West Delkalb Pike / US 202 and North Gulph Road
Montgomery County, Pennsylvania
Now part of one of the largest and most upscale shopping complexes in the nation, KING OF PRUSSIA PLAZA had quite humble beginnings in the early 1960s. A single-level, open-air center was built on a 104 acre parcel. Once comprising the William C. Wilson Maple Croft Farm, the plot was located 15.5 miles northwest of Center City Philadelphia, in an incorporated section of Montgomery County known as Town of Upper Merion.
The site was sandwiched between the Pennsylvania Turnpike Delaware River Extension and Schuylkill ["skool-kil"] Expressway. The Turnpike section, which passed north of the mall, opened to traffic in August 1954. The Schuylkill Expressway, traveling southwest of the site, was officially dedicated in September of the same year.
KING OF PRUSSIA PLAZA was developed by the Philadelphia-based M.A. Kravitz Company (later known as the Kravco Company). The first two operational stores were dedicated September 18, 1962. These were a 2-level (200,000 square foot), New York City-based E.J. Korvette discount mart and (27,000 square foot) Acme Markets grocery store. The Korvettes operation included a Carpet & Furniture Center and freestanding Tire Center.
A 3-level (152,000 square foot) J.C. Penney, was dedicated on August 15, 1963. It was the first full-line, suburban shopping center store in the chain, then based in New York City. Unlike the standard Penney's, the KOPP store featured a greatly-expanded line of merchandise. There were thirty-two major departments, including home furnishings, sporting goods, paints and hardware, "Penncrest" -brand home appliances and electronics and ladies' sportswear designed by London's Mary Quant. A freestanding Penneys Auto Center would be added at a later date.
Fourteen inline stores opened for business along with J.C. Penney. A 3-day grand opening celebration included performances by a costumed Prussian band, celebrity appearances and puppet shows. Six additional KING OF PRUSSIA PLAZA stores began business on August 23, 1963, as part of second grand opening. This celebration was hosted by Mrs. Mary Ann Boylan, "Queen of King of Prussia Plaza."
When fully leased, the mall encompassed approximately 700,000 leasable square feet and housed over fifty stores and services. These included Baker's Shoes, Country Flair Limited, Dial Shoes, Jackman's men's wear, Thrift Drugs, Marianne Shops ladies' wear, National Bank, Ritchey Gift Shop and a Horn & Hardart Retail Store.
A (46,600 square foot) F.W. Woolworth 5 & 10 featured an adjacent Snack Shop, as well as a Harvest House Restaurant, which was located in another section of the mall. Stores in KING OF PRUSSIA PLAZA were situated along its four attractively-landscaped concourses. There were children's play areas, gazebos, fountains, an octagonal amphitheater and clock tower.
The first expansion of the mall was done in the mid-1960s. A 3-level (194,000 square foot), Philadelphia-based John Wanamaker department store was dedicated August 2, 1965. This was connected into a fully enclosed, bi-level mall, added to the north side of the existing Penney's. The addition was also anchored by a 3-level (229,000 square foot) Gimbels-Philadelphia, which held its grand opening on May 2, 1966.
The first theatrical venue at -or around- KING OF PRUSSIA PLAZA opened in August 1956. The Budco Valley Forge Drive-In, located on a pad northeast of the mall, was in operation until 1975. The Stanley Warner Plaza Theatre was built in the mall's west parking area. Originally a single-screen venue, its first feature was shown on May 19, 1965. The theater was twinned in November 1978 and shuttered in 1999.
Meanwhile, in the late 1970s, the Kravco Company began making plans for an upscale counterpart of KING OF PRUSSIA PLAZA. COURT AT KING OF PRUSSIA was built on a 30 acre tract, located across Goddard (now Mall) Boulevard from the original PLAZA mall. The new shopping complex, which housed 902,000 leasable square feet, opened in August 1981.
As part of the dedication, KING OF PRUSSIA PLAZA had been renamed PLAZA AT KING OF PRUSSIA. A major renovation of the northwest end of the structure soon got underway. Korvettes, which has been shuttered in 1980, was razed. It was replaced by a fifty-store addition.
This included the 14-bay Garden Food Court and a 2-level (212,000 square foot) Sears "Store of the Future." This was dedicated on July 25, 1983. PLAZA AT KING OF PRUSSIA now encompassed approximately 1,300,000 leasable square feet and contained 133 stores and services.
Major shopping facilities in the vicinity of PLAZA AT KING OF PRUSSIA included PLYMOUTH MEETING MALL (1966) {5.7 miles northeast, in Montgomery County}, EXTON SQUARE MALL (1971) {12.8 miles southwest, in Chester County}, MONTGOMERY MALL (1977) {11.9 miles northeast, in Montgomery County} and WILLOW GROVE PARK MALL (1982) {14.5 miles northeast, also in Montgomery County}.
