The Walpole Mall: How Much Longer Can This Dead Mall Last?
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- Опубликовано: 8 фев 2025
- Join me as I take a look at the Walpole Mall in Walpole, Massachusetts.
Is it a dead mall? Well, the inside portion of the mall definitely is! I can't imagine it lasting much longer, but let me know what you think in the comments!
This video was filmed on a Saturday at about noon in late June 2024.
If you liked this video, please don't forget to give me a thumbs up, leave a comment and subscribe to my channel. I plan to have more dead mall videos in the future. Thanks for watching!
Sources of Information and Historical Photos:
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I grew up in walpole. My family still lives there. You talked about the center of the mall where they made a wall. That's where the big Fountain was with lots of seats around it where everyone used to just hang out and people watch. It was actually really nice back then. Once they put that wall up it destroyed the mall. It destroyed everything. It cut off the malls he had to walk outside and go back inside the other way. It cut off people getting together and meeting in the center. It was actually very open and bright and welcoming. Now it's just dead and lifeless.
I remember the Papa Gino's. I used to do the all you can eat pizza there all the time. On the plus side, they now have other things like gamestop, chipotle, and other Standalone stores in the parking lot.
I don’t know what they were thinking though I understand getting rid of a fountain like burlington chestnut hill copley place etc they cost a lot and they’re not in a real body of water so it was just for looks no other purpose
When they're catching rain in buckets it's never a good sign. Thanks as always for the cool video.
Yes, definitely not a good sign! Thanks for watching!
Hello. The Walpole Mall was a place I spent a lot of Saturdays at in my Teens (80's). I grew up in Foxboro. Next town over. Believe it or not, there were many stores there back in the 80's and generally very busy. Besides the anchor stores you already listed, there was a Radio Shack, Gap, Kay-Bee Toys, Good Vibrations records ( I worked there) A Newport Creamery Restaurant, A Mug-N-Muffin, Orange Julius, Walden Books, a tobacco shop, Florist and a lot of ladies clothes stores. Also, a Jewelry Tree kiosk and a T-shirt kiosk that sold iron -on and concert t-shirts. I don't remember a fountain, but there may have been one. Today, yes the outside stores keeps it alive. They 're presently building a Chick-fil-A out front. I'm thinking this is a sign that they aren't closing anytime soon. I also now work a mile down the road from there. It's a usual lunch stop for me.
I miss Radio Shack
I think the outside mall will likely survive, but I'll bet they wall off the interior mall in the not too distant future.
Me too!
I spent a lot of time at the Walpole mall as a kid as well. it was the place to be when you were a kid. lots of stores and I remember them all what you had mentioned. there was in fact a fountain. a decent size one I might at and it was right near where Bradley s was and radio shack. miss orange Julius and the record store. it's sad to see malls ( especially the Walpole mall ) becoming a thing of the past and kids now a days not having a place to hang out at creating memories like the ones I had.
The fountain was on the Bradlees side. I'm thinking it was right in the open space with the Tobacco Road smoke shop that was on the corner, and the Walden Books that was on the opposite side next to the Newport Creamery.
Wasn't there a Strawberries Records? I kinda remember there being one on that side of the mall.
11:45 - Old Country Buffet. Besides Bradlees was also another staple place of my Childhood, and Teens, and seldomly Adulthood, until all the locations nearby closed up shop. I was so devastated when they closed. I used to frequent the Watertown Location most but have been to the Walpole Mall Location as well. Speaking for the Foods, the Seafood Mac Salad was off the hook. The Mac n Cheese was decent too. I always used to put it on top of their Pizza to make a Mac n Cheese Pepperoni Pizza. Their Meatloaf was honestly the BEST out of home Meatloaf I have ever had in my life, even to this day. Soft Serve Vanilla Ice Cream dispensed in a drink cup then topped with Root Beer from the Sodas Dispenser. Other things too (depending on what day you went) as well. Sometimes they would have Ham, Ribs, other types of BBQ Items. All just a Memory now. *Sigh* 🥲
6:24 - Bradlees. That Department Store was a staple place of my Childhood. I still have an Original Bradlees Logo white plastic bag in my "Special" Collection.
There used to be a video game store inside the mall called play and trade, the dream machine was triple the size it was back in the 2000’s
They had more games too. I remember this military themed one with a statue of a weird looking army dude back then.
