The "Boy and the Bear" statue now resides in the Southfield Public Library Some Trivia: This mall has a police station in the basement and it was used as the first offices for the Oakland County Child Killer Task Force. The Mall also has a bus station under it for what was then known as the Detroit Street Rail bus system, long before SEMTA Yes, there is a fall out shelter at this mall The MW at 5:13 is Montgomery Wards which was a department store in the area.... When I was five or six my mother took my sister and I to see Oopsy Daisy the Clown at this mall and my sister worked at a store called Size 5,7 & 9. I worked for a local Chevy dealer and we would take cars to Northland to leave in the mall to show off the new models, I drove cars and vans thru the mall. We where told,"No spinning the tires!"
I worked in the Northland Oval Room in Hudsons shoe department in the late 80s... it was not easy to get that job, I had to establish myself in top sales at Summit Place before I was even consdiered. The Oval Room was the most prestigious dept at Hudsons as it sold the most expensive lines of beautiful shoes and handbags in the area like Walter Steiger and Ferragamo (average $300/pair).. we even had a full time security guard dedicated to our department. Our top competitor was Saks Fifth Avenue.
I remember that as a young child! My grandma brought some of her furs from Hudson’s and sequin dresses! We would have lunch on the upper floor at Hudson’s too! Those were the days!
@@homehere9817 similar memories for me too. As a young child, my grandmother, & great aunt would buy their furs, & beautiful gowns, & jewelry from Hudson's, & if I was with them, they always took me to eat at the Hudson's restaurant. Hudson's was THE store to shop at.
Thanks for this, Anthony! I worked at Northand in the early 80s (I was a mechanic at JCPenney Autocenter). I’ve been in the tunnels under the mall many times - and they were creepy even when the mall was thriving.
watching this, as a native detroiter who visited this mall many many times, it feels so weird. thank you for doing this. Of course I'm wondering what was the encounter you had that was unsafe, but I'm glad you escaped unharmed.
The old Northland mall had A fire right before Christmas in 2019. I’m not surprised because electricity left was always on in the structure. However the mall survived the fire and as of now is still standing.
Seeing the Macy’s Marketplace with all the brickwork broke my heart. It was one of my absolute favorite places of my childhood. It was so beautiful when it was open for business. The food was amazing. The way all the items were displayed was just gorgeous. Basement of Northland Macy’s (Hudson’s during my childhood) was my absolute favorite.
This is really sad to see this mall close down. Knowing it used to be people walking around. Eating and shopping. It’s such sad what’s happened to malls around the us. Thanks Anthony for posting.
The Northland JL Hudson's/Marshall Fields/Macys kept it's Hudson's esthetic right up to the end. Some former Hudson's (Twelve Oaks, Briarwood, etc) have been renovated and lost that Hudson's feel -- the marketplace area at Northland was spectacular -- on a smaller scale that esthetic lives on at Fairlane and Oakland (Fairlane even retains it's Hudsons "non ceiling") made up of geometric baffles. The funky font on the 'fine jewelry' and 'home store' signs is also vintage JLH and still exists at a number of Macys (Fairlane, Lakeside, Oakland). The massive Eastland store was a close sibling of the Northland location and was almost equal in it's massive scale (larger than many downtown flagship stores of the era) -- yet up to it's closure a couple of years ago Eastland had been stripped pretty bare of most of it's Hudsons-era elements. Notably, upon the closure of the Downtown Detroit Hudsons in the early 1980s, the Northland store was considered the "flagship" Hudsons through the Dayton-Hudson Corp era -- and it retained that status until the Somerset Hudsons was built in the mid 1990s. (The Somerset store retains its green colored marble Hudsons façade on its interior entrances). Various artifacts from the Downtown store were spread out among the branch stores upon its closure -- there are light figures/chandeliers at Southland, Oakland and Lakeside, a drinking fountain at Somerset, and upon the closure of Northland a large memorial to Hudson employees who died in the World Wars was relocated to the main floor of the Oakland store.
To Joe Truman: Of all the macy*s stores that still exist in Metro Detroit, I like The Oakland Mall one the best...because it's the one my late Uncle always preferred the most. It still has a lot of the HUDSON'S elements. The chandeliers, Restaurant and layout. Even the Stainless Steel Haughton Escalators...very similar to the ones at Northland. I understand they are salvaging the J.L. Hudson's Building, Water Tower and Underground Tunnels as part of the Northland Redevelopment Scheme. Thanks for your interesting comments Joe.
Marshall Field's State Street store in the Loop in downtown Chicago was totally my favourite department store in the entire world. Absolutely "Grande Dame" and beautiful. macy*s has ruined that store...poor maintenance, downsizing....the list goes on. At least they kept the 124 year old Walnut Room Restaurant on the seventh floor. I don't think the historical board would dare let them close it!
Shopping every weekend. Jeepers. Fights. The food court with the best Chinese food you can imagine. I miss this place so much! So many great memories growing up.
Thank you for showing this even tho it hurts to see the mall I grew up in go down like this. I just wish this mall could’ve been saved. So much history there. Very educational and historical.