Nameplate conversions at PLAZA AT KING OF PRUSSIA began in the late 1980s. Gimbels was shuttered August 9, 1986 and re-opened, as a Paramus, New Jersey-based Stern's, on August 18 of the same year.
By the early 1990s, the COURT AT KING OF PRUSSIA mall had become hemmed in, with no room for expansion. The economy was booming, with a greater demand for luxury goods. Kravco decided to change the marketing focus at the PLAZA mall, making it into an even more upscale shopping venue than the adjacent COURT property.
A 185 million dollar renovation was formally announced in March 1993. This would add 414,000 leasable square feet and three new anchor stores. As a first stage of the upcoming remodeling, J.C. Penney relocated into a vacant Stern's store on November 4, 1992.
With this move completed, the south section of the circa-1963 mall was demolished. It was replaced by a bi-level, 120-store structure. Three new top-tier anchors were built; a 3-level (225,000 square foot) Nordstrom, 2-level (120,000 square foot) Lord & Taylor and 3-level (138,000 square foot) Neiman Marcus.
A newly-refurbished PLAZA AT KING OF PRUSSIA officially opened for business on November 2, 1995. It now sported six anchors and two large parking structures. The mall spanned approximately 1,680,000 leasable square feet and featured over two 240 stores and services.
Abraham & Straus in the COURT mall had morphed a Philadephia-based Strawbridge & Clothier on March 7, 1988. The John Wanamaker PLAZA store closed on August 28, 1995. It was rebranded, as an Arlington, Virginia-based Hecht's, on September 3 of the same year. Hecht's at the PLAZA mall was refashioned into a Strawbridge's in July 1996. There were now two Strawbridge's operating at the PLAZA and COURT malls. The COURT mall store was short-lived. It closed for good on January 27, 1999.
A new theatrical venue was built on a pad located .4 mile northwest of KING OF PRUSSIA PLAZA. The first features at the United Artists King of Prussia 16 were shown on April 21, 2000. The cinema was eventually expanded with an IMAX auditorium. It became a Regal property in 2002.
Indianapolis' Simon Property Group established an eighty-percent share in Kravco Investments in November 2003, with the name of the concern being changed to Kravco Simon Investments. This entity owned both the PLAZA AT KING OF PRUSSIA and COURT AT KING OF PRUSSIA malls.
A Macy's had been in operation at the COURT mall since October 1986. As a result of Macy's August 2005 purchase of May Department Stores, Strawbridge's locations were converted to the Macy's masthead. The PLAZA Strawbridge's was rebranded as Macy's Plaza on September 9, 2006.
This store was shuttered in July 2007. The building would sit vacant for 4 years before being demolished in July 2011. A 2-level (100,000 square foot) section of stores was built. The ten-tenant addition featured a remodeled mall entrance, parking garage and new locations for Forever 21 and H & M.
In August 2011, the Simon Property Group established a ninety-six-percent ownership share in the two KING OF PRUSSIA properties, removing most involvement of the Kravco entity. In November, they announced a major expansion of the malls, which got underway in January 2013.
Two existing complexes would be physically connected via a forty-eight-store structure. This was to encompass 140,000 leasable square feet and include the upscale Savor food court. The merged mall was officially dedicated on August 18, 2016. It now encompassed approximately 2,651,600 leasable square feet, with a retail roster of nearly 400 stores and services. The complex was now officially promoted as KING OF PRUSSIA.
A major anchor store change took place as the connecting concourse was being built. In January 2014, Sears Holdings announced that they would be leasing upper level space for a (75,000 square foot) Dick's Sporting Goods. This store held its grand opening November 7, 2014. The KING OF PRUSSIA Sears, by then downsized into its lower level, closed for good in January 2015. Irish fashion retailer Primark reconfigured a 2-level (80,700 square foot) section and opened for business on November 25, 2015.
Plano, Texas' J.C. Penney chain announced the closing of 120 mall-based stores in March 2017. The KING OF PRUSSIA location, a tenant since August 1963, would be among these. A liquidation sale commenced April 17, with the store going dark on July 31, 2017.
Meanwhile, the interior of the PLAZA section of the mall was given a face lift to refurbish its dated 1990s decor and make it more consistent with newer construction. The project got underway in April 2018 and was completed in June 2019. Lord & Taylor shuttered their PLAZA section store on February 27, 2021, as part of the dissolution of the chain.
Sources:
The Philadelphia Inquirer
J.C. Penney Company Annual Report 1963
http://www.philadex.com
"Paradox Unbound, My Pilgrimage To King Of Prussia Plaza" / Mitch Glaser http://www.mitchglaser.com
https://tehistory.org / Tredyffrin Easttown Historical Society
History Quarterly Digital Archives / April 1991
http://www.mainlinemedianews.com
http://www.bizjournals.com / Peter Van Allen
Comment posts by David Meehan , "Go Nordrike!" and Matthew Terry
http://www.primark.com
http://www.cinematreasures.org
"King Of Prussia Plaza" and "Court At King Of Prussia" articles on Wikipedia