I worked at Kay-bee toy store back in the 80's ... this mall was the best. @4:05
So many good comments here. Grew up riding my bike with friends to this mall in early 90s to go to the DreamMachine. Bought many sneakers for school sports at the Olympia Sports. Almy’s was at the opposite end of Bradlees (where Joann Fabrics was). Probably have one or two vintage Almy plastic bags at my parents house. Gap was in the middle of the mall. The Old Navy was added on sometime around 1998. Newport Creamery was just outside of the Bradlees inner mall entrance. There was a Tobacconist (also found at Westgate Mall) opposite an Orange Julius. Just a few miles away, there was the Village Mall in Canton that had Shaws, Caldor, Marshall’s, Foot Locker, Radio Shack, a bookstore and other random stores like The Weathervane. The owners tore that down in the early 2000s and built an outdoor shopping plaza.
Sadly not too well. As most of you might know, I'm the assistant manager at the Dream Machine arcade, and we have announced our permanent closure on October 14th, 2024
Why are there so few video games in your arcade? If I went to an arcade like this and saw there were no actual video games in it, I'd leave right away. I'm a huge fan of arcades but none of the machines I saw in this video interest me. You couldn't even get Pac Man or something? Come on...
@ we had many of them at one point while I worked there. Either they broke down too often and were too expensive to maintain for the little they brought in, or a high enough offer was made and the owner decided to sell them.
This hurts to read. I used to have a lot of my birthday parties there.
@ yea, it really sucks. I had worked there for 9 years before we closed.
in the 90s, this is where I always came with friends to buy videogames and toys, pokemon and yugioh cards. The Kaybee toys is actualy where I got the original Resident Evil, I was only 9 at the time. When i got older, my friends and I worked at the game store called Play N Trade, it was our clubhouse, everyone came in to play games, we'd order food from Papa Ginos, play all kinds of games on the main screen. We'd have some guys come in to take one tv and a seat and practice Street Fighter 4 for hours.
We watched the reveal of the Xbox One on the computer, and just had amazing memories, like playing 4 player Metal Gear Solid on our PSPs....that mall is so empty now
Bradlee’s was where Kohls is today. Almy’s was located where Barnes and Noble is. Almys had a restaurant inside it, run by the store. Where Aldi’s and Five Below are currently located, up to Barnes and Noble, was a supermarket, Stop & Shop. The mall had a Good Vibrations (record store), CVS, Thom McAn, Radio Shack, Newport Cremery, Irish Shop, News Shop (sold newspapers, cigarettes, lottery tickets, smoking accessories), and a bookstore ( I think it was Waldenbooks). As someone else mentioned, there was a large fountain at the center of the mall where there was seating. The News Shop was near here. This is my best recollection of the early years of the mall.
The LA Fitness building was not part of Stop & Shop or the Mall.
I remember bradlee’s but I thought the fountain was pretty close to it like it didn’t extend much farther down
Good info here. I grew up in Walpole as well. Orange Julius, Radio Shack and Good Vibrations were great. 👍
I was here many times in the 70’s and 80’s. I forget most of the stores. I know Bradlees was an anchor store. Miss those days.
Bradley’s was where Kohls is today but there was an entrance inside the store that went into the mall.
I remember a CVS, Kaybee toys, Debbie's Pet store, a baseball memorabilia store, the tobacco store, a candy shop, music store. Jo-Ann Fabrics was definitely at the end. I remember shopping at the Stop & Shop in 1992. Next to Bradlees was a Radio Shack and some kind of restaurant. Dream Machine used to be right across from Papa Ginos - the birthdays would be combined.
Newport Creamery was the restaurant.
Im from Brockton, MA, so when im in Walpole, i will occasionally stop here. Very dead indeed. There also used to be a Mall in Dedham, which is now just a plaza with stores only connected on the outside. That arcade is normally very dead, its definitely the birthday party
Yep, I work at the TJMaxx in Dedham. Was surprised to be told by both my mother and some older coworkers that it used to be an inside mall until they turned it into outlets.
@viictxriia I was born in 78, good times and memories of the past 🥲
Oh man, there used to be a Dream Machine at the Lincoln Mall in RI and it had a huge selection of fun video games and pinball. Made Aladdin's Castle look like amateur time.
Nice!
