This is really a wonderful video! Thanks again Marc and Jason for recording and posting this. I'm going to post a few of my memories of the mall. If I remember correctly there was signage in prior years that referred to the section past Media Play (formerly containing the Boston Store and then Addis & Dey's) and Marshalls (formerly containing Flah's) going towards the fountain area with the globe lamps where Montgomery Wards was the main anchor as "the lower level" or "lower grade" section. That section was closer to the Ford dealership compared to the other side. When you would enter the section with Media Play and Marshall's there was a slope down and it warned of a "grade change". The other side (closer to Consaul Road) was referred to at various times as "the upper level". It technically was higher even though the parking lot outside was generally level across the entire mall. At Christmas time in the early 80s they had beautiful decorations. From the ceilings they hung garland and each one had a Victorian style "lantern" in the middle. This was definitely all the way through the wing with the bank, Present Company, Price Chopper (there was a small Price Chopper there up to the mid 1980s which was later Fay's / Eckerd and Paper Cutter / Party City), and the arcade going towards Bradlees (the anchor at that end) and McDonald's. I don't remember if that was on the ceilings of the rest of the mall. They had really nice animatronic elves and reindeer in all the fountain areas at Christmas time as well as various other places in the malls. All fountains would be drained and the covered over. You'd see elves making toys (definitely remember seeing them use various tools on pieces of wood). The ones in the early 80s seemed more realistic. Then they got a set that looke more like large moving plush figures and much more cartoonish. In the area where there was a single fountain (Bradlees / McDonald's area near Foot Locker and CVS) people would just sit around the benches by that fountain. Smoking was allowed and there were ash trays. There was an organ store near that area for a while so there was "live music" often. In the section between Marshall's and Media Play (in the 80s it was Flah's and the Boston Store) the fountain complex was huge and screamed 1970s. The main fountain was similar to a lawn sprinkler and then there were several smaller fountains around it. There were colored lights in the water. All the same rocks and plants as seen in the video. That center section with the small platform was where Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny would be available at Christmas and Easter time. Across from that platform but still in that section, against the wall there was a small waterfall coming from the wall with a mini pool and lots of plants. Like the other fountains people threw in coins. That was shut down probably by the early 90s. The floor of the fountains was light blue. I think it was 1997 or 1998 when they last covered over the center fountain section and put up a few Christmas trees. No animated figures. After Christmas they took down the trees and left the plywood, never running the fountains again. The fountains in that section did run until that Christmas season. When it was busier there were decorative chains signifying not to go into the large fountain area. But in the late 90s I did see people walk across the plywood or even do skateboard stunts across it. The skylights were added at some point in the 80s to my knowledge. We moved away from the town in 1990 and they had been there a few years before that. They di have those lights with globes (as I think someone else said) throughout the mall before that. The bank in the mall changed names many times through mergers. For a while that bank had a digital sign above the bank entrance which often flashed the time but may have also flashed the current temperature. The exterior bank building near Balltown Road was a Key Bank for a while. The mall had a store within the main building that was not accessible to the interior of the mall. It was kind of in the middle. For years it was Anderson Little, a menswear store. Then it became Rex TV and Appliance. Rex was going to continue on to the new Mohawk Commons but they ultimately closed that location before Mohawk Commons opened. The middle anchor was originally The Boston Store. They had at least one other store at the Latham Circle Mall I think. That was the only store in the mall with a second story. They had an elevator and escalator. The Boston Store was kind of like Boscov's of today. Lots of mannequins (and always one on a platform by the mid point of the escalator), clothes, kitchen items, cosmetics, etc. By the late 80s The Boston Store had some event at their other store (I think a fire) that hurt the chain and I think they went out of business. The Boston Store to me just really seemed to focus on older women's clothes (my mother would buy things there for my grandmother) and had a 70s feel to it. I have no idea if they had any men's clothes at all. That space became Addis and Dey's but they only lasted two years. Flah's on the other side was definitely women's clothes only