This one is unusual because it is taken through a side window. The photographer is presumably standing in the entrance to the store. The vantage point produces two interesting effects. First, we can see a reflection of the photographer himself in the mirrored tiles directly across from him. You can see his hat, and you can see his white cuff raised as he snaps the photo. Second, we can see out the front window of the store onto Lackawanna Avenue. The name of the business across the street appears to be "Eugene Jacobs." This photo is dated precisely: November 27, 1950. It is attributed to Anneman-Mott Studio presumably the employer of our photographer. It is 7" by 10 1/2". A small border was removed from the scanned version. There is some surface damage to the photo. The splotches of white near the top that seem to be the result of over-exposure are actually part of the display: the woodwork above the window is not distorted. Here is a version with higher resolution.
Eugene Jacobs was a menswear shop on the NW corner of Wyoming and Lackawanna. If my memory is any good, the store had two entrances, one on each street. The store was owned by Manhattan Industries, which operated several garment factories in Scranton for decades. Although I don't know any specifics, Eugene Jacobs in Scranton was one of many in the mid-Atlantic region.
ReplyDeleteAlso in that same block of Lackawanna was Bond's Menswear, somewhat famous for their "two trouser suits." Every mens' suit came with two pair of pants. Bond's was also big with the high school crowd in the early to mid 60s because they had these great penny loafers for $9.99. I couldn't count the pairs of those I wore out by the time high school ended.
What I have no recollection of is when either of these places went out of business. I do have this very vague memory of Eugene Jacobs moving to Viewmont Mall, where it didn't last long. Samter Brothers, yet another largely menswear store on Lackawanna, did make the move to Viewmont and lasted there until roughly 1980.
These photos are tremendous. The memories are amazing.
If you have a second and nothing to do, you can cut and paste the following URL. (The blog won't accept HTML tags.) It'll take you to a photo of me on Santa's lap. The significance being, my mother was certain this photo was taken at The Household. The year? 1950 or 1951.
http://bp3.blogger.com/_oi1GzW0KH4k/R0svTWGhe6I/AAAAAAAAAFA/brZNcT_tdno/s1600-h/santa_me.jpg
Please, keep them coming!