I've never seen an arcade so busy, even in thriving malls
@@julianbrock6198 This is mainly because it’s very affordable! 90% of the games are only $0.50 each, a handful are $1.00, and a few are even $0.25! A ten dollar bill will go a long way here. Compare that to the Dave & Busters arcades of today where most games are $1.50 or so. Dream Machine also uses actual quarters and tokens, unlike the swipe-cards of most modern arcades. People tend to pay closer attention to how many coins they have left as opposed to losing track of the balance number that appears on the little screen.
But no actual video games or even pinball machines... so what's the point?
Thanks for doing this great video on the Walpole Mall. It’s sad that you had to view it in this state, but better now than once it’s inevitably closed or swallowed up by the surrounding stores.
I grew up (and still live) one town over and have been going to this mall for almost 40 years. I spent many many hours and days here, and worked at the KB Toys (where that Payless was) from 2001-2008, before it closed. I have so many rich, palpable memories here with my family. It’s sad to see it in this state now, it would almost be better if it closed but it somehow survived COVID and more.
The mall, as you suspected, was much larger than this before. The far left wall inside Kohls (formerly Bradlees until late 2000) opened up into the mall and that stretched all the way down through that Dream Machine area to the end. Petsmart, JoAnn, and the wine place all compressed in and took over that space when they opened up.
There were at least 2-3 external entrances to the mall; one of them is the one you entered through and the others were down near where JoAnn/Petsmart is and originally there was one where Old Navy/B&N is. Everything to the left of what used to be OfficeMax is quite new and not part of the original mall at all. Old Navy was not the Gap, Gap was inside where the back of JoAnns would be now.
Dream Machine is actually very popular and it’s normal to see it that crowded, even when not on a birthday party day. It’s even more crowded on rainy days (those sad rain buckets have been there for years too!) my son has had 3 birthday parties there and loves it, as do I. They still use quarters and tokens and games are affordable, unlike modern swipe-card arcades where games are literally 3x as much each. The one drawback as you mentioned is the lack of actual video games but personally i enjoy the mechanical/classic challenge type games more anyway.
I have all sorts of tidbits and info on this mall from my time working there, let me know if you do create that Wikipedia page for it, I’m happy to share my knowledge on it!
I forgot to mention that my older sister worked at the Old Navy back in the late 90s, and my older brother worked at a candy store in the mall called Pinches & Pounds (which was located where Dream Machine currently is now, but also extended another 1/2 store wider to the right). They both have stories of the mall too. The original Dream Machine was very wide (at least 2x the space it’s in now) and further down the mall towards Bradlees (roughly at the back of JoAnns somewhere).
I just do not get malls dying. Shopping indoors out of the weather makes so much sense!!!!
I've been to this mall (Arcade in particular), and it's always very busy in this arcade. Mostly on weekends it's very busy. I think that the arcade is what draws visitors to the Walpole Mall
Makes sense. It seems like a pretty nice arcade, even if it doesn't have a ton of actual video games.
@@fleabittenadventuresin Boston they are smart. No point in having video games that can be easily played at home. These games are not conducive to playing at home…
@@fleabittenadventures Didn't seem to have any pinball machines either. How can that be called an arcade?
i spent many afternoons and evenings there at the walpole mall as a kid. it was the place to be. so sad to see the mall the way it is now. every time i go past it i remember my times there as a kid. soon it will be gone but i hope the memories last a lifetime.
You are right about opening in 1974. I lived in Norwood and my first job out of college was at Bird and Son in East Walpole. Living in Norwood, and working in East Walpole, the Walpole mall had every store you needed. For the people in the area, it was closer than going to The Dedham Mall.
I used to work in the Petsmart over there a co-worker said the water issues in the store were from the old water fountain setup. The nail place on the left before the dream machine closed shortly after this video, I literally got my nails done said "see you in 3 weeks" and when I went back it was completely empty. Dream Machine arcade also closed now. The Jo-Ann fabrics inside became a gymnastics place for a little while. Threading place moved to outside the mall across the parking lot.
I grew up going here every now and again in the 2000s. We would get our pictures with Santa taken there cause it was cheaper than most places lol. Aside from the arcade, I remember it being generally busy. Now, I've been in the actual mall maybe like 3 times in the last 5 years despite needing to go to that general area pretty much once a week. As you said, the stores on the outside of the mall all do well, especially the Barnes and Noble, the mall itself truly is dead. I'm still surprised they even have it still standing
I did not even know you could still go inside this mall. Last time I went to the inside portion was sometime around 2010-2012, when the Kohl's still opened into it. It looked decently healthy at that point. When they closed the entrance from Kohl's, I figured they closed the entire inside portion and just kept the outside stores (which, as you said, are still doing pretty well).