and they had another store at Stuyvesant Plaza. By the mid 90s Media Play opened their first store in the Boston Store space but only used the first floor. It was hoped Media Play would bring more traffic to Mohawk Mall. But then they opened another store in Crossgates Commons and the traffic went there. By 2001 or so, Media Play closed up. There is a small strip mall plaza next to Mohawk Mall on Balltown Road which came later and took traffic away. It was originally called Marshall's Plaza until Marshall's moved into Mohawk Mall, occupying the former Flah's space across from the Boston Store / Media Play. They later began calling the strip mall the Raymour and Flanagan Plaza. Anyway once Media Play closed, the only way into that part of the mall was through the Media Play store. (Back in the Flah's era, you could actually enter or exit the mall through the back of Flah's. But not so with Marshall's.) So, they made a corridor through the closed media play store. It was not straightforward as they did not remove many of the fixtures from Media Play. They just had a winding corridor open with lighting just for the corridor. That section of the mall remained until 2002 while the rest of the mall was demolished in 2000. Once Marshall's space was ready in the new Mohawk Commons, they moved and the last section of Mohawk Mall was demolished. There were several fountains in the "lower section" with the bridge near Montgomery Wards. The fountains had a lot of bubbles vs the clear water in the other two fountain sections by Bradlees or the Boston Store / Media Play. Anyway, when I was really young I called the fountains near the bridge "the soapy fountains". It was really a lot of fun to walk that bridge and look down at all the fountains. The carpet seemed to be added right after we moved from the area. It seemed strange and like a bad idea. It's easier to sweep a floor then to have to vacuum carpet or deal with inevitable stains. Of course once maintenance ceased in the late 90s there were stains and the smell of mold all over. The logo for the mall changed in the late 80s. I liked the original one with the brown colors better. There seemed to be a few stickers with that logo on the CVS store. One is featured in the video. The movie theater had only two screens. I remember the movie theater remained at least into 1999 but they made a major point that they would NOT show Star Wars Episode 1 in May 1999 at that theater. I watched the movie in Crossgates and then later saw it again at another mall that was demolished a few months later: Saratoga Mall. The Daily Gazette announced in 1998 that most of the mall would be demolished. What they called "the new Mohawk Mall" (before it was called Mohawk Commons) would have movie theaters. Boscov's was considering a store there. But they had just opened in Colonie Center. Ultimately they opened in the Clifton Park Center (formerly Clifton Country Mall). There was discussion about how to fully demolish it. The Bradlees store was owned by its parent company and the Wards Store was owned by Montgomery Wards. Both were in financial trouble and there were questions about getting control of their parts of the mall. The article indicated that if it was necessary the town would just condemn those sections to allow for demolition. Wilmorite owned the "center" section. So I don't know if that meant the portion in between the anchors or the wings as well. Or, did the anchor stores also own the wings where they were located too. I do remember visiting the mall one time in 1998 / 1999 where it seemed a number of corporate types were touring the mall, pointing out damage, and just shaking their heads in disgust. In the late 1990s, knowing the mall would be demolished I made many visits there to rekindle memories. This mall was almost within walking distance of my grandparents' home (they died in 1990 and 1991) and so we would go to see them and visit the mall. I tried taking pictures with a still camera. But with the lighting and lack of any kind of external light most interior pictures didn't show much. There were a number of mall walkers. One elderly lady asked me why I possibly wanted to take pictures of that place. I said because it brought up good memories and for the sake of history. I'm really glad to see this video and that you could really see inside the mall. Sorry or the length of this. But I was trying to record everything I could remember.
Wow. The Judy Collins song is so spot on that it's frightening. I spent so much of my childhood and teen years here that this was deeply moving. Thank you for this.
I grew up within walking distance to the mall in the 80s and 90s. Even at the end, the movie theater and Media Play brought me great memories as a teenager. Nothing wrong with walking down, catching a flick, getting a bite, buying a few CDs, and hopefully meeting up with a girl or two on a summer day. I got Don Larsen and Johnny Unitas autographs with my father and they had baseball card shows in the early 90s. Was on Christmas vacation during middle school and was horsing around with friends near the fountain. Our Principal happened to be there giving us that knock it off look.
