good


2004:comes back as a online retiler only

When WArd's bought lechmere out in 1994, Lechmere went downhill and got junky!

When Ward's filed 8 years ago from THIS TIME, I was afraid it would be the end of Lechmere and I was right.

WArd's closed like 35-40% of its stores. They pulled out of the northeast, They had 3 in NH: NAshua, Bedford and NEwington, and one in Vt: Rutland. They pulled out of the northeast in a round of closings.

QuoteOriginally posted by d_fife
When WArd's bought lechmere out in 1994, Lechmere went downhill and got junky!

When Ward's filed 8 years ago from THIS TIME, I was afraid it would be the end of Lechmere and I was right.

WArd's closed like 35-40% of its stores. They pulled out of the northeast, They had 3 in NH: NAshua, Bedford and NEwington, and one in Vt: Rutland. They pulled out of the northeast in a round of closings.

they had a few in NY too one stayed open till 2001 though

The former Montgomery Ward Auto Center in Nashua NH.  The labelscar is still there and the words: Lubrification, Tires, Tune-Up even if the store closed in 1997 and later became Ames !

QuoteOriginally posted by Zayre88
The former Montgomery Ward Auto Center in Nashua NH.  The labelscar is still there and the words: Lubrification, Tires, Tune-Up even if the store closed in 1997 and later became Ames !

that became a AMES wow so this makes anouther store ammes moved into lol wow that cool

Sign.

new lechmere logo more daker orange and extended r

December 28, 2000


An Open Letter To Wards Customers:

For the past 128 years, it has been an honor to bring you quality apparel, fine jewelry, house wares, furniture, appliances, electronics, automotive products and services, and great value.

Although our doors will soon be closing, we want to thank you for your loyalty and support for so many years. While our doors remain open to conduct our going out of business sale, we have had to make certain modifications to our policies and plans to address customer service requests:


Ongoing Sales - All sales on December 29 and thereafter are final. No refunds or exchanges will be made for these transactions.
Gift certificates -- Gift certificates issued prior to December 29, 2000 will be honored for merchandise through January 31, 2001.
Merchandise certificates -- Merchandise certificates issued prior to December 29, 2000 will be honored through January 31, 2001.
Returns -- Merchandise certificates will be issued for returns of purchases made prior to December 29, 2000 within the customary 30-day or 14-day return periods, and will be honored until January 31, 2001.
Wards Credit Card rebate certificates -- Credit rebate certificates will be honored through January 31, 2001.

The YES Discount Club is being discontinued and the YES Club Tuesday discount is no longer being honored.
Warranty claims -- Beyond our standard 14-day return period, any claims for defective products will be referred to the manufacturer of the product who issued the warranty.
Service contracts -- For service requests made under contracts with National Product Care, Virginia Surety or 3M, customers will be referred to those respective companies.
Current repair work, including automotive repairs -- Repairs will be completed and payment received. If parts are not readily available to us, we will return the unrepaired product to you.
Layaways -- Layaways may be paid in full and merchandise claimed if it is in stock. Customers who request cancellation of layaways may obtain their deposit refunded in cash or a Merchandise Certificate, which will be honored through January 31.

For customer service issues or questions:
1-800-695-3553

On behalf of Wards 28,000 associates nationwide, thank you for many years of support, and we'll do our best to serve you as well as we have in the past until the day our doors close.

Roger V. Goddu
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

Open Letter To Vendors:


Montgomery Ward, LLC filed for Chapter 11 protection in the United States Bankruptcy Court in Wilmington, Delaware on December 28, 2000. The company has begun orderly going out of business sales and has no plans to reorganize its operations. As you may be aware, under Chapter 11, the company is entitled to the protection of an automatic stay which operates as an injunction prohibiting a creditor from attempting to collect or enforce a claim arising from the provision of goods or services prior to the filing of the Chapter 11 petition.

An official committee of unsecured creditors is expected to be formed in January, and proof of claim forms will be mailed to creditors in the next 60 days.

Wards, consistent with its practice since December 18, 2000, will not accept any further shipments of merchandise unless they have been previously paid for.


Spencer Heine
Executive Vice President

Wards Real Estate Locations

Available for sale (if owned) or assignment (if leased):


Please contact Loren Hohman, Director of Real Estate

312-467-6241 or 312-467-6117

 

LOC #
 ADDRESS
 CITY
 ST
 OWN / LEASE (BLDG / GRND)
 GROSS SQ FT
 

 RETAIL STORE LEASES
 
 
 
 
 
