White Hall's Middletown Mall

West Virginia's first mall-type shopping center was named "Middletown" due to its location between the cities of Fairmont and Clarksburg (in actuality, the mall was much closer to Fairmont).
Graphic from Pin Oak Properties

Clarksburg-based Parsons-Souders was one of the mall's original anchors. The store encompassed 1 level and 40,000 square feet. The chain had been acquired by Wheeling-based Stone & Thomas in the mid-1960s. Stores, including the MIDDLETOWN MALL location, were rebranded by Stone & Thomas in 1975.

In its original state, MIDDLETOWN MALL covered around 472,000 leasable square feet. The fully-enclosed complex was anchored by the aforementioned Parsons-Souders, along with W.T. Grant and a full-line Sears. There were forty stores and services and free parking for 2,100 autos.

MIDDLETOWN MALL TENANTS 1971:

SEARS (with Coffee House and attached Auto Center) / PARSONS-SOUDERS / W.T. GRANT (with Bradford House restaurant) / J.G. McCRORY 5 & 10 (with luncheonette) / THOROFARE Super Market (outparcel) / Berwin Wigs / Biggs Middletown, Incorporated / Carriage Shop / Charming Shop / Chess King men's wear / Coiffures Barber Shop / Coiffures Beauty Shop / Father & Son Shoes / GNC / Gordon's Jewelers / Hettrey Brothers / Home Industry Bakery / Hot Sam Pretzels / Jo-Ann Fabrics / Jones Department Store / Kinney Shoes / Leed's Candies / Lerner Shops ladies' wear / Manchin's Carpet / Mary Jane Shoes / Maunz Men's Store / Middletown Hallmark / Middletown National Bank of Fairmont / National Shirt Shops / Orange Bowl Snack Bar / Orange Julius / Parklane Hosiery / Scruffy Pet Shop / Singer Sewing Center / Stark Record Service / Teek's Fine Shoes / The Art Gallery / Thom McAn Shoes / Thrift Drugs (with luncheonette) / Workingman's Store

A few changes have been made by 1985. Parsons-Souders is now a Stone & Thomas, with a downsized Grants space now occupied by Hess's. Moreover, a Gee Bee discount mart has been built. This addition, which increased the gross leasable area of the mall to around 532,000 square feet, would be the only expansion ever done to the complex. 

Zooming forward in time to the early 21st century, we see the mall's Main Entrance.
Photo from https://acceleratedconstructionservices.com / Accelerated Construction Services

An early 2000s view of the north end of the complex. The building seen here was built as a Sears. This store closed in 1989. It was replaced by a Hills discount mart, which morphed into an Ames before being shuttered in the year 2001. More recently, the structure -with its Sears Auto Center demolished- was divided four ways.
Photo from www.showcase.com

Unlike many of its contemporaries, West Virginia's first shopping mall was not excessively renovated over the years. At the time that this image was taken, much of the circa-1971 interior decor was still intact, including the mall's original terrazzo flooring.
Photo from https://acceleratedconstructionservices.com / Accelerated Construction Services

A freestanding building at the south end of the mall site operated as a supermarket for several years. More recently, the structure was leased as a Sears Catalog & Appliance ("Home Store") and DFW Furniture.
Photo from www.showcase.com 

By 2007, much of the mall is being leased as offices. There were a few retail stores, such as Hank's Deli, Animal Kingdom and the West Virginia Lottery, as well as Mi Pueblo Mexican and Hunan Chinese restaurants. The complex was sold in April 2018. Its new owners announced that a "complete renovation" of the structure would soon be underway.

The new owners of MIDDLETOWN MALL followed through on the proposed remodeling. Demolition work commenced in late 2018. When construction dust settled in 2022, the newly-renamed MIDDLETOWN COMMONS included retail, restaurant, office and medical components; all in an open-air format.
Drawing from Premier Commercial Real Estate Services 

The original mall's enclosed shopping concourse (in light gray) was reconfigured as service corridors and new store and office space. Some of the old mall was demolished and a boulevard carved through the middle of the structure. A hospital was installed in part of the old Gee Bee building.  

MIDDLETOWN MALL

Fairmont Avenue / US 250 and David Circle

Marion County (White Hall), West Virginia

Plans for the first shopping mall in West Virginia were announced in May 1966. A fully-enclosed retail complex -going under the provisional name of FAIRMONT MALL- would be built on a 31.2-acre site. This was located 5 miles southwest of downtown Fairmont, in an unincorporated section of Marion County.  