As a retail historian and dead mall enthusiast this is one place I regretted never visiting in my adult life. I heard parts of it was like walking into a time capsule.
I just could not get over that. It gave me the chills. There are deep parts of my psyche attached to that place and that song in the background . Just no words
7:28 anyone else notice the 94.5 FM WABY jingle? :D Radio and retail nerd here, lifelong 518er... 94.5 was an Adult Contemporary station in the late 90s up until 2001... today they're sadly a K-Love
It was really hard to see the mall like this with the radio in the background. I just remember it being so full of life. I do remember the radio stations as a lifelong 518 person. I turned on pyx 106 for some odd reason in the car and they still have the exact same format.
I was born shortly after this mall was demolished, but I live within minutes of the Mohawk commons plaza, and it really amazes to see how different things used to be.
Awesome! How eerie it was at the end with only Media Play, Marshalls and Friendly's open. And that picture place. A lot of memories were had there as a kid.
Annotations with timestamps, as requested by CR7659 . Please reply with additions or corrections, I will try to edit this comment with updates. This should jog a few memories-- 0:07 -- showcase window-pet shop 0:37 -- south end of mall fountain (Montgomery Ward end of mall) 1:03 -- Montgomery Ward Dept Store (similar to Sears) 1:28 -- to southeast (theater) mall entrance 1:45 -- to southwest (front) mall entrance 2:35 -- Stride Rite Children's Shoes in southwest corridor 3:26 -- professional offices/mall offices side corridor, off southwest corridor 5:52 -- secondary showcase window Montgomery Ward?, southwest corridor 10:58 -- facing south toward Montgomery Ward main mall entrance 14:03 -- center mall fountain area 15:17 -- rightmost windows-Woolworth's lunch counter pre-1988?; windows to the left-Woolworth's store 15:37 -- The Boston Store? (two floors, like a dept store with epic selection of trinkets/household decorations)>Marshall's (east-central anchor) 16:09 -- looking south just left of optician-Asian import store (collectibles)>Onni Nappi's sports memorabilia store 18:22 -- CVS Pharmacy, northeast side of main corridor, good view of post-1990 carpet 18:56 -- facing north into Bradlee's Dept Store (similar to Caldor or Kmart), north end of mall 19:07 -- Orange Julius>Hot Dog Charlie's?? 19:13 -- to northwest (Pantry Pride>Price Chopper supermarket pre-1988) mall entrance 19:18 -- Bradlee's 19:37 -- to northeast (Bradlee's) mall entrance, McDonald's on right 20:08 -- McDonald's side/rear entrance, fully viewable kitchen from dining area 21:30 -- Kay-Bee toys? 21:33 -- Bradlee's window fan with industrial-decibel motor (great for keeping cool on hot, humid, dream-haunted Schenectady nights) 22:53 -- The Present Company (like a mammoth Things Remembered, somewhat like Service Merchandise) in northwest corridor 24:19 --The Paper Cutter? (stationery and office supplies)>The Party Experience in northwest corridor 24:30 -- Northeast Savings Bank?>First American Bank of New York? in northwest corridor 25:00 -- Price Chopper supermarket>Fay's Pharmacy? in northwest corridor 25:31 -- looking up northwest corridor facing east toward north (Bradlee's) end 26:18 -- CVS Pharmacy 27:14 -- facing south from north end of mall (approximate site of large children's merry-go-round with human operator pre-1988) 27:49 -- left suite-Friendly's; right suite-Carl Company seasonal/basement outlet store?????>independent collectibles/memorabilia/woodworking store 32:22 -- south end fountain 33:50 -- appears to be southeast mall entrance with movie theater entrance barely visible on left, bicycle rack at center 34:10 -- looking up southeast corridor, theater entrance from mall just out of view on right 34:50 -- more views inside Montgomery Ward, appears to be from south external entrance looking north 37:18 -- looking from south external Montgomery Ward entrance in southwest direction toward Balltown Road/Central Ave mall sign with Mohawk Army-Navy Store facade sign in background
@@jenniferburchill3658 Hi Jennifer, staring at those cages is how I learned about dog breeds:--). I guess we're a lot more more mature and humane as a society now. I loved the aquarium room in the back. It had that big fish tank with the castle figurines, I guess that was the "house" fish tank they kept for display. I saw some other comments on here about Santa Claus. That was Al Bateholts Sr. I was there but I can't remember it. Al had passed by my father at the entrance, giving my father an intense stare into his eyes. He thought Al was just anxious or tired, but he must have been feeling bad already. You know how people just didn't complain as much back then. Al probably thought it was nothing and he would just trudge on in good spirit.
