, known informally as '''Carson's''', is a chain of traditional
Department Store s that have been in business for over 150 years. Their product price points are targeted to the moderate-to-upscale shopper. The majority of the stores are located in the
Chicago Metropolitan Area , with more than 30 stores under the nameplate. But, as of February 21, 2007, the very famous downtown Chicago location closed.
The Carson Pirie Scott name is strongly associated with the historic
Carson, Pirie, Scott And Company Building designed by
Louis Sullivan , built in 1899 for the retail firm Schlesinger & Meyer, and expanded and sold to Carson Pirie Scott in 1904.
The chain began in
1854 when Samuel Carson opened a dry goods store in
Amboy, Illinois , after he left
Ireland . In
1871 , the
Great Chicago Fire destroyed 60% of the store's stock. In
1961 , Carson Pirie Scott & Co greatly expanded in
Illinois by purchasing the
Block & Kuhl chain. By
1989 , Carson Pirie Scott & Co. was acquired by P.A. Bergner & Co., who operated the
Bergner's , Charles V. Weise, Myers Brothers and
Boston Store chains.
In
1991 ,
P.A. Bergner & Co . filed for
Chapter 11 bankruptcy; upon emerging from bankruptcy in
1993 , it became a
NASDAQ publicly traded company, changing its operating name to Carson Pirie Scott & Co. One year later, the company commenced trading on the
NYSE under the CRP symbol.
By
1998 , Carson Pirie Scott & Co. ownership was held by
Proffitt's , Inc., (later renamed
Saks Incorporated to reflect the acquisition of
Saks Fifth Avenue ). The Carson Pirie Scott, Bergner's, and Boston Store chains, along with
Younkers and
Herberger's nameplates, eventually operated as Saks' Northern Department Store Group (NDSG), based in
Milwaukee, Wisconsin . In late
2005 , however, the group was put up for sale as Saks Incorporated tried to refocus itself primarily on its core
Saks Fifth Avenue stores.
Carson's and its associated stores became part of
The Bon-Ton Stores Inc. in a $1.1 billion deal completed on
March 6 ,
2006 . http://www.bonton.com/investor_relations/pr030606.asp The group's base of merchandising and marketing operations remains in Milwaukee.
On
August 25 2006 , the CEO of Bon-Ton announced that the landmark Carson Pirie Scott store in downtown Chicago would close after the
2006 Holiday season. It will then be redeveloped by the building's owner, who purchased the property in 2001. The store closed February 21, 2007. http://chicagobusiness.com/cgi-bin/news.pl?rssFeed=news&id=21835
- Aurora
- --- Westfield Fox Valley (''formerly Lord & Taylor '')
- ---Northgate Shopping Center (opened as Charles V. Weise, then Bergner-Weise, then Bergner's) - (was Aurora Sears store before Fox Valley Mall opened, closed shortly after the new store opened).
- Bloomingdale - Stratford Square
- Bourbonnais
- ---Northfield Square (''main store'')
- ---Northfield Square (''men's & home, formerly Venture '')
- Calumet City - River Oaks Mall (''formerly Edward C. Minas'')
- is located within Carpentersville, including Carson's.
- Chicago
- ---120 S. Riverside Plaza
- --- Ford City Mall (''formerly Wieboldt's '')
- Chicago Ridge - Westfield Chicago Ridge
- Evergreen Park - The Plaza
- Joliet - Westfield Louis Joliet (''opened as Bergner-Weise, then Bergner's'')
- Lincolnwood - Lincolnwood Town Center
- Lombard
- ---Yorktown Center (''main store'')
- ---The Shops at Yorktown (''furniture store'')
- Matteson - Lincoln Mall
- Mount Prospect - Randhurst Mall (''opened 1962 as Wieboldt's, Bergner's 1988, Carson Pirie Scott 1990'')
- Norridge - Harlem Irving Plaza (''opened 1956 as Wieboldts's, Carson Pirie Scott 1987'')
- North Riverside - North Riverside Park Mall
- Orland Park - Orland Square
- Schaumburg
- --- Streets Of Woodfield (''main store'')
- ---830 E. Golf Rd. (''furniture store'')
- St. Charles - Charlestowne Mall
- Vernon Hills - Westfield Hawthorn (''formerly Lord & Taylor '')
- Wilmette, Illinois
- ---Edens Plaza - 3200 Lake Ave. (''main store'')
- ---Edens Plaza - 3232 Lake Ave. (''furniture store'')