Last time I went to this mall, it was really sad. This video actually makes it look sadder. The Dream Machine and massive bookstore were the only reasons to visit.
I haven't been in the Walpole Mall in decades. My mother used to love this mall. The main anchor stores were Bradlees and Almy's. I don't remember all the stores in there. I do remember Waldenbooks and Radio Shack. But I don't remember what else was there.
Except for Almy's, that sounds like the types of stores we had at the malls in CT around that same time.
I still have a couple books I bought at that Bradlees with Bradlees price tags on them!
I grew up in Walpole. It opened in the mid 70's. Learned to drive in the parking lot on Sundays, back when stores didn't open (Blue Laws). There was also a steak house style restaurant that was pretty popular.
Somebody rescue the plants; that place is D-E-A-D. The outside access stores seem to be doing fine, but the interior...water buckets are not a good look.
I'll bet they wall off the interior mall in a few years or so.
I used to frequent this mall with my girl friend back in 2013, it was a fun place back then. I'm sad the Dream machine arcade got rid of the Dance Dance Revolution Extreme machine though.
Thanks for watching!
I remember the Old Country Buffet. When I was a teen, I used to work for a landscaping company in the summer that had a lot of jobs in the Walpole area. We used to go to the Old Country Buffet all the time for lunch.
The Petsmart/JoAnn area was once another mall enterance. When i first went to that mall in 1987, the former mall enterance wing had a Papa Ginos, then a Good Vibrations music store, then a salon. In the 90s, Papa Ginos stayed in that locations and an iParty was across the hall and a Lord & Ladys in that same wing. Good Vibrations moved to where the Dream Machine is now but was now under the Record Town name. In the now closed area off the mall was Newport Creamery, Radio Shack, Payless Shoe and Hallmark. Later, Payless Shoes moved to where the former KB Toys was and Record Town moved next to the Payless Shoes (as shown in the video). Bath & Bodyworks was in part of the mall at the still open mall enterance before Mattress Firm took over that spot. The L.A. fitness building , Party City, Olympia Sports (no longer there) was all new construction around 2009 when it was just trees. if u look at the Office Max photo, that is now half Aldi and half Five Below and to the left was all woods and trees until around 2009.
When they updated the mall outside, Bath & Bodyworks left, Mattress Firm took over and Papa Ginos moved to that new location at the mall enterance around 2014 I think.
9:33 My family used to go there about once a month to eat at the old country buffet. During that time the mall wasn't dead and that big wall splitting off the mall wasn't there. During the country buffets last days you could already see a good deal of vacant units. Days before the final closing of the buffet my family went for a stroll and couldn't help but talk about how dead it was. Now it is nothing like it used to be. It's a ghost town.
I used to go here as a kid! The fountain was closer to where the Dream Machine is. That area by the Barnes & Noble used to be where they would have the mall Santa during the holidays!
There also used to be a great candy store there called Pinches & Pounds.
Honestly, the place was already dying when I went there (late 90s to early 2000s).
There also used to be an Old Country Buffet there.
It kinda warms my heart to see Dream Machine still open and apparently thriving.
The Kohl’s opened in the early 2000s or late 90s.
I’m from Sharon, MA, which is really close to Walpole. I remember biking there as a kid. I once bought my mom a Mother’s Day gift at the Bath & Body Works that was there lol
I go to the BARNES there weekly. Theres a exit to the mall in the back of the store but I havent gone inside in years. There used to be a Old Country Buffett and a Bath and Body works. I don't remember it being busy ever🎉❤❤
Damn!! That was my mall back in the day! I even worked at the dream machine. It used to be so packed and the place to go! I close my eyes and remember it. I’m so heartbroken seeing this😭😭😭. R.I.P Walpole mall you’ll always be in my heart forever 🙏
I could be wrong but I think where that boat was there used to be where they would set up for kids to have their picture taken with Santa I think it was just a platform that they would decorate for Christmas.
I frequent the mall as an LA Fitness member and i remember the Office Max mainly but now ALDI is nice for groceries at reasonable prices. It's also a great location with food around like Panera Bread, Taco Bell, Panda Express, Five Guys, Shah's that you mentioned, and a Texas Roadhouse. I actually didn't know it had an inside part to the mall as never walked in and always thought it was just a strip mall. As I said, I go a few times a week to LA Fitness to work out but the food options around are good for lunch or dinner after a workout. Also has a Gamestop and I check it out if new stuff comes out.
holy crap I remember coming here back in the late 90s. I remember the Bradlees and Payless! And the fountains
Never went inside this mall. Didn't even know about this.
