Make mega slides a thing in baby-malls. Happy Independence Day, America. Here's some 1979 Captain America for you. Next week...the Avengers assemble...
Many great memories of this mall from the 1970's growing up. My favorite was the christmas tree display that was set up outside of Sears every season. And of course the Arcade! Epic when you are 10 years old. Still remember the sounds and smells.
I have so many memories of this mall, but they are so long ago that I can only recall fragments. Whenever my mother was off of work, instead of dropping me at my grandmother's house, she'd take me to this mall. We used to go to Sears a lot, as well as Clover and Woolworth. I have a lot of memories at the game counter that used to be on the second floor of Sears, which was where I played Donkey Kong Country and Sonic The Hedgehog for the first time on one of their demo units. Years later, I'd go back and play Banjo Kazooie and Mario 64 at that counter. When I was 3, my mother took me there and apparently watched as I looked at the massive case of games behind the counter. For my 4th birthday, she bought me a SNES console and two of the games I wanted: Rocko's Modern Life and Yoshi Safari (the system came with Super Mario World). Funny enough, the game I didn't choose turned out to be by far the best. She and I would always get an Orange Julius and a Super Pretzel when we came here. Another time, she took me to Woolworth and I was surprised to find that they sold SNES games there too. I wanted to get Ms. Pac Man, but she insisted on Plok. I'd later get Ms. Pac Man from my grandfather, but Plok was something I otherwise would never have tried and it was all because of my mother. We stopped going to this mall after a while. I didn't understand it at the time, but the next time I saw that parking lot, the mall was gone, and for some reason, they left Sears disconnected from the remains of the mall itself. The mall had been gutted and replaced with a strip mall. I spoke with an old, familiar looking lady working at that Sears when I was in college, shopping for clothes for student teaching, and she claimed the mall was supposed to be turned into a trendy, outdoor mall like Philly Premium Outlets, but that that never manifested. That might explain the random, shaded area behind the Old Country Buffet where there are no stores, but tons of open, public space. I'm convinced that the only reason the mall even exists anymore is because it's a secondary entrance to Kohl's, because let's face it, if you didn't know it was back there, and if you're not one of the 15 people who travels to or from Catasauqua regularly, you wouldn't even know that that Kohl's was there, were it not for the mall entrance.
Thank you for taking the time to share this. I love reading people's memories of these malls when they were in their heyday. These places can't be brought back to those days, but Sal's videos and your comments are what immortalise them. This is a true gem for posterity.
The Plaza end of this mall has wicked cool vintage architecture. Those stairs, the brick walls, the plaza storefront - I felt like I was back in the 70's for a while. Another great video, Sal. Thanks for all time and care you take with these.
The Pet Shop.... I rescued my Chocolate Lab from them was working at the Men's warehouse there several years ago and on lunch I would go to the pet store to play with the pups and eventually I took him home the only time I bought a dog but I consider him a rescue since he was there 6 months best pupper.
I remember this mall so much from the 80s. I remember when Woolworth's had a pet store in there. There used to be an Orange Julius stand near the Leh's that I'd get whenever my parents would take me there. I learned video games in the SpacePort with Lethal Enforcers and what's so cool now is that there's still a small section of that old mall left.
Awesome as usual! Love the opening music...so "Barbary Coast". Also, I find this mall especially interesting as, you see so much of the architectural elements of the mid 1960's still very visible. Things built back then, were sure made to last...
It must have been something to walk through when it was first opened . Love the staircase and the Plaza theater remains. These were the type of malls I visited growing up in the 70s until the bigger regional malls came along .
I remember going here as a kid with my mom. I don’t recall the slide however. But I DO remember the dope circular ramp at the Lehigh valley mall down the street....AND the play place in the children’s place.
Grew up in the Lehigh Valley and remember both Westgate and Whitehall Malls pretty well. Although they were both on their downturn throughout my childhood. Thanks for these great videos, Sal!
I was born in 1996 and I grew up with this mall. My sister, my cousins, and I all preferred this mall growing up compared to the Lehigh Valley mall because of the pet shop lol. We always loved to see the puppies haha. I was always a big fan of the comic store too; they have a lot of rare comics and collectibles. I still frequent this mall, and when the pet shop is open there's actually a good amount of people in there!
When I was a kid I remember throwing pennies into the fountain with my poppop I remember seeing movies at the plaza with my mom and my sister, going into sears with my dad for tools, and my aunt for shoes, later as a teenager I remember eating at Arby's with my friends they had a back door you could walk out of and go to the baseball field. also going into comic masters and buying the first edition of the walking dead comic, alot of memories for me there, it feels like it was a totally different world back then.
Hay Sal. I have been watching you for quite a while but never commented. I am from liberty borough Pennsylvania. I grew up at century 3 Mall. I really enjoy all the background history in your commentary and how in-depth you are about everything. Thank you very much for all the content and please keep it coming. My girlfriend and I watch you constantly. Thank you. My father who is 68 years old used to snow plow Eastland Mall in North Versailles. It is not there anymore I used to go to it when it was a huge flea market. Thank you for everything that you do.