The crown jewel mall👑in Troy,Michigan is the magnificent Somerset Collection twin malls complex and next to it the abandoned Kmart world headquarters complex.A vloggers dream of extreme opposite fates side by side in today's retail reality.The high end thriving lux malls and very nearby the massive empty Kmart HQ complex the rapidly shrinking middle class of the world built.😳Both complexes amazing😲Hudson's was Detroit's premier dept.store at the same level as Cleveland's Higbee's dept.store.🎩👜💁A footnote: Detroit was once per capita America's wealthiest large city.💰
@@cmthomas07It certainly is my favorite enclosed malls complex.Make sure I stop by when visiting relatives near there.Live west of Cleveland in Avon Lake,so a good weekend getaway stop.🎩
Here Goes..Northland was one of a group of FOUR MALLS administerd by the same management group..Westland (Westland Mi.)..Eastland (East Detroit Mi.) the aforementioned Northland, and Southland (Lincoln Park,Mi.) were the component properties of the group..Essentially, they were all outdoor malls,but Westland was the least open of the 4..Hudson's was the ANCHOR STOREof all 4 malls,with Crowleys as a secondary retailer..Winklemans,a women's clothier,had a store in each location, along with Hughes Hatcher Suffrin, a men's franchise..The hook about going to these malls was that SANTA CLAUSE was a every Hudson's store for the holidays..and standing in line to see him was a rite of passage for us all..Another great thing about Northland was that they had a Stouffers Restaurant on the far side if the property and a GREENFIELDS restaurant across the street..Travel a couple of miles down Greenfield, and you could hit the DELI's in Oak Park...The changing demographic in Southfield did directly affect the fortunes of Northland..I wont be PC here..as the racial mix of the customers swung toward the black population..the whites went tp the safer confines of OAKLAND MALL and Somerset Mall in Troy..sad to see happen but MI is not a unique case..Randall Park Mall in the Cleveland area being another..Just a small history lesson from someone who was there for a lot of years...
You sound racist and ignorant af. You are basically saying black people caused this mall to close. This mall did not close because it failed. Typical racist Michigander 🙄
Yes, I remember Northland Mall. Northland Mall opened up in 1954, and there is Eastland Mall which opened up in 1957 ,which is located in Harper Woods, Michigan at Verner, (8 Mile Road)and Kelly Road. P.S. , I used to work at Eastland Mall, at Hudson's in the Men's Sportswear Department on the first floor, for 5 years. Eastland Mall is just hanging by a thread. Even the city busses don't stop at Eastland Mall. Eastland Mall is about to turn into another Northland Mall.
This will go down as one of your instant classic, epic videos. Glad you were able to get there before they leveled the place. Important to preserve this when in the future people ask "what's a mall?" I did not know that Northland Mall was the first modern era shopping mall. Must remember this when I go on Jeopardy. It's sad to see a historic place end up like this. It also looked creepy going around there, you are braver people than me. Glad you are ok and the police did not harass you. You are just artists documenting a dying architectual and retail product. Getting into the Hudsons was a major fete. I still have my anger with Macys who I feel destroyed a lot of great, long time regional department stores: Hudsons/Daytons/Marshall Fields (midwest,) John Wannamakers (Philly,) Kaufmanns (PIttsburgh,) Filenes (Boston,) Foleys (Texas,) Abraham and Strauss/Sterns (New Jersey/NYC.) Macys could have left all those stores alone with their same nameplates since they were unique to their regions. The store you were in was beautiful with the lights and design and other classy, big city department store touches. Sad they will all be gone. Heard that the city and state are pushing for this property to become the second headquarters for Amazon, now that the plans for them to go to Long Island City, NYC are up in smoke. The property is big enough for it, but sad to see mall history go to dust. Proud to be a Patreon and excited you are going to different places like Texas to film and preserve retail history. Proud of all you have done Anthony!
This was a great video, except for the fact he teases us about something happening and then left us hanging. Was pretty cool to see this before they demo the entire thing though. That news clip at the beginning was perfect.
Sad how the first mall in the USA has become a zombie mall and is facing demolition. I wish they would turn at least part of it into a museum as It has such historical significance. But the downsizing of retail and a decline of the population in the Detroit area killed the mall.
I remember Northland as a young child! My grandma brought some of her furs from Hudson’s and sequin dresses! We would have lunch on the upper floor at Hudson’s too! Those were the days!
I am from Canada and used to visit Detroit a lot...my late Uncle Bill lived in Sarnia all his life....so over the Bluewater Bridge and west on the I-94. He always favored Lakeside, Oakland and Twelve Oaks....which all had hudson's in them. One trip by chance, he had a couple of Cousins who lived down there...we were supposed to visit the World Famous Detroit Zoo...and it was pouring rain...so we ended up at Northland for the better part of the day. Had lunch at a Long John Silver's Seafood place....and spent most of the visit in the hudson's which I think was at the time around 500,000 square feet over 4-5 floors. I remember the lower level food and wine section. Ended up eating dinner in there. Visited several times after...they added the Target and when hudson's was merged into Marshall Field's. Did not visit much after 2005...so never saw the macy*s there. Still visit my cousins in Farmington Hiils and Milford...so mainly go to Twelve Oaks now....sometimes Oakland too. Such happy memories....especially of that huge hudson's.
Worked at Radio Shack and Team Electronics in the 70’s. Met my wife who worked at the bakery next door. We received a lot of our products through the underground tunnel.
I think what’s real interesting about these dead mall videos is that, obviously, by the time the mall shuts down, it’s already far past its prime and dies with just a handful of crappy stores left in it. So, when watching these videos, some of the decay being shown was occurring long before the final days of the entire mall. I wish there were some pictures of the same mall at its height of popularity.
Victor Gruen was the architect of Winrock Mall in Albuquerque which in my opinion is one of the most unique malls ever. Unfortunately most of it is demolished but you can see photos and I'm rebuilding it as a model!
@@FHDTV : Very sad. They had a store there called Fools Paradise. They sold Top Of The Line stunt kits, and they were also the first to sell the Revolution 4-line stunt kite, which many are in use today pulling skiers and boarders. A pioneer shop indeed, and I don't think there will ever be a replacement. Winrock had a lot to offer through the 80's and 90's! What happened to it, I'll never understand.
@@cnnw3929 I'm building a to scale model of it on my computer, with all the stores and interior. I thought I'd ask one question. Was the wood in the pyramid once unpainted? I know it was white for a while but I wonder why they painted it
@@FHDTV If you were referring to the ceiling of the pyramid, it was all wood! And the floors that weren't carpeted, were polished concrete. Think of a cement driveway, except instead of felt dividers, it was all done like terrazzo except it was solid concrete, and a gray color. The carpeted areas were an ornate red, sort of like an oriental rug. And that would match the wooden ceiling perfectly. And that wood was all tongue and glue.