1961R
 300 S. UNIVERSITY AVENUE
 LITTLE ROCK
 AR
 L/L
 145,721
 
1353R
 4469 THOMAS ROAD
 PHOENIX-ARCADIA CROSSING
 AZ
 L/L
 87,404
 
1511R
 1751 W. BETHANY HOME ROAD
 PHOENIX-CHRISTOWN
 AZ
 L/L
 150,326
 
1261R
 4147 N. ORACLE ROAD
 TUCSON
 AZ
 L/L
 102,400
 
1541R
 3601 E. BROADWAY
 TUCSON-EL CON
 AZ
 L/L
 198,910
 
1477R
 801 EAST AVENUE
 CHICO (HOME)
 CA
 L/L
 81,325
 
2071R
 133 SERRAMONTE CENTER
 DALY CITY
 CA
 L/L
 184,946
 
1554R
 1331 S. HARBOR BOULEVARD
 FULLERTON
 CA
 L/L
 207,157
 
1492R
 550 GROSSMONT CENTER DR
 LA MESA
 CA
 L/L
 144,717
 
2308R
 141 LAKEWOOD CENTER MALL
 LAKEWOOD
 CA
 L/L
 195,631
 
1556R
 2001 MCHENRY AVENUE
 MODESTO
 CA
 L/L
 128,745
 
1508R
 2450 OROVILLE DAM BLVD
 OROVILLE
 CA
 L/L
 73,645
 
1515R
 2302 MONUMENT BLVD.
 PLEASANT HILL
 CA
 L/L
 146,352
 
1381R
 10788 FOOT HILL BLVD.
 RANCHO CUCAMONGA
 CA
 L/L
 92,636
 
1522R
 300 LOCUST STREET
 REDDING
 CA
 L/L
 75,700
 
2426R
 3530 RIVERSIDE
 RIVERSIDE
 CA
 L/L
 94,430
 
1965R
 3600 N. ROSEMEAD BOULEVARD
 ROSEMEAD
 CA
 L/L
 177,762

1380R
 MAIN & SAN JUAN GRADE ROAD
 SALINAS
 CA
 L/L
 100,249
 
1533R
 444 CAPITOL AVENUE
 SAN JOSE-EAST
 CA
 L/L
 155,800
 
1535R
 1400 W. 17TH STREET
 SANTA ANA
 CA
 L/L
 131,594
 
1540R
 5400 PACIFIC
 STOCKTON
 CA
 L/L
 187,074
 
2195R
 21405 MADRONA AVENUE
 TORRANCE
 CA
 L/L
 176,584
 
1579R
 500 S. MILLS ROAD
 VENTURA
 CA
 L/L
 199,168
 
1425R
 5801 W. 44TH ST.
 DENVER-LAKESIDE
 CO
 L/L
 137,469
 
1748R
 7200 W. ALAMEDA
 DENVER-LAKEWOOD
 CO
 L/L
 127,274
 
1457R
 2160 GREELEY MALL
 GREELEY
 CO
 L/L
 71,919
 
1510R
 5451 WEST 88TH AVE.
 WESTMINSTER
 CO
 L/L
 124,427
 
1436R
 1205 44TH AVENUE WEST
 BRADENTON
 FL
 L/L
 84,984
 
1055R
 140 CLEARWATER MALL
 CLEARWATER
 FL
 L/L
 124,082
 
1437R
 4005 U.S. 98 NORTH
 LAKELAND
 FL
 L/L
 94,792
 
1120R
 2701 S.W. COLLEGE - STE 400
 OCALA
 FL
 L/L
 90,771
 
2393R
 3091 MANCHESTER EXPRESSWAY
 COLUMBUS
 GA
 L/L
 132,285
 
1397R
 2720 MT. PLEASANT
 BURLINGTON
 IA
 L/L
 59,878
 
1207R
 4015 NORTHWEST BLVD
 DAVENPORT
 IA
 L/L
 124,280
 
1567R
 9650 S. RIDGELAND AVE.
 CHICAGO RIDGE
 IL
 L/L
 83,661
 
1260R
 47TH & DAMEN
 CHICAGO-47TH & DAMEN
 IL
 L/L
 82,414
 
2601R
 6525 W. DIVERSEY
 CHICAGO-BRICKYARD
 IL
 L/L
 179,646
 
2386R
 7601 S. CICERO
 CHICAGO-FORD CITY
 IL
 L/L
 194,093
 
1001R
 9600 S. EVERGREEN PK
 EVERGREEN PARK
 IL
 L/L
 259,296
 
2326R
 4500-16TH STREET
 MOLINE
 IL
 L/L
 127,856
 
1002R
 999 N. ELMHURST ROAD
 MT. PROSPECT
 IL
 L/L
 225,416
 
1707R
 5601 W. TOUHY AVENUE
 SKOKIE-VILLAGE CROSSING
 IL
 L/L
 112,500
 
2258R
 3701 S. MAIN
 ELKHART
 IN
 L/L
 96,676
 
2530R
 8203 BROADWAY
 MERRILLVILLE
 IN
 L/L
 148,260
 
1014R
 8005 CALUMET AVENUE
 MUNSTER
 IN
 L/L
 146,822
 
2208R
 4601 STATE AVE
 K.C.-INDIAN SPRINGS
 KS
 L/L
 147,404
 
1406R
 1831 S.W. WANAMAKER ROAD
 TOPEKA-WEST RIDGE
 KS
 L/L
 112,700
 
1675R
 3805 E. HARRY ST
 WICHITA-HARRY ST
 KS
 L/L
 144,222
 
2168R
 1804 MAC ARTHUR DRIVE
 ALEXANDRIA
 LA
 L/L
 93,261
 
1385R
 7401 FLORIDA BLVD
 BATON ROUGE
 LA
 L/L
 133,026
 
1600R
 200 NORTHGATE MALL
 LAFAYETTE
 LA
 L/L
 109,080
 
2245R
 538 W. PRIEN LAKE RD
 LAKE CHARLES
 LA
 L/L
 97,418
 
1621R
 1100 OLIVER
 MONROE
 LA
 L/L
 114,308
 
2260R
 200 ANNAPOLIS MALL
 ANNAPOLIS
 MD
 L/L
 139,033
 
1075R
 6711 RITCHIE HIGHWAY
 GLEN BURNIE
 MD
 L/L
 180,000
 
1097R
 6200 ANNAPOLIS
 HYATTSVILLE-LANDOVER HILL
 MD
 L/L
 182,000
 
2083R
 1205-1207 WASHINGTON BLVD
 LAUREL
 MD
 L/L
 161,368
 
1167R
 2302 N. SALISBURY
 SALISBURY
 MD
 L/L
 107,565
 
1886R
 3745 BRANCH AVENUE
 TEMPLE HILLS-HILLCREST
 MD
 L/L
 164,164
 
1153R
 1238 PUTTY HILL AVENUE
 TOWSON
 MD
 L/L
 149,843
 
1403R
 400 N. CENTER STREET
 WESTMINSTER
 MD
 L/L
 89,260
 
1163R
 11160 VIERS MILL RD
 WHEATON
 MD
 L/L
 235,400
 
1447R
 3341 S. LINDEN ROAD
 FLINT
 MI
 L/L
 122,920
 
1235R
 1100-28TH STREET S.W.
 GRAND RAPIDS-ROGERS PLZA
 MI
 L/L
 157,030
 
1289R
 15 MILE RD & GRATIOT AVE
 MT. CLEMENS
 MI
 L/L
 137,410
 
1308R
 409 N. TELEGRAPH ROAD
 PONTIAC
 MI
 L/L
 212,754
 
2018R
 28500 TELEGRAPH ROAD
 SOUTHFIELD
 MI
 L/L
 154,658
 
1338R
 13665 EUREKA ROAD
 SOUTHGATE
 MI
 L/L
 148,524
 
1355R
 28800 DEQUINDRE ROAD
 WARREN
 MI
 L/L
 148,651
 
1319R
 1100 HWY 14SW BLDG 201
 ROCHESTER-APACHE MALL
 MN
 L/L
 91,404
 
1822R
 1709 MISSOURI BLVD
 JEFFERSON CITY-SW PLAZA
 MO
 L/L
 87,322
 
2136R
 208 NORTHPARK MALL
 JOPLIN
 MO
 L/L
 117,110
 
1592R
 8627 STATE LINE ROAD
 K.C.-WARD PKWY
 MO
 L/L
 126,303
 
1962R
 300 BATTLEFIELD MALL
 SPRINGFIELD-BATTLEFIELD
 MO
 L/L
 139,064
 
1651R
 3702 FREDERICK BOULEVARD
 ST. JOSEPH
 MO
 L/L
 104,992
 
1614R
 ASHEVILLE MALL
 ASHEVILLE
 NC
 L/L
 96,755
 
1374R
 90 WINROCK CENTER N.E.
 ALBUQUERQUE-WINROCK CTR
 NM
 L/L
 152,958
 
2251R
 2120 S. DECATUR
 LAS VEGAS-DECATUR
 NV
 L/L
 116,513
 
1524R
 1900 SILVERADA
 RENO-SILVERADA
 NV
 L/L
 95,004
 
1439R
 790 SOUTHROAD
 POUGHKEEPSIE
 NY
 L/L
 121,800
 
2070R
 4004 W. TUSCARAWAS
 CANTON
 OH
 L/L
 149,730
 
1205R
 2891 STATE ROAD
 CUYAHOGA FALLS
 OH
 L/L
 130,456
 
1379R
 US 77 & GRAND AVENUE
 ARDMORE
 OK
 L/L
 98,018
 
1630R
 1800 PENN SQ MALL
 OKLAHOMA CITY-PENN SQ
 OK
 L/L
 158,171
 
1501R
 1700 NORTH RIVERSIDE
 MEDFORD
 OR
 L/L
 84,480
 
1049R
 NORTH HANOVER & ROUTE 81
 CARLISLE
 PA
 L/L
 79,464
 
1050R
 300 CHAMBER PLAZA
 CHARLEROI
 PA
 L/L
 93,452
 
1065R
 HWY 255 & SHAFFER ROAD
 DUBOIS
 PA
 L/L
 59,427
 
1112R
 5072 JONESTOWN ROAD
 HARRISBURG-EAST
 PA
 L/L
 98,102
 
1169R
 3203 TRINDLE ROAD
 HARRISBURG-WEST
 PA
 L/L
 98,720
 
1117R
 100 BURREL PLAZA
 LOWER BURRELL
 PA
 L/L
 93,789
 
1108R
 1125 CONNEAUT LAKE ROAD
 MEADVILLE
 PA
 L/L
 59,427
 
2153R
 RT. 119 NORTH.
 UNIONTOWN-CONNELLSVILLE
 PA
 L/L
 93,164
 
1953R
 2801 E. MARKET
 YORK
 PA
 L/L
 118,939
 
1037R
 INTERSTATE 385 @ 1-85
 GREENVILLE
 SC
 L/L
 109,637
 
1090R
 N. EASTMAN RD & E. STONE
 KINGSPORT
 TN
 L/L
 82,964
 
1376R
 I-40 & WESTERN ST.
 AMARILLO-WESTERN PLAZA
 TX
 L/L
 124,458
 
1382R
 5621 INTERREGIONAL HWY
 AUSTIN-CAPITAL PLAZA
 TX
 L/L
 136,193

2608R
 I-35 & ROUND GROVE RD.
 LEWISVILLE
 TX
 L/L
 97,125
 
1611R
 5001 BOSTON
 LUBBOCK
 TX
 L/L
 113,425
 
1618R
 500 E. PIKE ROAD
 MESQUITE
 TX
 L/L
 181,294
 
2259R
 42ND & GRANDVIEW
 ODESSA
 TX
 L/L
 116,625
 
2129R
 500 N. JACKSON ROAD
 PHARR-MCALLEN
 TX
 L/L
 92,060
 
1755R
 900 WEST 15TH STREET
 PLANO
 TX
 L/L
 93,051
 
1655R
 4522 FREDRICKSBURG ROAD
 SAN ANTONIO-CROSSROADS
 TX
 L/L
 135,893
 
1654R
 4100 S. NEW BRAUNFELS
 SAN ANTONIO-McCRELESS
 TX
 L/L
 157,356
 
2757R
 LOOP 410 SW & MERBACH RD
 SAN ANTONIO-WESTLAKES
 TX
 L/L
 107,218
 
2816R
 3002-A S. 31ST STREET
 TEMPLE
 TX
 L/L
 69,391
 
1666R
 10 OAK LAWN VILLAGE
 TEXARKANA
 TX
 L/L
 77,480
 
1672R
 5021 BOSQUE BLVD
 WACO
 TX
 L/L
 123,444
 
1386R
 1412 GREENBRIER PKWY
 CHESAPEAKE
 VA
 L/L
 90,179
 
2707R
 I-95 & HWY 3
 FREDERICKSBURG
 VA
 L/L
 126,128
 
2710R
 1800 MERCURY BLVD & I-64
 HAMPTON
 VA
 L/L
 144,194
 
2438R
 354 DENBIGH & WARWICK
 NEWPORT NEWS
 VA
 L/L
 114,050
 
2147R
 5802 VIRGINIA BEACH BLVD
 NORFOLK
 VA
 L/L
 161,362
 
1149R
 1311-13 GREENVILLE AVE.
 STAUNTON (HOME)
 VA
 L/L
 67,052
 
1166R
 US 11 & LOUDOUN ST.
 WINCHESTER
 VA
 L/L
 70,622
 
1494R
 P.O. BOX 699
 LONGVIEW
 WA
 L/L
 67,544
 
1738R
 2410 NOB HILL BOULEVARD
 YAKIMA
 WA
 L/L
 101,320
 
1040R
 21 & W. VA RTE 16
 BECKLEY
 WV
 L/L
 101,810
 
2579R
 MEADOWBROOK ROAD & I-79
 CLARKSBURG-BRIDGEPORT
 WV
 L/L
 102,997
 
1124R
 1600 GARFIELD AVENUE
 PARKERSBURG
 WV
 L/L
 89,863
 

 
 
 
 
 
 

 RETAIL STORE FEE INTERESTS
 
 
 
 
 