I grew up going here. I was a mall rat that hung out at the Dream machine arcade. It used to be much bigger. They had 25 gaming PCs setup in the back area called the battleLAN. I spent so much time there, skipping days in high school to go. You could pay for 1-2 hours but for $25 you got an all day pass. I would be there when they opened until they closed. I’d walk home at 10pm back to Norwood.
They had an overnight gaming thing with 25 slots and me and my best friend went. I had donated blood at school that day too, I remember feeling dizzy after playing DDR. They had the machine unlocked and we played for free. Was a lot of fun times!
Playing Counter Strike tournaments and just hearing the guy 7 seats down rage was a blast. I remember when they had to add steam to the computers and what a pain in the ass it was.
I used to go to kohls a lot, still do sometimes. It’s where Bradley’s used to be located. Yea the fountains were there.
There used to be a Papa Gino’s there forever, an Old country buffet, Payless shoes, radio shack, a cvs, gnc, can’t think of the name a sporting goods shop that was awesome.
To many options opened nearby that had better options. Legacy place and Patriot place went with the outdoor style which seems to be more popular. Anyways good stroll down memory lane.
Old Country Buffet! That must have been the place I remember going years ago. Always seemed dead and had crappy food.
Dream Machine has always been popular.
are they closed now you can’t get in to most of the mall they’re doing some sort of renovation now
I go to the outside stores of Aldi and the bookstore. I've never been inside. I'm sorry to see the malls go though. Remnants of a more prosperous time in the country. Thanks for the video.
Thanks for watching!
Walpole Mall's been there for a long time. I used to work down the street back in the 80's and it was a great little mall back then. Used to do some of my Christmas shopping there because it was small and easy to get around and it had pretty good stores. Haven't been there in years, it's a shame it's in that kind of shape now.
The store front that used to be Joann Fabric with the smoked windows, is part of Brodericks gymnastics. The gym takes up the whole corner of the mall, up to the Barns and Noble. I've Been there many times with my daughter for gymnastics. After class there are lot of kids and parents using the play area. Then going to Barns and Noble or The Dream Machine. Thanks for the video.
Dream machine is in the process of shutting down now. I used to love coming here as a kid before they put the wall up and cut it in half. There were plans once upon a time to put in a second floor but the plans never progressed far. Now it seems like it’s more focused on getting fast food locations.
According to the research, the flooring was a dark grey-gray-white mosaic tile from maybe the 80s or 90s, but then in 2012 they ripped it up and changed the flooring to what it is today. It was partially walled off shortly after but then in the mid to late 2010s, it was walled off from the end of the center T from the former old country buffet to make room for the wine and spirits. Then shortly after when the Dream Machine closed, they closed the interior mall except past the dentist or nail salon to gut the interior to make way for an indoor family entertainment center complete with bowling, arcades, and play area.
I am mixed when it comes to it, but I prefer to partially keep the interior mall but add a food court, which I prefer over individual fast food places like Panda Express, Chick Ful A, Duck Doughnuts, and Five Guys with shared tables, which leaves more space outdoors and less footprint. And yes enclosed shopping areas provide a weather controlled environment. But yes hybrid enclosed/strip malls provide flexibility and less footprint.
Sadly, Dream Machine is now closed. I believe the only shops open in the interior are the Dentist, the Nail Salon, B&N and the Gymnastics gym
In 2018/2019 area, the last time I was there, that back section of the arcade had a bunch of old school video games. Guess they have removed them since.
I remember this place from spending a few years at Longview Farm nearby, it was pretty dead back then (around 2005ish) too.
The petsmart used to be another entrance to the mall. At the end of that hall was the fountain next to a tobacco shop. Papa Gino's was at that entrance, and so was a party store. At one point, a subway was across from the tobacco store. To the right was Claire's, then gnc, then Radio Shack, then bradlees. Across from radio Shack and gnc was a Newport creamery at first, then a Payless.
The gap was inside the mall on the other side of the wall. A piercing pagoda was in the center of that area, and a framing place took up a good chunk.
