Shillito’s

151 West Seventh Street

Original construction, 1878; renovation/addition, 1938

James W. McLaughlin, architect, original construction. Potter, Tyler & Martin, architects,  1st renovation; PDT Architects, 2nd renovation

The original Shillito’s department store was built in the late 1870s on what was then the edge of the downtown business district. “The building pioneered the use of a steel skeleton, which enabled large windows to display wares” (Painter, p. 213).  In the late 1920s, the building was purchased by the Lazarus family. Hoping to attract shoppers to the lagging downtown, the new owners enlarged the store building in 1936-1938, nearly doubling it in size.

The Potter, Tyler & Martin architectural firm “blended old and new elements with a new streamlined exterior, featuring rounded corners and horizontal bands and combining new and combining traditional and novel materials in unexpected ways…. Inside, the interior was modernized and the original skylighted atrium floored over” (ibid.). Placed over the main entrances were handsome marquees of undulating bronze and nickel, with bronze electric clocks. The rear façade, by contrast, was barely touched by the renovation and retains its original character, making for an interesting juxtaposition. 

After the Lazarus store closed in the 1990s, Towne Properties and PDT Architects converted the building to housing and office use, reopening the spectacular atrium. 

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