Faded Beauty: Russeks Department Store the Little History Left
Russeks Department Store
New York City was full of upscale department stores in 1900’s. Lord & Taylor, Bloomingdales, Henri Bendall, and Saks Fifth Avenue were started during the turn of the 20th century. These landmarks are still filled with amazing fashion and home décor today. Several have opened multiple locations throughout the U.S. and some international outposts. Not all of the vintage New York City stores have weathered the retail storm. Throughout the year’s iconic names have closed their doors. One such was Russeks.
The Little History Left of an Icon
Russeks started in the early 1900’s. It was known as a premier furrier and had outposts in Manhattan and Brooklyn. As it grew in popularity Russeks extend its collections to include luxury clothing and accessories. By the time the 1940’s rolled around it was a full-fledged department store with a prominent 5th Avenue address likes its competitors. They also started to expand outside of Manhattan to wealthy suburbs such as in Michigan to appeal to the automotive tycoon’s wives.
But the popularity was short-lived. In 1959 Russeks had to close its 5th Avenue location due to years of losses. Throughout the years all the remaining Russeks closed their doors. I have been unable to pinpoint the exact date that the last store shuttered. I was able to find a possible relative who operated a “Russeks” store in Arizona until his death in 2000 and that shuttered. Yet, I don’t think his Russek’s store was part of the chain but somewhat inspired by the stores of yesteryear.
The last remnants of Russeks (sans items bearing the label and memories passed down) is a faded painted sign. I found the picture below on the site Ephemeral New York along with a little insight on Russeks. The comments are filled with memories of the almost forgotten gem.
A Little Bit of Fame
The Russek family was large. There were a few notable members of the Russek clan. Diane Arbus who was the granddaughter of the founder was a famed photographer. Unfortunately, she had struggled with her mental health for most of her life. She committed suicide in 1970. Her brother Howard was Pulitzer Prize winning Poet and was named Poet Laureate twice. Also, Leo Carillo and Jorge Russek were actors in the mid-1900’s. The Russeks also had their own parts in the Mexican Revolutionary War. I was able to pull this information from Ancestry.com
I am also going to check out the movie Fur starring Nicole Kidman. It’s a biopic about Diane Arbus that came out in 2009. From what I have found on the good old internet, it is a very interesting movie and gives some background on Russeks.
About Our Blog
Since starting Aunt Gladys’ Attic I have immersed myself in the vintage world. I have found out about old designers and stores I never knew existed…in fairness, I have only been around for 35 years. What I noticed though is that I had to dig to find bits and pieces. For the most part, it was hard to find everything on one site or post. Since I love to share my own knowledge I decided to start blogging about what I have found. I also wanted to share some resources and sites I have found along the way. If there is something you would like information on, contact me here, and it might be featured on our blog.
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