Foley's Department Store At 407 Main St.

devonhart · June 30, 2010

Foley's shows up about 50 seconds into video.

Check the other Houston Newsreels on the page.

JLWM8609 · July 1, 2010

Funny - the title is "Folly's Department Store".

Interesting footage though of shopping in luxury.

Check out this one:

Changing face of American cities

Lots of great shots of new buildings in the early 1960s.

Great video! I recognized the 59/610 interchange and the location of some of those construction shots. The one with the Shamrock in the background was for a building near the current Bank of America tower at Main and Holcombe. Whatever was being built seems to have been torn down for the Metro transit center.

Also, did you notice the bus stop sign showing the route names and numbers, most of which are almost unchanged to this day? Nice!

devonhart · July 1, 2010

Check out this one:
Changing face of American cities
Lots of great shots of new buildings in the early 1960s.

Yeah, that's the other good one, back when folks use to dress up to work downtown. Very little casual wear back then.

NenaE · July 5, 2010

Those are both great videos..thanks for sharing.

I-beam · August 9, 2010

Funny - the title is "Folly's Department Store".

Interesting footage though of shopping in luxury.

Check out this one:

Changing face of American cities

Lots of great shots of new buildings in the early 1960s.

I believe that what was noteworthy here, was that Foley's Downtown was the first departments store of its kind.

Designed by Raymond Lowe, it had a tunnel or backstage area that surrounded each floor. The idea was that much like Disneyland which is supplied through underground corridors, merchandise, meaning products being stocked and some goods sold, would not go through the normal customer entrances and exits. They would come in through the loading docs, up to the appropriate floor, and then around the floor in the tunnels poping out only when they reached the destination department. The newsreel seems to be featuring the state of the art shopping experience at Foley's including showing purchases being made, the packages then being dropped down a chute, eventually making it to the shipping department for home delivery OR being sent to the parking garage across the street where they would be placed in your car when you departed. It really was most civilized.

dbigtex56 · August 10, 2010

I believe that what was noteworthy here, was that Foley's Downtown was the first departments store of its kind.
Designed by Raymond Lowe, it had a tunnel or backstage area that surrounded each floor. The idea was that much like Disneyland which is supplied through underground corridors, merchandise, meaning products being stocked and some goods sold, would not go through the normal customer entrances and exits. They would come in through the loading docs, up to the appropriate floor, and then around the floor in the tunnels poping out only when they reached the destination department. The newsreel seems to be featuring the state of the art shopping experience at Foley's including showing purchases being made, the packages then being dropped down a chute, eventually making it to the shipping department for home delivery OR being sent to the parking garage across the street where they would be placed in your car when you departed. It really was most civilized.

I've always been fascinated by Raymond Loewy's influence on post WWII taste. I wonder how much of his original design remains in present day Macy's, and what's been discarded or altered beyond recognition.

devonhart · May 25, 2011

The clip is from a 1962 movie about juvenile delinquency in Houston.

WillowBend56 · December 19, 2011

It's Christmas 1958 or 1959. The best place to indulge your dreams of getting accessories to your Lionel train was Foley's downtown Houston. They had a Lionel layout, catalogs, and all the stuff some young boys like myself lusted after.

I also lusted for the Lionel layout on the Captain Kangaroo show.

Earlydays · December 19, 2011

It's Christmas 1958 or 1959. The best place to indulge your dreams of getting accessories to your Lionel train was Foley's downtown Houston. They had a Lionel layout, catalogs, and all the stuff some young boys like myself lusted after.
I also lusted for the Lionel layout on the Captain Kangaroo show.

I remember the Foley's displays...they were always a highlight of Christmas.

EspersonBuildings · December 26, 2011

Remember going to the Holiday exhibit (with Santa) at the Town Hall on the 9th floor for the first time in 1972 and each year later for a few more years. Still miss the downtown Foley's the way it once was.

TikiOwl · December 30, 2011

I remember going to Foley's in the 50's for American Flyer trains. Great store and great times indeed.

WillowBend56 · December 31, 2011

How about a late Santa Claus appearance from yesteryear caught on film by Bob Bailey Studios?

http://www.cah.utexa...iable=e_bb_4792

and

http://www.cah.utexa...iable=e_bb_4791

and

http://www.cah.utexa...iable=e_bb_4790

and finally

http://www.cah.utexa...iable=e_bb_4789

Enjoy!

WillowBend56 · December 31, 2011

This was not the draw for me as a kid about going to Foley's at Christmas but perhaps it was for one of you!

http://www.cah.utexas.edu/db/dmr/image_lg.php?variable=e_bb_0389

(Otto Mation) · December 12, 2013

maorlando God kept us 2012 leaning on Him 2013 has added a photo to the pool:

DOWNTOWN HOUSTON, TEXAS—
This company was founded in Houston, Texas, in 1900 as Foley Brothers.
It was originally acquired by Federated Department Stores, Inc. in 1947.
Another piece of Houston history has been turned to rubble as the old Foley’s
turned Macy’s building was imploded recently to make way for new development.
And with it goes, a time many Houstonians fondly remember. When the old Foley’s
building on Main Street opened in 1947, it was an instant hit. Opened in October of
1947, the new Foley's was built as a six-story building. The old Foley's was located
at 407 Main Street was reopened as Joske's first store in Houston one year later.
In 1957 the Foley's downtown store was expanded by four floors, making the total 9.
“Oh my gosh, Christmas, the windows in the front on Main street … thousands
would come just to see the windows,” said Kathy Knott, a former Foley’s employee.
That was before malls and before Houston sprouted suburbs.“When the downtown
store was founded, it was the first moving escalator in the city of Houston, and so
everybody rushed downtown to get on the escalator,” she said..Knott said she found
a career and a husband at Foley’s. She started as a member of Foley’s College
Board while at U.T., selling clothes to other college students. It was the same job
KHOU Sports Anchor Bob Allen (son of a dear precious friend of ours that has passed
away but lives in our memory always) had in the summer 1969. “I got to work at the
downtown store, advising kids on what people are wearing to go back to college—
and it was a blast,” he said. It was the start of a love affair between a store and
its city—an affair that soured when customers fell in love with malls. Most older
Houston residents nostalgically recall weekend shopping expeditions when they
headed to the downtown Foley's Department Store in pursuit of a special outfit
or party dress. When younger made with our parents and when we were older
we went on our own riding the bus to town. An adventure that was never dull and
always wonderful!!! Christmastime was always the time for a trip town to visit with
Santa that everyone looked forward to, and a time to check out all the fun Christmas
window dressings, doing some window shopping which I dearly loved to do and
usually became a day-long affair. Today the glory days are nothing but a memory,
and the building on its last leg. The demolition was scheduled for 7:20 on a Sunday
morning, September 22, 2013. Fannin and Milam were closed between McKinney
and Polk, creating a blast zone of nine blocks.
More: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foley%27s and
departmentstoremuseum.blogspot.com/2010/05/foley-brothers...