Dude, I put that intro walk in a video I put on my channel. I think Macy's had it pulled down. The DETROIT was not bashed in by vandals. Breaks my heart. Northland was an amazing place. I took the time to talk to merchants who had stores in the mall. They told me sales were up and that they saw no reason to close the mall. Corruption and poor city management. SO many other reasons. Thanks. I have to wonder why my video was pulled off youtube. good luck. We were there on the last day of Macy's and of the Mall. So many stories to tell.
I also wish I could redevelop the mall in to offices (Southfield has a lot of office buildings some are surrounded by them ) it would called northland office malll
Thank you for showing this mall! I found out after watching your video that this was my parents' childhood mall. They remember going to see santa in the early years, and my mom watched Funny Girl and other films at the theater when she was a teen. I really enjoyed hearing their stories about Northland and imagining it back in it's prime.
This mall must have been amazing when it was busy with people. Hudson's and Macy's department stores building designs were unique and awesome. Macy's had a food court? I have never seen that in a Macy's store. That must have only been in northern Macy's stores. 🏙
The food court was a Hudson's thing and it was their own restaurant. It was beautiful at Christmas time with all the decorations in both Hudson's and the mall. They were always built out on the second floor like a balcony onto the rest of the mall. You could sit by the edge and watch everyone shop below you in the mall. I think most of the Hudson's built in that era were like that so I'm not sure if my memories are of that particular mall. And in the older, higher end stores, they all had very nice restaurants inside as well, Jacobson's is another department store that comes to mind. Going to them was always a special occasion - not an every visit thing. I wish there was footage of the mall in it's heyday - it was stunning. Anyways, those are dusty memories from the 70's and early 80's...
As a young girl I remember visiting "Northland" shortly after it opened. It was unlike any other kind of shopping experience we had known so far in my native Detroit. It was very exciting at the time and I was filled with wonderment at being able to walk to so many different stores . I do remember how cold it was while we walked from one to another. I could swear I remember lots of beautiful Christmas lights.
I practically grew up in this mall along with Fairlane in Dearborn. My first job while in high school was at JCPenny in the mall in "98". I hate to see it in this condition.
Southdale was the first modern regional mall to be fully enclosed from the day it opened. Several older shopping centers, like Northland, that claim to be first were open air initially. They weren’t enclosed until after Southdale opened. This is why most experts recognize Southdale as America’s first mall.
I live in Edina MN, so i’ve grown up with southdale as my main mall for my whole life. It’s definitely starting to go downhill. In just 2 years, the mall has lost 3/4 of its anchor stores. The crowds are starting to get a little sketchy there during later hours. It’s not the same place it used to be :(
My grandpa worked in the home section of Hudson’s in the 80s and 90s! His specialty was carpet. I’m really young and I have a vague memory of that area where the target was. He took my brother, dad & I for popcorn in the target food court on one of his breaks.
Thanks for being respectful of my hometown. Never went to this mall but I've been to the other directional malls. The city of Westland got it's name from the mall lol. If you ever go back to Michigan I recommend checking out Mall of Monroe in Monroe, Birchwood Mall near Port Huron, Jackson Crossing in Jackson, Courtland Center near Flint, and Midland Mall in Midland. They all look unique, cool, and different from others.
SE Michigan has so many malls still open compared to other regions. I live in Farmington Hills, which is a northwest suburb of Detroit and there are at least 6 malls that I can think of within 35 minutes of my house (some doing better than others). A decade ago, this number would have been double digits.
Wow! That Macys!! I wanted to keep looking at it. So cool, definitely the oldest Macys Ive seen. Sad to think of it all demolished. I would take some mirrors and those make up counters and shelves. So much vintage stuff!
Without giving anything away, something about that last image and your fade out from it was quite moving, esp in relation to everything that came before it. Well done.
Hard to believe that it's been over four years since I toured this mall when it was announced it was closing. Watching this, I could recognize some of the stores that I photographed. Next time you head over to the Detroit area, you should check out Southland, the newest of the directional malls that started with this mall.
Great video. Making me sentimental AF about malls now.. My home area is lucky in that our mall complex is still massive and clearly thriving somehow. Hope it lasts..
I remember as a teenager i would walk across 8 mile to get to Northland. From going to the Coney in the front to the Mc Donald's in the rear. Also the shoe repair shop in the lower level. When it had Hudson's , J.C. Pennys, and Montgomery Wards. Shopping at Max Green. When they added Target to mall. I even recall the Movie Theather that was behind the mall. I did a college paper on how Northland was the first indoor mall.
It’s so weird seeing the mall like this ! I used to live down the street from there in the early 2000’s as a kid, and I remember walking to the mall every once in a while with my family.
I guess this is the place where you had that close call? I am glad everything worked out alright. Your safety comes first Anthony. I don't visit these places. I just enjoy your videos for entertainment. Maybe it was the first enclosed mall but I doubt the 1950s was the first mall
@@someguy23475 I would talk about Fairlane, but I dont shop there and their AMC is disgusting. And Fairlane Green (the Hill) is popular but a vampire to any local shopping stips
Just a update on the Northland Mall. A few years ago, and the Northland Mall has been demolished. I that the City of Southfield has bought the Northland Mall. The City of Southfield has plans for the Northland Mall site. Now, for the Eastland Mall in Harper Woods, Michigan. The Eastland Mall which is located on East 8 Mile Road and Kelly Road in Harper Woods, Michigan. The City has bought the Eastland Mall, and the City of Harper Woods is going to build a Storage Facility on the site where Eastland Mall is. The Northland Mall was built in 1954 which is the very first shopping center. The Eastland Mall was built in 1957, which made the second shopping center.
That's a shame that the mall is in such disrepair, liked the video, shared also, there is alot of malls in Iowa if you ever happen to make it over this way, have a great day and safe travels, will be watching for your next video
Why doesn't Amazon put a large distribution center in the Detroit area. I heard that they where not happy with the location of New York (in search of a second hub base). why don't they put it in Detroit? the people there need the jobs.