This is awesome. I lived on Fullerton Ave from ‘85 ~ ‘93. Worked at McDonalds in my senior year in HS from 1987 ~ 1988. Great memories walking to the mall!
After all these years, I've finally inadvertently heeded your advice and watched this. Makes a great end to the fine Sch'dy youtube wormhole I fell down that started somewhere around 'driving State and Brandywine. 2020 lockdown' thru the Bowdens' mid-70s 'Stockade'.Since the water was out of the atrium fountain, I take it the little 'flames' by ground round were also no longer operative?
I remember trick or treating when I was 4 years old in that mall (1994). I also remember my parents were able to smoke cigarettes in that mall. After they demolished it a store called media play went in it's place. Then that was demolished, and that's when the strip mall went into it with Target and price chopper and all that. I live in Colorado now but miss old memories like this.
Well hello! I was 13 and lived in Niskayuna in 1970; for me "THE MALL" was all about Drome Sound (my first electric guitar) and Chess King clothing store (gray plaid wool bell bottoms). I can still smell the incense waifing from the Chess King . . . I would LOVE to know what fragrance it was as I'm still a big fan of incense. Any ideas, anyone?
14:00 or so - looks like the generic version of that John Travolta meme gif 24:50 or so - moving to Rotterdam Square. Wonder how that worked out The only thing I wish these videos did is tell us what former store we're looking at, where it's not obvious from a sign or label scar. Probably hard now to go back and figure out for this one.
I have that timestamp list up now. I tried to hashtag you, but the tag didn't work. Anyway, there it is. Hopefully others will reply with additional timestamps so I can edit the list. Mohawk Mall was something else. It felt like being on a starship or in a domed environment when you were in there. The place had a tremendous high modern vibe to it; the epitome of the "social incubator" spatial experience so sought after today by dead mall fans and other late 20th century culture enthusiasts. It came and went too fast.
Can't get enough of dead malls? Here's my 2002 visit to Monroeville Mall in 2002, the shooting location for George Romero's 1978 film Dawn of the Dead. ruclips.net/video/I2g5qWV3j78/видео.html
This is really a wonderful video! Thanks again Marc and Jason for recording and posting this. I'm going to post a few of my memories of the mall.
If I remember correctly there was signage in prior years that referred to the section past Media Play (formerly containing the Boston Store and then Addis & Dey's) and Marshalls (formerly containing Flah's) going towards the fountain area with the globe lamps where Montgomery Wards was the main anchor as "the lower level" or "lower grade" section. That section was closer to the Ford dealership compared to the other side. When you would enter the section with Media Play and Marshall's there was a slope down and it warned of a "grade change". The other side (closer to Consaul Road) was referred to at various times as "the upper level". It technically was higher even though the parking lot outside was generally level across the entire mall.
At Christmas time in the early 80s they had beautiful decorations. From the ceilings they hung garland and each one had a Victorian style "lantern" in the middle. This was definitely all the way through the wing with the bank, Present Company, Price Chopper (there was a small Price Chopper there up to the mid 1980s which was later Fay's / Eckerd and Paper Cutter / Party City), and the arcade going towards Bradlees (the anchor at that end) and McDonald's. I don't remember if that was on the ceilings of the rest of the mall.
