Tuesday, December 1, 1936

DIME STORE SHOPPING

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Beautiful day - mild.

Laura Flynn and I went

to P.T.A. Council meeting at

Godfrey - Lee School.

A Health Program.

Very interesting.

Rode down town with

Mrs. De Konning.

Did shopping in Dime Store.

Went to Lucille's to-night to make

plans for a shower for Helen

to be given at Lucille's Dec. 11.

Addressed the invitations.

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Godfrey-Lee public schools are located in Wyoming, Michigan which is adjacent to Grand Rapids. After the Health Program, Edna and Mrs. De Konning went downtown to shop. At that time, downtown Grand Rapids was a mecca for shopping. I am guessing the downtown Edna references is Grand Rapids.

Arcadia Publishing produces books on local and regional history using a pictorial format. We have a lot of their books in our home for several reasons:

1. John was a book buyer for Borders Group, Inc once upon a time and, at one point, Arcadia was one of his publishers

2. They publish books about everyplace imaginable in the United States

3. Their books are nicely done and connect you to a time and place ...with the holidays just around the corner you should check out their website. You might find a perfect gift for someone on your list.

One book in their catalog is 20th Century Retailing in Downtown Grand Rapids. Written by Michael Hauser and Marianne Weldon, the book details the history of downtown Grand Rapid's dime stores including Kresge's. Although Kresge's had been in the downtown for several years already, in 1936 they opened a brand new store.

This is a picture of Kresge's in 1936. This is the dime store that I imagine Edna walked into to do her shopping on this day 86 years ago.

The Arcadia book about retail stores in downtown Grand Rapids includes an image of a window display at Kresge's in 1936. I also imagine that Edna looked at this very window.

When I was a kid, we didn't often go to downtown Grand Rapids to shop. By then, the city had several shopping malls including Rogers Plaza, Woodland Mall, and Eastbrook Mall. The malls in Grand Rapids, like shopping malls across the country, changed the way people shopped. Eventually all of the department stores and dime stores and most of the specialty stores in the downtown closed.

In the 1980's, when I attended college in Grand Rapids, much of the downtown was vacant. But today, the downtown is again an epicenter for commerce and entertainment.

On this day, Edna is also helping to plan a shower for Helen. In the December 3 edition of the Lowell Ledger I found another mention of Helen and Red's marriage. This reference was in the "Social Events" section as it detailed the reception that Edna and Henry gave for Helen and Red.

The article says that the couple were "quietly married." Although Edna doesn't say, I think they are planning a baby shower and not a post-wedding bridal shower.