W.T. Grant Building: The Rise & Fall of the Great American Department Store

with Mandy Reynolds and Sean Ireland from the Grant Building & Union + Co.

Saturday, May 6 at 11:00 AM

Estimated duration: One hour

Bath is known as the City of Ships for its rich history in wooden and steel shipbuilding since the 18th century. Bath is also well-known for its 19th century brick Italianate-style buildings. Its population and prosperity boomed & busted with the shipbuilding industry. In addition to providing a workforce gainful employment, the shipyards also somewhat insulated the City from the worst of the Great Depression and later, increased the City's military importance during WWII. However, the 20th century spelled a decline and exodus to suburban shopping centers. This is the story of Bath’s retail & department store landscape writ large, fueled by further modernization and suburbanization. On this walk you will experience this downtown history through one property's story: The Grant Building. Built exclusively for the W.T. Grant Department store in 1936 and expanded in 1945, Grant’s flourished as a result of a consistent population with predictable employment at Bath’s major shipyard. We will walk this 22,000 square foot building and discuss how adaptive reuse of historic buildings is vital to honoring the history of Maine's small cities and towns and for providing much-needed services to its residents. Join us!

Accessibility: The building has four floors (lower level, ground, 2nd, 3rd). There is no passenger elevator. Tour participants will need to be able to climb stairs or join for only the ground floor portion of the tour. On-street parking is available around 31 Centre Street.

Starting and ending point: 31 Centre Street

 

For questions about this walk, please email janeswalkme@gmail.com.