Pogue's 1916 building on the corner of 4th and Race Streets in Cincinnati. The 3 smaller buildings to the east on 4th Street were occupied by Pogue's as well.
Pogue's eventually occupied part of the Carew Tower complex at 5th and Race Streets. Pogue's 4th Street store is visible next to the Art-Deco structure of the Carew Tower, which also housed the beautiful Netherland Plaza Hotel.
The Arcade of the Carew Tower, occupied by Pogue's in later years, but originally home to Mabley & Carew, a competitor who left the complex when Rollman's Department Store went out of business. The Rollman's site became Mabley's flagship, allowing Pogue's to expand into this space.
A latter day aerial view of Cincinnati clearly shows the H. & S. Pogue Co. store below the Netherland Plaza and Carew Tower. The 1916 building, and older parts of the store have been unified by a modernized ground floor, emblazoned with the distinctive Pogue's logo barely visible. Interestingly, competitors McAlpin's (across 4th Street) and Mabley & Carew (the vertically-accened building north of the Carew Tower on Fountain Square) are also visible. Shillito's, the other of Cincinnati's department stores was located further north, and is visible to the left of the Carew Tower's top.
410 Race Street
Cincinnati, Ohio
Do you remember
The Camargo Room, the
Ice Cream Bridge or
any of the restaurants
at Pogues?
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DOWNTOWN STORE DIRECTORY
Lower Arcade
Fourth Street
Health & Beauty Aids • Personal Care • Arcade Dresses • Arcade Sportswear
Fifth Street
Snack Bar
First Floor
Fourth Street
Fine Jewelry • Fashion Jewelry • Precious Metals • Beauty World • Fine Fragrances • Hat Bar • Wig Bar • The Eye Ball Shoppe • Handbags • Small Leather Goods • Gloves • Belts • Fashion Accessories • Hosiery
• Rain Shop • Lingerie • Robes • Daywear • Hostesswear • Calculators • Greeting Cards • Stationery • Notions
The Fourth Street Market Epicure • Bakery • Wine Shop • Fine Candies • Godiva Boutique • Flowers By Pogue's • The Wine Bar
Fifth Street
Top Shop • Plaza Sportswear • Plaza Lingerie • Plaza Shoes • Men's Bar • Men's Accessories • Men's Furnishings • Men's Shirts and Ties • Men's Sport Furnishings • Men's Active Sportswear • Tennis Shop • Men's Pendleton Shop • Men's Lifestyle
Second Floor
Fourth Street
Shoe Salon • Aigner Shop • Pappagallo • Classic Shoes • Casual Shoes • Sportswear Classics • Blouse Classics • Sweater Classic • Sportswear Collections • Dress Collections • Coat Collections • Weekend Wear • Izod Shop • Evan-Picone
Camargo Shops Camargo Dresses • Camargo Casuals • Camargo Knits • Camargo Coats • Camargo Sportswear • Camargo Active Sportswear • Camargo Blouses • Camargo Sweaters • Camargo II • Young Camargo
Specialty Shops Designer Sportswear • Designer Dresses • Coat Salon • Fur Salon • Designer Salon • Milinery Salon • Bridal Salon
Bridge
Ice Cream Bridge Soda Fountain
Fifth Street
Lingerie on Two • Loungewear on Two • Sleepwear • Foundations • Bare Essentials • Designer Intimate Apparel
Pogue's Juniors Junior Sportswear • Junior Blouses • Junior Sweaters • Junior Dresses • Junior Coats • Junior Shoes • Page Boy Boutique
Men's Clothing • Men's Shoes • Men's Hats • International Shop • Contemporary Shop • Student Shop
Third Floor
Plaza Dresses • Plaza Coats • Today's Woman • Fashion Fabrics • Art Needlework • Sewing Machines
Young World Boys' Shop • Student Shop • Izod Shop • Girls' Accessories • Girls' Lingerie • Girls' 3-6x • Girls' 7-14 • Young Teens • Infants' Shop • Toddlers' Shop • Children's Shoes • Tresses and Curls
Fourth Floor
Linens • Bath Shop • Bedspreads • Pillows • Draperies • Curtains • Floor Coverings • Rugs • Lamps • China • The Silver Gallery • Crystal • Table Linens • Gifts • Gift Bar Shop • Tastesetter Gallery • Mineral Gallery • Pictures and Mirrors • Toys • Books • Records
Fifth Floor
Furniture Galleries • Sleep Shop • Baldwin
Sixth Floor
Housewares • Gourmet Housewares • Appliances • Personal Care • Sweepers • Electronics • Radio/TV • Home & Garden • Sporting Goods • Camargo Room Restaurant
BRANCH STORES (1956-1976)
Kenwood Plaza (1956)
193,000 sq. ft.