The mall-to-be was designed by Carl E. Barefoot, of Johnstown, Pennsylvania and developed by a joint venture of the Johnstown-based Crown Construction Company and Boston-based First Union Real Estate Equity & Mortgage Investment Company. By the time construction got underway in the spring of 1969, the project had been re-named MIDDLETOWN MALL. 

 

When completed, the shopping venue encompassed approximately 472,000 leasable square feet. An official dedication was held on March 13, 1971. Charter inline stores included Lerner Shops, The Jones Department Store, Thrift Drugs, Scruffy Pet Shop, Orange Bowl, Orange Julius, Chess King, Jo-Ann Fabrics and a (13,000 square foot) J.G. McCrory 5 & 10. A (23,000 square foot) Thorofare Super Market occupied a freestanding building in the south parking area.

Anchoring the mall were a 1-level (97,700 square foot) Sears, 1-level (40,000 square foot), Clarksburg, West Virginia-based Parsons-Souders and 1-level (65,000 square foot) W. T. Grant. This store would be rebranded as a Grant City in 1973.

Commercial competition arrived with MOUNTAINEER MALL {17.1 miles northeast, in Monongalia County}, which opened in 1975. MEADOWBROOK MALL {11 miles southwest, in Bridgeport} was completed in 1982. In 1990, MORGANTOWN MALL {16.9 miles northeast, also in Monongalia County} was officially dedicated.

The only expansion ever done to MIDDLETOWN MALL added a 1-level (60,000 square foot), Pennsylvania-based Gee Bee discount mart. This store opened in May 1975. With its completion, the shopping center spanned approximately 532,000 leasable square feet.

In 1975, Parsons-Souders was rebranded by Wheeling-based Stone & Thomas. The W.T. Grant chain went out of business in 1976. The MIDDLETOWN MALL store was leased by the Ira A. Watson Company (a.k.a. Watson's), which was a Knoxville-based discount retailer. After that store closed, its space was leased by Pennsylvania-based Hess's. They opened their 33rd store, in the old Watson's space, in early 1985. Hess's was in business until 1995.

Sears had vacated their store in 1989. The space was taken by a Massachusetts-based Hills discount mart. This closed in 1998, with Connecticut-based Ames moving into the space. Gee Bee closed in 1991. Its space was leased as temporary government offices. The Stone & Thomas chain was acquired by Dayton-based Elder-Beerman in July 1998. The MIDDLETOWN MALL Stone & Thomas was not converted to an Elder-Beerman and closed for good. The Ames store was shuttered in October 2001.

The area surrounding, and including, MIDDLETOWN MALL had been incorporated, as the City of White Hall, on December 8, 1992. The Crown Construction Company split into two entities in 1993. The Crown American Realty Trust was established to manage the company's shopping mall portfolio. The property in White Hall was sold to Morgantown's Stephen Fansler in July 1998.

MIDDLETOWN MALL had been a thriving hub of commerce for a number of years. However, by 1990, there were three newer -and larger- malls operating in its trade area. The complex was in a downward spiral by the mid-1990s. With two of its anchors vacant, the facility went into foreclosure in 2002. A loan was secured. An entity known as Pin Oak Properties was created by local entrepreneur Stephen Fansler to own and operate the shopping center.

By 2003, MIDDLETOWN MALL was enjoying an occupancy rate of 98-percent. Much of its space was being leased as offices. Professional tenants included the Social Security Administration, Department of Motor Vehicles and State of West Virginia. Retailers included BBT Bank, Hank's Deli, Fashion Bug, Dollar General, GNC, Diane's Hallmark, Subway, D & S Collectibles and Goodwill Industries.

The north anchor, originally a Sears, was subdivided into four spaces. A Sav A Lot supermarket and Ace Hardware opened, in two of these, in 2004. Offices for Lockheed Martin, and the Colasessano's Pizza Parlor, occupied the remainder of the building. By this time, offices in the old Gee Bee structure had expanded, taking up a great deal of the mall's remaining inline store space.

