Remembering Furchgott's Department Store

[Metro Jacksonville]

Remembering Furchgott's Department Store



Metro Jacksonville takes a look into the past of one of downtown's most blighted sore spots:  The former Furchgott's Department Store building.


Full Article
http://www.metrojacksonville.com/article/2011-jan-remembering-furchgotts-department-store

[I-10east]

Thanks Lake for the great info as always. I didn't even know about this old department store. This was closed before I got here in 86'. I do remember some of the last DT department stores to go like Mc Cory's & Woolworth.

[riverside planner]

I remember going to Furchgott's as a little girl with my grandmother.  It was the "fancy" department store where she bought her perfume.

[copperfiend]

The demolition of the Post Office Building has to go down as one of the biggest mistakes in the history of this city. What a beautiful building.

[blandman]

Great info!  Anyone have current pictures of the interior?

[fsujax]

i actually had a chance to tour the inside of that building a few years back. It still has the department store look. Mirrored columns, etc. It is sad. Could you imagine if Stein Mart put a store in there? oh the possibilities.

[acme54321]

The worst thing about this is the post office that was torn down to build this mundane building.

[jcjohnpaint]

yeah that post office looked so beautiful

[Jumpinjack]

Furchgotts was a fancy store. They carried the best of everything. When you entered the store, the street level floor was always decorated elaborately, up to the ceilings, with the seasonal decorations.  They didn't have to rely on Sunday advertising inserts to get customers. Just walking by their store on the sidewalk, you looked in their windows and saw wonderful displays of merchandise that encouraged you go in and shop.

The elevators were run by ladies who sat on a little wooden seat and told you which floor carried the items you wanted. The clerks knew their departments and were very helpful getting you just the right items. If you needed clothes, they helped you size them and try them on. Real customer service.

Downtown had inexpensive merchandise stores, and then they had Cohens, Rosenblums, and Furchgotts.

[comncense]

Yeah the original post office building definitely was a beautiful building. Looks like Jacksonville has a long history with making bad decisions with downtown. Sad thing is, there's no real change in sight...

[simms3]

Marsh and Saxelbye designed so many intricately beautiful buildings/houses, and then they put up this work?  The least they could have done was to pay homage to the absolutely gorgeous building they were replacing.  If I was a cash rich developer, I would build an exact replica of the old post office in Jacksonville.  The Post Office was the worst building to demolish and still to me stands out as Jacksonville's prettiest old building.

[simms3]

Downtown had inexpensive merchandise stores, and then they had Cohens, Rosenblums, and Furchgotts.

I believe Rosenblum's is still around, no?  One at the beach and one on San Jose?

[Jumpinjack]

There is/was? a really small store in San Jose.

[Shwaz]

I'm glad they down the marble towers of the old post office... considering how nice our current downtown post office is 

[cline]

Downtown had inexpensive merchandise stores, and then they had Cohens, Rosenblums, and Furchgotts.

I believe Rosenblum's is still around, no?  One at the beach and one on San Jose?

It is.  They have two stores, one on San Jose near University and one at the Beach.