Today's Julius Shulman post comes from Lakewood. It's
"Job 1437: Kanner and Mayer, Lakewood Building (Lakewood, Calif.), 1953". The larger May Co building is in the background.
There was a Woolworth's at the other end of the block.
A look around the back. The area on the right would get more stores shortly afterwards, but it's looking a bit untidy here.
Due to the number of storefront shots, I decided to post them in a smaller size and in pairs. I left out the interior images. Here's Bond Clothes and Leed's QualiCraft Shoes.
Hartfields appears to be another clothing store. I like the slogan of Kay Jewelers - "it's OK to owe KAY".
The last indivual shots show Rhodes Jewelers, Choates Bakery, Curries Ice Cream and Lee's Department Store. Note the five skylights above the gap between the stores.
All from
Getty Research Institute
I also found this 1952 image of the opening ceremony.
"Another unit of specialty stores between Butler Brothers and the May Company opened on October 3, 1952. Shoppers thronged the 17 new stores that included Bond Clothes, Lee’s Department Store, Leed’s shoes, Harfield’s Jewelers, Woolworth’s, Sav-On Drugs, and Kay Jewelers. National chains were initially reluctant to open a new store so far from the traditional downtown streets where they had been located for decades. Lakewood Center’s instant popularity help change the face of retailing throughout California and the West."
lakewood-ca.smugmug.com
I've studied the historic aerial photos, and I think that the original buildings are behind the more recent (and uglier) façades. The five skylights are still visible. The May Co building is now Macy's.
Google Maps