These crimes were not limited to shoplifting - kidnapping and murder were also committed on the property, including three homicides in one year alone. Before its eventual drainage in 2015, the mall had become one deep lake filled with over 3,000 fish. He urged people to steer clear of it. Dixie Square Mall opened in 1966.closed in 1979.and remains standing in 2008. [8] In 1993, a woman was raped and fatally strangled inside the former JCPenney store. They have good reason to worry. The city district attempted to sue Universal Pictures for the destruction, but financial considerations forced the district to eventually evacuate the property altogether and terminate legal proceedings. In 1972 a woman was fatally shot near the mall in a robbery attempt. [8][10], In mid-1979, director John Landis rented the vacant mall for eight weeks to film a scene in the movie The Blues Brothers. By 2003, Dixie Square had become a favorite of photographers and blogs like Dead Malls who were fascinated by the monument to the suburban dream turned rotting nightmare. Even more disturbing is a makeshift wooden cross, left where a 25-year-old woman was murdered in 1993 near a JCPenney store. Remember Dixie Square Mall? Despite such a recent and high-profile use, the mall wasnt able to shake its dark reputation. They built 30 elaborate storefronts for Jake and Elwood to drive through, featuring Chicago businesses like R.J. Grunts and Banana Moon, a childrens clothing store. My recollections tell me that Dixie Square did have an urban life center added onto it back in the mid '70s and it was called "Turnstyle" I think. Brief content visible, double tap to read full content. That same year, a 13-year-old girl was lured from the Mall by three other adolescent girls, who led her to a nearby abandoned apartment. In November 1972, a young woman was fatally shot near the mall in a botched robbery attempt. Dixie Square Mall, Harvey,IL: "The Center of South Suburbia" All pictures taken or used with permission Opened to the public on August 31st, 1966 and located at Dixie Highway and 154th Street in Harvey, the mall is located on the lot previously used by the Weseloh and Hendrich farms, then converted as a former golf course. Each image is a work in and of itself capturing a mood through composition, color and texture. Lynchburg: 4026-N Wards Road. For a while after it opened in 1966 during a mall building boom, though, residents remember a thriving place. Map Directions Satellite Photo Map Wikipedia Photo: Wikimedia, Public domain. In this scene, main characters Elwood and Jake Blues drive through storefronts, display cases, and walls and destroy much of the mall while being chased by Illinois State Police troopers. Women were driven from a space where they once exercised power because this space became unsafe for women. Now, a painted Toys R Us sign a business that wasnt even in the mall when it was open is the only remaining complete sign. Gov. Due to regional economic decline and an increase in crime, Dixie Square Mall would lose many stores between 1973 and 1976. [8][10], After the mall's abandonment, it experienced extensive neglect and damage from vandalism, [15][16] the full-time caretaker hired by Harvey to maintain the property was physically unable to repair it. By Dave Newbart Jun 23, 2020, 4:00am PST By 1968 the mall had 64 shops, including a Woolworth, a Walgreens, a Montgomery Ward, and a Jewel supermarket. Create a free website or blog at WordPress.com. [25] Within several months of the Montgomery Ward demolition, liens were placed against the mall by several invested companies. The last of the mall can be seen in a. Some intel on the Blues Brothers mall: it was the former Dixie Square Shopping Center in Harvey, IL; a south-suburb of Chicago. But due to several well-publicized crime incidents*, it closed in 1978 after only 12 years, even after a third anchor (a huge discount store! After closing for good, it was used as the setting for the famous mid-mall car chase scene from the 1980 movie Blues Brothers. Reader Jonrev then told us the whole story of the mall itself, something I'd never heard before. Book reviews, interviews, editors' picks, and more. When was Dixie Professor of. It was finally torn down in 2012. Or is this just some project you made for an assignment at some university? Earlier this year, officials announced they had secured federal grants to build senior housing on a portion of the parking lot. 1996-2023, Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates, No Import Fees Deposit & $11.02 Shipping to Czech Republic. The fire caused the roof to cave in, and due to that and other structural collapses, saplings started growing inside the former mall. Since then, it has fared worse than possibly any other ghost mall. Watch that whole scene frame-by-frame. To add the following enhancements to your purchase, choose a different seller. Reviewed in the United States on December 16, 2010. The shuttered Dixie Square Mall was revamped and used for scenes in The Blues Brothers.. The threat of asbestos drove the cost of demolition up and pushed the time horizons for demolition further away. Reserve the next gen Samsung deviceAll you need to do is sign up with your email and boom: credit for your preorder on a new Samsung device. Its nice having a hard copy of the photographs to show others that may be interested in Dixie Square, and its nice having some photos from the early 2000's before things got really bad at DSM. Dixie Square was built on Dixie Highway in the city of Harvey, Illinois, a southern suburb of Chicago. This plan forecast bringing more than 1,000 jobs to Harvey, which has one of the highest unemployment rates in Cook County. The 1990s saw the mall turn into a haven for gangs, murders, and drug activity. A geocoded location could be added to this image. Said to be the first suburban mall in the United States, Dixie Square has been abandoned for more than thirty years. The Dixie Outlet Mall is located at 1250 South Service Road, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. The Dixie Square Mall (also known as the Dixie Square Shopping Center) was an enclosed shopping mall located in Harvey, Illinois at the junction of 151st Street and the Dixie Highway. Friend mrs. Nancy Williams 31, of 14816 in Kington Avenue. Each image is a work in and of itself capturing a mood through composition, color and texture. Two years later, a fire caused its roof to cave inward. Gang and drug . To us, the mall is merely an archaeological exhibit. The massive, hulking structure has wasted away for more than a quarter century. The mall went through a renovation in 1976 in an attempt to rejuvenate the business, but these attempts failed. 