Yesterday and Today

[WheresRICHARD]

The OLD MEGO HAUNTS Picture Challenge

I'd like to add a challenge to other members with this incredibly fascinating thread. I wondered if I could use either Google Earth's "Street View" feature or Bing Maps' Aerial view to find the store where EACH OF US used to buy most of our Megos when we were kids. So that's my challenge to you. Put your memory through its paces....See if you can remember the exact location of that 1970s store where you went to find Megos, and use the tools available to see if you can track down that location now, capture a picture of what the building (or parking space) looks like now...and best of all, describe how it was "back in the day."

It was difficult remembering, but I think I tracked mine down. In the first picture below you'll see a link to picture labeled "Murphy Now."

http://s560.photobucket.com/albums/s...=murphynow.jpg

When I was, oh 10 or 11, my mom was the manager of a Goodwill store down the road from here, in South Charleston, West Virginia, so my brother and I would frequently walk to this building. Back in those days, it was the late, great, historic G.C. MURPHY'S; today it is a large Chinese restaurant. The big protruding sign with the restaurant name on it was not there at the time...You can kind of make out the original building behind it, where the big letters spelling out "G.C. MURPHY" were. That first door, over toward the right, was the entrance, and over to the right was a diner area. So kind of in the area of the door, after you walked past the diner, was the shelf where carded WORLD'S GREATEST SUPERHEROES hung.

The second photo is entitled "Indian Mound"
http://s560.photobucket.com/albums/s...ndianmound.jpg

This would be right behind you as you faced the GC Murphy store. It is and was an Indian Burial Mound. Second largest such burial mound in the state. I posted this because after my brother and I got our Megos, we would take them to the burial mound and play with them. Interesting that today, of course, this has been declared some kind of protected park, but I have distinct memories of easily finding an actual Indian arrowhead there back in the 1970s. Thought it was interesting for a few minutes and then put it back.

I'd love it if someone else would accept the challenge to find YOUR former Mego haunt.

[Evel KMego]

Very nice story Scott. I understand that feeling. All the stores I used to get my childhood toys from have closed too. The buildings are still being used by other stores though, but it's not the same. My K-mart is now a Rural King (farming/ hunting kind of store) I swear it still smells like I remember it as a kid inside though!!!!

[wayne foundation 07]

Some where inside is a sad empty toy aisle.Gotta love a look back into the past like that,thanks for sharing.

[TEXASFETT]

I had a local K-mart that also had a lot of mego memories,it sat there for more than a decade,and recently got turned into a college.

[Goblin19]

That's a nice story, Scott. My major toy store was Children's Palace and it is a grocery store now, and has been for a long time.

[UnderdogDJLSW]

Great pictures, Scott. What was the original website that you were looking through that had the shopping mall pictures in it? That sounds like a neat one in and of itself. I'd love to search through that. The 1960's picture is so beautiful, but if I came upon the building today, I would have never guessed it was a Sears.

The Sears I went to as a kid is still around, but the TRU and a store called Juvenile Sales where I got most of my WGSH and CAH are long gone. Still TRUs in the area, but the building that was the one my folks took me to, near the University of Maryland, is now a supply store or something.

[drmego]

My earliest MEGO was the RC Batman and Robin in 1972 at a store
on Willis Ave. and Hillside Ave. in Mineola called Big D - as in big
Discount. It was a 5 and 10 and for once I learned to drive in
my non-mego years (1978-1988), I used to go there hoping to
still find a stray superhero on a back shelf.

A few years ago the building was leveled and they built a
generic Chase or Citibank on the spot. I still sometimes drive
past it, but the thrill is gone.

That's the problem with then and now - it almost always is a
sad ending - although I like the idea that a college is teaching
at what used to be a cheap store.

[VintageMike]

Great memory! It's always cool to see stuff like that. It's amazing to me that even in the current state it pretty much looks the same as the original photo. A real piece of history. The only two places still around where I got any my childhood toys are Toys R' Us (Still the same location/building) and oddly enough, The Sears in one of the local malls.

[AAAAA]

ah i remember mimi's discount store and Johns Hardwear (both sold toys) up the street on treemount ave in the Bronx where I live in the 60's gone in 71-72.
You can always go home .....you can never go back.

[palitoy]

You really touched upon something here Scott. My local Sears had and still has this long concrete ramp that used to lead to their toy department. It doesn't anymore but I still like seeing it, it reminds me of childhood excitement.

The same with department stores that still have the old basement staircases, the toy department was always in the basement of our local zellers. I sometimes go down those stairs hoping to see an endcap of Kiss dolls or something...

[Earth 2 Chris]

The same with department stores that still have the old basement staircases, the toy department was always in the basement of our local zellers. I sometimes go down those stairs hoping to see an endcap of Kiss dolls or something...

Our old town Ben Franklin has been a clothing store, an antique mall, and various thrift shops. When I go in there, I still sometimes think that the magical stairs will take me through some wormhole in time to the old toy land that awaited at the bottom of the stairs.

Great thread Scott!!!

Chris

[jasonmego1277]

Always great to stroll down memory lane ! When I get a chance to get back up to MA , I waant to visit my old stomping grounds. It's been 7 years , and I am sure that I will be shocked to see things after being away. I hear a couple of dept stores and malls I used to go too growing up are gone , and will probably look just like these pics now.

[ScottA]

Great pictures, Scott. What was the original website that you were looking through that had the shopping mall pictures in it? That sounds like a neat one in and of itself. I'd love to search through that.

This is the site I found the picture on. It has all kinds of information on all kinds of stores including supermarkets and department / discounts stores. You can search by store and state. Please let me know what you think of the site.

Pleasant Family Shopping

[ScottA]

You really touched upon something here Scott. My local Sears had and still has this long concrete ramp that used to lead to their toy department. It doesn't anymore but I still like seeing it, it reminds me of childhood excitement.

The same with department stores that still have the old basement staircases, the toy department was always in the basement of our local zellers. I sometimes go down those stairs hoping to see an endcap of Kiss dolls or something...

We have one here exactlly like this Brian. It was called Montgomery Fair and was located here on Colisium Blvd. It was 3 stories with the toy department being located in the basement. I remember going all the time with my brother and cousins as my grandparents lived maybe 3 blocks from it. Montgomery Fair (which become Gayfer's) is long gone but believe it or not the building is still here. It's now a Flea Market and Antique Mall. I do go in every so often hoping to find a small treasure and still go down those stairs over 35 years later. I wish those walls could talk. I doubt many there know what it once was. Maybe I should take pictures of it.

[UnderdogDJLSW]

This is the site I found the picture on. It has all kinds of information on all kinds of stores including supermarkets and department / discounts stores. You can search by store and state. Please let me know what you think of the site.

The site is pretty fantastic. I did find this picture from 1959 of a shopping center near where I grew up. It was an outdoor mall into the early 80's where it was then turned into a covered mall, then about 10 years ago they did more renovations and turned it into a two story mall. The 70's version still had the People's Drug store (later a CVS, now gone as you can see in the picture at the bottom) there and the Wards was there (now a Target). To the left pretty much opposite the drug store was Kresge's. And we all know what you could buy there in the 70's