Camargo Restaurant
160,000 sq. ft.
Camargo Restaurant
Ice Cream Parlor
153,000 sq. ft.
Balcony Restaurant
Florence Mall (1976)
Florence, KY
112,000 sq. ft.
BRANCH STORE MAP
Hiya,
ReplyDeleteThe Curator (Mall Hall of Fame) here. There has been some controversy as to whether -or not- the east anchor at BEECHMONT MALL [1969] (Cincinnati) was originally an H & S Pogue or a Mabley & Carew.
Would you have any info about this?
Cheers,
I have checked with several longtime Anderson Twp. residents and they say they don't remember there ever being a Pogues anywhere on Beechmont. Mabley & Carew was the original east side tenant in the Beechmont Mall.
ReplyDeletePogues had locations downtown, Northgate Mall and Kenwood Plaza and became L.S. Ayres. The Northgate and Kenwood stores eventually became J.C. Penney's. The downtown store was demolished and Tower Place Mall built.
Hi,
ReplyDeleteCan anyone help me find pictures and the history of Pogue's Department store?
Dear Christmas Lady:
ReplyDeleteI realize that I have not added the information I have about Pogue's into the Museum yet. I plan to publish a store directory and a picture of 2 of the branch stores I have been able to find.
Having relatives in the Cincinnati area, I had the opportunity to visit Pogue's in the late 1970s. I can verify that it was a distinctive, beautiful store with a very dignified yet up-to-date atmosphere. I am not sure why Pogues had a "Camargo" restaurant and "Camargo" shops for fashions, since this name refers to an area ion the South of France. Whatever the reason, it was just a small things that helped Pogue's seem unique.
An anecdote: In college, my mechanical engineering ("Pipes Class") professor worked on an HVAC system for the store in the 1950s or 1960s. When the system was completed, the steam rising from cooling tower on the roof made the store executives laugh that they should change the name from the "H. & S. Pogue Company" to the "H.M.S. Pogue Company"
Pogue's had an original store, designed by the noted Cincinnati architect Samuel Hannaford, at Fourth and Race Streets, but expanded into the adjoining Carew Tower building after Mabley & Carew left that iconic Cincinnati complex for the site of Rollman's department store which had gone out of business. Pogue's therefore had a "Fourth Street" and "Fifth Street" side to their downtown store.
I will put up the Pogue's information if I can find the time, soon.
BAK
The other anchor at Beechmont Mall was Shillitos.
ReplyDeleteI have a Federated Department Store 1982 Fact Book Listing it. It is now a Macy's at Anderson Town Center
The Carmargo Room was likely in reference to The Camargo Country Club located north of downtown in the wealthy community of Indian Hill, where I am certain many of Poques best customers resided.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the great site!
The Camargo Room restaurant was on the sixth floor, behind the housewares department. There was also a Soup Bar and a Mens Grille on six. The menu had The Legend of the Camargo printed on it, but I don't recall what it said. If anyone has a copy of that menu it would shed some light on the use of the name. There was also a Camargo Cafeteria in the Kenwood store when the second level was added over the parking garage. It latter became a table service restaurant, but closed a year or two before the store was merged into L.S Ayres. The Northgate store also had an Ice Cream Balcony, modeled after the downtown Ice Cream Bridge, which overlooked the Northgate Mall. Tri-county also had an Ice Cream Parlor, and then a very small restaurant. Pogue's was a fine store in its day.
ReplyDeleteI wanted to know if you can give me any information on my hats,I have a mabley and carew hat,a modern miss,and one that says union ww 802102 made in the USA, all hats are in a pogue hat box.
ReplyDeleteI have a bracelet and clip earring set [costume jewelry] and on the box it has H & S Pogue Company on it. It is in great condition and I was wondering if you could tell me anything about it. I can email a picture of it to you if you are.