In November 2004, Sears returned to MIDDLETOWN MALL, after a 15-year hiatus. They opened a Catalog & Appliance store in the freestanding building previously housing a supermarket. By this time, a Shop 'n Save food store was leasing the adjacent Grant City-Watsons-Hess's space.

Office-type tenants eventually vacated the mall. By the 2010s, the complex was 50-percent vacant. Pin Oak Properties declared bankruptcy. In April 2018, the struggling shopping center was acquired by Morgantown's David and Rick Biafora, under the auspices of the General Acquisitions, Limited Liability Company. They changed the name of the facility to MIDDLETOWN COMMONS.

A massive redevelopment commenced in late 2018. The interior of the mall was gutted, with some sections demolished. New leasable space was built, the roof repaired and parking lot repaved. In essence, the old enclosed mall was turned inside out, with all stores, offices and restaurants now having only exterior entrances.

 

In September 2021, a (10,000 square foot) Next Level Fitness opened its doors. A (24,100 square foot) Aldi discount grocery welcomed first shoppers on April 28, 2022, with a (17,200 square foot) Michaels being dedicated on September 17th.

Sources:

Mrs. Betty L. Schmidt, Middletown Mall Office Manager & Marketing Director

The Exponent Telegram (Clarksburg, West Virginia)

The Morning Call (Allentown, Pennsylvania)

The Observer-Reporter (Washington, Pennsylvania)

The Charleston Gazette (Charleston, West Virginia)

The Times West Virginian (Fairmont, West Virginia)

http://web.mountain.net / Town of White Hall, West Virginia

https://www.wvnews.com

https://www.premiercommercialres.com / Premier Commercial Real Estate Services

Vienna's Grand Central Mall

A 1972 view of the Main Entrance at West Virginia's GRAND CENTRAL MALL. The 20 million dollar facility was built on the site of the former Stewart Air Park.
Photo from https://www.youtube.com / "Grand Central Mall Celebrates 40 Fabulous Years"

GRAND CENTRAL MALL opened, in August 1972, with 826,000 leasable square feet and forty-two stores. Eventually, there were eighty-three. The complex featured a "highly modern" interior and provided free parking for over 4,000 autos. GRAND CENTRAL opened as the largest shopping center in the Mountain State, a distinction it held until 1981.

GRAND CENTRAL MALL TENANTS 1972:

THE DIAMOND (with The Diamond Cafeteria) / J.C. PENNEY (with Coffee Shop, Beauty Salon and freestanding Auto Center) / SEARS (with Coffee House and attached Auto Center) / G.C. MURPHY 5 & 10 (with luncheonette) / Breslers 33 Flavors ice cream / Brooks Fashions / Butler Shoes / Candy Bar / Casual Corner ladies' wear / Cinema I & II / Community Room / Creations Unlimited / Der Dog Haus / Dil's River Packet men's wear / Doc Williams Country / Dudley's Florist / Embees ladies' wear / Fashion Bug ladies wear / Foxmoor Casuals ladies' wear / GNC / Hanover Shoes / Hickory Farms of Ohio / Hoffheimer Shoes / Horner & Harrison men's wear / House of Toys / Jo-Ann Fabrics / Kard Korner / KinderPhoto children's photographer / Kinney Shoes / Lane Bryant ladies' wear / Lang's / Lerner Shops ladies' wear / Magnet Bank / Merle Norman Cosmetic Studio / Morrow's Nut House / Motherhood Maternity / My Cousin & I Cards & Gifts / National Record Mart / Naturalizer Shoes / Nobil Shoes / Orange Julius / Pappagalo Shoes / Petland / Pizza Inn / Pizza Place / Posin's Jewelers / Richman Brothers men's wear / Seddon's Restaurant & Cocktail Lounge / Shaw's Jewelers / Singer Sewing Center / Size 5-7-9 Shops ladies' wear / Spencer Gifts / Stern Brothers apparel / Stride-Rite Bootery / The Brass Razor barber shop / The County Seat men's wear / The Fireplace Store / The Limited ladies' wear / The Parasol / The Pretzel Oven / The Smokin' Bowl / Thrift Drug (with luncheonette) / Thom McAn Shoes / United National Bank / Waldenbooks / Walden Hallmark / Zidel's Sports Shop 

The shopping hub was anchored by a Charleston-based The Diamond department store. The 2-level structure encompassed 105,000 square feet.