Oh my goodness!! I live not that far from here and always loved going here when I was a kid. I’ve watched the down fall of this place as well. Most of these places have closed by now. But my parents have endless stories of this place ( they met here). Thank you for making this video :) I just got a wave of nostalgia!!
Thank you for giving us great entertainment. I woke up sad and this is a bright light as always you, Anthony, and Kristin giving us these great videos. ❤️
I used to go to the Lehigh Valley Mall often when I lived in PA. It's a great mall and I'm glad to see that it has continued to survive when so many other malls have closed. The Whitehall area was just too commercialized for every retailer to thrive. Over-saturation. And then online sales starting in 2010s were the last nail in the coffin for department stores.
This opened 10 days before I was born. As a kid we went here often. My mother eventually worked at Leh's in this mall, which went into the old Zollinger store, IIRC. We used to shop at Weis market, the Sears, eat at the Woolworth's diner, and I even remember when they did a traveling version of The Newlywed Game and Bob Eubanks came to the mall and my teacher and her new husband were some of the contestants. Once the Lehigh Valley Mall opened, it was kind of a ghost town, unfortunately.
I remember this mall too. Haven’t come here in decades though. It was dead long before others in the area. Maybe around the time Westgate mall died. Lehigh valley n even South mall overshadowed it. It’s weird to see that they r dead malls too now. I’ve said before that since I moved to nyc it’s ironic because malls r still thriving here. U would think that’s more of a small town thing because there’s nothing to do otherwise, but yeah. Queens mall especially is popular. I wish I still had pics of my father n his train n trolly group getting buses into the mall. I think they did in Lehigh valley mall tho.
I see more ppl at Lehigh valley mall than the others but it’s still nowhere near as crowded as it was. I wasn’t fond of other teens so I didn’t go as often, but Lehigh valley mall was REALLY full of ppl in its heyday. I guess the past 10-15 years or so it got less. It used to look like a subway tube train stop. It was PACKED. This is nothing. I used to love Spencer’s tho. Got Beatles stuff there.
Lehigh valley mall isn’t as busy as it was, but it’s still extremely busy, they’ve been expanding in recent years and have been doing quite well, they quickly fill thier stores when a store leaves, and thier in a good spot. South mall,Whitehall, and west gate though? Yeah, all dead
You'd be surprised - almost everything shuttered in the June footage has reopened. The comic store, the bridal store, the tobacco store ("Video and More"), the pet store even had a line to get in. :)
Spent lots of time at the Whitehall Mall in the 60s. We all loved to get one of the Orange Julius drinks. I saw 2001: A Space Odyssey at the Plaza movies.
I remember going when I was young I wish Clover and Woolworth was still there. We still go my kids like to see the puppies and my son likes the comic store.
its been a real long time since ive been in whitehall since i moved when i was 12, but i remember a comic shop being in or right next to the mall, i used to go into ALL the time as a kid
Oh my... I should have visited this baby-mall when I was up there last year... Instead, I visited the Lehigh Valley Mall because I wanted to see my first Boscov's, Macy's, and my first Otis Lexan (rare elevator in the Boscov's)... Almost like I missed going to Century III when I went up to West Mifflin/Pittsburgh as my hotel was only 4 minutes by car away from it... What I'm saying is, *I'm sorry.* Whitehall & Century III... you both deserved better fates and deserved to have one more visitor.
@@sal Hello there Sal. ^^ And, I'd absolutely love to see it, but it is quite far from my house, and we're basically stuck there as I need to take care of my grandfather (he has numerous types of cancer, including leukaemia, and we can't risk bringing anything to him).
That's the model of elevator at Boscov's? That thing always freaks my sister out when she has to ride it. It's so loud and the doors always open way too early. Nice to have a name to associate with that thing.
Born in 1992 and remember this mall a lot. My first movie theater experience i remember was at the Plaza theater, with Bugs Life and Antz at the helm. By the late 90s, LV mall was already booming and there was no chance of this mall surviving really. especially buying it out and keeping it from flourishing. I don't think there was anyway to save it. Though wish i was alive to see the full mall in its peak, but that would've been in my grandmother's time as the 70s was the peak, that my mom woulda been a kid at that time in this mall. I'm glad there's vids out there preserving how some of these malls were and somie of their stories.
A grand and beautiful mall from the pictures at the beginning, then cutting immediately to the present day shots made all my hopes and dreams that an immaculate mall from the past had been left untouched were dashed into bits. Even with that said, still another wonderful expedition log, Sal! Still plenty of beautiful retro areas left hiding around in this mall though
Another awesome production Sal, thanks. This mall reminds me of the seventies with its beige tiles, the rock wall and the architecture of the stairs. Your right, once you see Lehigh mall, Whitehall has no chance. All-right thanks again from Australia
Oh wait I've been here. Wondered where the stairs went. The concourse used to bend right and connect to the sears. Killed by the Lehigh Valley mall across the street which is epic.
Used to love the clovers there! My mothers fav store at the time I could always count on an icee ! Spaceport was od ! Movie theatre was good enough And comic masters was my favorite spot during my teenage years
Used to love the Clover discount store in Eastern PA (Morrisville), and I can picture the standard blue/white "girder" decorated entrance to the Space Port arcades in that area of the country.