There was a huge candy shop called Pinches and Pounds. The t shirt and concert poster booth was called purple haze and eventually opened into a storefront that would come for the holidays. A big Irish store was in there for a while. The record store eventually ended up as an FYE before closing. It may have been a strawberries before that.
Dream machine went from across from papa Gino's, to next to piercing pagoda, to where it is now.
The Wine & More used to be an Old Country Buffet that my family frequented after church. we didn’t do much shopping aside from going to Joanne Fabrics or Barnes & Nobles every now and then. The Dream Machine used to be maybe 3 or 4 times bigger than it was when this video was posted.
Wow i worked alot in the walpole mall bradlees part time high school in the 80s
The LA fitness/Texas roadhouse area used to be a seperate lot, I think it was an old pet store. Gap was in the back, closer to where the Kohl's entrance to the mall was. There also used to be a Brighams near the entrance to Bradlees
I used to come here as a Boy Scout to do our Pinewood Derby and Regatta races. I used to LOVE going to Orange Julius in between races.
I gotta say, watching these videos is a trip down memory lane, sir. I appreciate you doing these walkthroughs of a time long forgotten
wait... was Pinewood Derby and Regatta Boy Scouts or Cub Scouts. sheesh I can't remember!
The arcade closed.
I grew up in Walple in the 80s and 90s. There was a music store (Coconuts?), a store that sold collectibles, and a neat water fountain that was full of pennies.
I never saw a Coconuts in a mall, always only in strip malls. But I know Nashua Mall had a Strawberries, so I’d believe it
Record Town
Almays was where Barnes & Nobles / Old Navy are today. And it extended to where the empty husk that is Payless is now. Kaybee toys was where that Payless was. across from that was a CVS. There was a nice fountain in front of where Dream Machine is, cause as you showed in that picture, the mall extended to Bradlee's, which is now Kohl's. Petsmart and Jo-Ann's closed off that section from Dream Machine to Bradlee's. In there was The Gap, Radio Shack, Newport Creamery, Tobacco Road and the first locations of Walden Books and Recodtown.
After Almays closed they repurposed it's footprint to be individual shops. Walden Books moved to a much larger location, Dream Machine came in next door, as well as Papa Gino's, Auntie Annie's Pretzels, ad Jo-Anne's.
Everything north of Aldi's is new construction in the mid 2000's.
Yes, I grew up in the 80's and 90's in East Walpole and made many a trip to the Walpole Mall. And we still called it the Walpole Mall when they changed the name to The Mall at Walpole.
The music store was Good Vibrations. I worked there for 3 years. the chain was opened owned by Lee Berkowitz in the mid 70's and went on to have about 10 locations. Although it was located in two different areas of the mall, it was bought out by Transworld (Yes, the Spirit Halloween company) in the 90s and changed to one of their Coconuts Music stores which closed and ended any music store in the mall (thanks, Napster 🙁 ) by 2009. It was never a Record Town.
Actually went inside today out of curiosity. That arcade is closing permanently on Monday October 14th so if you want to see it better go soon.
Have an update, they are doing improvements in the interior portion of the mall, and has been closed off but only on sundays.
Maybe they are planning to repurpose the interior portion of the mall, which I think is the right thing to do, hopefully. I think they should put like a food court but reserve some for locals and put entertainment venues in it, along with hosting events.
Update number 2: on days where that entrance is open, now it's walled off from that dental place forward, wile it's closed off from the Barnes and nobles entrance to the mall with signs of remodeling. Confirmed that the Arcade has closed as of October.
There's something so odd about coming across a video about a place that had been buried in my subconscious memory, only for that video to be...this. As a kid I tagged along with my mom running errands all the time, and shopping malls (particularly ones youve only visited a couple times as opposed to more familiar ones) have a funny way of all being the same yet also so distinct when you try to remember them. I watch these videos and I find myself searching for familiar details and features and store fronts, anything that could identify them as the time and place I must have at some point known, but even then it feels like a guessing game half the time. Anyone else?
I couldn’t even find this mall w my gps a few years ago so it not having a Wikipedia page doesn’t surprise me whatsoever. Ooooh a dream machine! I remember the one at the old Lincoln mall.
This used to be a decent mall in the early 80s, but it started declining once the Emerald Square Mall was finished around 1985. Not long after, the Walpole mall had a bit of a visual refresh, but it was never quite as popular as it had been.