1520R
 83RD AVENUE AND BELL ROAD
 GLENDALE-ARROWHEAD
 AZ
 O/O
 120,329
 
2572R
 1625 W. SOUTHERN AVENUE
 MESA
 AZ
 O/O
 183,985
 
1430R
 6225 E. SOUTHERN AVENUE
 MESA-EAST
 AZ
 O/O
 89,720
 
1530R
 75TH & THOMAS ROAD
 PHOENIX-DESERT SKY MALL
 AZ
 O/O
 99,864
 
1473R
 3201 "F" STREET
 BAKERSFIELD
 CA
 O/O
 158,099
 
1475R
 6601 OWENSMOUTH
 CANOGA PARK
 CA
 O/O
 163,219
 
1887R
 848 S. BARRANCA
 COVINA
 CA
 O/O
 178,965
 
2571R
 6900 AMADOR PLAZA
 DUBLIN (HOME)
 CA
 O/O
 136,918
 
2024R
 311 N ESCONDIDO BLVD
 ESCONDIDO
 CA
 O/O
 53,671
 
1483R
 2525 FOURTH STREET
 EUREKA
 CA
 O/O
 88,348
 
1785R
 39301 FREMONT & MOWRY
 FREMONT
 CA
 O/O
 180,989
 
2215R
 5740 N. BLACKSTONE AVENUE
 FRESNO
 CA
 O/O
 163,459
 
1959R
 7777 EDINGER AVE & BEACH
 HUNTINGTON BEACH
 CA
 O/O
 197,316
 
1888R
 915-8TH STREET
 MARYSVILLE
 CA
 O/O
 82,878
 
2157R
 1111 W. OLIVE AVENUE
 MERCED (HOME)
 CA
 O/O
 59,087
 
2235R
 9050 CENTRAL
 MONTCLAIR
 CA
 O/O
 181,457
 
1557R
 4000 BEL AIRE PLAZA
 NAPA
 CA
 O/O
 83,500
 
2753R
 3050 PLAZA BONITA ROAD
 NATIONAL CITY-BONITA
 CA
 O/O
 122,573
 
2045R
 12051 IMPERIAL HWY
 NORWALK
 CA
 O/O
 188,214
 
1509R
 14665 ROSCOE BLVD
 PANORAMA CITY
 CA
 O/O
 159,755
 
2573R
 8800 WHITTIER BLVD
 PICO RIVERA
 CA
 O/O
 147,854
 
1517R
 825 W. HENDERSON AVE
 PORTERVILLE
 CA
 O/O
 57,778
 
1525R
 4300 MCDONALD AVENUE
 RICHMOND
 CA
 O/O
 201,964
 
2101R
 5601 FLORIN ROAD
 SACRAMENTO-FLORIN
 CA
 O/O
 178,154
 
2220R
 144 CENTRAL CITY MALL
 SAN BERNARDINO
 CA
 O/O
 172,096
 
2526R
 211 W. IOWA STREET
 SUNNYVALE
 CA
 O/O
 152,622
 
1547R
 3535 WEST NOBLE AVE
 VISALIA
 CA
 O/O
 93,504
 
2744R
 8501 W. BOWLES AVENUE
 LITTLETON
 CO
 O/O
 111,000
 
1647R
 3201 DALLAS
 PUEBLO
 CO
 O/O
 117,886
 
1428R
 9501 ARLINGTON EXPRESSWAY
 JACKSONVILLE-REGENCY
 FL
 O/O
 115,000
 
1426R
 1919 WELLS ROAD
 ORANGE PARK-JACKSONVILLE
 FL
 O/O
 111,701
 
2148R
 5100 N. NINTH AVENUE
 PENSACOLA
 FL
 O/O
 114,687
 
2383R
 7200 US HWY 19
 PINELLAS PARK
 FL
 O/O
 147,469
 
1640R
 1441 TAMIAMI TRAIL
 PORT CHARLOTTE
 FL
 O/O
 100,948
 
2580R
 1401 U.S.HWY 19N
 PORT RICHEY
 FL
 O/O
 143,644
 
1446R
 2252 E. FOWLER AVE.
 TAMPA-UNIVERSITY
 FL
 O/O
 110,443
 
2488R
 2701 DEANS BRIDGE ROAD
 AUGUSTA-REGENCY MALL
 GA
 O/O
 138,489
 
1400R
 2500 EDGEWOOD S.W.
 CEDAR RAPIDS
 IA
 O/O
 146,000
 
2711R
 3 STRATFORD SQUARE MALL
 BLOOMINGDALE
 IL
 O/O
 163,454
 
2843R
 2939 W. ADDISION
 CHICAGO-ADDISON
 IL
 O/O
 133,828
 
2109R
 U.S. HWY 14
 CRYSTAL LAKE
 IL
 O/O
 72,990
 
2027R
 100 YORKTOWN S/C
 LOMBARD
 IL
 O/O
 253,888
 
2631R
 ONE ORLAND PARK PLACE DRIVE
 ORLAND PARK
 IL
 O/O
 150,928
 
2161R
 1607-36TH STREET
 PERU
 IL
 O/O
 92,689
 
2388R
 2501 W. WABASH
 SPRINGFIELD
 IL
 O/O
 163,508
 
2278R
 1390 SCOTTSDALE MALL
 SOUTH BEND
 IN
 O/O
 149,838
 
2559R
 4600 W. KELLOGG
 WICHITA-TOWNE WEST
 KS
 O/O
 146,417
 
1262R
 2021 HARRODSBURG ROAD
 LEXINGTON
 KY
 O/O
 148,000
 
2212R
 US RTE 40 & WAVERLY DR
 FREDERICK
 MD
 O/O
 125,582
 
1079R
 17318 VALLEY MALL ROAD
 HAGERSTOWN
 MD
 O/O
 122,711
 
1102R
 5010 HWY 301-S.
 WALDORF
 MD
 O/O
 119,326
 
1265R
 29501 PLYMOUTH
 LIVONIA
 MI
 O/O
 243,487
 
2412R
 400 N.W. BARRY ROAD
 K.C.-METRO NORTH
 MO
 O/O
 154,000
 
1519R
 10129 COORS BLVD. N.W.
 ALBUQUERQUE
 NM
 O/O
 99,249
 
2164R
 2300 E. LOHMAN AVENUE
 LAS CRUCES
 NM
 O/O
 59,268
 
1555R
 2875 E. CHARLESTON BLVD
 LAS VEGAS-SUNRISE
 NV
 O/O
 195,363
 
1092R
 1165 ULSTER AVENUE
 KINGSTON
 NY
 O/O
 107,543
 
1505R
 710 HORATIO STREET
 UTICA
 NY
 O/O
 107,547
 
2713R
 343 NEW TOWNE SQUARE DR
 TOLEDO-NORTH
 OH
 O/O
 148,083
 
1605R
 2305 W GORE BLVD
 LAWTON
 OK
 O/O
 92,762
 
2560R
 6777 E. RENO
 MIDWEST CITY
 OK
 O/O
 127,000
 
2425R
 4401 SW 110TH AVENUE
 BEAVERTON
 OR
 O/O
 157,845
 
2632R
 8800 SE MONTERREY
 PORTLAND-CLACKAMAS
 OR
 O/O
 168,652
 
2155R
 9800 S.E. WASHINGTON STREET
 PORTLAND-MALL 205
 OR
 O/O
 177,070
 
1529R
 833 LANCASTER DR NE
 SALEM
 OR
 O/O
 107,636
 
1047R
 300 NEW CASTLE ROAD
 BUTLER
 PA
 O/O
 123,797
 
1794R
 2370 GREENSGATE MALL
 GREENSBURG
 PA
 O/O
 128,730
 
2374R
 MONTAGUE AVE & I-26
 CHARLESTON
 SC
 O/O
 128,984
 
1371R
 4601 S. 1ST & PIONEER DR
 ABILENE
 TX
 O/O
 101,905
 
2576R
 2901 CAPITAL OF TEXAS HWY
 AUSTIN-BARTON CREEK
 TX
 O/O
 168,261
 
2611R
 3000 SAN JACINTO
 BAYTOWN
 TX
 O/O
 127,330
 
1267R
 5858 S. PADRE ISLAND DRIVE
 CORPUS CHRISTI
 TX
 O/O
 119,600
 
1502R
 WESTMORELAND RD./CAMP WISDOM
 DALLAS-REDBIRD
 TX
 O/O
 106,012
 
2246R
 2201-I-35E, S.
 DENTON
 TX
 O/O
 108,310
 
2289R
 8401 GATEWAY W & HAWKINS
 EL PASO
 TX
 O/O
 180,063
 
1444R
 2601 W. 7TH STREET
 FT. WORTH-7TH STREET
 TX
 O/O
 1,504,000
 
2448R
 4800 S. HULEN & I-820
 FT. WORTH-HULEN
 TX
 O/O
 154,528
 
2489R
 100 BAYBROOK MALL
 HOUSTON-BAYBROOK
 TX
 O/O
 161,576
 
2490R
 600 GREENSPOINT MALL
 HOUSTON-GREENSPOINT
 TX
 O/O
 154,783
 
2254R
 970 GESSNER
 HOUSTON-MEMORIAL CITY
 TX
 O/O
 186,213
 
1464R
 50 LYERLY
 HOUSTON-NORTHLINE
 TX
 O/O
 211,375
 
2635R
 7925 FM 1960 WEST
 HOUSTON-WILLOWBROOK
 TX
 O/O
 154,680
 
2509R
 200 NORTHEAST MALL
 HURST
 TX
 O/O
 152,902
 
2495R
 5300 I-35 N. & HILLSIDE
 LAREDO
 TX
 O/O
 113,620
 
2443R
 603 S. PLANO
 RICHARDSON
 TX
 O/O
 145,811
 
2336R
 7900 INTERSTATE
 SAN ANTONIO-WINDSOR PARK
 TX
 O/O
 207,462
 
2171R
 4200 PORTSMOUTH BLVD.
 CHESAPEAKE
 VA
 O/O
 101,253
 
1071R
 6201 ARLINGTON BOULEVARD
 FALLS CHURCH
 VA
 O/O
 162,091
 
2406R
 701 LYNN HAVEN PARKWAY
 VIRGINIA BEACH
 VA
 O/O
 158,976
 
2612R
 N. 5830 DIVISION
 SPOKANE
 WA
 O/O
 151,560
 
1236R
 2481 S. ONEIDA ST.
 GREEN BAY
 WI
 O/O
 148,978
 
2755R
 400 QUARRIER STREET
 CHARLESTON
 WV
 O/O
 116,000

RETAIL STORE GROUND LEASES
 
 
 
 
1523R
 CACTUS & TATUM
 PHOENIX-PARADISE VALLEY
 AZ
 O/L
 110,626
 
2221R
 2626 COLORADO BLVD
 LOS ANGELES-EAGLE ROCK
 CA
 O/L
 162,139
 
2401R
 3460 EL CAMINO AVENUE
 SACRAMENTO-EL CAMINO
 CA
 O/L
 163,152
 
1532R
 1288 CAMINO DEL RIO NORTH
 SAN DIEGO-MISSION VALLEY
 CA
 O/L
 202,861
 
2445R
 1600 SARATOGA
 SAN JOSE-WESTGATE
 CA
 O/L
 163,936
 
2219R
 300 BAY FAIR MALL
 SAN LEANDRO-BAY FAIR
 CA
 O/L
 164,950
 
2196R
 1400 S. HAVANA
 AURORA
 CO
 O/L
 209,034
 
1441R
 2170 TYRONE BLVD.
 ST. PETERSBURG
 FL
 O/L
 158,300
 
2369R
 11201 W. 95TH STREET
 OVERLAND PARK
 KS
 O/L
 177,274
 
2211R
 658 BEL AIR RD
 BEL AIR
 MD
 O/L
 161,758
 
1208R
 13551 MICHIGAN AVENUE
 DEARBORN
 MI
 O/L
 163,813
 
1591R
 4200 BLUE RIDGE BLVD
 K.C.-BLUE RIDGE
 MO
 O/L
 177,209
 
2142R
 8200 SUDLEY BOULEVARD
 MANASSAS
 VA
 O/L
 126,968

RETAIL STORE SALE/LEASEBACKS
 
 
 
 
2238R
 6199 SUNRISE BLVD
 CITRUS HEIGHTS
 CA
 L/O
 157,042
 
2239R
 879 BLOSSOM HILL RD
 SAN JOSE-OAKRIDGE
 CA
 L/O
 154,872
 
1410R
 2420 E. PIKES PEAK AVE.
 COLORADO SPRINGS
 CO
 L/L
 161,986
 
2327R
 2500 W. JEFFERSON
 JOLIET
 IL
 L/O
 125,480
 
2202R
 540 S. RANDALL ROAD
 ST. CHARLES
 IL
 L/L
 92,689
 
1341R
 6901 SECURITY SQUARE
 BALTIMORE-SECURITY SQ
 MD
 L/L
 156,000
 
2248R
 6400 ROSEVILLE
 ROSEDALE
 MD
 L/O
 194,148
 
2145R
 4311 PLAINFIELD AVE. N.E.
 GRAND RAPIDS-NORTH KENT
 MI
 L/L
 171,809
 
2203R
 1700 W. MICHIGAN
 JACKSON
 MI
 L/L
 148,978
 
2162R
 5030 W. MAIN STREET
 KALAMAZOO-MAPLE HILL
 MI
 L/L
 149,251
 
2257R
 99 NORTHTOWN DRIVE
 BLAINE-MINNEAPOLIS
 MN
 L/L
 173,261
 
2253R
 2110 REYNOLDS ROAD
 TOLEDO-SOUTH
 OH
 L/L
 160,969
 
2292R
 5000 CROSSROADS BLVD
 OKLAHOMA CITY-CROSSROADS
 OK
 L/O
 189,506
 
1481R
 500 VALLEY RIVER CENTER
 EUGENE
 OR
 L/L
 100,288
 
2237R
 1400 N. HAYDEN ISLAND DRIVE
 PORTLAND-JANTZEN BEACH
 OR
 L/L
 143,666
 
2170R
 FORUM 303 LTD AT HWY 360
 ARLINGTON
 TX
 L/L
 180,793
 
2194R
 6175 EASTEX FREEWAY
 BEAUMONT
 TX
 L/O
 182,157
 
2290R
 MEXICO ST & PALM BLVD
 BROWNSVILLE
 TX
 L/L
 114,085
 
1466R
 2327 BELLAIRE BOULEVARD
 HOUSTON-SHARPSTOWN
 TX
 L/O
 189,183
 
2005R
 2222 SPENCER HWY
 PASADENA
 TX
 L/L
 193,006
 
2233R
 6600 SPRINGFIELD MALL
 SPRINGFIELD
 VA
 L/L
 180,841

RETAIL STORES WITH PARTNERSHIP INTEREST IN FEE
 
 
 
 
2387R
 7503 W. CERMAK
 NORTH RIVERSIDE
 IL
 LP/O
 197,409
 
2366R
 100 CAROLINA CIRCLE
 GREENSBORO
 NC
 LP/O
 162,096
 

 
 
 
 
 
 

 DISTRIBUTION CENTERS AND CORPORATE OFFICE
 
 
 
 
1100
 BRANDYWINE
 7812 CEDARVILLE ROAD
 MD
 O/O
 644,765
 
703
 CHICAGO TOWER & GARAGE
 535 W. CHICAGO AVE
 IL
 O/O
 576,000
 
5002
 CHINO
 14141 YORBA AVE
 CA
 L/L
 524,109
 
2306
 CHINO CROSSDOCK
 14327 YORBA AVE
 CA
 L/L
 348,211
 
1450
 CORSICANA
 1600 NORTH BUSINESS 45
 TX
 L/L
 350,000
 
1889
 DENVER
 445 W. 53RD PLACE
 CO
 O/O
 201,500
 
5731
 DENVER WARDEX
 5381 FOX STREET
 CO
 L/L
 31,200
 
1468
 HOUSTON
 2720 CLINTON DRIVE
 TX
 O/O
 296,656
 
1596
 KANSAS CITY BLDG A
 4700 DERAMUS STREET
 MO
 L/L
 121,675
 
1596
 KANSAS CITY BLDG B
 4601 STILLWELL STREET
 MO
 L/L
 121,675
 
2614
 NEW STANTON
 OLD ROUTE 119 SOUTH
 PA
 O/O
 279,461
 
5781
 NORFOLK
 3760 VIRGINIA BEACH BLVD
 VA
 L/L
 146,159
 
1563
 PHOENIX CROSSDOCK
 1439 S. 40TH AVENUE - STE B
 AZ
 L/L
 76,282
 
2185
 PORTLAND
 5905 N. MARINE DRIVE
 OR
 L/L
 298,441
 
1331
 ROMEOVILLE
 1100 W. 115TH STREET
 IL
 L/L
 767,109
 
1331
 ROMULUS CROSSDOCK
 29200 AIRPORT DR - BLDG 22
 MI
 L/L
 29,282
 
1331
 ST. PAUL CROSSDOCK
 1700 WYNNE AVE
 MN
 L/L
 26,000
 
2140
 WEST SACRAMENTO
 3869 INDUSTRIAL BLVD
 CA
 L/L
 306,035
 
2140
 WEST SACRAMENTO ANNEX
 1675 OVERLAND COURT
 CA
 L/L
 98,496
 
1737
 SAN ANTONIO CROSSDOCK
 1400 CURRENCY DRIVE
 TX
 L/L
 213,120
 
2276
 TAMPA
 1820 MASSARO BLVD
 FL
 L/L
 425,000

Montgomery Ward would like to thank its loyal customers and associates for 129 years of excellence in retail and catalog shopping. Wards is grateful for the opportunity to serve you over the years.

Warranty Information

In some states Montgomery Wards Performance Guarantee service agreements are an obligation of National Product Care, an Aon Warranty Group company. In those states Wards was providing all consumer administration services and most repair services for National Product Care.

Due to Wards' bankruptcy, Wards' service department will no longer be providing these services. Consequently National Product Care will begin to fulfill its responsibilities in those states directly.

Please note that National Product Care was not responsible for service agreements sold outside of our states nor is National Product Care responsible for agreements covering Jewelry or Furniture.

Thank you for your patience during this time of transition and we apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.

Disposal of Intellectual Property

Wards would like to extend a significant marketing and sales opportunity with exclusive rights to purchase Montgomery Ward's remaining intellectual property. CONSOR? Intellectual Asset Management announces their appointment by Montgomery Ward LLC to complete an orderly sale of its trademarks, service marks, domain names, brand assets, customer lists, integrated systems and software assets.

Interested parties are invited to follow the links below to outstanding values in brands, trademarks, customer lists and information technology holdings.

 
Intellectual Property

CONSOR? Intellectual Asset Management proudly offers Wards' third-party software inventory and integrated systems customized for retail, CRM and automotive enterprise applications.

Value added enterprise systems and designs include Wards' proprietary SMARTstaff, SMARTstore, SMARTauto, SMARTservice and SMARTmerchant. A robust data warehouse, designed for the most demanding retail operations and the GoldNGems.com website architecture are also available. Third party software from Informix, Information Builders and many others are available for purchase.