This enclosed space has always been busy, but with Kohl's doors closed it's probably taking most of the foot traffic out. Most of the stores look closed too, and they do draw some decent foot traffic when open. That ceiling has also been fixed along with the removal of the janitors closet.
Ahhhh...totally bummed I missed the Premier!!!!!!! Love your vids! Would love to see you in New England!! There are some really cool places along the east coast of Massachusetts, too! Esp along the Whaling waterfronts and downtown WHaling city with mills long ago abandoned...not a mall, I know, lol! But creepy! And many old creepy buildings with Widows Peaks that you can see the Sea from. I wish I had the nerve to go in myself, lol! Stay safe and keep up the awesome uploads, I love that you add voice and tell us what we are seeing and the history of it, thats my fav part!
The "de-mallification" of this mall is similar to what they're currently doing to Northgate (owned by Simon) here in Seattle. The enclosed portions at the ends of the concourse are being kept, but the middle portion is being converted into an open-air mixed-use center, anchored by the NHL training facility under construction in the spot formerly occupied by The Bon Marche/Macy's.
It’s kind of weird to watch this. It s a mixed blessing in a way. My autistic son, when he was little, in around 2007, liked to go out but had problems with the crowds. So this actually became a solution. He loved to visit the pet store, and the very first “ride” he went on was the roller coaster video ride shown in this video ( I believe it’s the exact same one). He would also like to walk around the now defunct Sears, again because it was mostly quiet, oh and they had a vending machine and used to like to pick out a treat.
Amazing video -- great, informative work as always. And ugh at 12:18 -- no matter how well a mall is doing, I hate seeing trash receptacles overflowed like that.
This mall reminded me of my favorite mall in San Antonio. McCreless Mall was a lot like this mall. Now it stands today as a shopping center. At least they rebuilt the Cinemark theatre. I miss that mall. Orange Julius and Tito's pizza were the bomb!!! I remember getting cassettes, posters and CDs from Camelot music. My mom bought our first VCR from Montgomery Ward's!!! Besides Montgomery Ward's it had a Sears and I think Foley's as anchors. It had a lubys restaurant which I loved also. So many memories!!!
I really think one of the biggest downfalls of this mall besides size was the aesthetics. Sure it was fine when it came out, but once the Lehigh Valley Mall hit, this mall looked very outdated and I can see shoppers wanting to shop in the the nicer, bigger Lehigh Valley Mall. De-malling it was the right thing to do because the area itself gets a decent crowd on the outside stores. I will say however, that comic store in the mall is great, and has been there for some time. One of the reasons IMO the Lehigh Valley Mall is so successful is it manages to attract both people from the lower income spectrum to the more higher income families. It has a nice mix of stores for both lower and higher income families and you don't feel out of place shopping there. Especially since outside area was added on.
Going to the Whitehall Mall usually meant we were going to be drinking some Orange Julius. There was a cobbler in the Whitehall Mall. Sears is now gone as well.
This was the first mall here and I spent quite a bit of time here. One small correction I would add is that the pronunciation of the one anchor store is Zoll-lean-ers. The 'g' was silent. IMO the best section of this mall was from Leh's to Sears. There used to be a small mom and pop music store where I bought one of my first keyboards. Many nice memories there.
It’s too bad the Trexlertown mall is now longer in existence. It died a quick death in the early 90s and was similar in size to the South Mall. Sal would have loved the T-town Mall circa 1990
@@HyperPolaris Yes, I exactly love the trexlertown mall because it had a miniature golf course inside for those perfect rainy days and also the mall was more spacious inside.
Another great video! For me, The bad news: seeing one of the malls of my childhood featured in a dead mall video is more unsettling than I thought it would be. The good news: Watching the regional mall of my youth, Lehigh Valley Mall, be officially declared alive... shady real estate practices aside.
i worked in the woolworths cooking melts for ancient women in 1977 the plaza movies were a twin theatre and the steps that are blocked led to the offices and restrooms ...a good place to get high in the 70's lol
These are giants compared to two baby malls I've been to, but long gone, but not physically. I forget it's name, but it was on Rt. 12 and 2 (Leominster, MA). Anchored my Marshall's. It was a whopping 5-store mall. Two storefronts on either side, Marshall's in the middle at the end. There were always 2 vacant stores there, except a small run with 1 vacancy. The right side were 2 small shops, one always being a card and gift store. The other side, the far left was a small store, and the front left was a narrow passage to Prime Value Mart, the second anchor (That was the local name for Service Merchandise, literally the same store). Over time, Prime closed, Blockbuster Video moved in. Ultimately the card store closed, Blockbuster failing, moved across the mall to occupy the 2 dead stores on the right, and walled off the mall entry, making it's own entry. At that point, the vacated space became an I-Party, and walled off the mall, this killing it. Marshall's now occupies the former mall corridor, and some of the other anchor. It's still visible to this day, as Marshall's has this weird, narrow checkout arrangement at the door, with some displays, then it widens to the actual store. The narrow part was the mall, as mentioned, and where it widens is where their storefront once started. There was a second short-lived tiny mall in Lancaster Street Plaza (or "Hannaford Plaza", as it's called), again, Leominster. Where the entry to the management offices are, is approximately were the mall was. My Aunt worked in the restaurant at it's beginning. Never been up the end, but it was another 4, or 5 store mall, the anchor being the Hannaford Supermarket to the right of the mall entrance. The building's been butchered up since the tenants expanded, and divided space as needed, so there's no real proof of it existing, except if you've been there when it was a thing.