I actually just recently wondered into this mall for the first time on accident. I was looking to buy a rug and went to that discount rug store as google pointed me there. I had no idea this was originally a mall, I'd thought it was just a weird collection of indoor stores tucked behind the big storefronts on the exterior. I'm a transplant to the area and knew nothing about what I was walking into. Definitely got some liminal space vibes while walking around.
Was just there today. Super yummy donut shop down near the texas roadhouse in that parking lot. I worked at the radio shack that was here for over a decade. I could tell you all about this mall.
When Kohl's moved in you could still enter calls from inside the mall as well as the parking lot. I don't remember exactly what year they closed off being able to enter Kohl's from inside the mall.
I believe this mall opened in 1975. I remember how packed this place was and I worked at a Jewelry store for a year ( Zales) that was located here when i was in high school.
- This is a very different situation than other dead mall videos. I live very close to that mall. It has undergone a successful conversion from an interior access mall to an exterior access shopping center. They used up most of the interior common space for new stores seen from the parking lot. The parking lot is nearly full every weekend and sees lots of business every day of the week.
I've lived in the area for 30+ years and honestly didn't know there was interior to this mall, just the exterior store fronts
The Dream Machine indeed used to be larger and darker for the gaming mood I guess, but I went to a birthday party there in 1997 which then moved to the Papa Gino's that used to be one of the storefronts.
I lived in Dover then Norwood for perhaps 2 decades over a decade ago and this mall has always had large empty stores all over it.
Looks like it was doing at least OK in the early 2000s, which shockingly is 2 decades ago...
Dream Machine used to host servers for Counter Strike, many good memories.
I lived in northern RI and no idea there is a mall in Walpole despite it being pretty close to me. I think the area had a lot of mid-tier malls in the 1970s/1980s so I guess it was easy to miss. It will probably hollow out like the Lincoln Mall in Lincoln RI and all the stores will be outward facing and maybe 1 or 2 medical offices or other non-stores inside (assuming the roof doesn't collapse first).
oh wow, i popped in to the halal place on the outside strip to grab food from the other day, i work nearby here in westwood/norwood. crazy to see it randomly pop up on my feed. the barnes and noble seemed nice too, popped in for a few minutes while i was around but nothing much i really wanted.
So interesting that there's an Aldi and a Five below there now. I've never seen people in that arcade before. I'm surprised at how deep back it goes. I didn't know they had skee ball. Wish I knew that. I would have gone there on my break sometimes and played.
The two main things that killed the mall were the island venues in the parking lot and Kohl's. The first time a store blocked itself from the rest of the mall was when Kohl's renovated/took over the clothing store that used to be there. It was one of the main foot traffic motivators, alongside stores like Barnes and Noble in the 00s. Then, instead of building the location up with more levels to make more room for stores, they cut parking and made islands, and instead of attracting new stores to the location to fill those place, half of them where occupied by stores inside the mall already moving out. Most notable was Radio Shack, before it went under. Then slowly but surely each store to the right of that large wall had to buy out the whole section, so only larger stores could manage, thus turning the right side of the mall basically into a strip mall instead of what it used to be. For example, Old Country Buffet occupied half of what Wines and More does. There used to be a Party Center/Party City next to it, before it moved to the end. Everything past where the Office max is this century construction, which never could be attached to the rest of the mall, unless you would somehow have to walk through Jo Ann to get to it, and you couldn't with the Office Max.
There was also a website that I remember stumbling upon which I now cannot find talking about how there was a Stop & Shop, where the Five Below/aldi would be.
Update:it was label scar
Yes, labelscar.com is one of the best websites for dead mall info.
Thanks for watching.
That arcade had SPIDER STOMP!!!
😂
they had a Dream Machine in the Hampshire Mall in Hadley
HAD! Useless today, don't ya think??
I'm currently 25, but I vividly remember the mall just as you presented it in that image from 15 years ago. My family frequented the mall quite often to get dinner at the Old Country Buffet. From there, I'd always visit the Dream Machine while my sister and cousin browsed inside of Claire's. The fountain was our meeting space if we were waiting for the others to exit whatever stores they were in. Once we were wrapped up inside the mall, we'd usually visit Barnes and Nobles altogether on the way out.
