Ames / West Hartford, Connecticut

XISMZERO · March 15, 2006, 06:13:29 PM

I took a trip there today and documented some pictures. I went the extra mile for this particular store because it was a former Caldor site - and those who remember what Caldor looked like in the early 80s will be excited to see more of it.

Also in this album, you'll find some other goodies too! Enjoy!

http://ccsu.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2007808&l=f9207&id=48807574

Caldor1999 · March 15, 2006, 08:04:46 PM

QuoteOriginally posted by XISMZERO
I took a trip there today and documented some pictures. I went the extra mile for this particular store because it was a former Caldor site - and those who remember what Caldor looked like in the early 80s will be excited to see more of it.

Also in this album, you'll find some other goodies too! Enjoy!

http://ccsu.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2007808&l=f9207&id=48807574

that caldor had teh rainbow logo i think through out the whole time i wish someone had a pic of what it looked like when it was a caldor

but any way nice pics o btw caldor used thoughs carts in the 90's the 80's carts were dark brow with the oralge lettering on it the ones u see there were from the 90's

and caldor carts a re a rair find then bradlees carts are well at lease in ny they are lol

C. Fontaine · March 15, 2006, 10:11:24 PM

That's cool, nice pics! I also have a few in the store locator!

XISMZERO · March 19, 2006, 02:18:53 PM

I visited this Ames in it's final week before closing. I was intruged to go back and take pictures of this building because it reminds me of the former Caldor location in New Britain (now a ghastly Wal-Mart). This was one of the 70s/80s buildings with the rainbow logo as Caldor1999 says. Also, looking at Fontaine's gallery made me want to go back and do my own photo shoot.

I've noticed two things thus far; this plaza smells really bad. I think it's because there's a heavily polluted river to the side of it which is most likely a breeding ground for rotting garbage. The second thing is that seagulls love to just bask in this plaza...

XISMZERO · March 28, 2006, 08:07:56 PM

I went back to the former Caldor/Ames building in West Hartford the other day (which was my birthday!) and found out some intruging things. Notably, the doors were open to the building! Appearently it's being used as a storage facility and I finally caught them on a day they were using it!

XISMZERO · March 28, 2006, 08:10:08 PM

Here's the "concrete, windowless box" in all it's retro glory today. This is probably the last of the true "rainbow" Caldor buildings still standing.

XISMZERO · March 28, 2006, 08:12:51 PM

I was a little too frightened to go inside for fear I'd get yelled at for trespassing. There were forklifts and things inside as I inched in to get this shot of a bathroom in the vestibule along with two red shopping carts. This store still has Ames decals all over the walls.

Caldor1999 · March 28, 2006, 09:03:51 PM

cool pcis knowing how i am i would have goon in lol

Anonymous · April 05, 2006, 08:33:06 PM

Boy... That location (New Britian Ave, West Hartford) used to be a Star's before Star's closed that store (around 1970). Next to it was a FoodMart/Waldbaum's, and I think it is EMPTY now. (Or an Big Lots store)

XISMZERO · April 05, 2006, 09:33:12 PM

Anonymous,

Does anyone remember "Star's Department Store?"The building next to it was a Waldbaum's and it's now a "Dollar Dreams" (not empty).

XISMZERO · April 19, 2006, 01:19:14 PM

Updated Visit!
I found myself with some idle time after class today as it was too early for lunch and way to early for a school meeting I had at 1PM I decided to see how the falling apart Star's>Caldor>Ames complex was as I haven't been back since late March. I took some more pictures of the horrendous state that plaza is in and how it really needs to meet uncertain fate with a bulldozer.

Here's the album of today's rather odd findings...

Really, I do love this building. Brings back memories of shopping at my old New Britain Caldor which was a facsimile of this ugly old deteriorating husk :)

store215 · April 19, 2006, 08:55:49 PM

QuoteOriginally posted by XISMZERO
Updated Visit!

Here's the album of today's rather odd findings...

Cool, I never saw Price Club (pre-Costco) carts before.

XISMZERO · July 21, 2006, 09:04:29 PM

Here's more pictures from, at the height of it's popularity, the withering former Caldor plaza on Route 71 in West Hartford. Just a recap, this one was bought by Ames a few years before their closure and after Caldor's.