I used to go there when I was little in the late 90s early 2000s its right outside Detroit in Southfield I remember they had a chuckie cheese or it was a jeepers I think I didn't know it was dead now
Hi Anthony, just wanted to let you know the first shopping mall in the United States is Southdale Mall in Minnesota opened in 1956. Its located in Edina Mn.
We used to go once in a while, But the Pontiac Mall, now known as the Summit Place Mall is where we went mostly. Now I live in Missouri and go to the Battlefield Mall.
Yes, the Northland Center Mall was the largest mall in the country when it opened in 1954. The city of Southfield purchased the land in 2015. I believe that demolition has started on the Firestone building but 3 developers are in talks to redevelopment with the city. And have you been back to Summit Place in Waterford? Your first video on Summit Place was quite shocking, to me. I used to frequent that mall when I worked in West Bloomfield, and had no idea that it had closed in 2009. The last I read was redevelopment was in the works with demolition possibly beginning in Sept of either last year or this year. Have you been by there to see what's going on with that?
The underground portion of Northland as been purchased from the city of Southfield for 25 million dollars, and is slated to become a marijuana processing center.
the year is 2020, covid 19 has accelerated the pace of the retail apocolypse with social distancing, mask wearing, limited hours, and increased frequency of online shopping.
I lived about three or four miles from this mall, but this isn’t where I shopped. I shopped at the Oakland Mall which was about nine miles from my house.
If in Dallas, check out Plano market center mall, place was definitely a dead mall. it's located in a suburb of Dallas about 20 miles north. Its located at spring creek and 75.
That's really dead, all that's left there is an "antique mall", somewhat like an indoor flea market. Ace, you've got to get to Plano fast if you want to see Collin Creek Mall before it goes.
Oh yeah be sure to check out the outlets at Corpus Christi bay if you make it down here. It opened about two years ago and it already got foreclosed on the original owners. It's a beautiful facility but they built it way out in the middle of nowhere. Last time I went they actually had a little business but usually it's pretty dead
Im from lansing I remember going to this mall while visiting relatives or after going to church in southfield. I remember in 8th grade my mother buying me the haurache 2k5 at athletes foot for 70-75 dollars. I also remember that jeepers always wanted to go in there when we visited never did.
I was reading your description and figured I should tell you that Southfield and Detroit are 2 completely separate cities in 2 different counties. Just an FYI.
Ace's Adventures fair enough. As a resident of the area, I say Metro-Detroit when talking about suburbs (not just Detroit), but to each his own. I meant no disrespect. I love your videos and appreciate the work you put into bringing these places to the public eye.
Two other malls, both opened in 1954, lay claim to "nation's first enclosed mall." One is the Valley Fair Mall across the street from Appleton, Wis. The other, much better known, is Victor Gruen's Southdale in Edina, Minn. Unlike Northland Center, Valley Fair and Southdale both were enclosed from the day they first opened,.Southdale is still open for business. Most of Valley Fair has been demolished.
The "Boy and the Bear" statue now resides in the Southfield Public Library
Some Trivia:
This mall has a police station in the basement and it was used as the first offices for the Oakland County Child Killer Task Force.
The Mall also has a bus station under it for what was then known as the Detroit Street Rail bus system, long before SEMTA
Yes, there is a fall out shelter at this mall
The MW at 5:13 is Montgomery Wards which was a department store in the area....
When I was five or six my mother took my sister and I to see Oopsy Daisy the Clown at this mall and my sister worked at a store called Size 5,7 & 9. I worked for a local Chevy dealer and we would take cars to Northland to leave in the mall to show off the new models, I drove cars and vans thru the mall. We where told,"No spinning the tires!"
thank you for this awesome in-depth comment, for taking the time to tell us a few things c:
Wasnt there a store that sold weights in that mall....like workout stuff in the 90s
I worked in the Northland Oval Room in Hudsons shoe department in the late 80s... it was not easy to get that job, I had to establish myself in top sales at Summit Place before I was even consdiered. The Oval Room was the most prestigious dept at Hudsons as it sold the most expensive lines of beautiful shoes and handbags in the area like Walter Steiger and Ferragamo (average $300/pair).. we even had a full time security guard dedicated to our department. Our top competitor was Saks Fifth Avenue.
I remember that as a young child! My grandma brought some of her furs from Hudson’s and sequin dresses! We would have lunch on the upper floor at Hudson’s too! Those were the days!
@@homehere9817 similar memories for me too. As a young child, my grandmother, & great aunt would buy their furs, & beautiful gowns, & jewelry from Hudson's, & if I was with them, they always took me to eat at the Hudson's restaurant. Hudson's was THE store to shop at.
Thanks for this, Anthony! I worked at Northand in the early 80s (I was a mechanic at JCPenney Autocenter). I’ve been in the tunnels under the mall many times - and they were creepy even when the mall was thriving.
The oldest continuously covered operated mall is the Paddock Arcade in Watertown NY. It first opened in 1850 and remains open to this day.
Opened in 1950, Northgate Mall in Seattle was the first shopping center in America to be called a mall.
This was my hangout spot when I was a teenager in the 90s. So sad to see it like this!
Mine too
Eastland mall was better...😁
I mentioned it in the Summit Place video, but I have a bunch of footage from Northland just before it closed, I need to upload that.
watching this, as a native detroiter who visited this mall many many times, it feels so weird. thank you for doing this. Of course I'm wondering what was the encounter you had that was unsafe, but I'm glad you escaped unharmed.
The old Northland mall had A fire right before Christmas in 2019. I’m not surprised because electricity left was always on in the structure. However the mall survived the fire and as of now is still standing.
Seeing the Macy’s Marketplace with all the brickwork broke my heart. It was one of my absolute favorite places of my childhood. It was so beautiful when it was open for business. The food was amazing. The way all the items were displayed was just gorgeous. Basement of Northland Macy’s (Hudson’s during my childhood) was my absolute favorite.