Your video perfectly summed up how the people in the surrounding area interacted with the mall. I have always thought of it as a dead mall, as even when I was little, I can recall the dim atmosphere, low amounts of traffic, damaged tiling, and half of the storefronts being vacant. I do have fond memories of the place, though, and I probably threw at least a few dollars worth of change in that fountain for dreams that didn't come true 😢
I wonder if that Dream Machine arcade is the last surviving example of a large chain of Dream Machine arcades that went back to the early 80's and were in a number of malls across Mass. including the Hampshire Mall back in the day.
You should go to the Liliac mall in Rochester, NH. It'd be a quick one though because it's smaller than this one 😂
I've lived on the south shore most of my life and spent a few years in Mansfield. Didn't even know Walpole Mall was a thing. My childhood mall was Harborlight in North Weymouth. God, I miss that shitty mall.
I remember the woman murdered there some decades ago while she was sitting in her car. I think her husband was charged, not sure of the outcome. That put a scare into people back then.
I miss malls and i miss video rental stores.
GREAT CHOICE! Thank you for taking my recommendation
I live a few miles away from this Mall and work in the Stop and Shop that was once there. Stop and Shop left and built a new and much bigger store down the road. And Bradlees went out of buiness but khols moved in. There also used to be a radio shack, orange julius and CVS. When Walmart opened up in the mid 90s down the road it killed that Mall. Losing 2 anchor stores and Walmart are the main causes. The Office max that was there used to be Stop and Shop. All beyond that is new contruction. There used be to two large blue metal buildings. Never knew what they were used for. That taco Bell in the lot does really well. The road it is on has changed a lot over the years with a lot of new contruction. When this Mall thrived many of these places did not exist. Walmart, Super Stop Shop, Home Depot, Big Y.
I could be wrong but I believe one of the fountains was right in the middle where the new wall is, what use to be the center
Do you intend on checking out the Wakefield Mall in Wakefield, Rhode Island? It is a mini mall (or enclosed strip mall in my opinion), with a large occupancy rate!
They have a great neon package and cool stores you don't usually find at regular malls! There's about 15 stores, and 3 anchors (Staples, Planet Fitness, and Shaws)!
I'd visit it soon before stores leave!
Yes. I want to do Wakefield Mall, Dartmouth Mall and Cape Cod Mall all on the same trip. Possibly later this year or next year. Thanks.
@@fleabittenadventures No Problem, Wakefield Mall is the only mall i know of with a planet fitness connected to it!
I used to work at the KB toystore there in 1987 1988. There was a papa ginos there as well
The Emerald Square Mall isn't too far behind this one here in N Attleboro, more stores are closed than open in this 3 floor mall
I go here all the time and I had no idea that there even was an inside lol. The panda express is really good and taco bell and Panera have good breakfast. The Mediterranean place is pretty good too.
My mother and I used to go to a really crappy buffet restaurant in that mall. No idea when it closed. Haven't been there for ten years. I remember that they had hardly anything I liked. I always ended up getting a plate full of fried fish and dipping them in mashed potatoes and gravy.
The place you mention used to be an eyeglass place was a phone repair store up until recently. Not sure exact dates, but must've closed around the same time the GNC did. You missed the walk to the bathroom, too, which is a trip- it's a long hallway that looks even more abandoned than anything else there. I think everything else you said is correct, but i really only know its recent history.
I worked at the Stop & Shop around 1990.
I have been there a few times. I had no clue there was an inside section of this place.
I saw this and realized that yes the mall inside (I was there a few yrs back) does seem dead. I went to the Old Country Buffet with friends when it was there. Was good place to eat yet I think I remember hearing how non cleanious (misspell) it was in the restaurant. thanks for sharing.
The Mall footprint wasn't the same as it was in the beginning meaning the previous owners bought the property next to it which was a Lexus Car Dealership. Previous to that it was a warehouse. They expanded the footprint of the mall property considerably from what it started out as. I used to deliver mail there and it was considerably different when I first delivered until now. Yes for me it's a Dead Mall. I was also told of a plan by the builders of Legacy Place wanted to buy all the land all the way to Rte 95 and put a North bound on and off ramp to compete with Patriot Place
I grew up in the area and been going to this mall my whole life and this is the first time I ever learned there was more parking around back. I would’ve 100% done some drugs back there as a teen had a known.
The arcade just announced it will be closing in a couple weeks.
Omg this is close to my home! Yeah this mall is funny AF. I'd say check out the Silver Galleria in Raynham but I think it might actually already be closed.
It's in YOUR neighborhood close by. You didn't have the Courtesy to check it out for sure before posting your comment? SHAME!! Shame on YOU!!