National Register of Historic Places

Woolworth, F. W., Company Building

Wilmington, New Castle County, Delaware
Listed
January 2, 1987
Type
Building
Period
Industrial
Ref No.
86003755

About this property

The F. W. Woolworth Company Building is a historic department store building located in downtown Wilmington, Delaware. From 1940 to 1997, the F. W. Woolworth Company operated the store, this location being one of the last to close. The building then housed a Happy Harry's drug store and pharmacy for several years until that company was purchased by Walgreens in 2007. Walgreens continued to operate the acquired Happy Harry's stores, including the Market Street store, under the Happy Harry's name for some time. The building was purchased by a subsidiary of BPG Property Group in 2008 who now leases the location back to Walgreens and it's opened under the Walgreens name. Designed by company architect H. W. Stakes, the art deco building uses steel frame construction with a masonry curtain wall. The facade on the 2nd and 3rd stories displays alternating peach and cream vertical stripes of terra cotta tile with lotus motifs. The building has a grey medallion with a raised "W" on the chamfered corner on 9th and Market. When a Woolworth's store, the interior had two sales floors, the current ground floor and the bargain basement. The escalators to the basement floor are still visible in the store. In 1959, Woolworth added a third story which appeared in the original blue prints. BPG has plans to renovate the building's upper floors and to add an additional two stories to the building for use as apartments. The building stands at the shopping intersection of 9th and Market streets a block off Rodney Square at the heart of the central business district. Woolworths also operated another store four blocks away at 504 Market Street. That second location now houses the Delaware History Museum. National Register of Historic Places listings in Wilmington, Delaware Downtown Wilmington Archived 2007-07-15 at the Wayback Machine

Location

839 N. Market St.
Wilmington, New Castle County, Delaware
39.74466, -75.54843

Categories

ARCHITECTURE
National Register nomination ›
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Nearby Historic Sites

Wilmington Savings Fund Society
Industrial
0 mi
Masonic Hall and Grand Theater
Industrial
0.1 mi
Govatos'/McVey Building
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0.1 mi
Gray, Charles, Printing Shop
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0.1 mi
Keil, Max, Building
Industrial
0.1 mi

Nearby Battles

Battle of Brandywine — Birmingham Hill
1777Revolutionary War
5.5 mi
Battle of Birmingham Hill (Brandywine)
1777Revolutionary War
5.6 mi
Skirmish at Brandywine – Birmingham Hill
1777Revolutionary War
6.1 mi

Questions about this property

When was Woolworth, F. W., Company Building listed on the National Register?

Woolworth, F. W., Company Building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on January 2, 1987.

What type of historic resource is Woolworth, F. W., Company Building?

Woolworth, F. W., Company Building is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Woolworth, F. W., Company Building?

The period of significance for Woolworth, F. W., Company Building is recorded as the industrial era.

Can I research the history near Woolworth, F. W., Company Building?

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