Seeing the food court in that condition makes me cry :(
This is really sad to see this mall close down. Knowing it used to be people walking around. Eating and shopping. It’s such sad what’s happened to malls around the us. Thanks Anthony for posting.
I remember going in late September 2013 and there was still some life left in it
The Northland JL Hudson's/Marshall Fields/Macys kept it's Hudson's esthetic right up to the end. Some former Hudson's (Twelve Oaks, Briarwood, etc) have been renovated and lost that Hudson's feel -- the marketplace area at Northland was spectacular -- on a smaller scale that esthetic lives on at Fairlane and Oakland (Fairlane even retains it's Hudsons "non ceiling") made up of geometric baffles. The funky font on the 'fine jewelry' and 'home store' signs is also vintage JLH and still exists at a number of Macys (Fairlane, Lakeside, Oakland). The massive Eastland store was a close sibling of the Northland location and was almost equal in it's massive scale (larger than many downtown flagship stores of the era) -- yet up to it's closure a couple of years ago Eastland had been stripped pretty bare of most of it's Hudsons-era elements. Notably, upon the closure of the Downtown Detroit Hudsons in the early 1980s, the Northland store was considered the "flagship" Hudsons through the Dayton-Hudson Corp era -- and it retained that status until the Somerset Hudsons was built in the mid 1990s. (The Somerset store retains its green colored marble Hudsons façade on its interior entrances). Various artifacts from the Downtown store were spread out among the branch stores upon its closure -- there are light figures/chandeliers at Southland, Oakland and Lakeside, a drinking fountain at Somerset, and upon the closure of Northland a large memorial to Hudson employees who died in the World Wars was relocated to the main floor of the Oakland store.
It's like Marshall Field's in Chicago. Macy's just doesn't cut it.
To Joe Truman: Of all the macy*s stores that still exist in Metro Detroit, I like The Oakland Mall one the best...because it's the one my late Uncle always preferred the most. It still has a lot of the HUDSON'S elements. The chandeliers, Restaurant and layout. Even the Stainless Steel Haughton Escalators...very similar to the ones at Northland. I understand they are salvaging the J.L. Hudson's Building, Water Tower and Underground Tunnels as part of the Northland Redevelopment Scheme. Thanks for your interesting comments Joe.
Marshall Field's State Street store in the Loop in downtown Chicago was totally my favourite department store in the entire world. Absolutely "Grande Dame" and beautiful. macy*s has ruined that store...poor maintenance, downsizing....the list goes on. At least they kept the 124 year old Walnut Room Restaurant on the seventh floor. I don't think the historical board would dare let them close it!
Sorry...I meant 114 year old Walnut Room which opened in 1907!
Shopping every weekend. Jeepers. Fights. The food court with the best Chinese food you can imagine. I miss this place so much! So many great memories growing up.
This was a great video, being from western Michigan I find anything to do with Detroit absolutely fascinating.
As someone from Metro Detroit it always makes me happy seeing local explorations
Thank you for showing this even tho it hurts to see the mall I grew up in go down like this. I just wish this mall could’ve been saved. So much history there. Very educational and historical.
The crown jewel mall👑in Troy,Michigan is the magnificent Somerset Collection twin malls complex and next to it the abandoned Kmart world headquarters complex.A vloggers dream of extreme opposite fates side by side in today's retail reality.The high end thriving lux malls and very nearby the massive empty Kmart HQ complex the rapidly shrinking middle class of the world built.😳Both complexes amazing😲Hudson's was Detroit's premier dept.store at the same level as Cleveland's Higbee's dept.store.🎩👜💁A footnote: Detroit was once per capita America's wealthiest large city.💰
Louis Aloi , Somerset is very beautiful.
@@cmthomas07It certainly is my favorite enclosed malls complex.Make sure I stop by when visiting relatives near there.Live west of Cleveland in Avon Lake,so a good weekend getaway stop.🎩
Here Goes..Northland was one of a group of FOUR MALLS administerd by the same management group..Westland (Westland Mi.)..Eastland (East Detroit Mi.) the aforementioned Northland, and Southland (Lincoln Park,Mi.) were the component properties of the group..Essentially, they were all outdoor malls,but Westland was the least open of the 4..Hudson's was the ANCHOR STOREof all 4 malls,with Crowleys as a secondary retailer..Winklemans,a women's clothier,had a store in each location, along with Hughes Hatcher Suffrin, a men's franchise..The hook about going to these malls was that SANTA CLAUSE was a every Hudson's store for the holidays..and standing in line to see him was a rite of passage for us all..Another great thing about Northland was that they had a Stouffers Restaurant on the far side if the property and a GREENFIELDS restaurant across the street..Travel a couple of miles down Greenfield, and you could hit the DELI's in Oak Park...The changing demographic in Southfield did directly affect the fortunes of Northland..I wont be PC here..as the racial mix of the customers swung toward the black population..the whites went tp the safer confines of OAKLAND MALL and Somerset Mall in Troy..sad to see happen but MI is not a unique case..Randall Park Mall in the Cleveland area being another..Just a small history lesson from someone who was there for a lot of years...
Southland is in Taylor
You sound racist and ignorant af. You are basically saying black people caused this mall to close. This mall did not close because it failed. Typical racist Michigander 🙄
Yes, I remember Northland Mall. Northland Mall opened up in 1954, and there is Eastland Mall which opened up in 1957 ,which is located in Harper Woods, Michigan at Verner, (8 Mile Road)and Kelly Road.
P.S. ,
I used to work at Eastland Mall, at Hudson's in the Men's Sportswear Department on the first floor, for 5 years.
Eastland Mall is just hanging by a thread. Even the city busses don't stop at Eastland Mall.
Eastland Mall is about to turn into another Northland Mall.
This will go down as one of your instant classic, epic videos. Glad you were able to get there before they leveled the place. Important to preserve this when in the future people ask "what's a mall?"