ReplyDeleteI remember Pogue's very well. My mother worked in Linens there for around 15 years. We went to the Camargo room a couple times and also the Ice Cream Bridge. I remember the Christmas decorations in the Arcade and the two deer they had which talked to you. In any case, it was personally a very sad day for me when the store closed.
ReplyDeleteI worked at Pogue's in the 1980's and was told the Camargo Room, and our Camargo private label of better women's wear, was in reference to Camargo Road, an exclusive Cincinnati address. A lovely store, and a joy to work in.
ReplyDeleteChuck do you (or anyone else) remember the names of the two reindeer Pogue's had in their Christmas display? Our family really enjoyed going "overtown" during the holidays to look at all the decorations and shop for gifts.
ReplyDeleteI have a sport coat (no size but appears to be young or small man) with H.S. Pogue label and buttons showing Cincinnati Fountain Square! I hate to just give it to a thrift shop. Any ideas?
ReplyDeleteI loved Pogue's end of month sales. What a beautiful store it was.
I would take the sport coat & but it to good use at Costume Gallery. I also have many clothing items from Cincinnati Department Stores. I also collect Cincinnati Department Store Hat Boxes. I could help identify items.
ReplyDeleteI'm also looking for pictures of the Christmas display that was in the arcade.
Joy
Pogie and Padder were the names of the reindeer and they are actual on a local TV commercial right now
ReplyDeleteI am the great grand daughter of Henry Pogue & it is great to read everyone's positive comments......I miss that store! My grandfather was an inspiration to the business I founded.
ReplyDeleteAs for the Beechmont Mall question this will clarify.
ReplyDeletePogue's was at Beachmont Mall. LS Ayre's purchased Pogue's and it was then converted to LS Ayre's. Later, most of LS Ayre's locations in the Cincinnati area were purchased by Parisian after they closed. With the exception of a few locations such as Tri-County Mall, since Parisian had a new store 2 miles from Tri-County Mall.
So if you ask people if they remember LS Ayre's at Beechmont, they will say, OH YES!
Hope this clears things up.
I am William Summerville My father Wi;;iam Summerville worked at Pogues from 1936-1976. He started as a draftsman for Walter Henie(sp). He finished as the building Super. After he retired he consulted on the Florence store
ReplyDeleteCan anyone tell me where the candy canes for Pogie and Padder came from??
ReplyDeleteHi, there was no Pogues store at Beechmont Mall. It was a Mabley and Carew until taken over by Parisian. I did Arts and Crafts shows for many, many years at Beechmont and we were usually down at that end of the mall. Shillitos, then Lazarus, now Macy's anchored the other end. Pogie and Patter were the two adorable talking reindeer, and are on a commercial right now in Cincinnati! I would love to see a picture of the fabulous Arcade decorated for Christmas with Pogie and Patter!
ReplyDeleteI was an advertising copywriter (for newspaper ads) at Pogue's for about a year in the early 1960s. Loved the work. My good friend was the advertising copywriter (for newspaper ads) for Mabley & Carew at the time. We used to have a friendly rivalry to see who could include the most puns, or wordplay in general, in the ads!
ReplyDeleteFamily tradition of writing: my Dad, Verne Jay, had been a writer of dramatic shows at WLW from 1947-1956.
It was great reading this post about Pogue's. I have great memories of my mom taking me and my brother to meet my grandparents for lunch at the Camargo Room at the Kenwood Pogue's. The toy department was just at the entrance to the restaurant and they carried high-end brands like Britannia toy soldiers and Corgi toy cars. Every now and then (Christmas or birthday) my mom or grandparents would splurge and buy us one of these toys. Really great memories of that store.
ReplyDeleteOn another note, my sister was a buyer for Gidding-Jenny. Hope to see an entry about that store, as it was another Cincinnati retail icon...
My mother worked in the display department of ogue's in 1938-1940 and was trying to remember the name of the department head. She is 93 years old and would like to remember his name. Any help would be appreciated.