Please click here to view an inventory of Wards IP Assets.


 Thank you for your interest in Wards' information technology assets. For a summary of IT assets for sale, please explore the options below.

Wards offers for sale, license and transfer (where applicable) software from top vendors as well as enterprise systems developed with the highest professional standards. Due to the nature of the bankruptcy environment, these assets are available for a fraction of their original investment price.

Contact Information

By E-mail
Click here to send us an email.

By Phone
1-800-227-7598

By Mail
Montgomery Ward
P.O. Box 2789
Cedar Rapids, IA 52406

By Fax
1-319-896-5820

Welcome to Montgomery Ward
Improving American Homes Since 1872

 
If our name sounds familiar, it should! For over 128 years, Montgomery Ward was a well-known and trusted catalog retailer based in Chicago, Illinois. In 1872, Aaron Montgomery Ward established the first mail-order business with an innovative single-sheet catalog offering 163 items. He was the first retailer in the United States to guarantee satisfaction to his customers. This superior service and an impressive assortment of quality goods at affordable prices led to rapid growth. By 1904, the catalogs weighed a hefty four pounds each and were mailed to three million customers.

As a retailing pioneer, Mr. Ward would be pleased to know that the tradition of excellence which he began continues in an exciting new way with Wards.com! Here, you will find one of the Web's largest assortments of quality products and great values for your home. While we are continually looking for ways to enhance and expand our product offering, our philosophy remains the same as in 1872. We are dedicated to finding quality items at affordable prices and delivering them right to your door-satisfaction guaranteed.

 
Our staff of seasoned merchants is always searching for unique items, so request a catalog in the mail, visit our site often, and enjoy shopping from the comfort of your home. We are proud to offer you the "Montgomery Ward Credit Line" to make shopping even more convenient.


If you have other questions, please click here to send email to our customer service department, or call us at 1-800-227-7598.

Satisfaction Guaranteed!

We want you to be completely satisfied with every item you purchase form Montgomery Ward. If you are not completely satisfied, simply return the item within 60-days of purchase. We?ll gladly exchange it or refund your purchase price, excluding shipping and handling charges.

How do I return a product?
If you are not 100% satisfied, merchandise can be returned for credit or refund within 60-days of purchase. For return instructions, see the pack list that came in your package, or call 1-800-227-7598, M-F, 8:00 A.M.-7:00 P.M. Central Time. Shipping and handling charges are not refundable. Deductions on multiple savings items are subject to reduction if merchandise is returned.

slogan

hears there web singht from 1997 Amesman Sent me this and i wanan thasnk him for doing that:)

\http://web.archive.org/web/19970103020538/www.mward.com/html/mwstores.html

hears a Lechmere Store:)

and a Electrice AVE

store with a inside look

the logo

and hears a better pic ot the Lechmere Logo

looks like Lechmere had a red logo to

old montgormery ward

hears were the logo would be

Wards Gardan Center

hears it being gutted

anouther shotoof the store

dose anyone know if montgomery ward had carts????

QuoteOriginally posted by 76BraldorZayKamesfanBBTB

QuoteOriginally posted by Caldor1999
hears it being gutted

NNNNNNNNNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:(:no::no::no:


LOL:insane:

it happnes

The Poughkeepsie New York store had an Electric Ave built into it. The store is now occupied by a Dicks Sporting Goods on the upper level, and a DSW Shoe Warehouse on the lower level.

Also, Albany had about 4 Montgomery Ward stores, plus 1 Lechmere store. They all closed in 1997. Here's the list:

Montgomery Ward

Menands: Regional Flagship store: Built in the 30's. 4 floors I believe. Now offices.

Colonie: Northway Mall: 1440 Central Avenue(State Route 5). Mall has been demolished(except for Davids Bridal, Staples, old cinemas, and old Lechmere), and replaced by a plaza with Target, Jo Ann ETC, Linens and Things, Marshalls, Dress Barn, Eddie Bauer, Thomasville Home Furnishings, Petco, Supercuts, EB Games, and Citezins Bank.

Mohawk Mall: Central Avenue at Balltown Road: Mall now demolished. Replaced with Mohawk Commons. Contains: Price Chopper, Marshalls, Bed Bath and Beyond, Payless Shoes, Maurices, Supermarket of Shoes, Target, Party City, Lowes, Old Navy, Petsmart, Cingular Wireless #1, Barnes and Noble, Verizon Wireless, Cingular Wireless #2, Supercuts, Blockbuster Video, Eastern Mountain Sports, EB Games, Panera Bread, Ruby Tuesday, Empire Vision, and Cold Stone Creamery.

Saratoga Springs: Saratoga Mall: Route 50 at I-87(Northway): Mall now demolished. Replaced by Wilton Square Plaza. Contains: Home Depot, Eckerd, Barnes and Noble, Target, Petsmart, Staples, A.C Moore, Empire Vision, Supercuts, EB Games,  and other small stores.

Also, there was a Montgomery Ward store here in Kingston as well. It opened in the 60's, and was the first store to open on the U.S 9W retail strip(ShopRite opened a supermarket next to MW the following year. It is now an Office Depot). The Montgomery Ward closed in 2001, when the chain went bankrupt, and the building was demolished. It is now a plaza called Ulster Crossing, and it houses Bed Bath and Beyond, Barnes and Noble, Sports Authority, Peir 1 Imports, Ann Taylor Loft, Coldwater Creek, Chico's, Panera Bread, Cingular Wireless, Talbots, and Applebees.

Mont's

EDIT: Picture size too big. Sorry.

A closed one.

EDIT: Picture size too big. Sorry.

QuoteOriginally posted by Caldor1999
hears a Lechmere Store:)

that looks like the one that was in the maine mall.

I saw this LEchmere vacant 2 days ago. The lettering was off and a lot of grass was in the parking lot, and the parking lot was in bad shape.

inside wards

more wards

electrons dept

Funature

beds

and the service desk

a montgomery ward new logo ehh i think it came out ok but it could be better

this was the Lechmere in cambridgeside galleria. IT WAS THE FIRST STORE and the flagship store. they even have a place near the mall called lechmere rug. the store is now best  buy and the bottom floor is filene's furniture or men or something like that. and a borders is in near.

Two Montgomery Ward pylon sign.  At left:  in Newington NH, still used by Best Buy and B&N.  At right: the rusty one in Nashua NH, probably used by Ames until it closed...

QuoteOriginally posted by Zayre88
Two Montgomery Ward pylon sign.  At left:  in Newington NH, still used by Best Buy and B&N.  At right: the rusty one in Nashua NH, probably used by Ames until it closed...

do u have a picture of teh old Montgomery ward im supries it became a ames ive never heard of such a thing lol

Here is the former Montgomery Ward in Nashua.  It closed in 1997 when Ward closed 48 stores nationwide.  Ames opened there in 2000 and closed in 2002.

QuoteOriginally posted by Zayre88
Here is the former Montgomery Ward in Nashua.  It closed in 1997 when Ward closed 48 stores nationwide.  Ames opened there in 2000 and closed in 2002.

cool picture so ames has been in fomrer Caldors Bradlees Jamesway Hills Zayre Kings and even a Montgomery ward

hears a old Mountgomery Ward

same store from a diffrebt angel

hears another cool MW

and hears whatthey tured it into

and hears another mw

The Montgomery Ward in Utica, N.Y. made headlines in 1994 when the entire western wall caved inwards into the store, blowing out all the television screens in the "pre-Electric Ave" area and cash registers. The caved in area was partitioned off in about two weeks and the store re-opened,. About a year later, a new store was built adjacent to the site and still stands (actually only about 2/3 of it, the front third was ripped down for the Wal*Mart supercenter parking lot expansion), though it's a Linens and Things in the front half.  The back half still has the "Montgomery Wards" labels on the doors and the "Electric Ave" marks above the doors.

Heres a sketch of the Monty Wards once in Apache Mall in St. Anthony Village Minnesota in 1961.

(http://apacheplaza.com/apachewardsgrandopen.jpg)

And here is that same corner today, well a few years ago. The building no longer stands.

(http://apacheplaza.com/apachewardsexterior.jpg)

Here is where it was.

(http://apacheplaza.com/pict0045.jpg)
http://apacheplaza.com/wards.html

The entrance/exit inside the mall.

(http://apacheplaza.com/apachewards.jpg)
http://apacheplaza.com/wards.html

A Monty Ward's Auto Center in Denver, Colorado.

(http://www.ffgeeks.net/malls/Lakeside/100_0177.JPG)
http://www.ffgeeks.net/malls/Lakeside/lakeside.htm

Mission Valley Mall, San Diego, CA. 1961.

http://mallsofamerica.blogspot.com/

hears a wards store in North Caorlina

Heres a nice Wards in Bigtown Mall in Dallas, Tx.

(http://www.geocities.com/kmanfoolsparade/im000089.jpg)
http://www.geocities.com/kmanfoolsparade/Big_Town.html

The sign.

(http://www.geocities.com/kmanfoolsparade/im000086.jpg)
http://www.geocities.com/kmanfoolsparade/Big_Town.html

Former Monty Wards at Windsor Mall in San Antonio, Tx. The girl whos standing out in from is the girl who runs the windsor mall tribute site at the bottom of this post.

(http://modsnap.com/deadmalls/13.jpg)
http://modsnap.com/deadmalls/

San Jacinto Mall, Baytown, Texas. Monty Wards.

(http://homepage.mac.com/grungy/.Pictures/SanJacMall/SJM14.jpg)
http://homepage.mac.com/grungy/PhotoAlbum33.html

An old Monty Wards next to a Star Supermarket in Tampa, Florida in 1960.
(http://zerver.thpl.lib.fl.us/archive14/13153.jpg)
(http://zerver.thpl.lib.fl.us/archive14/13154.jpg)
(http://zerver.thpl.lib.fl.us/archive14/13155.jpg)
(http://zerver.thpl.lib.fl.us/archive14/13151.jpg)
http://www.lamartin.com/burgert/1956-1960.htm

Canoga Park, California, 1960's.
 
http://mallsofamerica.blogspot.com/2005_10_01_mallsofamerica_archive.html

Heres that San Antonio, Tx. Monty's again.

(http://image61.webshots.com/61/0/72/66/513607266BBTMGq_ph.jpg)

Now Lechmere was a wonderful little electronics store. Their CDs and video tapes were less than any other place. We bought a stove there. Place seemed to be thriving then all of a sudden they were shuttered and gone. Best Buy and Circuit City pretty much took its place. There were several other electronic type stores I recall, Tweeter is still in business but seems more inclined to big ticket items. There was a place called Leiser's that came and went. I do remember commercials for Nobody Beats the Wiz but never actually went into one.

Lechmere stores I knew of

Seekonk Mass---demolished, replaced with a Target

Warwick RI--same as Seekonk

North Attleboro Mass--replaced with a Lord & Taylor which closed. Filene's now has their men's & bed and bath departments in the space

Taunton Mass---still vacant as far as I know

QuoteOriginally posted by Crawford
Now Lechmere was a wonderful little electronics store. Their CDs and video tapes were less than any other place. We bought a stove there. Place seemed to be thriving then all of a sudden they were shuttered and gone. Best Buy and Circuit City pretty much took its place. There were several other electronic type stores I recall, Tweeter is still in business but seems more inclined to big ticket items. There was a place called Leiser's that came and went. I do remember commercials for Nobody Beats the Wiz but never actually went into one.

Lechmere stores I knew of

Seekonk Mass---demolished, replaced with a Target

Warwick RI--same as Seekonk

North Attleboro Mass--replaced with a Lord & Taylor which closed. Filene's now has their men's & bed and bath departments in the space

Taunton Mass---still vacant as far as I know

the taunton store has become Steve and Barry's and the store above it Bradlees became Dicks/

Last summer I saw the one in Albany new york vacant and grass was grown in the parking lot.

Eureeka, CA (Now a Target)

QuoteOriginally posted by ameskmart1
This is a Wards in California they're going to be building a Target on the site. :mad::mad:

well its better then haveing that store just sit there and it could e worse they could turn it into a wal mart besides i liek target if anything i think Sears Should have gone out and not montgomery ward

hears a cool MW logo

Pheonix, Arizona in the early 60's.

http://www.acmeron.com/puhs/puhs_page_4.htm

Cambridge, Ma.. What was Lechmere?

(http://www.jjvaccaro.com/images/Lechmere_2.jpg)
http://www.jjvaccaro.com/lechemere.htm

QuoteOriginally posted by storehistoryguy
Cambridge, Ma.. What was Lechmere?