Sal, if you haven't gotten to Pittsburgh Mill northeast of Pittsburgh you need to Hell, it was built as a dead mall maybe 15 years ago. Its been dying and just lost its massive theater 🎥. And, great video as always.
I love this mall and I went in the 60s with my parents then in the 70s with my older brothers.Then in the 80s by myself.I was sad when they redid the mall😢😂
That's kinda of crazy, but that's also the problem with malls in America. Like so many other areas this mall is also a victim of over malling. Great video sal, and hope you had a happy independence day.
I would love to see if Part 2 of Whitehall Mall, too. I would Marvel (no pun intended), if Lynda Carter's Wonder Woman's Original Series Premiere Promos would make it on the channel, to do a Classic TV Fix and speaking of Marveling, it would be an epic Marvel to have Nazareth Speedway history because I'd loved the Rubber Bowl History and it is rotten how the Rubber Bowl decayed.
I love the work you did but I wish you went around the outside of the building because in the back entrance where the security car was the 1l on Mall fell off and I was so close to taking that I was literally that close like 3 in clothes if I turned around if there was no security nearby I would have totally taken that 1l from Mall Whitehall Mall looks like it's permanently shutting down in the future so I might have a chance
Always wanted to know what that "SMP" storefront was. I visited this place late last year - cracked up at the 'video store' that sells nothing but tobacco!
Super sad and infuriating to see what’s happening in the states. I live in Toronto and fortunately, we have very very few cases and all of our malls have reopened and have strict mask guidelines for all public places. Unfortunately, so many stores are closing (mostly American stores). Kind of ominous thinking what might happen soon enough. Maybe it’s time I find a job outside of the mall before it’s too late... ;)
Its too bad they did not renovate the older mall like king of prussia keeps alternating renovation of their two malls, bring customers back to the newer one.
The Valley Mall in some of the mobile stores that don't stay there for long it's starting to close up I saw some of the smaller stores closed up in the bottom of the building indoor building a thunder box still there I really wish you would have said that because because the bratwurst it just amazing but a little bit on the pricey side but you pay for what you get I'm just wondering if you even like Rottweilers bratwurst 4life here's another way to remember a bratwurst name Doofenshmirtz quality rot 4life here's another way to remember a bratwurst name Doofenshmirtz quality bratwurst bratwurst
Make mega slides a thing in baby-malls. Happy Independence Day, America. Here's some 1979 Captain America for you. Next week...the Avengers assemble...
Sal the music in malls.. is that their own or you overlaying music on the video.
Many great memories of this mall from the 1970's growing up. My favorite was the christmas tree display that was set up outside of Sears every season. And of course the Arcade! Epic when you are 10 years old. Still remember the sounds and smells.
I have so many memories of this mall, but they are so long ago that I can only recall fragments. Whenever my mother was off of work, instead of dropping me at my grandmother's house, she'd take me to this mall. We used to go to Sears a lot, as well as Clover and Woolworth. I have a lot of memories at the game counter that used to be on the second floor of Sears, which was where I played Donkey Kong Country and Sonic The Hedgehog for the first time on one of their demo units. Years later, I'd go back and play Banjo Kazooie and Mario 64 at that counter. When I was 3, my mother took me there and apparently watched as I looked at the massive case of games behind the counter. For my 4th birthday, she bought me a SNES console and two of the games I wanted: Rocko's Modern Life and Yoshi Safari (the system came with Super Mario World). Funny enough, the game I didn't choose turned out to be by far the best. She and I would always get an Orange Julius and a Super Pretzel when we came here. Another time, she took me to Woolworth and I was surprised to find that they sold SNES games there too. I wanted to get Ms. Pac Man, but she insisted on Plok. I'd later get Ms. Pac Man from my grandfather, but Plok was something I otherwise would never have tried and it was all because of my mother.
We stopped going to this mall after a while. I didn't understand it at the time, but the next time I saw that parking lot, the mall was gone, and for some reason, they left Sears disconnected from the remains of the mall itself. The mall had been gutted and replaced with a strip mall. I spoke with an old, familiar looking lady working at that Sears when I was in college, shopping for clothes for student teaching, and she claimed the mall was supposed to be turned into a trendy, outdoor mall like Philly Premium Outlets, but that that never manifested. That might explain the random, shaded area behind the Old Country Buffet where there are no stores, but tons of open, public space. I'm convinced that the only reason the mall even exists anymore is because it's a secondary entrance to Kohl's, because let's face it, if you didn't know it was back there, and if you're not one of the 15 people who travels to or from Catasauqua regularly, you wouldn't even know that that Kohl's was there, were it not for the mall entrance.