Two other Caldor stores looked just as this one, in former "Star's" buildings in the Hartford area which encompasses New Britain (on Farmington Ave.) and Southington (on Rt. 10, Queen Street) and are now both completely rebult Wal-Mart stores. They were all "rainbow" era stores right before their closures.

XISMZERO · July 21, 2006, 09:06:32 PM

Here's a the former brown-clad Waldbaum's which now operates as a hole-in-the-wall "Dollar Dreams" which claims to be the number one dollar store in Connecticut.

XISMZERO · July 21, 2006, 09:08:35 PM

As you can see, this heap building is ready to fall down like it's former Caldor neighbor.

XISMZERO · July 21, 2006, 09:09:45 PM

A distressed and depleted flower bed.

XISMZERO · July 21, 2006, 09:11:23 PM

Both buildings suffering from too much age.

XISMZERO · July 21, 2006, 09:16:06 PM

Another angle.

XISMZERO · July 21, 2006, 09:19:11 PM

Here's a rather interesting notice found taped to the door of the troubled former Caldor. I came back a while later and saw the usual (shady) business of the current owners.

XISMZERO · July 21, 2006, 09:20:23 PM

Building is falling apart.

XISMZERO · July 21, 2006, 09:22:35 PM

The attract sign from the road. You can tell this was a "rainbow" Caldor because of the box-shaped sign. The one we used to go to had a sign like this one. Now you can see Ames' imprint on it.

XISMZERO · July 21, 2006, 09:27:13 PM

This miserable plaza is located next to an overtaken Asian plaza (once populated by mainstream chains), a vacant McDonald's, and about an 8th of a mile from Hartford's town line. This end of West Hartford is old and somewhat ghetto (unlike the posh other end), but is also a heavy commerce area for the U.S. Postal Service and DHL amongst some aging industrial yards. This property has been struggling ever since Caldor left it in 1999 and isn't really considered a safe area.

store215 · July 22, 2006, 06:33:57 PM

"Everything $1.00 or MORE?" It looks like the MORE part was added later on :rolleyes:

BillyGr · July 22, 2006, 06:48:44 PM

Was that $ store ever a Dollar Tree (or maybe was supposed to be)? - that looks like what they use (except it says a dollar or LESS) - and the green leeters in the name as well are similar.

XISMZERO · July 22, 2006, 08:48:18 PM

Dollar Dreams is a small local (junk) dollar store chain. Both of their slogans are suspect (especially that "$1.00 or MORE"). It's been there since maybe before Ames was in business (I've been in there once right when Ames was in it's final week and never wanted to go back).

There's another one near downtown New Britain in a former "Finast" building in a pretty bad area though. I'll have to try and get pics of that since that building had the same old facade Finast did (complete with label scarring).

AmesNewington · July 23, 2006, 09:05:09 AM

As distressed as the building looks, it is a BIG dollar store with many good items. I bought things from the West Hartford one.

They could do a lot of renovating to this building though. The selection of merchandise is great, but the building is in the wrong place.

d_fife · July 25, 2006, 06:32:27 PM

notice the possible rainbow logo labelscar! on this west hartford one, this was taken as of july 21, 2006 and the parking lot and building is in bad shape. it is 1-2 miles from the westfarms mall and not far from the hartford line.

d_fife · July 25, 2006, 06:33:05 PM

QuoteOriginally posted by d_fife
notice the possible rainbow logo labelscar! on this west hartford one, this was taken as of july 21, 2006 and the parking lot and building is in bad shape. it is 1-2 miles from the westfarms mall and not far from the hartford line.

notice possible labelscar

d_fife · July 25, 2006, 06:33:47 PM

QuoteOriginally posted by d_fife
QuoteOriginally posted by d_fife
notice the possible rainbow logo labelscar! on this west hartford one, this was taken as of july 21, 2006 and the parking lot and building is in bad shape. it is 1-2 miles from the westfarms mall and not far from the hartford line.

notice possible labelscar

sign and notice ames labelscar

C. Fontaine · July 25, 2006, 10:10:16 PM

I have a picture of when this was Ames, the Ames labelscar at least would be to the right...