They had really nice animatronic elves and reindeer in all the fountain areas at Christmas time as well as various other places in the malls. All fountains would be drained and the covered over. You'd see elves making toys (definitely remember seeing them use various tools on pieces of wood). The ones in the early 80s seemed more realistic. Then they got a set that looke more like large moving plush figures and much more cartoonish.
In the area where there was a single fountain (Bradlees / McDonald's area near Foot Locker and CVS) people would just sit around the benches by that fountain. Smoking was allowed and there were ash trays. There was an organ store near that area for a while so there was "live music" often.
In the section between Marshall's and Media Play (in the 80s it was Flah's and the Boston Store) the fountain complex was huge and screamed 1970s. The main fountain was similar to a lawn sprinkler and then there were several smaller fountains around it. There were colored lights in the water. All the same rocks and plants as seen in the video. That center section with the small platform was where Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny would be available at Christmas and Easter time. Across from that platform but still in that section, against the wall there was a small waterfall coming from the wall with a mini pool and lots of plants. Like the other fountains people threw in coins. That was shut down probably by the early 90s. The floor of the fountains was light blue.
I think it was 1997 or 1998 when they last covered over the center fountain section and put up a few Christmas trees. No animated figures. After Christmas they took down the trees and left the plywood, never running the fountains again. The fountains in that section did run until that Christmas season. When it was busier there were decorative chains signifying not to go into the large fountain area. But in the late 90s I did see people walk across the plywood or even do skateboard stunts across it.
The skylights were added at some point in the 80s to my knowledge. We moved away from the town in 1990 and they had been there a few years before that. They di have those lights with globes (as I think someone else said) throughout the mall before that.
The bank in the mall changed names many times through mergers. For a while that bank had a digital sign above the bank entrance which often flashed the time but may have also flashed the current temperature. The exterior bank building near Balltown Road was a Key Bank for a while.
The mall had a store within the main building that was not accessible to the interior of the mall. It was kind of in the middle. For years it was Anderson Little, a menswear store. Then it became Rex TV and Appliance. Rex was going to continue on to the new Mohawk Commons but they ultimately closed that location before Mohawk Commons opened.
The middle anchor was originally The Boston Store. They had at least one other store at the Latham Circle Mall I think. That was the only store in the mall with a second story. They had an elevator and escalator. The Boston Store was kind of like Boscov's of today. Lots of mannequins (and always one on a platform by the mid point of the escalator), clothes, kitchen items, cosmetics, etc. By the late 80s The Boston Store had some event at their other store (I think a fire) that hurt the chain and I think they went out of business. The Boston Store to me just really seemed to focus on older women's clothes (my mother would buy things there for my grandmother) and had a 70s feel to it. I have no idea if they had any men's clothes at all. That space became Addis and Dey's but they only lasted two years. Flah's on the other side was definitely women's clothes only and they had another store at Stuyvesant Plaza. By the mid 90s Media Play opened their first store in the Boston Store space but only used the first floor. It was hoped Media Play would bring more traffic to Mohawk Mall. But then they opened another store in Crossgates Commons and the traffic went there. By 2001 or so, Media Play closed up.
There is a small strip mall plaza next to Mohawk Mall on Balltown Road which came later and took traffic away. It was originally called Marshall's Plaza until Marshall's moved into Mohawk Mall, occupying the former Flah's space across from the Boston Store / Media Play. They later began calling the strip mall the Raymour and Flanagan Plaza. Anyway once Media Play closed, the only way into that part of the mall was through the Media Play store. (Back in the Flah's era, you could actually enter or exit the mall through the back of Flah's. But not so with Marshall's.) So, they made a corridor through the closed media play store. It was not straightforward as they did not remove many of the fixtures from Media Play. They just had a winding corridor open with lighting just for the corridor. That section of the mall remained until 2002 while the rest of the mall was demolished in 2000. Once Marshall's space was ready in the new Mohawk Commons, they moved and the last section of Mohawk Mall was demolished.
There were several fountains in the "lower section" with the bridge near Montgomery Wards. The fountains had a lot of bubbles vs the clear water in the other two fountain sections by Bradlees or the Boston Store / Media Play. Anyway, when I was really young I called the fountains near the bridge "the soapy fountains". It was really a lot of fun to walk that bridge and look down at all the fountains.