Photo from Mike Kalasnik

The Diamond presided over the center of the center. The store included The Diamond Cafeteria, which was a self-service smorgasbord.

Photo from Mike Kalasnik

The main shopping concourse at GRAND CENTRAL MALL extended for over 1,000 feet. It featured an oriental garden, with fountains, waterfalls, duck ponds, fish pools and arched bridges. The water feature seen above was built with lava rock imported from the Sierra Nevada Mountains.

Photo from Valley News Service, Incorporated

Water features, such as this sunburst fountain, contributed to the (quote-unquote) "tropical splendor" of the original shopping hub.

Photo from Valley News Service, Incorporated

A vintage view of the South Wing bird aviary, which stood in the J.C. Penney Court.
Photo from Valley News Service, Incorporated

Also in the South Wing was the main mall entry of the G.C. Murphy 5 & 10. 
Photo from the G.C. Murphy Company

The Sears Court, in the North Wing, featured this jet-type fountain. It was illuminated by several colored lights.

Photo from Valley News Service, Incorporated

The northwest corner of the mall was expanded in the early 1990s to accommodate a new Phar-Mor Drug (in dark gray). A mall-wide renovation was announced in May 1995. This 25 million dollar project replaced two existing cinemas with a 12-plex and added a fourth anchor store (light gray). A Food Court and Goody's store were also installed in South Wing space. These modifications were complete by early 1998.

Above and below are interior views, which show the center as it appeared following its 1990s renovations.
Photo from www.glimcher.com / Glimcher Realty Trust

As one might surmise, all of the high-maintenance features in the original mall, such as a duck pond, bird aviary, fish pools and fountains, have long since been removed.
Photo from www.glimcher.com / Glimcher Realty Trust

By 2012, several major stores have either closed or been rebranded. Phar-Mor morphed into Steve & Barry's (2006) and then Dunham's Sports (2009). Proffitt's was "Belked" in 2006. On the mall's northeastern periphery, Borders Books and Old Navy stores opened in a freestanding strip center (light gray). Borders went dark in 2011 and was followed by hhgregg, which closed in 2017.

"40th Anniversary" signage is above the mall's Northeast Entrance in this 2012 snapshot. A mall-wide birthday bash was held in August 2012.
Photo from Wikipedia / Mike Kalasnik

In a circa-2020 aerial, an abandoned Sears -on the north end of the mall- has been razed. It is being replaced by a four-store power plaza. Stores would open in the spring and summer of 2021.

Photo from https://www.washingtonprime.com / Washington Prime Group, Incorporated

GRAND CENTRAL MALL achieved its 50th anniversary in August 2022. H & M had filled a portion of a vacant Elder-Beerman space in October 2018 (in medium gray). The new power plaza (light gray) has added Ross, T.J. Maxx, HomeGoods and PetSmart to the retail roster. There were now seventy-eight stores and services.

GRAND CENTRAL MALL
Grand Central Avenue and Masonic Home Road
Vienna, West Virginia

West Virginia's second shopping mall was built in the state's Mid-Ohio Valley region. GRAND CENTRAL MALL was developed on an 104-acre tract, located 2.4 miles north of downtown Parkersburg. Before the mall's construction, the Stewart Air Park (a municipal airfield) had occupied the site.

The shopping hub was designed by Morganelli & Huemann Associates, of Los Angles. It was built by Parkersburg's Parr Progress, Incorporated, which was a subsidiary the Oxford Development Company, of Monroeville, Pennsylvania. An official ground breaking was held on June 15, 1971. 

When fully-realized, GRAND CENTRAL MALL encompassed approximately 826,000 leasable square feet and housed eighty-three stores and services. It was the largest shopping center in the Mountain State, being nearly twice the size of the previous contender, Marion County's MIDDLETOWN MALL (1971).

Forty-one stores and services were dedicated at the official grand opening of GRAND CENTRAL MALL, which was held on August 17, 1972. These included a 2-level (105,000 square foot), Charleston-based The Diamond department store and General Cinema Corporation Cinema I & II. A 1-level (144,000 square foot) J.C. Penney -the chain's largest West Virginia store- welcomed first shoppers on September 21, 1972. A 1-level (104,000 square foot) Sears was launched at the same time.