Thank you for taking the time to share this. I love reading people's memories of these malls when they were in their heyday. These places can't be brought back to those days, but Sal's videos and your comments are what immortalise them. This is a true gem for posterity.
The Plaza end of this mall has wicked cool vintage architecture. Those stairs, the brick walls, the plaza storefront - I felt like I was back in the 70's for a while. Another great video, Sal. Thanks for all time and care you take with these.
The Pet Shop.... I rescued my Chocolate Lab from them was working at the Men's warehouse there several years ago and on lunch I would go to the pet store to play with the pups and eventually I took him home the only time I bought a dog but I consider him a rescue since he was there 6 months best pupper.
I remember this mall so much from the 80s. I remember when Woolworth's had a pet store in there. There used to be an Orange Julius stand near the Leh's that I'd get whenever my parents would take me there. I learned video games in the SpacePort with Lethal Enforcers and what's so cool now is that there's still a small section of that old mall left.
Awesome as usual! Love the opening music...so "Barbary Coast". Also, I find this mall especially interesting as, you see so much of the architectural elements of the mid 1960's still very visible. Things built back then, were sure made to last...
It must have been something to walk through when it was first opened . Love the staircase and the Plaza theater remains. These were the type of malls I visited growing up in the 70s until the bigger regional malls came along .
Gold's gym took over the theater space and the section of Leh's that was unused . they gutted interior but didn't touch the exterior inside.
Thank you Sal! Another fine video bringing nostalgia and peace to this crazy world. Stay safe and keep on rockin!
You rock!!!!
I remember going here as a kid with my mom. I don’t recall the slide however. But I DO remember the dope circular ramp at the Lehigh valley mall down the street....AND the play place in the children’s place.
th for telling us about this small mall history so sad see it going down
Grew up in the Lehigh Valley and remember both Westgate and Whitehall Malls pretty well. Although they were both on their downturn throughout my childhood.
Thanks for these great videos, Sal!
I was born in 1996 and I grew up with this mall. My sister, my cousins, and I all preferred this mall growing up compared to the Lehigh Valley mall because of the pet shop lol. We always loved to see the puppies haha. I was always a big fan of the comic store too; they have a lot of rare comics and collectibles. I still frequent this mall, and when the pet shop is open there's actually a good amount of people in there!
Tickling the rhodes with this one, draws us right into Whitehall Mall. And out with a trumpet solo!
When I was a kid I remember throwing pennies into the fountain with my poppop I remember seeing movies at the plaza with my mom and my sister, going into sears with my dad for tools, and my aunt for shoes, later as a teenager I remember eating at Arby's with my friends they had a back door you could walk out of and go to the baseball field. also going into comic masters and buying the first edition of the walking dead comic, alot of memories for me there, it feels like it was a totally different world back then.
I live about five minutes from this mall. Thank you for making a video on it, it's a wonderful place to take a VHS camcorder.
Hay Sal. I have been watching you for quite a while but never commented. I am from liberty borough Pennsylvania. I grew up at century 3 Mall. I really enjoy all the background history in your commentary and how in-depth you are about everything. Thank you very much for all the content and please keep it coming. My girlfriend and I watch you constantly. Thank you. My father who is 68 years old used to snow plow Eastland Mall in North Versailles. It is not there anymore I used to go to it when it was a huge flea market. Thank you for everything that you do.
Hi SW PA neighbor
@@bradklingensmith Leechburg area? I live in West Leechburg area. And I do know Klingon Smith and the pharmacy.
Oh my goodness!! I live not that far from here and always loved going here when I was a kid. I’ve watched the down fall of this place as well. Most of these places have closed by now. But my parents have endless stories of this place ( they met here). Thank you for making this video :) I just got a wave of nostalgia!!
Thank you for giving us great entertainment. I woke up sad and this is a bright light as always you, Anthony, and Kristin giving us these great videos. ❤️
I used to go to the Lehigh Valley Mall often when I lived in PA. It's a great mall and I'm glad to see that it has continued to survive when so many other malls have closed. The Whitehall area was just too commercialized for every retailer to thrive. Over-saturation. And then online sales starting in 2010s were the last nail in the coffin for department stores.
This opened 10 days before I was born. As a kid we went here often. My mother eventually worked at Leh's in this mall, which went into the old Zollinger store, IIRC. We used to shop at Weis market, the Sears, eat at the Woolworth's diner, and I even remember when they did a traveling version of The Newlywed Game and Bob Eubanks came to the mall and my teacher and her new husband were some of the contestants. Once the Lehigh Valley Mall opened, it was kind of a ghost town, unfortunately.
I remember this mall too. Haven’t come here in decades though. It was dead long before others in the area. Maybe around the time Westgate mall died. Lehigh valley n even South mall overshadowed it. It’s weird to see that they r dead malls too now. I’ve said before that since I moved to nyc it’s ironic because malls r still thriving here. U would think that’s more of a small town thing because there’s nothing to do otherwise, but yeah. Queens mall especially is popular. I wish I still had pics of my father n his train n trolly group getting buses into the mall. I think they did in Lehigh valley mall tho.