I did not know that Northland Mall was the first modern era shopping mall. Must remember this when I go on Jeopardy. It's sad to see a historic place end up like this. It also looked creepy going around there, you are braver people than me. Glad you are ok and the police did not harass you. You are just artists documenting a dying architectual and retail product.
Getting into the Hudsons was a major fete. I still have my anger with Macys who I feel destroyed a lot of great, long time regional department stores: Hudsons/Daytons/Marshall Fields (midwest,) John Wannamakers (Philly,) Kaufmanns (PIttsburgh,) Filenes (Boston,) Foleys (Texas,) Abraham and Strauss/Sterns (New Jersey/NYC.) Macys could have left all those stores alone with their same nameplates since they were unique to their regions. The store you were in was beautiful with the lights and design and other classy, big city department store touches. Sad they will all be gone.
Heard that the city and state are pushing for this property to become the second headquarters for Amazon, now that the plans for them to go to Long Island City, NYC are up in smoke. The property is big enough for it, but sad to see mall history go to dust.
Proud to be a Patreon and excited you are going to different places like Texas to film and preserve retail history. Proud of all you have done Anthony!
This was a great video, except for the fact he teases us about something happening and then left us hanging.
Was pretty cool to see this before they demo the entire thing though. That news clip at the beginning was perfect.
I agree. I hate what Macy's did to all of our beloved department stores.
Excellent and precious footage of an icon of the history of shopping malls!
So cool you mentioned jonrev. His photos of Dixie square are what first got me into dead malls/urbex
Gonna watch when I get home but I remember going here in late September 2013 :(
Sad how the first mall in the USA has become a zombie mall and is facing demolition. I wish they would turn at least part of it into a museum as It has such historical significance. But the downsizing of retail and a decline of the population in the Detroit area killed the mall.
What a great adventure you took us on, Anthony. The beginning and end were excellent. I enjoyed reading all the comments. Thanks
I remember Northland as a young child! My grandma brought some of her furs from Hudson’s and sequin dresses! We would have lunch on the upper floor at Hudson’s too! Those were the days!
My fondest memory of this place is going to the spinning coin well every single time and being so mesmerized it literally never got old to me
I am from Canada and used to visit Detroit a lot...my late Uncle Bill lived in Sarnia all his life....so over the Bluewater Bridge and west on the I-94. He always favored Lakeside, Oakland and Twelve Oaks....which all had hudson's in them. One trip by chance, he had a couple of Cousins who lived down there...we were supposed to visit the World Famous Detroit Zoo...and it was pouring rain...so we ended up at Northland for the better part of the day. Had lunch at a Long John Silver's Seafood place....and spent most of the visit in the hudson's which I think was at the time around 500,000 square feet over 4-5 floors. I remember the lower level food and wine section. Ended up eating dinner in there. Visited several times after...they added the Target and when hudson's was merged into Marshall Field's. Did not visit much after 2005...so never saw the macy*s there. Still visit my cousins in Farmington Hiils and Milford...so mainly go to Twelve Oaks now....sometimes Oakland too. Such happy memories....especially of that huge hudson's.
Worked at Radio Shack and Team Electronics in the 70’s. Met my wife who worked at the bakery next door. We received a lot of our products through the underground tunnel.
I think what’s real interesting about these dead mall videos is that, obviously, by the time the mall shuts down, it’s already far past its prime and dies with just a handful of crappy stores left in it. So, when watching these videos, some of the decay being shown was occurring long before the final days of the entire mall. I wish there were some pictures of the same mall at its height of popularity.
Great things are definitely not happening.
Ace, what was the experience you mentioned whilst there ?? Love your channel😊
Victor Gruen was the architect of Winrock Mall in Albuquerque which in my opinion is one of the most unique malls ever. Unfortunately most of it is demolished but you can see photos and I'm rebuilding it as a model!
I will never forget Winrock. I lived in Albuquerque for 10 years, during my prime. I guess I am glad I left, long before Winrock's demise.
@@cnnw3929 Its very unfortunate it's gone now.
@@FHDTV : Very sad. They had a store there called Fools Paradise. They sold Top Of The Line stunt kits, and they were also the first to sell the Revolution 4-line stunt kite, which many are in use today pulling skiers and boarders. A pioneer shop indeed, and I don't think there will ever be a replacement. Winrock had a lot to offer through the 80's and 90's! What happened to it, I'll never understand.
@@cnnw3929 I'm building a to scale model of it on my computer, with all the stores and interior. I thought I'd ask one question. Was the wood in the pyramid once unpainted? I know it was white for a while but I wonder why they painted it
@@FHDTV If you were referring to the ceiling of the pyramid, it was all wood! And the floors that weren't carpeted, were polished concrete. Think of a cement driveway, except instead of felt dividers, it was all done like terrazzo except it was solid concrete, and a gray color. The carpeted areas were an ornate red, sort of like an oriental rug. And that would match the wooden ceiling perfectly. And that wood was all tongue and glue.
This mall is so awesome and historical but freaky at the same time lol😱
True.
It hurts so much that Northland is gone. It was my favorite mall as a kid. It reminds me of the 80s and 90s.
Dude, I put that intro walk in a video I put on my channel. I think Macy's had it pulled down. The DETROIT was not bashed in by vandals. Breaks my heart. Northland was an amazing place. I took the time to talk to merchants who had stores in the mall. They told me sales were up and that they saw no reason to close the mall. Corruption and poor city management. SO many other reasons. Thanks. I have to wonder why my video was pulled off youtube. good luck. We were there on the last day of Macy's and of the Mall. So many stories to tell.
Daniel Morse cool man
I also wish I could redevelop the mall in to offices (Southfield has a lot of office buildings some are surrounded by them ) it would called northland office malll
Thank you for showing this mall! I found out after watching your video that this was my parents' childhood mall. They remember going to see santa in the early years, and my mom watched Funny Girl and other films at the theater when she was a teen. I really enjoyed hearing their stories about Northland and imagining it back in it's prime.