The interior and exterior of the shopping hub exemplified '70s Mod architecture and decor. The shopping concourse was elaborately appointed. There was an oriental garden with hundreds of tropical plants, duck and fish ponds, a waterfall, starburst fountain, jet fountain, bird aviary and sculpture by Arronel DeRoy Gruder.

Dil's River Packet sold men's and boy's wear and operated out of a 2-level riverboat-motif store. Seddon's Restaurant, done in the latest Mediterranean decor, included a full-service bar and a dance floor. Other charter tenants included Orange Julius, Waldenbooks, Pizza Inn, Hickory Farms of Ohio, Nobil Shoes, Embees ladies' wear, National Record Mart and a (49,000 square foot) G.C. Murphy 5 & 10. There was also a 250-seat Community Room. The freestanding Darrels IGA supermarket was business by 1976.

A second enclosed shopping center opened in "The Burg" in late 1983. TOWN SQUARE MALL, a redevelopment in downtown Parkersburg, was much smaller than the sprawling GRAND CENTRAL facility and could not effectively compete with it. TOWN SQUARE eventually failed and was converted into an office complex.

The Diamond at GRAND CENTRAL MALL was one of two locations in the chain. A division of New York City-based Associated Dry Goods, it was shuttered in 1983. Soon after, the store re-opened as a Wheeling, West Virginia-based Stone & Thomas. The General Cinema Corporation Cinema 3-4-5 was built at the mall's north parking lot entrance, along Grand Central Avenue. It showed first features in the late 1980s.

The first expansion of GRAND CENTRAL MALL was completed in the early 1990s. The northwest corner was gutted. 48,500 square feet of retail space was added to accommodate a new (65,000 square foot) Phar-Mor Drug. 

 

Columbus, Ohio's Glimcher Realty Trust acquired the shopping hub in September 1993. They embarked on a 25 million dollar renovation in January 1996. This project, which was done in two phases, would add over 122,400 square feet of shopping space.

During Phase I, the southwest corner of the mall was gutted and rebuilt. The first eateries in the 10-bay Grand Central Food Court opened in November 1996. The Regal Grand Central Mall 12 megaplex was built adjacent to the new culinary complex.

Phase II of the remodeling involved demolishing approximately 18,500 square feet of store space at the mall's Main Entrance. A 1-level (86,000 square foot), Alcoa, Tennessee-based Proffitt's was built. The store opened for business on March 4, 1998. GRAND CENTRAL MALL now encompassed approximately 902,400 leasable square feet.

In July 1998, Dayton-based Elder-Beerman bought stores in the Stone & Thomas chain. The GRAND CENTRAL MALL location was rebranded as an Elder-Beerman on October 7th of the same year. Proffitt's morphed into a Charlotte-based Belk on March 8, 2006.

Phar-Mor Drug had shut down in December 2001. Steve & Barry's University Sportswear opened in the store space during 2006, but closed in November 2008. Steve & Barry's was followed by a Waterford, Michigan-based Dunham's Sports, which opened its doors on November 20, 2009. With these modifications, GRAND CENTRAL MALL housed 105 stores and services.

Indiana's Simon Property Group created a spin-off Real Estate Investment Trust in May 2014. Known as the Washington Prime Group, it merged with the Glimcher Realty Trust in early 2015. As a result of this transaction, GRAND CENTRAL MALL became a Washington Prime Group holding.

Elder-Beerman closed for good on January 31, 2018. Within weeks, Sweden's trendy H & M apparel chain had signed a lease for a (20,000 square foot) store, which was installed in a section of the vacant Elder-Beerman. The new H & M opened for business on October 25, 2018. Its dedication was accompanied by those for Ulta Beauty and Five Below. These stores set up show in an outparcel hhgregg space.This store had closed in May of 2017.

Sears shuttered their 46-year-old GRAND CENTRAL MALL store in December 2018. The building was demolished and replaced by a 25 million dollar, four-store power center. Open-air in format, it housed a (16,000 square foot) PetSmart, (25,000 square foot) T.J. Maxx, (22,800 square foot) HomeGoods and (22,100 square foot) Ross Dress For Less. These stores were all 1-level. 

T.J. Maxx and HomeGoods were dedicated on March 11, 2021, with PetSmart and Ross up and running by the summer of the same year. The adjusted gross leasable area of GRAND CENTRAL MALL now stood at approximately 884,500 square feet, with a tenant list of ninety stores and services. 