I see more ppl at Lehigh valley mall than the others but it’s still nowhere near as crowded as it was. I wasn’t fond of other teens so I didn’t go as often, but Lehigh valley mall was REALLY full of ppl in its heyday. I guess the past 10-15 years or so it got less. It used to look like a subway tube train stop. It was PACKED. This is nothing. I used to love Spencer’s tho. Got Beatles stuff there.
Lehigh valley mall isn’t as busy as it was, but it’s still extremely busy, they’ve been expanding in recent years and have been doing quite well, they quickly fill thier stores when a store leaves, and thier in a good spot. South mall,Whitehall, and west gate though? Yeah, all dead
WOW the mixture of the two video's just shows how things have changed dramatically this year.
You'd be surprised - almost everything shuttered in the June footage has reopened. The comic store, the bridal store, the tobacco store ("Video and More"), the pet store even had a line to get in. :)
That brown tile floor kills.
Spent lots of time at the Whitehall Mall in the 60s. We all loved to get one of the Orange Julius drinks. I saw 2001: A Space Odyssey at the Plaza movies.
I remember going when I was young I wish Clover and Woolworth was still there. We still go my kids like to see the puppies and my son likes the comic store.
its been a real long time since ive been in whitehall since i moved when i was 12, but i remember a comic shop being in or right next to the mall, i used to go into ALL the time as a kid
Also I think the Captain America actor was on the first few seasons of Dynasty as Sammy Jo (Heather Locklear) husband but I’m not for sure
Oh my... I should have visited this baby-mall when I was up there last year... Instead, I visited the Lehigh Valley Mall because I wanted to see my first Boscov's, Macy's, and my first Otis Lexan (rare elevator in the Boscov's)... Almost like I missed going to Century III when I went up to West Mifflin/Pittsburgh as my hotel was only 4 minutes by car away from it...
What I'm saying is, *I'm sorry.* Whitehall & Century III... you both deserved better fates and deserved to have one more visitor.
Hey you can still see Whitehall! It’s still open.
@@sal Hello there Sal. ^^ And, I'd absolutely love to see it, but it is quite far from my house, and we're basically stuck there as I need to take care of my grandfather (he has numerous types of cancer, including leukaemia, and we can't risk bringing anything to him).
That's the model of elevator at Boscov's? That thing always freaks my sister out when she has to ride it. It's so loud and the doors always open way too early. Nice to have a name to associate with that thing.
Born in 1992 and remember this mall a lot. My first movie theater experience i remember was at the Plaza theater, with Bugs Life and Antz at the helm. By the late 90s, LV mall was already booming and there was no chance of this mall surviving really. especially buying it out and keeping it from flourishing. I don't think there was anyway to save it. Though wish i was alive to see the full mall in its peak, but that would've been in my grandmother's time as the 70s was the peak, that my mom woulda been a kid at that time in this mall. I'm glad there's vids out there preserving how some of these malls were and somie of their stories.
The walls, brick floor and the stairs were beautiful. It would be sad to see those demolished as they represent the origin time period.
Thanks sal, thanks Vivian, wonderful video.
A grand and beautiful mall from the pictures at the beginning, then cutting immediately to the present day shots made all my hopes and dreams that an immaculate mall from the past had been left untouched were dashed into bits.
Even with that said, still another wonderful expedition log, Sal!
Still plenty of beautiful retro areas left hiding around in this mall though
Another awesome production Sal, thanks. This mall reminds me of the seventies with its beige tiles, the rock wall and the architecture of the stairs. Your right, once you see Lehigh mall, Whitehall has no chance. All-right thanks again from Australia
Thanks for doing a great job on this video. I grew up 2 blocks from the Whitehall Mall, this brought back a lot for me...
I still go to the WHM for only one store, Comic Masters. I was there on the day it opened in 93, love that store!
Grew up going to this mall! Used to have a Woolworth and a Orange Julius and a Sears!
Oh wait I've been here. Wondered where the stairs went. The concourse used to bend right and connect to the sears. Killed by the Lehigh Valley mall across the street which is epic.
Used to love the clovers there! My mothers fav store at the time I could always count on an icee ! Spaceport was od ! Movie theatre was good enough And comic masters was my favorite spot during my teenage years
Used to love the Clover discount store in Eastern PA (Morrisville), and I can picture the standard blue/white "girder" decorated entrance to the Space Port arcades in that area of the country.
I believe a Golds Gym is still operating in the space of the old movie theater
This enclosed space has always been busy, but with Kohl's doors closed it's probably taking most of the foot traffic out. Most of the stores look closed too, and they do draw some decent foot traffic when open.
That ceiling has also been fixed along with the removal of the janitors closet.
Ahhhh...totally bummed I missed the Premier!!!!!!! Love your vids! Would love to see you in New England!! There are some really cool places along the east coast of Massachusetts, too! Esp along the Whaling waterfronts and downtown WHaling city with mills long ago abandoned...not a mall, I know, lol! But creepy! And many old creepy buildings with Widows Peaks that you can see the Sea from. I wish I had the nerve to go in myself, lol! Stay safe and keep up the awesome uploads, I love that you add voice and tell us what we are seeing and the history of it, thats my fav part!
