Sanger Harris
Sanger Harris was a department store chain based in Dallas, Texas. The chain was owned by department store conglomerate Federated Department Stores and was formed from the 1961 merger of two Dallas-based chains, Sanger Brothers and A. Harris and Co., both dating back to the 19th century.
At its height, the chain owned 20 stores, most in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex with some additional stores in Oklahoma and Arizona. In 1987, Federated merged Sanger Harris into its Houston-based Foley's chain, which itself would be merged into Macy's in 2006. Most former Sanger Harris stores have been demolished or remodeled.
History
Sanger Harris of Dallas, Texas, was the result of the 1961 merger of then four-unit Sanger Brothers Dry Goods Company of Dallas, founded in 1868 by the five Sanger brothers and acquired by Federated Department Stores in 1951; and the two-unit A. Harris and Company of Dallas, founded in 1887 and acquired by Federated in 1961.In 1965 the company built a new downtown Dallas store to replace the flagship stores of the two companies and, so the business legend goes, turned down the opportunity to move into a new shopping center called NorthPark Center. During the late 1970s, the chain dropped the hyphen between 'Sanger' and 'Harris', and continued as an upper-moderate shopping destination. In January 1987 it was merged into the Foley's division; the combined division was sold to The May Department Store Company the next year. Most locations are now Macy's since 2006 when Federated Stores bought out The May Department Stores Company in 2005.
Architecture
Sanger Harris stores are known for their distinctive architectural styling, featuring large white marble columns and an abstract mosaic crafted from tiles. This design was introduced with the 1965 downtown flagship, which had the columns and mosaic covering three sides of the store. Future stores, starting with the 1970 store at Six Flags Mall, emulated this design at smaller entryways, with mosaic designs that were, with a few exceptions, unique to each store. Many of the mosaics were designed by Brenda Stubel, one of the first female architects in Dallas.The mosaic and columns were present at most Sanger Harris department stores constructed between 1965 and 1982. Most of these stores have since been demolished or remodeled; for example, the downtown flagship still features its marble columns, but the tiles were removed when it was renovated into an office building. The only mosaics remaining are at the Hulen Mall, Woodland Hills Mall, and The Shops at RedBird locations. Efforts to preserve the mosaics at demolished locations, such as Valley View Center and Collin Creek Mall, have failed due to the murals' thick asbestos-based stucco and lack of a metallic lath resulting in high removal, cleaning, and preservation costs.
Locations
Sanger Brothers (1868–1961)
| Location | Years of operation | Notes |
| Downtown Dallas Elm St./Lamar St./Main St. block Dallas | 1870s–1965 | This store was open until the new replacement Sanger-Harris location opened at Pacific/Akard in 1965; this building is now the El Centro College campus of the Dallas County Community College District. |
| Highland Park Village Highland Park | ?–1987 | This location was retained by Foley's. The building was later a Sakowitz location. Now other retailer occupy the space. |
| Big Town Mall Mesquite | 1959–1987 | This location closed after the Foley's merger; it was torn down when the mall was razed. |
| Preston Center Dallas | ?–1987 | Foley's retained this location until they moved to NorthPark Center. It was then subdivided for occupancy by multiple tenants. |
A. Harris & Co. (1887–1961)
| Location | Years of operation | Notes |
| Downtown Main and Akard St. Dallas | ?–1965 | This store was open until the new replacement Sanger-Harris location opened at Pacific/Akard in 1965; it is now an apartment building. |
| A. Harris Center Beckley Ave. at Kiest Blvd. Dallas | ?–1975 | This store was retained as a Sanger-Harris location until the opening of the Red Bird Mall location; it is now Nolan Estes Plaza, part of the Dallas Independent School District. |
Sanger-Harris (1961–1987)
| Location | Years of operation | Notes |
| Plymouth Park Irving | 1963–1987 | This location was closed. The property was sold to a neighboring church and the building was later razed. |
| Downtown Pacific and Akard St. Dallas | 1965–1987 | Foley's retained this location until it closed in 1990; it is now the headquarters for Dallas Area Rapid Transit. |
| Six Flags Mall Arlington | 1970–1987 | Foley's closed this location, which was torn down in late 2016 along with much of the mall property. |
| Town East Mesquite | 1971–1987 | Foley's retained this store, which is now a Macy's. |
| Valley View Center Dallas | 1973–1987 | Foley's, and later Macy's, retained this location initially. It has since closed and was demolished, 2017–19. |
| Southwest Center Dallas | 1975–1987 | This location was retained by Foley's and Macy's until 2017 when the store closed. |
| Hulen Mall Fort Worth | 1977–1987 | This location was retained by Foley's and Macy's. |
| North Hills Mall North Richland Hills | 1979–1987 | Foley's closed this location when it moved to nearby North East Mall. The building was torn down when mall property was razed. |
| Collin Creek Mall Plano | 1980–1987 | This location was retained by Foley's and Macy's until 2017 when the store closed. The building was demolished in 2019. |
| Sanger Harris Plaza Tyler | 1982–1987 | This location was retained by Foley's and Macy's until 2017 when the store closed. The building was remodeled into a Hobby Lobby and Mardel Christian bookstore. |
| Southroads Tulsa | ?–1987 | This location was retained by Foley's initially, but the store and mall were torn down and the property redeveloped. Foley's relocated to Promenade Mall across the street. |
| Woodland Hills Tulsa | 1982–1987 | This location was retained by Foley's and Macy's. This was the last location to feature Sanger Harris mosaics, which are still visible on the north facade. |
| Crossroads Oklahoma City | 1986–1987 | Originally opened as John A. Brown 1974–1984, Foley's 1986-2006, and later Macy's retained this location. The building was later used as an auto parts warehouse., the site is being converted for use as a private charter school. |
| Quail Springs Oklahoma City | 1986–1987 | Originally opened as John A. Brown 1980–1984, Foley's 1986-2006, and later Macy's retained this location until February 2016 when it was closed. This structure was later demolished in spring 2017 to make room for a free-standing Lifetime Fitness building to be built in the store's original parking lot. The former upper-level entrance into the mall is now another direct outside entrance to the mall. The former lower level has also been demolished and filled in. The spot where the department store building itself once stood is now a parking lot for both the mall and Lifetime Fitness. |
| Foothills Tucson | 1985–1987 | Retained by Foley's initially, mall now repurposed with outlets |
| El Con Tucson | 1985–1987 | Retained by Foley's initially, later a Robinsons-May, then a Macy's, now demolished for a Walmart Supercenter |
| Coronado Center Albuquerque | 1984–1987 | Foley's initially retained this store, later closed the store, then returned still later to another space in the mall ; now this location is a JCPenney. |
In popular culture
- In early episodes of Dallas, the downtown Dallas store was used for filming in two different storylines:
- In the 1986 movie True Stories, a fashion show takes place at the mall in Virgil, Texas. As the scene is about to begin, the camera pans by a mall's exterior. A Sanger Harris store building can be seen, among others. This exterior actually belonged to Big Town Mall in Mesquite.
- During Dallas showings of The Rocky Horror Picture Show, audience members would sing the Sanger Harris jingle "You can always tell a Sanger Harris man". This was done when Dr. Frank-N-Furter came down the elevator in heels and fishnet stockings.
- Prank call comedian Lucius Tate often pretended to be a collection agent from Sanger Harris when calling his victims.
Archived TV ads
Category:Companies based in Dallas
Category:Retail companies disestablished in 1987
Category:Defunct companies based in Texas
Category:Retail companies established in 1961
Category:1961 establishments in Texas