Sources:

The Charleston Gazette (Charleston, West Virginia)
The Charleston Daily Mail (Charleston, West Virginia)
http://investor.washingtonprime.com

https://cinematreasures.org

http://grandcentralmall.com (website on Internet Archive Wayback Machine)

https://grandcentralmall.com
https://www.thefreelibrary.com
http://www.glimcher.com / Glimcher Realty Trust

"Grand Central Mall," "Proffitt's" and "Elder-Beerman" articles on Wikipedia

Beckley's Raleigh Mall

The Mountain State's third mall-type shopping center was built in Southern West Virginia's Raleigh County. The original complex was promoted in print ads with a likeness of Sir Walter, himself.
Graphic from the George D. Zamias Real Estate Company 

Montgomery Ward anchored the north end of RALEIGH MALL. The single-level store was in operation for over 25 years.
Photo from http://www.showcase.com

RALEIGH MALL was completed in two phases, working south-to-north. SupeRx Drugs, Kroger and Murphy's Mart opened between June and October 1974. The remainder of the 15 million dollar mall was finished by October of 1975. When fully realized, it encompassed approximately 353,300 leasable square feet and housed thirty-nine stores. Free parking was provided for 1,700 autos.

RALEIGH MALL TENANTS 1975:

MURPHY'S MART (with Sweets 'N Eats snack bar and attached Auto Center) / STONE & THOMAS / MONTGOMERY WARD (with Buffeteria snack bar and attached Auto Center) / KROGER supermarket (outparcel) / Almost Heaven / Beckley Music Center / Cam Mele Florist / Cardinal State Bank / Cinema 1 & 2 In The Raleigh Mall / City Finance of Beckley / Custom Carpets / Der Dog Haus / E.M. Payne Company / Embees ladies' wear / Famas Shoes / Fashion Bug ladies' wear / Fayetteville Federal Savings & Loan Association / Friar Tuck's Pub & Restaurant / Gallenkamp Shoes / GNC / George's Fashions / Graziano Pizza / Gregory Children's Wear / Henry's Men's & Boys Shop / Hickory Farms of Ohio / House of Cards / Joseph's Glad-Ele Bridal Shop / Kelly & Cohen / Kinney Shoes / Lilly's Crown Jewelers / Moantan Leather / National Record Mart / Pallesan Boutique / Photo Coral / Quality Pastry Shop / SupeRx Drugs (outparcel) / The Emporium / The Smokin' Bowl / Unisex / Wheeler's Men's Shop  

Originally a combo Kroger-SupeRx, this south parking area structure now houses a Columbus, Ohio-based Big Lots.
Photo from www.groceteria.com / Andrew T.

The BECKLEY PLAZA strip center sits directly across the road from RALEIGH MALL. The PLAZA was completed in stages between 1965 and 1970. A small -30,000 square foot- section once contained an enclosed shopping concourse, known as the "Plaza Mall."

Photo from www.loopnet.com

The open-air CRANBERRY CREEK CENTER & BECKLEY GALLERIA encompass around 815,000 leasable square feet. They snatched the RALEIGH MALL Goody's in April 2005. In retrospect, this loss was not such a big deal as the relocated store was only in operation for 2 years. 

Photo from www.loopnet.com

By 2008, RALEIGH MALL was on life support. In decline for several years, it had been bested by CROSSROADS MALL (1981) and the aforementioned CRANBERRY CREEK CENTER & BECKLEY GALLERIA (2005). By the time of this layout, the majority of store space in RALEIGH MALL was vacant.

A parting view of RALEIGH MALL. Its inline store section was knocked down in July 2011, leaving three anchor boxes -and two outparcels- standing.
Photo from http://www.showcase.com

Our third -and final- RALEIGH MALL plan depicts a new & improved (and completely demalled) shopping hub. Anchor structures held over from the old enclosed mall have been given new facades, with two freestanding restaurants, an a dental office, also being built. So, the complex is among those odd ball American shopping centers that are officially promoted as a mall, but are not a mall.

RALEIGH MALL
Beckley-Mt. Hope Road / US 19 & 21 [now Robert C. Byrd Drive / US 19] and Dunn Drive
Raleigh County (Beckley), West Virginia

West Virginia's third mall-type shopping complex was developed by the Johnstown, Pennsylvania-based George D. Zamias Real Estate Company. The single-level RALEIGH MALL occupied a 40-acre site. This was located 1.7 miles north of downtown Beckley, in a section of unincorporated Raleigh County known as Skelton. Ground was broken on August 19, 1973.