(http://www.jjvaccaro.com/images/Lechmere_2.jpg)
http://www.jjvaccaro.com/lechemere.htm

this was the first lechmere ever. it is called their flagship store too. it is now best buy and borders.

lechmere stores went all the way to buffalo new york and as north as portland maine (that one opened in 1994)

5 years ago on dec. 28 2000, Montgomery Ward announced it was going out of business...

Lechmere at the Maine Mall in South Portland during a snow storm:

http://www.zonianlady.com/maine/mainesnow.html

Now a Best Buy

hears a MW out in CA

hears teh auto center

Ancient Monty Wards catologues from 1872!! :o:o:o:o:o:o:o:o:o:o:o

(http://www.wards.com/wards/assets/images/oldcatalog.jpg)

Boy have they changed.
(http://www.wards.com/wards/assets/images/newcatalog.jpg)
http://www.wards.com/wards/aboutus.asp?partner=0

Burlington, IA.

http://www.angelfire.com/rnb/lecentre1/wards.html

Moline, IL. Auto Center.

http://www.angelfire.com/rnb/lecentre1/wards.html

Former Monty Wards in Lombard, IL.

http://www.angelfire.com/rnb/lecentre1/wards.html

hears anoutehr vacant wards thatwas renetd out to be a huantaed house lol

QuoteOriginally posted by storehistoryguy
Cambridge, Ma.. What was Lechmere?

(http://www.jjvaccaro.com/images/Lechmere_2.jpg)
http://www.jjvaccaro.com/lechemere.htm

Lechmere(pronounced Leechmere) was an electronics type store(like Best Buy and Circuit City. They were bought by Montgomery Ward in 1994. As of little more than three months before going into bankruptcy, they were one of the hottest chains for developers to get their hands on. Boy how quickly that changed. Locations that I know of were:

Albany - Northway Mall - Still vacant

Poughkeepsie - Poughkeepsie Galleria - Now a Best Buy, and mall expansion.

Syracuse - Carousel Center - Now Best Buy and Bally Total Fitness

Buffalo - Walden Galleria - Now Steve and Barry's Universal Sportswear - Before that, a JCPenney Home Store.

QuoteOriginally posted by amesman

QuoteOriginally posted by storehistoryguy
Cambridge, Ma.. What was Lechmere?

(http://www.jjvaccaro.com/images/Lechmere_2.jpg)
http://www.jjvaccaro.com/lechemere.htm

Lechmere(pronounced Leechmere) was an electronics type store(like Best Buy and Circuit City. They were bought by Montgomery Ward in 1994. As of little more than three months before going into bankruptcy, they were one of the hottest chains for developers to get their hands on. Boy how quickly that changed. Locations that I know of were:

Albany - Northway Mall - Still vacant

Poughkeepsie - Poughkeepsie Galleria - Now a Best Buy, and mall expansion.

Syracuse - Carousel Center - Now Best Buy and Bally Total Fitness

Buffalo - Walden Galleria - Now Steve and Barry's Universal Sportswear - Before that, a JCPenney Home Store.

there may have been one around Rochester, but I do not know. I know that the one in Albany is still vacant and the lettering was gone when I saw it in August. There was grass in the parkinglot.

Norfolk, Va.

(http://www.vastucco.com/Monkward.jpg)
http://www.vastucco.com/photoset1.htm

hears a Montgmoery Ward Picture takeing back in 1988

and hears a 1990 picture

nan dhears how it looked back in 2003

here is the lechmere in milford ct

from http://www.siteride.com/srpl/p_snapshot.pl?lm=listing&resbox=1138045162&subNum=10209001929

Did anyone ever purchase anything from the Montgomery Ward internet website. I heard it was good. Instead of a retail store, Montgomery Ward is now an internet retailer!

Fort Worth, TX

Hi!  I have fond memories of all the Montgomery Wards that were in the Baltimore, MD area when I was growing up.  There was a huge building (5+ stories) that contained everything from a whole wing for automotive and an entire floor for the catalog area.  You would take a number and wait hours for your number to be called and it was a day of fun for us when I was growing up.  
Later on in the 1960's was when I first heard people calling it by the nickname "Monkey Wards" and thought that it was just a local joke.  They ended up being my first employer in 1971 and I was sad to see how the stores deteriorated throughout the years before finally closing in 2001.
Now for the good news - they have reemerged as a website store and are back in business (at least for on-line sales.)

Montgomery Ward Stores

Rooms&More

Store

Here's a picture I snapped this weekend of an old Montgomery Ward building in Putnam, CT!

Were there any Montgomery Wards in New Jersey?

QuoteOriginally posted by KyleRF
Were there any Montgomery Wards in New Jersey?

probley back in teh 80s i know MW closed a paortan of stores in 1981 there was one in white planes NY witch clsoed that year the old store became macys witch latter moved the old macys was torn down for a mall withc has a target filenes office max as ancres also 30 storey apparmets budluineis wer ebulit opn that too

Former Wards

Former Wards

Montgomery Ward operated at the Seaview Sqaure Mall in Asbury Park, New Jersey, before closing in 1979.

QuoteOriginally posted by Caldor1999
hears a Lechmere Store:)

this is from the july 30th post and this one was in south portland maine and it is now best buy. it seems alot of lechmere's became best buy and when montgomery ward bought lechmere in 1994, lechmere went downhill.

Does anyone know if the Wards in Kingston is still standing or what happened to it and when it closed?

Kingston, NY... sorry

QuoteOriginally posted by Anonymous
Does anyone know if the Wards in Kingston is still standing or what happened to it and when it closed?

it was torn down i think it became a wal mart or a best but idk it some outher big box store now

was there a montgomery ward in kingston? If so, where?

there was one I heard in poughkeepsie.

ok, let me clear this up since I live in Kingston..hehe. We had a Wards here that opened in the 60's, and it was real old school(it had the newer logos though). It closed in 2001(I was there like the last week it was open). I unfortunatly only have pics of it getting demolished. I never got a chance to get pics of the store still standing as a whole. It was demolished in 2003, and is now home to a shopping plaza with Barnes and Noble, Bed Bath and Beyond, Sports Authority, Panera Bread, Coldwater Creek(some womens apparel store), Chico's, Ann Taylor Loft, Pier 1 Imports, Talbots, Cingular Wireless, and Applebees.

I loved Montgomery Wards! Especially the Crossroads Mall in OKC location
!

Did you notice that Ward is going to be on eBay?

how come montgomery ward never had any stores in massachusetts, in new england they only had some in NH and Vermont. massachusetts is a major state!!! they had some in new york. the closed most in new york. their stores were bad and near the end their stuff was lackluster. they started out as a catologe busienss. someone called it monkey wards

here is the one in greenburgh pa. it was 86,000 sf.  and opened in 1966. most montgomery wards opened 1970s and 1980s. they seemed to not have updated their stores. my mom once said montgomery ward's stores are crummy looking.

from joe stevens of http://www.storetrax.com/stx/showProperty.do

QuoteOriginally posted by d_fife
how come montgomery ward never had any stores in massachusetts, in new england they only had some in NH and Vermont. massachusetts is a major state!!! they had some in new york. the closed most in new york. their stores were bad and near the end their stuff was lackluster. they started out as a catologe busienss. someone called it monkey wards

here is the one in greenburgh pa. it was 86,000 sf.  and opened in 1966. most montgomery wards opened 1970s and 1980s. they seemed to not have updated their stores. my mom once said montgomery ward's stores are crummy looking.

from joe stevens of http://www.storetrax.com/stx/showProperty.do

ward nevre really focoused on any of there northeastern stores they did have some there though at one time most of the probley closed in tehj late 70's/ealry 80s witch is when montgomery ward clsoe dsome of there stores from the looks of it they were a betetr version of sears i also think that if sears dosent change a bit they will probley end up like montgomry ward

QuoteOriginally posted by d_fife
how come montgomery ward never had any stores in massachusetts, in new england they only had some in NH and Vermont.

They had some in new york. the closed most in new york.

QuoteOriginally posted by Caldor1999
ward nevre really focoused on any of there northeastern stores they did have some there though at one time.  Most of them probably closed in the late 70's/ealry 80s witch is when montgomery ward clsoe dsome of there stores

OK - No idea why they weren't in MA, seems kind of suprising.
They did have some in NY - I know of the Northway, Saratoga Mall and Mohawk Mall ones, plus the freestanding one in Kingston and the Poughkeepsie mall (Galleria?)location.
The first three closed about 5 years (give or take) before the chain went out completely - the other 2 hung on 'till the end.
I remember it being stated that they basically "drew a line" and closed any stores north of Kingston, NY in that one batch (which would include VT, NH, ME etc.).  No reason why, though, that I remember (the 3 in Albany/Saratoga area might have been due to the malls they were in - all of those were heading downhill even at that time).

Yes, I remember when the Albany stores closed. All in 97 right?

Kingston hung on til the end. Poughkeepsie did too, but not in its original location. It used to be in the Poughkeepsie Plaza(now Price Chopper), then they moved to the galleria in 94 or 95 I think.

QuoteOriginally posted by BillyGr

QuoteOriginally posted by d_fife
how come montgomery ward never had any stores in massachusetts, in new england they only had some in NH and Vermont.

They had some in new york. the closed most in new york.

QuoteOriginally posted by Caldor1999
ward nevre really focoused on any of there northeastern stores they did have some there though at one time.  Most of them probably closed in the late 70's/ealry 80s witch is when montgomery ward clsoe dsome of there stores

OK - No idea why they weren't in MA, seems kind of suprising.
They did have some in NY - I know of the Northway, Saratoga Mall and Mohawk Mall ones, plus the freestanding one in Kingston and the Poughkeepsie mall (Galleria?)location.
The first three closed about 5 years (give or take) before the chain went out completely - the other 2 hung on 'till the end.
I remember it being stated that they basically "drew a line" and closed any stores north of Kingston, NY in that one batch (which would include VT, NH, ME etc.).  No reason why, though, that I remember (the 3 in Albany/Saratoga area might have been due to the malls they were in - all of those were heading downhill even at that time).

they might have had some stores in MA alont tmie ago they had a few in jersey that clsoed imbtewwn 1979 and 1981 there was one white planes to that clsoed in 1981 that became Macys witch latter closed and moved the old sight is now hiome to a apparmet complex with a indore mall called teh city center

There was also a store in Utica that hung on until the end. It was in Riverside Mall.

Besides Lechmere, I don't recall any Wards in Connecticut. I was born in 1980 and we always had Caldor, Bradlees, and best of all Woolworth's until the late 90s. I'm not sure why Wards never opened here. The only Wards location that I ever shopped at was in the Rutland Mall in Rutland, Vermont. Has anyone ever been to that store? It was part of a retro 70s style mall that contained a full-lined Montgomery Ward store, Ames, and a movie theatre complete with metal fold-up chair seats!

QuoteOriginally posted by Anonymous
Besides Lechmere, I don't recall any Wards in Connecticut. I was born in 1980 and we always had Caldor, Bradlees, and best of all Woolworth's until the late 90s. I'm not sure why Wards never opened here. The only Wards location that I ever shopped at was in the Rutland Mall in Rutland, Vermont. Has anyone ever been to that store? It was part of a retro 70s style mall that contained a full-lined Montgomery Ward store, Ames, and a movie theatre complete with metal fold-up chair seats!

wards might have had stores in ct they were around longer then caldor bradlees ervice merchandise ect they might have had some store s in CT that probley clsoed sometime during the 70's or early 80';s

QuoteOriginally posted by Anonymous
Besides Lechmere, I don't recall any Wards in Connecticut. I was born in 1980 and we always had Caldor, Bradlees, and best of all Woolworth's until the late 90s. I'm not sure why Wards never opened here. The only Wards location that I ever shopped at was in the Rutland Mall in Rutland, Vermont. Has anyone ever been to that store? It was part of a retro 70s style mall that contained a full-lined Montgomery Ward store, Ames, and a movie theatre complete with metal fold-up chair seats!

Ssdly, Rutland Mall was demolished years ago. It is now a Home Depot.

QuoteOriginally posted by amesman
There was also a store in Utica that hung on until the end. It was in Riverside Mall.

There were actually 2 Montgomery Ward stores in Riverside Mall, and yes at one point in time, they were both standing at the same time.

The Story:
I want to say it was in the early part of 1994. I was in 9th grade, because I remember discussing it in Science Class. To make the story shorter, the roof on the Original Mont. Wards in the furniture section collapsed during a Snowstorm. It was a Sunday, and around 5ish PM, (No one got hurt Thankfully). At that point, they had no idea what to do, because then they questioned the Integrity of the entire Roof of Riverside Mall. Engineers determined that the Montgomery Wards section was not directly connected to the Mall's roof section, so it was deemed just a problem at Wards. They decided to keep the Montgomery Wards building, sealed off the collapsed section and moved the Furniture section of the store to a Vacant space in the Mall near Montgomery Wards.