This mall must have been amazing when it was busy with people. Hudson's and Macy's department stores building designs were unique and awesome. Macy's had a food court? I have never seen that in a Macy's store. That must have only been in northern Macy's stores. 🏙
The food court was a Hudson's thing and it was their own restaurant. It was beautiful at Christmas time with all the decorations in both Hudson's and the mall. They were always built out on the second floor like a balcony onto the rest of the mall. You could sit by the edge and watch everyone shop below you in the mall. I think most of the Hudson's built in that era were like that so I'm not sure if my memories are of that particular mall. And in the older, higher end stores, they all had very nice restaurants inside as well, Jacobson's is another department store that comes to mind. Going to them was always a special occasion - not an every visit thing. I wish there was footage of the mall in it's heyday - it was stunning. Anyways, those are dusty memories from the 70's and early 80's...
@@jmarie1959 AMAZING!!!!! 🤩
I grew up in Detroit I remember going to northland going school shopping it's sad to see it go
As a young girl I remember visiting "Northland" shortly after it opened. It was unlike any other kind of shopping experience we had known so far in my native Detroit. It was very exciting at the time and I was filled with wonderment at being able to walk to so many different stores . I do remember how cold it was while we walked from one to another. I could swear I remember lots of beautiful Christmas lights.
History, ambiance, and bad vibes combined--the best dead mall video ever!
I practically grew up in this mall along with Fairlane in Dearborn. My first job while in high school was at JCPenny in the mall in "98". I hate to see it in this condition.
I’m from Minnesota the Southdale center which is the first fully Inclosed and temperature controlled mall is starting to struggle a little bit
We did a video of it last year, lots of vacancies
Southdale was the first modern regional mall to be fully enclosed from the day it opened. Several older shopping centers, like Northland, that claim to be first were open air initially. They weren’t enclosed until after Southdale opened. This is why most experts recognize Southdale as America’s first mall.
DEMOCRATS! Anytime something was GOOD, & then sinks - blame it all on Liberals/Democrats
I live in Edina MN, so i’ve grown up with southdale as my main mall for my whole life. It’s definitely starting to go downhill. In just 2 years, the mall has lost 3/4 of its anchor stores. The crowds are starting to get a little sketchy there during later hours. It’s not the same place it used to be :(
@@SuperRickyMan123 Well, get that video guy (Bell) to come do a DEAD MALL ....
Looks like it was quite an impressive place before it closed. Would love to have a walk around that Macys in particular. Beautiful store
My grandpa worked in the home section of Hudson’s in the 80s and 90s! His specialty was carpet. I’m really young and I have a vague memory of that area where the target was. He took my brother, dad & I for popcorn in the target food court on one of his breaks.
Thanks for being respectful of my hometown. Never went to this mall but I've been to the other directional malls. The city of Westland got it's name from the mall lol. If you ever go back to Michigan I recommend checking out Mall of Monroe in Monroe, Birchwood Mall near Port Huron, Jackson Crossing in Jackson, Courtland Center near Flint, and Midland Mall in Midland. They all look unique, cool, and different from others.
SE Michigan has so many malls still open compared to other regions. I live in Farmington Hills, which is a northwest suburb of Detroit and there are at least 6 malls that I can think of within 35 minutes of my house (some doing better than others). A decade ago, this number would have been double digits.
The beginning reminds me of a museum (without exhibits).
It was a WONDERFUL place back in the 60s and 70s. Then the area went downhill, very very fast.
Wow! That Macys!! I wanted to keep looking at it. So cool, definitely the oldest Macys Ive seen. Sad to think of it all demolished. I would take some mirrors and those make up counters and shelves. So much vintage stuff!
It would nice if Malls can make a come back
Without giving anything away, something about that last image and your fade out from it was quite moving, esp in relation to everything that came before it. Well done.
Hard to believe that it's been over four years since I toured this mall when it was announced it was closing. Watching this, I could recognize some of the stores that I photographed. Next time you head over to the Detroit area, you should check out Southland, the newest of the directional malls that started with this mall.
Ya
Great video. Making me sentimental AF about malls now.. My home area is lucky in that our mall complex is still massive and clearly thriving somehow. Hope it lasts..
My grandmother used be took the Greenfield bus all the way to Northland Mall and shop at Hudson's and Montgomery Ward.
I was thinking as I’m watching this how unsafe the area is. Glad to hear that you made it out of there safely.
Damn, I spent my Childhood at this mall. I remember walking some of those halls with my sister and my mom 😥
I last went to Northland in 1990 with my family, there was someone following us, never went back after that, very scary.
LOL… sure it was. Was he black too???
I remember as a teenager i would walk across 8 mile to get to Northland. From going to the Coney in the front to the Mc Donald's in the rear. Also the shoe repair shop in the lower level. When it had Hudson's , J.C. Pennys, and Montgomery Wards. Shopping at Max Green. When they added Target to mall. I even recall the Movie Theather that was behind the mall. I did a college paper on how Northland was the first indoor mall.
This place is a real shame. This mall with such a history should be beautiful.
It’s so weird seeing the mall like this ! I used to live down the street from there in the early 2000’s as a kid, and I remember walking to the mall every once in a while with my family.
This mall is like a gracious bird cut down in mid flight: so much unused potential remaining after a having lived a wonderful life.
I guess this is the place where you had that close call? I am glad everything worked out alright. Your safety comes first Anthony. I don't visit these places. I just enjoy your videos for entertainment. Maybe it was the first enclosed mall but I doubt the 1950s was the first mall
Man this was one of my favorite places to go to when i was little rip part of my childhood 2011-2013
It is sad to see malls becoming decimated.
Northland, Southland , Eastland, Westland... Michigan loves their directions
@@someguy23475 I live near Southland and it revitalized itself over the last couple of years...
