I found the photos at News Tribune Attic, an archive of the Duluth News Tribune. Miller Hill Mall opened in 1973, anchored by J.C. Penney (above) and Montgomery Ward (below). JCP is still there. Ward was replaced by DSW Shoe Warehouse, Barnes & Noble, and Old Navy in 2001.
What I noticed right away was the lavish amount of space, not just in the aisles but in the respective sections themselves. The mall wasn’t just a warehouse of merchandise, but a place of comfort, a journey into the fantasy of the American Dream.
I wish the photos enlarged. The toy section in the fifth shot down stretches out on both sides of the aisle, and I can’t make out a damn thing.
My obsession with shopping malls goes back a ways.
Someone should make a movie in that environment and have some zombies in there…