A couple of years later, they decided to build the new Montgomery Wards store, which was built partially against the older store. When it opened, coming from the Mall Entrance, you walked through the old Wards Store to get to the Entrance of the new Wards Store. Rumors at the time were that Riverside planned to expand into the old store and add tenants there. Never happened. What did happen was when Riverside Mall was converted to a strip Mall, the old Ward's building along with half of the Mall itself was torn down.

The new Wards building thrived until Montgomery Wards went out of business with the Stores. The building sat idle for many years, until Linens and Things moved in and took up part of the building. Actually, Part of the building was torn down (What a waste) when Linens and Things went in. There is still a section there, which I'm sure still has some Wards Nostalgia in it.

QuoteOriginally posted by powersbt

QuoteOriginally posted by amesman
There was also a store in Utica that hung on until the end. It was in Riverside Mall.

There were actually 2 Montgomery Ward stores in Riverside Mall, and yes at one point in time, they were both standing at the same time.

The Story:
I want to say it was in the early part of 1994. I was in 9th grade, because I remember discussing it in Science Class. To make the story shorter, the roof on the Original Mont. Wards in the furniture section collapsed during a Snowstorm. It was a Sunday, and around 5ish PM, (No one got hurt Thankfully). At that point, they had no idea what to do, because then they questioned the Integrity of the entire Roof of Riverside Mall. Engineers determined that the Montgomery Wards section was not directly connected to the Mall's roof section, so it was deemed just a problem at Wards. They decided to keep the Montgomery Wards building, sealed off the collapsed section and moved the Furniture section of the store to a Vacant space in the Mall near Montgomery Wards.

A couple of years later, they decided to build the new Montgomery Wards store, which was built partially against the older store. When it opened, coming from the Mall Entrance, you walked through the old Wards Store to get to the Entrance of the new Wards Store. Rumors at the time were that Riverside planned to expand into the old store and add tenants there. Never happened. What did happen was when Riverside Mall was converted to a strip Mall, the old Ward's building along with half of the Mall itself was torn down.

The new Wards building thrived until Montgomery Wards went out of business with the Stores. The building sat idle for many years, until Linens and Things moved in and took up part of the building. Actually, Part of the building was torn down (What a waste) when Linens and Things went in. There is still a section there, which I'm sure still has some Wards Nostalgia in it.

u shoukld try and get pictures

I'll be passing through Utica later in April. I may be able to get some pics. Not sure though.

QuoteOriginally posted by Caldor1999

QuoteOriginally posted by powersbt

QuoteOriginally posted by amesman
There was also a store in Utica that hung on until the end. It was in Riverside Mall.

There were actually 2 Montgomery Ward stores in Riverside Mall, and yes at one point in time, they were both standing at the same time.

The Story:
I want to say it was in the early part of 1994. I was in 9th grade, because I remember discussing it in Science Class. To make the story shorter, the roof on the Original Mont. Wards in the furniture section collapsed during a Snowstorm. It was a Sunday, and around 5ish PM, (No one got hurt Thankfully). At that point, they had no idea what to do, because then they questioned the Integrity of the entire Roof of Riverside Mall. Engineers determined that the Montgomery Wards section was not directly connected to the Mall's roof section, so it was deemed just a problem at Wards. They decided to keep the Montgomery Wards building, sealed off the collapsed section and moved the Furniture section of the store to a Vacant space in the Mall near Montgomery Wards.

A couple of years later, they decided to build the new Montgomery Wards store, which was built partially against the older store. When it opened, coming from the Mall Entrance, you walked through the old Wards Store to get to the Entrance of the new Wards Store. Rumors at the time were that Riverside planned to expand into the old store and add tenants there. Never happened. What did happen was when Riverside Mall was converted to a strip Mall, the old Ward's building along with half of the Mall itself was torn down.

The new Wards building thrived until Montgomery Wards went out of business with the Stores. The building sat idle for many years, until Linens and Things moved in and took up part of the building. Actually, Part of the building was torn down (What a waste) when Linens and Things went in. There is still a section there, which I'm sure still has some Wards Nostalgia in it.

u shoukld try and get pictures

I do have photos of the new Montgomery Wards building just before they started the Linens and Things Project. They had the building Chainlinked off. It's just a matter of getting those photos scanned in. I ought to go over and get some shots. of the empty space. Hey Amesman, if you get up here in April, I'll see if I can get the hookup on finding any remains of the original Riverside Mall.

I believe there is an interior hallway behind that small row of stores at the north end of the plaza.

QuoteOriginally posted by amesman
I believe there is an interior hallway behind that small row of stores at the north end of the plaza.

My thoughts too. It'd be interesting to see what kind of goodies are sitting there.

I think they got all traces of originality out of there, but you never know..

hears a fomer MW takeing in the summer of 2001 shortley before they closed

Here's a former Lechmere in Newington, Connecticut on the Berlin Turnpike. Used to love this store. It became Jo-Ann Fabrics after being vacant for around 3 or 4 years (I presume). The enormous building became divided between Jo-Ann Fabrics and Big Lots. This was the former pick-up area.

Lechmere shopping cart found outside of Big Lots, disguised within their (also) orange-clad carts.

Here's an "Employee of the Month" sign left behind from Lechmere's hey-day.

Mall 205 (Portland, OR)

hears a old MW still vacant

hears anouth rone still vacant with the same style above

and anoutehr wards location still vacant

and anoutejr one that looks to have been clsoed for a long time

Former Utica, New York store. Half of the old store was demolished, and is now home to a Linens and Things.

Here's the old Merchandise Pick Up entrance.

Here's a back enterance. It never used to be on the end like this. The store would have continued on past here to the left. Note the old Wards stickers on the doors.

close up

This is where the Mall Entrance to the store would have been. Remember, I had mentioned before how at one point, you had to walk through the old Montgomery Wards store to get to the new one from inside the mall. For the longest time, now I'm doubting myself, but I believe this one for the longest time had an Electric Ave. sign above the doors.

QuoteOriginally posted by amesman
Here's a back enterance. It never used to be on the end like this. The store would have continued on past here to the left. Note the old Wards stickers on the doors.

thanks for the information powersbt. You have been a big help for info for that area!

Hey, you give me the hookup on info. from your area, I give you the hookup on things in mine. Everybody wins!!

QuoteOriginally posted by amesman
thanks for the information powersbt. You have been a big help for info for that area!

hears a few more MW Pictures

hears the inside

and anouther inside pic

hears a MW still vacant in AL i found tehse picture son flicker which is a place were u can post phots up on

font dores

this is ina vacant mall so im gusisng this was the mall entrance inside

hears the insde of the store

a few more inside shots

a few from teh 2nd flor hhears teh link to were all the pics are

http://www.flickr.com/photos/86055953@N00/

anothetr inside shto i wish i knew how to get into these old stores

former montgomery ward in watertown ny in the salmon run mall on arsenal street. I do not know if this opened when the mall opened in 1986 or was added later, but I knwo it closed in the 2nd wave of closings (the late spring 1999 round)

QuoteOriginally posted by d_fife
former montgomery ward in watertown ny in the salmon run mall on arsenal street. I do not know if this opened when the mall opened in 1986 or was added later, but I knwo it closed in the 2nd wave of closings (the late spring 1999 round)

former ward's in watertown ny

QuoteOriginally posted by d_fife

QuoteOriginally posted by d_fife
former montgomery ward in watertown ny in the salmon run mall on arsenal street. I do not know if this opened when the mall opened in 1986 or was added later, but I knwo it closed in the 2nd wave of closings (the late spring 1999 round)

former ward's in watertown ny

what store is it now?

QuoteOriginally posted by Caldor1999
what store is it now?

just a car dealer ship is in it, on the mall brochure it does not show the old montgomery ward

QuoteOriginally posted by d_fife

QuoteOriginally posted by Caldor1999
what store is it now?

just a car dealer ship is in it, on the mall brochure it does not show the old montgomery ward

ohh i wonder if the inside has anything orgel looks kida small to be a montgomery wards but nice pics

hears teh inside of a lechmere stsore i kida like how it looks

hears  the montgomery ward in the Carolina Circle Mall back in 1974

hears the outside i kidalike the way this store looks lol

hears how it looked in 2005 the store and the mall has been torndown for a wal mart super center and im not suprized that wal mart would do something like this

QuoteOriginally posted by Caldor1999
hears a cool looking M WARDS STORE MALL EN

that pic is of wards at wonderland mall in livonia michigan and wonderland mall is currently being demolished

here is what was the lechmere in manchester CT in the buckland hills plaza.

QuoteOriginally posted by d_fife
here is what was the lechmere in manchester CT in the buckland hills plaza.

manchester ct

what was the newington Ct location

QuoteOriginally posted by d_fife
what was the newington Ct location

newington ct

QuoteOriginally posted by d_fife

QuoteOriginally posted by d_fife
what was the newington Ct location

newington ct

newington ct

Why so angry?

here is the vacant montgomery WARd in the vacant lockport mall in lockport ny as of june 2, 2006.

QuoteOriginally posted by d_fife
here is the vacant montgomery WARd in the vacant lockport mall in lockport ny as of june 2, 2006.

vacant lockport one and it was 57,000 sq.ft. and closed in the 2nd wave of closings.

QuoteOriginally posted by d_fife

QuoteOriginally posted by d_fife
here is the vacant montgomery WARd in the vacant lockport mall in lockport ny as of june 2, 2006.

vacant lockport one and it was 57,000 sq.ft. and closed in the 2nd wave of closings.

lockport one

QuoteOriginally posted by d_fife

QuoteOriginally posted by d_fife

QuoteOriginally posted by d_fife
here is the vacant montgomery WARd in the vacant lockport mall in lockport ny as of june 2, 2006.

vacant lockport one and it was 57,000 sq.ft. and closed in the 2nd wave of closings.

lockport one

lockport one

QuoteOriginally posted by d_fife

QuoteOriginally posted by d_fife

QuoteOriginally posted by d_fife

QuoteOriginally posted by d_fife
here is the vacant montgomery WARd in the vacant lockport mall in lockport ny as of june 2, 2006.

vacant lockport one and it was 57,000 sq.ft. and closed in the 2nd wave of closings.

lockport one

sign for the lockport sign.

lockport one

here is the vacant montgomery ward in meadville pa as of june 9, 2006 in the dead meadville mall. here is the sign, and the labelscar can show

QuoteOriginally posted by d_fife
here is the vacant montgomery ward in meadville pa as of june 9, 2006 in the dead meadville mall. here is the sign, and the labelscar can show

meadvile pa vacant one

nice pics i should g o to lockport ny i cant believe itss till vacant after the 2nd wave of closings in 1999

QuoteOriginally posted by Caldor1999
nice pics i should g o to lockport ny i cant believe itss till vacant after the 2nd wave of closings in 1999

well, almost every store in the mall was vacant. montgomery wards, most of them, seem to be in malls that are secondary or where malls that are now devoloped into big box centers like plattsburgh, colonie / albany, schenectady.

QuoteOriginally posted by d_fife

QuoteOriginally posted by Caldor1999
nice pics i should g o to lockport ny i cant believe itss till vacant after the 2nd wave of closings in 1999

well, almost every store in the mall was vacant. montgomery wards, most of them, seem to be in malls that are secondary or where malls that are now devoloped into big box centers like plattsburgh, colonie / albany, schenectady.

wasent ames in there or was that anoutehr mall in lockport or something?

QuoteOriginally posted by Caldor1999

QuoteOriginally posted by d_fife

QuoteOriginally posted by Caldor1999
nice pics i should g o to lockport ny i cant believe itss till vacant after the 2nd wave of closings in 1999

well, almost every store in the mall was vacant. montgomery wards, most of them, seem to be in malls that are secondary or where malls that are now devoloped into big box centers like plattsburgh, colonie / albany, schenectady.

wasent ames in there or was that anoutehr mall in lockport or something?

yes ames was still vacant

now back to montgomery ward.

I still cannot believe they had ones in mass. I heard people called it monkey wards and my dad thought montgomery ward was lackluster in the end. I Thought so too and my mom thought their stores are crummy looking.