- Aurora - 5 E. Galena Blvd. (''opened 1928 as Block & Kuhl , acquired by Carson's in 1961, now Waubonsee Community Collge, Aurora Campus'')
- Chicago (Flagship Store) - 1 S. State St. (''closed February 21, 2007'')
- Chicago Merchandise Mart, circa 1990
- Carpentersville - Meadowdale Plaza (''opened in 1961, store burned down in 1963, store not rebuilt'')
- Elgin - 30 DuPage St. (''opened in 1941 as Block & Kuhl, acquired by Carson's in 1961, relocated to Meadowdale Plaza in Carpentersville, now a State of Illinois Employment Office'')
- Galesburg - 400 East Main Street (''opened as Block & Kuhl, acquired by Carson's in 1961, closed mid-1970's, now operating as Lindstrom's Appliances'')
- Hillside - Hillside Mall (now West Point Centre) East end anchor where CarMax is now located, (''mall torn down'')
- Joliet - Downtown (Next to Rialto Square Theater) (''opened as Block & Kuhl, acquired by Carson's in 1961, closed in 1975, currently offices'')
- Kankakee - Downtown (''closed in 1989 and relocated to Northfield Square in Bourbonnais'')
- Mount Prospect - Randhurst Mall (''converted to JCPenney in 1990 when Carson's moved to former Bergner's in mall. Former JCPenney torn down for Costco '')
- Normal - College Hills Mall (now Shoppes at College Hills) (''closed 1989, became Von Maur in 1990'')
- Ottawa - Downtown
- Peoria - Downtown, NE corner of Adams and Fulton (''originally Block and Kuhl. Now Chase Bank Building'')
- Peoria - Northwoods Mall (''later Famous-Barr, now Macy's'')
- Urbana - Lincoln Square Mall (''opened 1964, converted to Bergner's in 1990, closed 1993, acquired and reopened as a Herberger's in August 1994, re-acquired by Carson's and converted to a Bergner's in January 1999, closed March 2002, building converted to offices of Health Alliance'')
- Waukegan - Lakehurst Mall (''opened 1971, closed 2003, torn down'')
- Cedar Falls - College Square Mall (''opened as James Black Company, Donaldson's 1978, Carson's 1987, store closed January 1989'')
- Waterloo - Crossroads Center (''opened as James Black Company, Donaldson's 1978, Carson's 1987, store closed September 30, 1989'')
- Blaine - Northtown Mall (''opened 1972 as Powers Dry Goods , Donaldson's 1985, Carson's 1987, Mervyn's 1995, closed 2004, vacant'')
- Brooklyn Center - Brookdale Center (''opened as Donaldson's , Carson's 1987, Mervyn's 1995, closed 2004, vacant'')
- Burnsville - Burnsville Center (''opened 1977 as Powers Dry Goods, Donaldson's 1985, Carson's 1987, Mervyn's 1995, closed 2004, now Steve & Barry's and Dick's Sporting Goods '')
- Eden Prairie - Eden Prairie Center (''opened 1976 as Powers Dry Goods, Donaldson's 1985, Carson's 1987, Mervyn's 1995, closed 2004, now JCPenney '')
- Edina - Southdale Center (''opened 1954 as Donaldson's, Carson's 1987, Mervyn's 1995, closed 2004, vacant'')
- Maplewood - Maplewood Mall (''opened 1974 as Powers, Donaldson's 1985, Carson's 1987, closed/renovated 1995, Dayton's 1996, Marshall Fields 2001, now Macy's )
- Minneapolis - City Center (''opened 1982 as Donaldson's, Carson's 1987, closed 1993, now Office Depot )
- Minnetonka - Ridgedale Center (''opened 1974 as Donaldson's, Carson's 1987, closed 1995, now Macy's Men's and Home)
- Rochester - Miracle Mile (''opened as Donaldson's, Carson's 1987, closed in October 2002, Herberger's at Apache Plaza became successor store'')
- Roseville - Rosedale Center (''opened as Donaldson's, Carson's 1987, Mervyn's 1995, closed 2004, torn down for lifestyle section'')
- St. Louis Park - Knollwood Mall (''opened 1955 as Powers, Donaldson's 1985, Carson's 1987, closed/renovated 1994, now Kohl's '')
- St. Paul - Town Square (downtown) (''opened 1980 as Donaldson's, Carson's 1987, closed 1993, now Minnesota Dept. of Public Safety)
- St. Paul - Highland Park (''opened 1960 as Powers, Donaldson's 1985, Carson's 1993, closed/demolished 1994, now Barnes & Noble and various other shops)
- Siry, Joseph M. ''Carson Pirie Scott: Louis Sullivan and the Chicago Department Store.'' Chicago: Univ. of Chicago Press, 1988. ISBN 0-226-76136-3