The carpet seemed to be added right after we moved from the area. It seemed strange and like a bad idea. It's easier to sweep a floor then to have to vacuum carpet or deal with inevitable stains. Of course once maintenance ceased in the late 90s there were stains and the smell of mold all over.
The logo for the mall changed in the late 80s. I liked the original one with the brown colors better. There seemed to be a few stickers with that logo on the CVS store. One is featured in the video.
The movie theater had only two screens. I remember the movie theater remained at least into 1999 but they made a major point that they would NOT show Star Wars Episode 1 in May 1999 at that theater. I watched the movie in Crossgates and then later saw it again at another mall that was demolished a few months later: Saratoga Mall.
The Daily Gazette announced in 1998 that most of the mall would be demolished. What they called "the new Mohawk Mall" (before it was called Mohawk Commons) would have movie theaters. Boscov's was considering a store there. But they had just opened in Colonie Center. Ultimately they opened in the Clifton Park Center (formerly Clifton Country Mall).
There was discussion about how to fully demolish it. The Bradlees store was owned by its parent company and the Wards Store was owned by Montgomery Wards. Both were in financial trouble and there were questions about getting control of their parts of the mall. The article indicated that if it was necessary the town would just condemn those sections to allow for demolition. Wilmorite owned the "center" section. So I don't know if that meant the portion in between the anchors or the wings as well. Or, did the anchor stores also own the wings where they were located too. I do remember visiting the mall one time in 1998 / 1999 where it seemed a number of corporate types were touring the mall, pointing out damage, and just shaking their heads in disgust.
In the late 1990s, knowing the mall would be demolished I made many visits there to rekindle memories. This mall was almost within walking distance of my grandparents' home (they died in 1990 and 1991) and so we would go to see them and visit the mall. I tried taking pictures with a still camera. But with the lighting and lack of any kind of external light most interior pictures didn't show much. There were a number of mall walkers. One elderly lady asked me why I possibly wanted to take pictures of that place. I said because it brought up good memories and for the sake of history. I'm really glad to see this video and that you could really see inside the mall.
Sorry or the length of this. But I was trying to record everything I could remember.
This is really impressive, you nailed the dead mall vaporwave video two decades before it was even a thing
Yummy
Wow. The Judy Collins song is so spot on that it's frightening. I spent so much of my childhood and teen years here that this was deeply moving. Thank you for this.
I grew up within walking distance to the mall in the 80s and 90s. Even at the end, the movie theater and Media Play brought me great memories as a teenager.
Nothing wrong with walking down, catching a flick, getting a bite, buying a few CDs, and hopefully meeting up with a girl or two on a summer day.
I got Don Larsen and Johnny Unitas autographs with my father and they had baseball card shows in the early 90s.
Was on Christmas vacation during middle school and was horsing around with friends near the fountain. Our Principal happened to be there giving us that knock it off look.
Thanks so much for releasing this video I miss this mall so much:(
If anyone had vintage footage of mohawk mall please put it on you tube
Loved this mall. I worked in the Boston store after college. Lots of fun memories growing up in this mall ❤️
Thank you so much for this! Closest thing we have to a time machine.
As a retail historian and dead mall enthusiast this is one place I regretted never visiting in my adult life. I heard parts of it was like walking into a time capsule.
Genius that "Send in the Clowns" is playing.
I just could not get over that. It gave me the chills. There are deep parts of my psyche attached to that place and that song in the background .
Just no words
7:28 anyone else notice the 94.5 FM WABY jingle? :D Radio and retail nerd here, lifelong 518er... 94.5 was an Adult Contemporary station in the late 90s up until 2001... today they're sadly a K-Love
It was really hard to see the mall like this with the radio in the background. I just remember it being so full of life. I do remember the radio stations as a lifelong 518 person. I turned on pyx 106 for some odd reason in the car and they still have the exact same format.