QuoteOriginally posted by d_fife

QuoteOriginally posted by Caldor1999

QuoteOriginally posted by d_fife

QuoteOriginally posted by Caldor1999
nice pics i should g o to lockport ny i cant believe itss till vacant after the 2nd wave of closings in 1999

well, almost every store in the mall was vacant. montgomery wards, most of them, seem to be in malls that are secondary or where malls that are now devoloped into big box centers like plattsburgh, colonie / albany, schenectady.

wasent ames in there or was that anoutehr mall in lockport or something?

yes ames was still vacant

now back to montgomery ward.

I still cannot believe they had ones in mass. I heard people called it monkey wards and my dad thought montgomery ward was lackluster in the end. I Thought so too and my mom thought their stores are crummy looking.

i saw one out in co when it was open back in 1997 i didne tgo in though fromt he looks of it its a better version of sears im also noidice that sears is kida ending up liek montgomery ward ina  way

Why do you say that?

QuoteOriginally posted by Ameskid
Why do you say that?

i say that because sears in a way is kida ending up like wards i mean look in 1994 they bought out lechemere 10 years latter u have the sears and kmart merger and like lechmere kamrt was a dyeingchain of stores also wards had specitla stores and so dose sears not to mention the auto centers they bouth had and teh declning sales over the years bouth wards and sears had that so u neevr know maby in teh next 20 years there wont be any sears

^ I said that in another post but it some how was deleted

hears teh inside of a mw back in 1928

and hears whats left of there headquaters

what is now in the lechmere in syracuse ny

Wow! I never seen a Best Buy and Circuit City so close before

wow they turned it inot 4 stores

the one in utica ny as of may 31, 2006 and it does not say montgomery ward

QuoteOriginally posted by d_fife
the one in utica ny as of may 31, 2006 and it does not say montgomery ward

whats did they put trhere now ???

The Utica location is a Linens and Things now.

QuoteOriginally posted by amesman
The Utica location is a Linens and Things now.

the linens n things did make it seem it was a smaller montgomery ward (but wal-mart is right next to it) and the linens n thiungs looks remodeled and nothing like a montgomery ward and still has that entrance door with no entrance in.

Here's the deal: the Montgomery Wards was a larger store than the building is now. When Linens and Things moved in, they knocked part of the building down, specifically the side nearest to Walmart. If you go around behind the store, there is still evidence that Montgomery Wards was there, especially on the doors.

QuoteOriginally posted by d_fife

QuoteOriginally posted by amesman
The Utica location is a Linens and Things now.

the linens n things did make it seem it was a smaller montgomery ward (but wal-mart is right next to it) and the linens n thiungs looks remodeled and nothing like a montgomery ward and still has that entrance door with no entrance in.

Wards in Regency Mall, Jacksonville, FL

Here's another from the same location.

I have a large amount of Wards stuff. Here's a few pictures of my personal collection.

First here are a few different Wards bags. The bag writing bag, I have about 2000 of those. I bought a case of the small size and a case of the medium size bags when they were closing.

Ok here are some Wards reciepts, some are from when they were closing and some are older and from before they were having closing sales. Also there's a NFL guide that Wards was giving away.

These are the FINAL 4 regualr Wards ads before they started to have their going out of business sale.

And finally here's all of the Wards going out of business ads that they ran in the newspapers.

QuoteOriginally posted by dmx10101
And finally here's all of the Wards going out of business ads that they ran in the newspapers.

Gee - that was a long going out of business sale (since a couple in the middle row say "after 125 years" while the rest say "after 128 years"!

QuoteOriginally posted by BillyGr

QuoteOriginally posted by dmx10101
And finally here's all of the Wards going out of business ads that they ran in the newspapers.

Gee - that was a long going out of business sale (since a couple in the middle row say "after 125 years" while the rest say "after 128 years"!

the sale stared in jan 2001 and dident end till may 2001

QuoteOriginally posted by Caldor1999
hears teh inside of a lechmere stsore i kida like how it looks

Kind of a dark store, dont u think? Does anyone know where this store was located or was this a store demo.

I would not think that it could be possible for Sears to follow in Wards footsteps - as long as they had control of their own fate.  Now that someone else owns them and has confused everyone with the idea of Sears and KMart being one and the same, it could definately dilute their presence in the shopping community.

Since both Wards and Sears had a long-standing catalog business that was one of their strongest selling points and Sears dropped that years ago, it might give them a bit better ending than Wards faced.

QuoteOriginally posted by beachgal26
I would not think that it could be possible for Sears to follow in Wards footsteps - as long as they had control of their own fate.  Now that someone else owns them and has confused everyone with the idea of Sears and KMart being one and the same, it could definately dilute their presence in the shopping community.

Since both Wards and Sears had a long-standing catalog business that was one of their strongest selling points and Sears dropped that years ago, it might give them a bit better ending than Wards faced.

well ove rth e years sears still ahevtn been doing well i mean look at what they did to all thougehrs fromer kmarts all they did wa s apaint job and a new logo to the old jkmart stores  and now there going to become sears grand which is a bad idea cause most kmarts are not that big to be a grand store which is why i think its a bad idiea to change them

the former lechmere in greece ny (near rochester)

former lechmere in cheektowaga / buffalo ny in walden galleria and opened 1991 and 82,000 sq.ft.

The Montgomery Ward in Poughkeepsie is now a DSW on the lower level and Dick's on the upper level.

At Midnight Tonite Montgomery Ward Turns 135 Years Old

QuoteOriginally posted by MontgomeryWardFan
[Censored] my ass:mad::mad::mad::mad::mad:

I admire the passion there but let's try and keep our forums and posts clean with productive and informative posts, eh?

-----------------------------------NEW SITE------------------------------------------------
Come and Visit The Montgomery Ward Fan Club Including Store Pictures Catalog Covers and More Also I Put a link to the ames fan club(This Site Rocks!:yup:)Please Post on The Wards Message Board and Support The Site I am Also Working on getting the site listed on Google,Yahoo,AOL and Other Major Search Engines. Please Leave Your Feedback and Heres The Link- http://www.freewebs.com/montgomerywardfanclub
THANKS!!:dizzy:

QuoteOriginally posted by MontgomeryWardFan
-----------------------------------NEW SITE------------------------------------------------
Come and Visit The Montgomery Ward Fan Club Including Store Pictures Catalog Covers and More Also I Put a link to the ames fan club(This Site Rocks!:yup:)Please Post on The Wards Message Board and Support The Site I am Also Working on getting the site listed on Google,Yahoo,AOL and Other Major Search Engines. Please Leave Your Feedback and Heres The Link- http://www.freewebs.com/montgomerywardfanclub
THANKS!!:dizzy:

Congrats on the opening of the site but I suggest you write your own stuff and submit your own pictures (and/or credit those who've submitted them) - not WikiPedia's.

found a montgomery ward commrical from 1989 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cn7ixzAwqzA
seems they sell the same stuff as sears only that they have the better name and from the looks of it there stores were nicer too idk why they went out sears shoudl ahve gone out insted but oh well

hearsa  pic of a MW taken in april 2001 shotley after they clsoed

anoutehr pic

insdie wards

Nice shots, that Wards looks a lot different than the ones that were by me.

Montgomery Wards was my first employer after I graduated school in 1971 and it was a great place to work and shop.  (I even still have my employee ID and discount card!)   :D

I shopped in alot of Wards stores in the MD/DC area my whole life and they were all clean and well-stocked.  However, sometime after the early 80's, they all seemed to get junkier and carried low-end K-Mart type of merchandise.  The stores always looked like the day after the Thanksgiving sale with stuff on the floors and it was impossible to find any sales help.  It was almost as if the chain already knew that they had lean years ahead.

By the time we moved to FL, there were only a few left in some of the shopping centers and those only had bargain basement stuff that no one seemed to want.  (It was really sad to see how far the company had fallen in all that time.)

:(    :(    :(

click on the smaller ones for larger views

This is a really old Montgomery Wards department store.

QuoteOriginally posted by Caldor1999
hearsa  pic of a MW taken in april 2001 shotley after they clsoed

nice sign and place it looks

looks too good for us folks dont it?

That store looks really "old school" and I would say that it had been around at least in the early 70's??

:)

Passing through North Carolina on my way down to Myrtle Beach the other day, we passes by this OLD Montgomery Ward label scar on an aged vacant building.  I wish I have grabbed a picture.

What was the connection between Montgomery Wards and the ValueVision TV Shopping Network (now known as ShopNBC)? I remember it used to say on the air that customers could use their Montgomery Ward Charge Cards to make purchases. (The ValueVision Shopping Network was built from what was left of the old Cable Value Network Shopping Channel - CVN after CVN was bought out by QVC).

I worked at the Lechmere Woburn location in 1987 and it was a disaster from day 1.  They took over a K-mart, which was one of the original anchor stores when the Woburn mall opened in 1979 and I clearly remember the store manager saying they "conquered a dead-in-the-water K-mart" during some big meeting one day.   At least K-mart is still open!  The one thing I noticed about the place was that everyone was in charge.  There were managers, assistant managers, floor managers, area managers, district managers, area district floor managers, department managers, etc.  Too many chiefs and no Indians.  Training consisted of sticking you in a room upstairs with a manual and a cash register.  The machine itself use to have a display that said "Please Slow Down!".  I was in the Audio One area with some old racist guy and that was the year that the Nintendo Entertainment Systems (NES) came out.  Of course, we had none, but he used to give people false hope when they called by saying "Yes, we sell them....but no we don't have any".  We'd get questions on that all day long, non stop.  The other big seller that year was keyboards, so every mother would let their kids play with them all day long while they shopped.  Audio Two still sold Laserdisc players and they ran Pee Wee's Big Adventure nonstop as the display movie.  I know that one by heart.  I only stayed there all of 2 months, but it was really an awful place to work.

Lechmere was one of the first store credit cards I ever owned. Put more money on that for Nintendo and Sega stuff. They also had the box sets of cds that were a lot less expensive than Circuit City or the chain record stores. I doubt though if they would have survived the influx of Best Buy which took the Lechmere idea and made it better.

Montgomery Wards website is www.wards.com

When did the Lechmere in the Woburn Mall close? It's TJ Maxx now I believe

wards bags for sale on Ebay..

QuoteOriginally posted by MBZ321
wards bags for sale on Ebay..

I have two whole cases of wards bags that I bought when they were closing, One case is small size bags and the other is medium size bags. They both say- you can't shop smarter than Wards.

Whenever I went into Montgomery Wards electronic section, I always wished I could walk in with a huge boombox on my shoulder jamming to Eddy Grants "Electric Avenue" song.  They probably would have kicked me out though..

Former Montgomery Ward in Spokane, Washington. Burlington Coat Factory opened in the mid-1990s and doesn't use this side for an entrance.

I found a labelscar on the side of the auto center, which is still sitting vacant.

The Former Charleroi, PA location.  This is now South Pennsylvania Human Services and a sign maker is in the auto center.  These were taken in back in December.

The Auto Center Front
(http://i341.photobucket.com/albums/o387/TheUltimateZero/CharleroiWardsGarageFront.jpg)

The Auto Center Rear
(http://i341.photobucket.com/albums/o387/TheUltimateZero/CharleroiWardsGarageRear.jpg)

I don't remember what this door was.
(http://i341.photobucket.com/albums/o387/TheUltimateZero/CharleroiWards.jpg)

The Main Entrance
(http://i341.photobucket.com/albums/o387/TheUltimateZero/CharleroiWards2.jpg)

Here is the pole, long since missing it's big box Montgomery Ward sign on the street.

Interestingly this exit sign has survived since the early 70's

Store front with the new Chunky's theater, this was the original section that Ames #746 once occupied on 150 Coliseum Ave. Zayre88 previous posted the Ames store front after they had closed. Back on page 6.
Interestingly this area on the far left was originally the Montogomery Ward sit down restaurant. It had full length windows that ran the length of the dining room.

This is the side entrance near automotive that we frequently entered through when I was a kid. It was the drapery and bedding department. Beyond that was the furniture display floor.
The chain link area out front was utilized for summer garden equipment, although in the end, this space was almost never used from what I can remember.

I've been driving past this truck for years and finally found the time to pull over and take a picture.
It is in Wilton, New Hampshire at the water bottling plant

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v41/CorporateA/signz001.jpg)(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v41/CorporateA/signz002.jpg)

After visiting the Grand Union store in Tannersville, NY I headed west on 23A onto 23. I was welcomed to this sign along my way to Stamford.

Here's a close up of the sign hanging from the building.

The sign found in New York on RT23 is a mini version of the one that was on this sign post in Nashua, NH.

In downtown Vermont the former Montgomery Ward building still stands with it's painted sign on the top of the building.

This is a close up picture of the sign.

Taking a trip out to Peterborough today with my friend I got to be the passenger for a change.
When we drove back through Wilton, NH on route 101 heading east towards Milford, I discovered
this trailer tucked away amongst a cluster of other trailers.

