Tuesday, June 17, 2014

Heritage Village(Beaver Dam Mall)- (Beaver Dam, WI)


A mall that truly deserves a thumbs up for dying and being reborn. Located about an hour and half from Milwaukee, the Heritage Village, formerly known as Beaver Dam mall, in Beaver Dam, WI, is more of a gathering place in a prospering farm town than being called a "mall".

The Beaver Dam mall opened in 1980 as a one-story mall along Hwy 151 with original anchors:



In 1983, Parent company Woolworth decided to liquidate and dissolve the Woolco chain, that included the Beaver Dam Mall location.

Shortly after, Local supermarket chain, Copps, opened for about a year and a half.

In 1987, Wal-Mart opened its first Wisconsin store in the former Woolco, this, as Wal-Mart does, attracted people to the mall from all over the state. This was good that the mall was getting traffic, but bad because customers were not shopping at the stores, just Wal-Mart, thus, the mall occupancy began to die.

In 2004, Wal-Mart moved from the mall to a supercenter location across the highway.

A year later, JCPenney threw in the towel and closed their store, knowing the Madison locations bank more than this store ever could.

In 2006, Slumberland Furniture store opened in the former JCPenney.

Major changed began to take shape when the mall changed ownership, and the name was changed to Heritage Village Shops & Professional Center.

Some point after this, the interior of the mall was closed off.

In 2011, Sears opened a hometown store in part of the former JCPenney.
"JCPenn" labelscar

Former JCPenney, now a Sears hometown store

In 2012, when I first went to this mall, I went to Boston Store and there was a Dunham Sport's here, But I could not find when these opened.

In 2013, Jo-ann Fabrics and a Staples office store also opened and it seems like the mall has new life because the  website shows the interior of the mall is opened and it looks like a lounge is set up in the center court.

Here is the website for the mall:


Here are the pictures from August 2012:


Perfect example of an old, outdated, dead mall, fixtures pushed together and "real trees" around the stores with an American flag hoisted to show they have not given up hope.




Former Herberger's Department Store


"Herberger's" labelscar

Former Woolco/Copps/Wal-Mart; now Boston Store Department Store




Former Herberger's

2 comments:

  1. I miss "the mall", it was an exciting place to go when I was a kid, even starting high school it was a fun place to hang with friends, now its stores are pathetic and I have no use for any of them, but looking at Beaver Dam, Wi as a whole, the entire city has become a sad shell of its former self, a dead end town really

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