I was born shortly after this mall was demolished, but I live within minutes of the Mohawk commons plaza, and it really amazes to see how different things used to be.
I remember as a kid the Christmas decorations though out the mall
Awesome! How eerie it was at the end with only Media Play, Marshalls and Friendly's open. And that picture place. A lot of memories were had there as a kid.
I remember the Ground Round ! Mom and I would have lunch there! Potato Skins! The would have a movie playing in the background with popcorn popping
Grew up here. Definitely miss it.
Great memories at this mall as a kid walking over. Place was always packed. Thanks for the video
Annotations with timestamps, as requested by CR7659 . Please reply with additions or corrections, I will try to edit this comment with updates. This should jog a few memories--
0:07 -- showcase window-pet shop
0:37 -- south end of mall fountain (Montgomery Ward end of mall)
1:03 -- Montgomery Ward Dept Store (similar to Sears)
1:28 -- to southeast (theater) mall entrance
1:45 -- to southwest (front) mall entrance
2:35 -- Stride Rite Children's Shoes in southwest corridor
3:26 -- professional offices/mall offices side corridor, off southwest corridor
5:52 -- secondary showcase window Montgomery Ward?, southwest corridor
10:58 -- facing south toward Montgomery Ward main mall entrance
14:03 -- center mall fountain area
15:17 -- rightmost windows-Woolworth's lunch counter pre-1988?; windows to the left-Woolworth's store
15:37 -- The Boston Store? (two floors, like a dept store with epic selection of trinkets/household decorations)>Marshall's (east-central anchor)
16:09 -- looking south just left of optician-Asian import store (collectibles)>Onni Nappi's sports memorabilia store
18:22 -- CVS Pharmacy, northeast side of main corridor, good view of post-1990 carpet
18:56 -- facing north into Bradlee's Dept Store (similar to Caldor or Kmart), north end of mall
19:07 -- Orange Julius>Hot Dog Charlie's??
19:13 -- to northwest (Pantry Pride>Price Chopper supermarket pre-1988) mall entrance
19:18 -- Bradlee's
19:37 -- to northeast (Bradlee's) mall entrance, McDonald's on right
20:08 -- McDonald's side/rear entrance, fully viewable kitchen from dining area
21:30 -- Kay-Bee toys?
21:33 -- Bradlee's window fan with industrial-decibel motor (great for keeping cool on hot, humid, dream-haunted Schenectady nights)
22:53 -- The Present Company (like a mammoth Things Remembered, somewhat like Service Merchandise) in northwest corridor
24:19 --The Paper Cutter? (stationery and office supplies)>The Party Experience in northwest corridor
24:30 -- Northeast Savings Bank?>First American Bank of New York? in northwest corridor
25:00 -- Price Chopper supermarket>Fay's Pharmacy? in northwest corridor
25:31 -- looking up northwest corridor facing east toward north (Bradlee's) end
26:18 -- CVS Pharmacy
27:14 -- facing south from north end of mall (approximate site of large children's merry-go-round with human operator pre-1988)
27:49 -- left suite-Friendly's; right suite-Carl Company seasonal/basement outlet store?????>independent collectibles/memorabilia/woodworking store
32:22 -- south end fountain
33:50 -- appears to be southeast mall entrance with movie theater entrance barely visible on left, bicycle rack at center
34:10 -- looking up southeast corridor, theater entrance from mall just out of view on right
34:50 -- more views inside Montgomery Ward, appears to be from south external entrance looking north
37:18 -- looking from south external Montgomery Ward entrance in southwest direction toward Balltown Road/Central Ave mall sign with Mohawk Army-Navy Store facade sign in background
I remember shopping at the pet store for aquarium fish and supplies, not knowing, at the time, that I was helping a puppy mill outlet stay open 😔
@@jenniferburchill3658 Hi Jennifer, staring at those cages is how I learned about dog breeds:--). I guess we're a lot more more mature and humane as a society now. I loved the aquarium room in the back. It had that big fish tank with the castle figurines, I guess that was the "house" fish tank they kept for display.