Opps... TRJ22487 already posted this same trailer back on 8/04/09. I remembered that a trailer was posted
recently, but forgot that it was right here in the area. This is a picture of the other side of the trailer for your enjoyment. :)

Just found this picture of a special edition car that Bobby Labonte drove in 1998.  Note the Wards Auto Express logos.

http://jayski.com/schemes/98/18ss-hood.jpg

Pics credit: Jayski

any one have pictures of the lechrmere in the mall of nh it is now ac morre and best buy

heres the lechmere in  The Framingham Mall

here are pics of the one in Weymouth pics takeing by Ted Swift

Weymouth

That store looks kind of like the Bradlees from that 1974 NBA commercial. Could it be?

So the Montgomery Wards in Nashua, NH finally has a store number.... Taken from the Montgomery Ward fashion box from catalog service!!

Hears a list of Lechmere Locations as of 1989 IN Mass
88 First St./Cambridge  (617)-491-2000
Liberty Tree Mall/Danvers (508)-777-1000
688 Provindence HW/Dedham (617)-329-2200
Framinham Mall/Framinham (508)-620-0100
740 Middle St./Weymouth (617)-337-5770
Woburn Mall/Woburn (617)-935-8320
Grendale Mall/Worchester (508)-856-9800
1550 Boston Rd./Springfeild (413)-543-5100

This was my 1000 Post!!! :P

Reliving the good ole days!
http://youtu.be/b6zv9i7gscY

I'm seeing tons of TV ads for the resurrected wards.com this holiday season.  Ironically, they have a higher profile in my neck of the woods than they had back in the day.  Where I grew up their presence was limited to a nondescript tiny catalog store.

http://wards.com/custserv/custserv.jsp?pageName=Commercial

I posted this in the vinyl record section but figured I'd put it here too.

Longtime residents of New England or New York should remember Lechmere, which closed in November 1997.
The only ones I can remember going to a few times were in Manchester and Nashua, NH, but I feel like I have been to others in Massachusetts or Connecticut as well.  
Well if you don't remember them, the 1988 corporate video has been dug up on Youtube that shows off the entire Danvers, Mass store and some of the Liberty Tree Mall, which still exists, though the Lechmere was demolished in 1998.
Really cool to look at. This is before Montgomery Ward bought them out and ran them into the ground.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v41/CorporateA/more/1988_lechmere_0.jpg)(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v41/CorporateA/more/1988_Lechmere_5.jpg)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tT9Z_2XZ4KY
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v41/CorporateA/more/1988_lechmere_1.jpg)(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v41/CorporateA/more/1988_lechmere_2.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v41/CorporateA/more/1988_lechmere_3.jpg)(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v41/CorporateA/more/1988_lechmere_4.jpg)



In this shot from then and 2009, you can see the hall area still looks very much the same!
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v41/CorporateA/more/1988_lechmere_1.jpg)(http://blog.mlive.com/kzgazette_impact/2009/01/large_retailslump.jpg)




This particular store #003 also has a Facebook page with literally dozens of photos from the 70's to the late 90's
But most of the photos seem to come from the same era that this video was shot, or even earlier!
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Lechmere-003/108905319133994?sk=photos_stream
(http://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-snc6/251509_477956668895522_2040939361_n.jpg)
(http://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/24359_115345498489976_4398739_n.jpg)
(http://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/24359_115588028465723_1359362_n.jpg)
(http://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/24359_115588691798990_2291233_n.jpg)

Lechmere and Filene's Basement were anchor stores of the mall until 1997 when they were demolished and rebuilt into Target, Staples, Dollar Tree and Best Buy in 1998/1999. An f.y.e. replaced part of an area of smaller stores, converting them into a music store/video arcade (formerly Dream Machine), both of which have since closed. Another group of stores was converted to Bed Bath & Beyond.

Ann & Hope closed its 211,300-square-foot (19,630 m2) store in 2001 due to poor sales. It was later rebuilt into Kohl's. Stop & Shop and Pier 1 Imports were later built to the left of Kohl's. A Loews Theatres 20-screen multiplex was also added to the mall.

In January 2008, Stop & Shop closed. The 91,000-square-foot (8,500 m2) store was originally built in 2003.[1] The former Stop & Shop space was converted for use by Nordstrom Rack and Off Broadway Shoe Warehouse, which opened in November 2008.[2] In 2009, the former f.y.e. was replaced by a Steve & Barry's, but only operated briefly until the company's bankruptcy. This location featured a more modern design compared to other locations.





Here is a Duran Duran record I have with a Lechmere sticker. They started selling music in the early 80's.
Fun Fact: Massachusetts Senator Scott Brown was arrested at the Liberty Tree Mall location (shown above) for shoplifting vinyl record LP's! It is in his autobiography.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v41/CorporateA/more/002-1.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v41/CorporateA/more/001-1.jpg)

Can someone tell me where all the Lechmere locations were located in CT? I am really intrigued to find out where the Manchester one was.

In MA. in '89 they had stores in
Cambridge-88 First Street
Cambridge-Liberty Tree Mall
Dedham-688 Providence Highway
Framingham-400 Cochituate Road
Weymouth-740 Middle Street
Woburn-275 Wildwood Street
Woburn-Mishawun Road and Commerce Road
Woburn-7 Neponset Street

That's a great video. I don't think it's a training video though, it looks like it was produced in house for maybe a Christmas party or something.

There are some fantastic classic accents in that thing.

Quote from: TRJ_22487 on December 30, 2012, 01:57:34 PM
Longtime residents of New England or New York should remember Lechmere, which closed in November 1997.
The only ones I can remember going to a few times were in Manchester and Nashua, NH, but I feel like I have been to others in Massachusetts or Connecticut as well.  
Well if you don't remember them, the 1988 corporate video has been dug up on Youtube that shows off the entire Danvers, Mass store and some of the Liberty Tree Mall, which still exists, though the Lechmere was demolished in 1998.
Really cool to look at. This is before Montgomery Ward bought them out and ran them into the ground.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v41/CorporateA/more/1988_lechmere_0.jpg)(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v41/CorporateA/more/1988_Lechmere_5.jpg)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tT9Z_2XZ4KY
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v41/CorporateA/more/1988_lechmere_1.jpg)(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v41/CorporateA/more/1988_lechmere_2.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v41/CorporateA/more/1988_lechmere_3.jpg)(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v41/CorporateA/more/1988_lechmere_4.jpg)



In this shot from then and 2009, you can see the hall area still looks very much the same!
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v41/CorporateA/more/1988_lechmere_1.jpg)(http://blog.mlive.com/kzgazette_impact/2009/01/large_retailslump.jpg)




This particular store #003 also has a Facebook page with literally dozens of photos from the 70's to the late 90's
But most of the photos seem to come from the same era that this video was shot, or even earlier!
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Lechmere-003/108905319133994?sk=photos_stream
(http://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-snc6/251509_477956668895522_2040939361_n.jpg)
(http://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/24359_115345498489976_4398739_n.jpg)
(http://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/24359_115588028465723_1359362_n.jpg)
(http://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/24359_115588691798990_2291233_n.jpg)

Lechmere and Filene's Basement were anchor stores of the mall until 1997 when they were demolished and rebuilt into Target, Staples, Dollar Tree and Best Buy in 1998/1999. An f.y.e. replaced part of an area of smaller stores, converting them into a music store/video arcade (formerly Dream Machine), both of which have since closed. Another group of stores was converted to Bed Bath & Beyond.

Ann & Hope closed its 211,300-square-foot (19,630 m2) store in 2001 due to poor sales. It was later rebuilt into Kohl's. Stop & Shop and Pier 1 Imports were later built to the left of Kohl's. A Loews Theatres 20-screen multiplex was also added to the mall.

In January 2008, Stop & Shop closed. The 91,000-square-foot (8,500 m2) store was originally built in 2003.[1] The former Stop & Shop space was converted for use by Nordstrom Rack and Off Broadway Shoe Warehouse, which opened in November 2008.[2] In 2009, the former f.y.e. was replaced by a Steve & Barry's, but only operated briefly until the company's bankruptcy. This location featured a more modern design compared to other locations.

Quote from: Lastdaysofrain on January 07, 2013, 02:38:50 PM
That's a great video. I don't think it's a training video though, it looks like it was produced in house for maybe a Christmas party or something.

There are some fantastic classic accents in that thing.

No it's definitely not a training video, but it was a corporate video, or as you say produced in house. Apparently there was no budget to put a microphone on any of these people lol. Still it captures what a Lechmere store looked like fantastically. It's as if it were all still there. I love the accents as well. I feel like you really don't see as many young people with the true mass accent anymore.....the old timers though, oh boy.

If you look in the Ann & Hope thread, I linked to a video from New Years Eve December 1980 at the Ann & Hope down the corridor, which anchored the mall on the other side. I was definitely born 30 years before I should have been. I can never shake the feeling that I should have been in my 30's in the 1980's.....

their used to be one in westminster md it was torn down and 2 years lator a boscovs was bult their i wish someone had pictures of that store id love to see it. i have a slight memory of it but i was only 4 i remember looking though the tiny square in the mall wall wondering what store was going to go their and watched their progress as they remodeled.

Quote from: TRU7536 on December 30, 2012, 08:35:13 PM
Can someone tell me where all the Lechmere locations were located in CT? I am really intrigued to find out where the Manchester one was.

The Lechmere location was on Pleasant Valley Road in a shopping center where a MISMANAGED CompUSA store was. I believe it is now a JoAnn Fabric and More.

Still up and running
http://www.wards.com/

A chronological photo timeline of the Montgomery Ward in Southgate, Michigan: 1958-2012.

(https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8250/8624205679_07ed1996a9_c.jpg)
A newspaper article about the opening of the store, 1958

(https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8103/8624205791_32eda7eae4_c.jpg)
1989, during the final days of it's original brick facade

(https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8100/8624205833_11a71a8618_o.jpg)
2001 or 2002, shortly after closure

(https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8519/8625310942_f1b4635100_o.jpg)
2006

(https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8546/8685756073_473ecaf2e6_c.jpg)
The interior less than a year before demolition

There were a bunch of ads that came with my Mom's life insurance bill that came in the mail today. One of the ads was to send away for a free Montgomery Ward Catalog.

I remember that Montgomery Ward store in Southgate.
Was last in it around 1995, I think.

Quote from: TheFugitive on August 31, 2015, 08:58:44 AM
I remember that Montgomery Ward store in Southgate.
Was last in it around 1995, I think.

I believe you may have already seen the new exterior facade that was added in 1989.

Yes.  I moved to that part of Michigan in 1989.

Wasn't Lechemere once owned by Dayton Hudson (now Target) Corporation?

Quote from: Pikapower on August 31, 2018, 04:38:22 PM
Wasn't Lechemere once owned by Dayton Hudson (now Target) Corporation?

It does mention that in the Wikipedia article (though only as Dayton's - perhaps prior to the Dayton Hudson merger?).

Quote from: BillyGr on September 01, 2018, 11:27:37 AM

Quote from: Pikapower on August 31, 2018, 04:38:22 PM
Wasn't Lechemere once owned by Dayton Hudson (now Target) Corporation?

It does mention that in the Wikipedia article (though only as Dayton's - perhaps prior to the Dayton Hudson merger?).

Lechmere was bought by Dayton Corporation a year prior to the 1969 merger with Hudson. It remained part of Dayton-Hudson until the 1989 management-led LBO.

Just saw this building with the sign that said "Montgomery Ward", yet, I'm almost aware that it was once a store the Department store chain had in downtown Putnam, Connecticut but when I saw the sign on the door that said "The Shops at Montgomery Ward", I can tell this may not even have been their former real department store as there are thriving shops around here. So what's the point of copying the store name? Is that what some downtown districts use?

Quote from: Everything Community on July 06, 2019, 11:53:04 PM
Just saw this building with the sign that said "Montgomery Ward", yet, I'm almost aware that it was once a store the Department store chain had in downtown Putnam, Connecticut but when I saw the sign on the door that said "The Shops at Montgomery Ward", I can tell this may not even have been their former real department store as there are thriving shops around here. So what's the point of copying the store name? Is that what some downtown districts use?

Wouldn't be surprising for a former department store to be in a building like that (as they were in the days before malls were thought of), and the building certainly looks like it could have been one large store that was later split up.
Also, in earlier years many of these companies had some of their catalog business set up in different areas around the country to make for easier distribution, and those were often in part of a building that also housed a store (the less accessible areas in the rear or an upper level(s)).

So it certainly looks like it could have been a Wards store at one point.