Ah that’s okay!! You can watch it whenever!
The "de-mallification" of this mall is similar to what they're currently doing to Northgate (owned by Simon) here in Seattle. The enclosed portions at the ends of the concourse are being kept, but the middle portion is being converted into an open-air mixed-use center, anchored by the NHL training facility under construction in the spot formerly occupied by The Bon Marche/Macy's.
The Phillipsburg Mall is being torn down.
That’s so sad...
It’s kind of weird to watch this. It s a mixed blessing in a way. My autistic son, when he was little, in around 2007, liked to go out but had problems with the crowds. So this actually became a solution. He loved to visit the pet store, and the very first “ride” he went on was the roller coaster video ride shown in this video ( I believe it’s the exact same one). He would also like to walk around the now defunct Sears, again because it was mostly quiet, oh and they had a vending machine and used to like to pick out a treat.
Worked at Zollinger’s when they opened at the mall. Even had a restaurant on the upper level.
Amazing video -- great, informative work as always. And ugh at 12:18 -- no matter how well a mall is doing, I hate seeing trash receptacles overflowed like that.
This mall reminded me of my favorite mall in San Antonio. McCreless Mall was a lot like this mall. Now it stands today as a shopping center. At least they rebuilt the Cinemark theatre. I miss that mall. Orange Julius and Tito's pizza were the bomb!!! I remember getting cassettes, posters and CDs from Camelot music. My mom bought our first VCR from Montgomery Ward's!!! Besides Montgomery Ward's it had a Sears and I think Foley's as anchors. It had a lubys restaurant which I loved also. So many memories!!!
I really think one of the biggest downfalls of this mall besides size was the aesthetics. Sure it was fine when it came out, but once the Lehigh Valley Mall hit, this mall looked very outdated and I can see shoppers wanting to shop in the the nicer, bigger Lehigh Valley Mall. De-malling it was the right thing to do because the area itself gets a decent crowd on the outside stores. I will say however, that comic store in the mall is great, and has been there for some time.
One of the reasons IMO the Lehigh Valley Mall is so successful is it manages to attract both people from the lower income spectrum to the more higher income families. It has a nice mix of stores for both lower and higher income families and you don't feel out of place shopping there. Especially since outside area was added on.
Sal, awesome job as always and thanks for the shoutout (Chris Strawn). Looking forward to more of these "mini mall" videos.
Going to the Whitehall Mall usually meant we were going to be drinking some Orange Julius. There was a cobbler in the Whitehall Mall. Sears is now gone as well.
This was the first mall here and I spent quite a bit of time here. One small correction I would add is that the pronunciation of the one anchor store is Zoll-lean-ers. The 'g' was silent. IMO the best section of this mall was from Leh's to Sears. There used to be a small mom and pop music store where I bought one of my first keyboards. Many nice memories there.
Spaceport and dollar movie. Couldn't bet that. Fun times
Great video sal, hopefully you can get to do South Mall in Allentown PA soon
Was just gonna comment thjs
It’s too bad the Trexlertown mall is now longer in existence. It died a quick death in the early 90s and was similar in size to the South Mall. Sal would have loved the T-town Mall circa 1990
@@HyperPolaris Yes, I exactly love the trexlertown mall because it had a miniature golf course inside for those perfect rainy days and also the mall was more spacious inside.
Another great video!
For me,
The bad news: seeing one of the malls of my childhood featured in a dead mall video is more unsettling than I thought it would be.
The good news: Watching the regional mall of my youth, Lehigh Valley Mall, be officially declared alive... shady real estate practices aside.
i worked in the woolworths cooking melts for ancient women in 1977 the plaza movies were a twin theatre and the steps that are blocked led to the offices and restrooms ...a good place to get high in the 70's lol
These are giants compared to two baby malls I've been to, but long gone, but not physically.
I forget it's name, but it was on Rt. 12 and 2 (Leominster, MA). Anchored my Marshall's. It was a whopping 5-store mall. Two storefronts on either side, Marshall's in the middle at the end. There were always 2 vacant stores there, except a small run with 1 vacancy. The right side were 2 small shops, one always being a card and gift store. The other side, the far left was a small store, and the front left was a narrow passage to Prime Value Mart, the second anchor (That was the local name for Service Merchandise, literally the same store). Over time, Prime closed, Blockbuster Video moved in. Ultimately the card store closed, Blockbuster failing, moved across the mall to occupy the 2 dead stores on the right, and walled off the mall entry, making it's own entry. At that point, the vacated space became an I-Party, and walled off the mall, this killing it. Marshall's now occupies the former mall corridor, and some of the other anchor. It's still visible to this day, as Marshall's has this weird, narrow checkout arrangement at the door, with some displays, then it widens to the actual store. The narrow part was the mall, as mentioned, and where it widens is where their storefront once started.