ReplyDeleteOf the four Cincinnati department stores I knew, I miss Pogue's the most. It was the finest, though Shillito's was a close second and was a larger, more diverse store. I liked Mabley & Carew very much also. McAlpin's was my least favorite, but still it was a good store too. They all offered excellent service and were all infinitely better than the current assortment--Macy's, Sak's, Nordstrom and Dillard's. There were two older stores which I did not really know because they were already out of business by my time in the 1960s and 1970s--Rollman's and Alms & Doepke. They are worthy of inclusion in this archive I would suggest and I have occasionally seen some information about them online. Rollman's was at 5th & Vine where Mabley & Carew was located in my day and Macy's and Tiffany's is now. Alms & Doepke was on Central Parkway at Main Street accross from the Hamilton County Courthouse. The building was nicely restored and is still there. It now houses Hamilton County's Jobs & Family Services Department.
ReplyDeleteThank you for all of your kind and interesting comments about these great Ohio stores . . . which are truly missed. I have relatives from the Cincinnati area, and when we saw them, they always mentioned their "favorite" from among these stores. Hopefully, I will be able to do justice to them as I acquire more materials.
ReplyDeleteThanks again,
Bruce
I was a buyer at Pogue's from 1975-1978. It was a great store with outstanding customer service. Puts current dept stores to shame. Those locally owned stores really understood their customer. Just a shame that they couldn't compete on a larger stage with the bigger fish gobbling up the smaller yet more elegant little fish. Gidding Jenny and Henry Harris were two other notable retailers that succumbed. Ah the good old days.
ReplyDeleteIs there any site which might show the historical logos for this store? I have a set of unhemmed, unwashed "Lovely Linen" double damask dinner napkins, one of which has a price sticker from Pogue's for $2.98 per dozen. I'd love to know the circa age of the napkins.
ReplyDeleteI bought these eleven napkins at a 2nd hand store in Reno, Nevada for $2.99.
Jackie
Hello, Jackie!
ReplyDeleteThe logo used on this page is the only one I am familiar with, though the store had several later, less-attractive ones in the late-70s before the store was folded into L.S. Ayres of Indianapolis.
This was, I think, a very long-lived logo, but I am sure the store had earlier ones.
Unfortunately, the Cincinnati newspapers are not available to me on line at this time. Perhaps someone from The Queen City could enlighten us. If someone would like to email a logo for use on this site, you can send it to bakgraphics@comcast.net. It would be nice to know when the design was in use as well.
Bruce
I worked in the Mens Dept at Pogues and was a buyer from 1979 to 1982. Pogues was a fantastic store and working there was a highlight of my life. It is a shame it is not around anymore; I do not believe people today would appreciate paying a bit more, but getting quality and service.
ReplyDeleteLoved their nectar sodas!
ReplyDeletei worked seasonally at pogues during the 70's. i worked in shipping. the store has a maze of slides throughout the building where packages would be sent to a sub-basement to be wrapped and shipped to the customers home. since most shoppers used the streetcars when the store was built it was common to have the purchase mailed rather than carry it home. there are several basements in the building some of which look more like vast caves. they are used for heating and plumbing lines and some were only a few feet high. the shipping department has a long conveyor belt with stalls on either side where wrappers had an assortment of gift wrap depending on occasion.
ReplyDeleteRoss Murphy
ReplyDeleteI purchased a set of crystal glassware from Pogues in late 1960 or early 1970 for which I now neeed a replacement for a broken item. Unfortunately I don't remember the make or pattern. Are there any former Pogue associates that may be able to help me out.
I misss shopping at Pogues also.
I have a garden piece that is to hang on a wall. I bought it in Springboro several years ago. It is a bas relief of a lion's head in a circle. It was called the Pogue's Lion. I assumed it was taken from a fixture on the outside of a Pogue's store. Can you shed any light on this? I've bought a building in OTR and have one room as a “Cincinnati” room with all local things and would like to include this.
ReplyDeleteMy guess is that the lion's head was one of the decorative panels which were on the exterior of the 4th and Race building of Pogue's (where Tower Place Mall is now). There were a dozen or more along the top of the second floor level above pilasters. The heads were inside a circle which in turn was inside a square.
ReplyDelete7/31/12 I have so enjoyed reading this wonderful Cincinnati History. I was a friend of Michael Custer whoms mother Helen Custer was a buyer for Pogue during the 1959 to 1980's. I myself became a buyer for Mc Alpin company from 1959 to 1969. My most favorite of my 53 working years. My great grandmother was the owner of the property where Shillito's built.
ReplyDeleteHer name was the same as mine Caroline Hassen.
We were a fashion setting city. Those were wonderful years. Thank you for your efforts. chb.