02-16-2012, 10:19 AM Dad died, all of us kids moved out. The mall was designed as a tribute to Ancient Greek culture, as its name suggests. Each image tells a narrative of the "Aesthetics of Abandonment" in a unique interesting way. Reviewed in the United States on November 21, 2010. Let's see if the poster admits it! That's the stunt director asking about Miss Piggy. Dixie Square Mall was an enclosed shopping mall at the junction of 151st Street and the Dixie Highway in the Chicago suburb of Harvey, Illinois, United States. Your email address will not be published. We work hard to protect your security and privacy. Anchored by Montgomery Ward and JCPenney (with a Turn Style discount store joining by 1970), the mall quickly lost business when crime became a huge problem as the town of Harvey deteriorated. After the mall closed, the body of another murder victim was discovered there. Most of the mall sits in total blackness, and the few beams of light that pour through the roof show spots that are yellowed, moldy, warped, and graffitied. Montgomery Wards was the first store to open in 1965. On July 20, 2009, a fire of unknown origin broke out in the entrance to Block C during the late afternoon. Is there any lovely and vigorous square or block in USA which has been an ugly area? With no security guards or regular police patrols, the mall has been left to its own devices against all sorts of threats. The details of the case were horrific, and it achieved nationwide fame. This place has got everything, Jake, played by John Belushi, quips as he and Elwood drive right through it. Thats why its current decay is so haunting; a place deliberately alluding to ancient ruins is itself becoming one. Play it now! We are sorry. These networked texts resurrected the Mall as an Internet meme. By 1985 every valuable piece of metal had been stolen, and the canvas over the food court area was removed, further exposing the mall to the elements. there are defintely parts of the mall that are still "structurally sound", regardless of the mold and tree's growing in there, take bridges for example, they take a lot off abuse from outdoor elements, as well as various dynamic forces acting upon them (trucks, cars, buses, rain, freeze-thaw effect, etc) yet people drive across them with out a second thought. Despite numerous attempts to board up and secure the mall, it was forced open repeatedly. Over the past two decades, as e-commerce has rapidly evolved to be the default form of shopping for most consumers in most industries, physical stores are dying by the thousands. In spite of the presence of a police station in close proximity, the Mall continued to be a scene of violent crime. OK, maybe you don't. It was a large mall in Harvey, Illinois (for the 1960s) with JCPenney ("Penney's") and Montgomery Ward ("Wards"). Especially since nothing is planned for the site. Some intel on the Blues Brothers mall: it was the former Dixie Square Shopping Center in Harvey, IL; a south-suburb of Chicago. Is it time Harry & Meghan accept Clarkson's apology and move on? The same mall Jake and Elwood Blues raced through in The Blues Brothers one of the most famous chase scenes in movie history now looks like something from a war zone. That definitive source once told HuffPo that the abandoned Metro North Mall in Kansas City is by far the creepiest place Ive ever stepped foot in.. Between 2013 and 2015, just a few short years after its closure in 2009, photographer Johnny Joo took a series of photos showing just how far the mall had fallen. Crimes occurred there, scavengers took everything they could, and aficionados of dead malls documented the wreckage. We are no longer accepting comments on this article. Learn more how customers reviews work on Amazon, Luhar-Trice Publications (November 22, 2008). Dixie Square Mall was an enclosed shopping mall located in Harvey, Illinois, United States, at the junction of 151st Street and the Dixie Highway. . A series of articles and video essays on the mall all paint it as a warm place, social center, and an exceptionally popular Christmas destination. Personally, I feel a new book should be created, one with some of the new evidence that has surfaced recently, such as, the original blueprints, and all of Mike B. Gov. Do not sell or share my personal information. Honestly, it just seemed like it was cursed from the beginning. Mrs. Williams told police that she took Kim to the Dixie Square shopping Center tuesday morning so that the girl could shop for a swimming suit. Since its death, it has found new life as a movie shooting set. Despite the occasional use, the area sits vacant most of the time, and over the years, it has deteriorated rapidly. Numerous attempts were made by the city to board up the mall, but vandals kept finding ways inside. Scores of photos of its dismal-looking inside are posted online. The mall didn't fully open until November 10, 1966. ${cardName} unavailable for quantities greater than ${maxQuantity}. February 28, 2006, "Dixie Square Mall being demolished, finally", "Dixie Square Mall History (1961- Present)", "Dixie Square Mall History (1961 - present)", "Urban Exploration Resource: Gallery: Dixie Square Mall > Historical Stuff > new_ads012-207x457.jpg", "Harvey's JCPenney store closing after January", "Shoplifting, employe [sic] thefts reach crisis proportions", "Developer Still Seeks Pact On Harvey Mall", "Governor announces $15,000 for Harvey police cadet program", "Another mission for 'Blues Brothers' mall", "Quinn announces $4 million grant to raze 'Blues Brothers' mall", "Demolition Going Ahead At Last At Long-Abandoned Dixie Square Mall", "Harvey mayor touts achievements, rivals push for change as election looms", "Harvey looks to finish what Jake and Elwood started", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Dixie_Square_Mall&oldid=1132462593, This page was last edited on 9 January 2023, at 00:36. 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