There was a second short-lived tiny mall in Lancaster Street Plaza (or "Hannaford Plaza", as it's called), again, Leominster. Where the entry to the management offices are, is approximately were the mall was. My Aunt worked in the restaurant at it's beginning. Never been up the end, but it was another 4, or 5 store mall, the anchor being the Hannaford Supermarket to the right of the mall entrance. The building's been butchered up since the tenants expanded, and divided space as needed, so there's no real proof of it existing, except if you've been there when it was a thing.
Sal, if you haven't gotten to Pittsburgh Mill northeast of Pittsburgh you need to Hell, it was built as a dead mall maybe 15 years ago. Its been dying and just lost its massive theater 🎥. And, great video as always.
The last time I was in the Whitehall Mall was in the 1990s, but to me, it always felt like entering a cave going in there.
I love this mall and I went in the 60s with my parents then in the 70s with my older brothers.Then in the 80s by myself.I was sad when they redid the mall😢😂
That's kinda of crazy, but that's also the problem with malls in America. Like so many other areas this mall is also a victim of over malling. Great video sal, and hope you had a happy independence day.
The sears is now gone, it’s in mid process of being demolished - as is the old country buffet building in front of the mall.
I would love to see if Part 2 of Whitehall Mall, too. I would Marvel (no pun intended), if Lynda Carter's Wonder Woman's Original Series Premiere Promos would make it on the channel, to do a Classic TV Fix and speaking of Marveling, it would be an epic Marvel to have Nazareth Speedway history because I'd loved the Rubber Bowl History and it is rotten how the Rubber Bowl decayed.
I think that D&M Snacks is closed now. I walked through there today (September 5th) - the rest was open, but D&M was dark.
I love these old malls
I love the work you did but I wish you went around the outside of the building because in the back entrance where the security car was the 1l on Mall fell off and I was so close to taking that I was literally that close like 3 in clothes if I turned around if there was no security nearby I would have totally taken that 1l from Mall Whitehall Mall looks like it's permanently shutting down in the future so I might have a chance
Baby Greendale Mall in Worcester, MA is gasping its last breath now. A former Simon property sold and will be razed and redeveloped.
So weird (but cool) to see somewhere you know so well.
Jazz song used @12:14 . Thanks
I used to work with a guy named Chris Strawn [sp?], jus wonder if this is the same Chris. 🤷♂️🤔
I think the closed up box by the stairs used to be a shoe cobbler. I used to think it was cool when I was little.
And that has recently been removed.
@4:58 that wall looks like a mausoleum
Reb Brown a.k.a. Slab fist crunch. Grizzle McThorn body. Punch Side Iron! BOB JOHNSON!
...and the WHITEHALL staircase!!!
Those circular light star patterned panels!
Can’t wait for the podcast!
Dude. You need to go to Mall St. Vincent and Pierre Bossier Mall in Shreveport/Bossier City. They’re freakin dead
😩 It"s just sad. ALL that $... Everybody's shopping on-line, Amazon, etc.
My father does not know how to use a computer, so he's stuck shopping Walmart and Target...
Who disliked this video? Sal puts so much hardwork creating these videos 😠
sears at landmark va is closing
Always wanted to know what that "SMP" storefront was.
I visited this place late last year - cracked up at the 'video store' that sells nothing but tobacco!
Nothing screams "Pennsylvania Welcome" like an overflowing garbage can outside the front door!
Do you know is the Oxford Valley mall in Langhorne, PA still around
another great video thank you
@7:08 MALL COP!!! Lol
I think the pet store still does well
Can I tag along , would like to get back to recording
You need to do Southlake mall it’s slowly dying and it practically died and probably will die pretty soon
Be Captain America, Sal!! :P
Mi go here all the time I live lot so far
Super sad and infuriating to see what’s happening in the states. I live in Toronto and fortunately, we have very very few cases and all of our malls have reopened and have strict mask guidelines for all public places. Unfortunately, so many stores are closing (mostly American stores). Kind of ominous thinking what might happen soon enough. Maybe it’s time I find a job outside of the mall before it’s too late... ;)
Its too bad they did not renovate the older mall like king of prussia keeps alternating renovation of their two malls, bring customers back to the newer one.
Hate seeing shopping centres/malls in this state
This mall was dieing before covid I think covid will be the final nail in the coffin for the Whitehall mall RIP
why 3 downvotes already? it hasnt premiered
The Lord Himself could post a youtube video, and a few would still thumb it down. Some people just get off on negativity.
The Valley Mall in some of the mobile stores that don't stay there for long it's starting to close up I saw some of the smaller stores closed up in the bottom of the building indoor building a thunder box still there I really wish you would have said that because because the bratwurst it just amazing but a little bit on the pricey side but you pay for what you get I'm just wondering if you even like Rottweilers bratwurst 4life here's another way to remember a bratwurst name Doofenshmirtz quality rot 4life here's another way to remember a bratwurst name Doofenshmirtz quality bratwurst bratwurst
I can’t believe it’s all gone now and we have to wear face mask this sucks I want to go back to the 80s
Reb Brown? You mean Blast Hardcheese.
Online shopping is doing to Malls what the malls did to downtown local shopping. Karma is a bitch.
And now stores have adapted by selling over the web.