SPRINGDALE PLAZA, circa-1963. The open-air shopping center contains forty-six stores and services beneath its canopies. It has just achieved "freeway-friendly" status with the completion of The Beltline (Interstate 65) Highway, which now runs along the west side of the complex.

Mobile's hometown department store anchored SPINGDALE PLAZA for over 37 years. Gayfer's Springdale welcomed its first shoppers in February 1960. One of the primary features of the store was its Kopper Kettle restaurant. 

Photo from Mercantile Stores Company, Incorporated Annual Report 1961

Graphic from Mercantile Stores Company, Incorporated

The trademarks of seven charter tenants are featured on our SPRINGDALE PLAZA logo montage. These stores opened their doors in late 1959. We threw in the Montgomery Ward "Blue Bar" logo for good measure. This store opened at the PLAZA in the mid-1970s.