@@rebeccasmith3837 ya Southland has risen once again
@@someguy23475 I would talk about Fairlane, but I dont shop there and their AMC is disgusting. And Fairlane Green (the Hill) is popular but a vampire to any local shopping stips
@@rebeccasmith3837 Fairlane is nice still but yeah that AMC needs to be shutdown lmao
@@Karmy. they bought Emagine theater in Woodhaven, and all that tech the previous owners left are deteriorating
That store entrance at 8:04....it's epic!
Just a update on the Northland Mall. A few years ago, and the Northland Mall has been demolished. I that the City of Southfield has bought the Northland Mall. The City of Southfield has plans for the Northland Mall site.
Now, for the Eastland Mall in Harper Woods, Michigan. The Eastland Mall which is located on East 8 Mile Road and Kelly Road in Harper Woods, Michigan. The City has bought the Eastland Mall, and the City of Harper Woods is going to build a Storage Facility on the site where Eastland Mall is. The Northland Mall was built in 1954 which is the very first shopping center. The Eastland Mall was built in 1957, which made the second shopping center.
That's a shame that the mall is in such disrepair, liked the video, shared also, there is alot of malls in Iowa if you ever happen to make it over this way, have a great day and safe travels, will be watching for your next video
Cool video. There was a restaurant in that food court with some pretty fantastic American-Chinese food.
Why doesn't Amazon put a large distribution center in the Detroit area. I heard that they where not happy with the location of New York (in search of a second hub base). why don't they put it in Detroit? the people there need the jobs.
David Baldwin There is a new fulfillment center in Shelby Township (Detroit area)
David Baldwin good idea 💡
The chill zone is so cool
Hell yeah put in a lot of work to make that😆
Overwhelming 💥
Geez this is sad. I used to go here all the time as a kid.
I used to get so many numbers here hanging out with my friends lol we miss it a lot 💯
I'm from Michigan, never been in that mall, but looked like it was beautiful in it's day.
Very dramatic effect showing current footage during the old marketing directors interview.
Yooo most of my childhood was at this mall. I used to get my haircuts here and my school uniforms. I almost cried when I saw the inside of Jeepers
This was the shop. 25:22 this is so sad seeing it like this
I used to go there when I was little in the late 90s early 2000s its right outside Detroit in Southfield I remember they had a chuckie cheese or it was a jeepers I think I didn't know it was dead now
It was jeepers...
Here at this intersection at 11:52 there was a nail salon, Toys 'n' More, and the Food Court to the left, and a Foot Locker to the right.
Hi Anthony, just wanted to let you know the first shopping mall in the United States is Southdale Mall in Minnesota opened in 1956. Its located in Edina Mn.
The beginning of the his video looks like one of the places in the original Dues Ex game
We used to go once in a while, But the Pontiac Mall, now known as the Summit Place Mall is where we went mostly. Now I live in Missouri and go to the Battlefield Mall.
Yes, the Northland Center Mall was the largest mall in the country when it opened in 1954. The city of Southfield purchased the land in 2015. I believe that demolition has started on the Firestone building but 3 developers are in talks to redevelopment with the city. And have you been back to Summit Place in Waterford? Your first video on Summit Place was quite shocking, to me. I used to frequent that mall when I worked in West Bloomfield, and had no idea that it had closed in 2009. The last I read was redevelopment was in the works with demolition possibly beginning in Sept of either last year or this year. Have you been by there to see what's going on with that?
The underground portion of Northland as been purchased from the city of Southfield for 25 million dollars, and is slated to become a marijuana processing center.
the year is 2020, covid 19 has accelerated the pace of the retail apocolypse with social distancing, mask wearing, limited hours, and increased frequency of online shopping.
Great video and stay safe Ace.
"TRUMPET" - actually part of a trombone. Another sliding piece fits into the two round openings.
I lived about three or four miles from this mall, but this isn’t where I shopped. I shopped at the Oakland Mall which was about nine miles from my house.
Anthony, keeping it real here. Well said, well done 👍
I used to visit this mall when i was in michigan from 1991 to 1997..
If in Dallas, check out Plano market center mall, place was definitely a dead mall. it's located in a suburb of Dallas about 20 miles north. Its located at spring creek and 75.
That's really dead, all that's left there is an "antique mall", somewhat like an indoor flea market. Ace, you've got to get to Plano fast if you want to see Collin Creek Mall before it goes.
Oh yeah be sure to check out the outlets at Corpus Christi bay if you make it down here. It opened about two years ago and it already got foreclosed on the original owners. It's a beautiful facility but they built it way out in the middle of nowhere. Last time I went they actually had a little business but usually it's pretty dead
I'm sure having a much newer mall in Auburn Hills, The Great Lakes Crossing mall, didn't help keep the Northland Center Mall afloat.
Im from lansing I remember going to this mall while visiting relatives or after going to church in southfield. I remember in 8th grade my mother buying me the haurache 2k5 at athletes foot for 70-75 dollars. I also remember that jeepers always wanted to go in there when we visited never did.
I miss Sam Goody at Northland 😢
Great video. Thanks for filming.
I was reading your description and figured I should tell you that Southfield and Detroit are 2 completely separate cities in 2 different counties. Just an FYI.
Christopher Wernette yes but this is still considered a suburb of Detroit
Ace's Adventures fair enough. As a resident of the area, I say Metro-Detroit when talking about suburbs (not just Detroit), but to each his own. I meant no disrespect. I love your videos and appreciate the work you put into bringing these places to the public eye.
Christopher Wernette thank you!
Two other malls, both opened in 1954, lay claim to "nation's first enclosed mall." One is the Valley Fair Mall across the street from Appleton, Wis. The other, much better known, is Victor Gruen's Southdale in Edina, Minn. Unlike Northland Center, Valley Fair and Southdale both were enclosed from the day they first opened,.Southdale is still open for business. Most of Valley Fair has been demolished.
To looks like a pretty great mall I wish they could restore
I miss that macy food court! And the salon!
Another great video D.J Ace ♠️! What a shame what happened to this retail landmark