The first tenant to open in the Phase One project was a (14,100 square foot) SupeRx Drugs, which was dedicated on June 30, 1974. An adjacent (26,000 square foot) Kroger supermarket began business on July 2nd. These stores were located in a freestanding Convenience Center on the south end of the mall site. A 1-level (88,900 square foot) Murphy's Mart, situated north of Kroger-SupeRx, welcomed first shoppers on October 7, 1974.

Phase Two of the construction project added a fully-enclosed mall to the north side of Murphy's Mart. Its shopping concourse featured works by local artisan Peter Kalaboyias. These sculptures depicted the history of the coal mining industry in West Virginia. A mall-wide grand opening was held on October 9, 1975. Stores dedicated at this time included a 1-level (95,400 square foot) Montgomery Ward and 1-level (50,200 square foot), Wheeling-based Stone & Thomas.

RALEIGH MALL spanned approximately 353,300 leasable square feet. Among thirty-nine charter tenants were Kinney Shoes, Hickory Farms of Ohio, Henry's Men's Shop and Friar Tuck's Pub. The Grant Thomas Cinema 1 & 2 In The Raleigh Mall showed first features on December 25, 1975.

BECKLEY PLAZA, an open-air strip center, was located across the US 19 & 21 highway from the mall. Also developed by George D. Zamias, it opened in stages, beginning in May 1965. In April 1970, a small enclosed concourse, known as the Plaza Mall, was dedicated.

Eleven years later, the first bona fide rival of  RALEIGH MALL was launched. CROSSROADS MALL {2.3 miles northwest, in Raleigh County} was dedicated in April 1981. Murphy's Mart at RALEIGH MALL was shuttered in 1985, with Rocky Hill, Connecticut-based Ames taking the store space. Ames closed when its operations were consolidated with another location in the city.

The store sat vacant until Morgantown, West Virginia-based Gabriel Brothers Discount Family Fashions opened, in 2002. This (62,200 square foot) store shared the former Murphy's Mart space with a (26,700 square foot) Goody's Family Clothing.

Meanwhile, Stone & Thomas had morphed into a Dayton, Ohio-based Elder-Beerman on October 7, 1998. Montgomery Ward folded in March 2001. Its building sat vacant until being sectioned into two tenant spaces. One of these was filled by a (31,000 square foot), Brentwood, Tennessee-based Tractor Supply Company. This store opened for business on March 22, 2006.

RALEIGH MALL encountered two new competitors in the early 2000s. CRANBERRY CREEK CENTER & BECKLEY GALLERIA{1.3 miles southeast, in Beckley} were dedicated in 2005. The Goody's store in RALEIGH MALL relocated to a larger location, in the CRANBERRY CREEK complex, in April 2005.

By this time, RALEIGH MALL was seventy-percent vacant. The struggling retail center was acquired by the Warrendale, Pennsylvania-based H.L. Libby Corporation in September 2010. They initiated a demalling in July 2011. The inline store portion of the mall was razed, leaving three anchor structures, and two outparcels, standing.

The demolished mall section was replaced by an expanded parking area. Elder-Beerman was given a new facade. A (62,200 square foot) Dunham's Sports was installed in the southern section of the old Montgomery Ward and held its grand opening on November 18, 2011.

Two freestanding restaurants, Olive Garden and Cheddar's Scratch Kitchen, were also built in the east parking area. The adjusted gross leasable area of the new -open-air- RALEIGH MALL now stood at 275,600 square feet. The complex housed ten stores and services. One of these (Elder-Beerman) was shuttered in January 2015. The vacant building was divided between new Jo-Ann Fabrics and Party City stores. The latter held its grand opening on March 10, 2016.

Sources:

The Raleigh Register (Beckley, West Virginia)
The Register-Herald (Beckley, West Virginia)
http://Jeff560.tripod.com / "History of Beckley and Raleigh County"
https://www.cinematreasures.org
http://www.wvdo.org / West Virginia Development Office
Http://www.paramountdevelopment.com
https://mallsdb.com / MallsDatabase.com
http://www.hllibbycorp.com / H. L. Libby Corporation