Malls aren't the only ones with a story to tell.
When you go to the mall or a large shopping center, you will probably find department stores.
If you are in Florida, you are going to find Dillard's, Macy's, Belk, JCPenney,
or possibly Sears in the average suburban neighborhood shopping mall and town center.
Those stores weren't always there. Just like family trees, stores have predecessors
that paved the way for them to be where they are now.
And sometimes, instead of transforming into something new,
a department store of yesterday departs completely.
At first glance, this is a Wells Fargo bank branch.
It is located in downtown St. Augustine, the Nation's oldest city.
Taking a closer look, the Wells Fargo only occupies the space of what was once
a very popular neighborhood department store.
This "F" sits in a tile floor outside the front entrance to what is now an abandoned building
in downtown Jacksonville, off of Adams Street.
Much of downtown suffers from the visible blight of struggling economy.
The "F" is a leftover imprint from a different, more prosperous era
and a department store that no longer exists: Furchgott's.
More coming as I make historical discoveries!
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