I saw some other comments on here about Santa Claus. That was Al Bateholts Sr. I was there but I can't remember it. Al had passed by my father at the entrance, giving my father an intense stare into his eyes. He thought Al was just anxious or tired, but he must have been feeling bad already. You know how people just didn't complain as much back then. Al probably thought it was nothing and he would just trudge on in good spirit.
Thanks for the memories… I used play Rolling Thunder Arcade there all the times. Many thanks, my friend.
Love the sign "moving to Rotterdam Square Mall". That was a big mistake lol.
Most stores held on at Rotterdam for another 9-10 years after this hehe
They probably stayed open there longer than they would have otherwise...
I live close to Rotterdam mall (aka VIA Port) and walk in there often. It’s still open, but it’s almost dead.
Which mall came first, the Mohawk Mall?
This is awesome. I lived on Fullerton Ave from ‘85 ~ ‘93. Worked at McDonalds in my senior year in HS from 1987 ~ 1988. Great memories walking to the mall!
After all these years, I've finally inadvertently heeded your advice and watched this. Makes a great end to the fine Sch'dy youtube wormhole I fell down that started somewhere around 'driving State and Brandywine. 2020 lockdown' thru the Bowdens' mid-70s 'Stockade'.Since the water was out of the atrium fountain, I take it the little 'flames' by ground round were also no longer operative?
Bro it feels like backrooms
I remember trick or treating when I was 4 years old in that mall (1994). I also remember my parents were able to smoke cigarettes in that mall. After they demolished it a store called media play went in it's place. Then that was demolished, and that's when the strip mall went into it with Target and price chopper and all that. I live in Colorado now but miss old memories like this.
Great Mall..So many memories. This WAS OUR social network
I LIVE IN SCHENECTADY WTF, THIS SCARED ME SHITLESS
Well hello! I was 13 and lived in Niskayuna in 1970; for me "THE MALL" was all about Drome Sound (my first electric guitar) and Chess King clothing store (gray plaid wool bell bottoms). I can still smell the incense waifing from the Chess King . . . I would LOVE to know what fragrance it was as I'm still a big fan of incense. Any ideas, anyone?
My first electric guitar was from that Drome Sound, too. :)
Bought my first keyboard-a Korg M1-from Drome Sound in 1988. ❤
A great place for liminal space photos!
There is a liminal space in there.
I know
IT FIRST OPENED IN 1968
IT LASTED FOR 31 YRS
14:00 or so - looks like the generic version of that John Travolta meme gif
24:50 or so - moving to Rotterdam Square. Wonder how that worked out
The only thing I wish these videos did is tell us what former store we're looking at, where it's not obvious from a sign or label scar. Probably hard now to go back and figure out for this one.
I will do what I can for timestamp annotations in a standalone comment.
I have that timestamp list up now. I tried to hashtag you, but the tag didn't work. Anyway, there it is. Hopefully others will reply with additional timestamps so I can edit the list. Mohawk Mall was something else. It felt like being on a starship or in a domed environment when you were in there. The place had a tremendous high modern vibe to it; the epitome of the "social incubator" spatial experience so sought after today by dead mall fans and other late 20th century culture enthusiasts. It came and went too fast.
I always had a feeling there was a mall there or something by how big the commons area is but never knew until now.
Where Santa had a heart attack
Thank heavens I was old enough to understand by then...
Judy Collins singing Sondheim
Amsterdam mall in Amsterdam ny and aviation mall in Queenbury ny have kept some of the 70s era that look like mohawk mall
Thank you
I remember getting spicy wings at the Ground Round.
I miss the Ground Round. Endless loops of old cartoons and free popcorn.
I loved their wings.
it makes me sad to think that this was so long ago.
Can't get enough of dead malls? Here's my 2002 visit to Monroeville Mall in 2002, the shooting location for George Romero's 1978 film Dawn of the Dead. ruclips.net/video/I2g5qWV3j78/видео.html
What about today standders
@4:02 I would of spent the 50 cents for a souvenir Key from the locker & tossed a coin for a finally wish in the well @2:04