Just a note that Pogue's fan might enjoy Facebook page "H&S Pogue Company of Cincinnati"
ReplyDeleteThanks, Anonymous 31 July. You must be correct. The head is inside a circle. While it doesn't have an outer square, this is close enough for me to feel comfortable that this is it's provenance. Much appreciated, just sorry the building is gone.
ReplyDeleteI concur the Camargo rooms at the Pogue stores had to be in reference to Camargo Country Club in Indian Hill, one of the most exclusive clubs in the city. Just like for years there has been a Camargo Cadillac dealership in Montgomery - Cadillac, Camargo, money - get it.
ReplyDeletePogue was just a class store, dealing in only quality merchandise. My wife and I just celebrated our 50th wedding anniversay this past October 13th. We are still using our original bedroom set, manufactured by Henredon and purchased at Pogue downtown prior to our marriage. It is as solid as the day we bought it.
You could not always afford Pogue, but you knew if you bought something there you could reply on it being quality. I remember buying my wife a black wool long cloth winter coat there for her first birthday after we were married. It had a snap on mink collar. She never did wear it out, it just became so outdated design wise she gave it away to a charity. I am sure some sole was happy to have it as it wore like iron.
was anyone on the Pogues Teen Board back in the sixties? I would like to reconnect -
ReplyDeletemy name is Chris and my phone # is 513-488-98069
Cincinnati had alot of different and wild names for department stores. Yes this was a good times of good names of famous department stores which today you have the same dull names...
ReplyDeleteHappy Holidays~~!!
My Grandmother, Eunice Baker, worked as a seamstress for Pogue's during most of the 50's. She said whenever anyone bought clothes from them they were almost always altered.
ReplyDeleteHi there!
ReplyDeleteI have been searching the internet for some information on Jenny Gidding Store in Cincinnati. I have inherited a coat and would love to discover more information about the store...when it was established/closed and who by. Could you help please? Thank you!
Teresa
Gidding-jenny was a carriage-trade clothing store in Cincinnati. I don't have too much other information. The new book on Ayres by Ken Turchi references the store, but only peripherally. There were originally two separate firms, Gidding and The Jenny Company. Today (a comment upon our times) the elegant old building on 4th street houses a TJ Maxx!
ReplyDeleteRead more at:
http://books.google.com/books?id=-x4DAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA56&lpg=PA56&dq=%22Gidding-Jenny%22&source=bl&ots=bHDHXFeSzY&sig=aA6HDcySYi5nlhDukY-sRkPhyoo&hl=en&sa=X&ei=jgHvUOvjKpC9qAHoiID4Dw&ved=0CE8Q6AEwBw#v=onepage&q=%22Gidding-Jenny%22&f=false
Bruce
Wow - does this bring back memories! I *loved* the downtown Pogue's. It was an elegant store the equal of my favorite New York store Bonwit Teller. As a teen in the late 70's, early 80's, I remember shopping there (first Prom dress!) for special occasions and eating at the soda fountain on the bridge over the arcade. Later, when I had a summer job downtown, I would go there to browse the 4th Street Market, buy a chocolate or two at the Godiva counter, marvel at all of the exotic ingredients and pieces of unusual cookware, and come home with a small bouquet on occasion for my mother (none of the other department stores sold flowers or had a market like this).
ReplyDeleteThe Camargo name is indeed associated with the Camargo Country Club, located in suburban Indian Hills, where all of the wealthy people lived. What you may not know is that the club, the road it is on, and thus the high end departments in the store, were named after a famous Belgian-French ballerina, Marie Camargo, who was among the great innovators and modernizers of Classical Ballet: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marie_Anne_de_Cupis_de_Camargo. There was supposedly a connection between Mme Camargo and someone local to the area (which is probably apocryphal - she died in 1770), but her name is French, elegant and associated with Haute Culture, so it pleased the society people who had begun to build their manses out there and it stuck.
Thank you for the Giddings link - this is another store I miss! I could never have afforded to shop there, but it was where one could buy Haute Couture in CIncinnati - all of the biggest designers had Prèt-á-Porter there - and it was connected to the Pogues next door through an entrance on the 2nd or 3rd floor. When I could screw up the courage, I would go into Giddings through that door and wander through the store looking at all of the designer details I could see from the aisle (I would never have presumed to touch!) to incorporate into my own sewing. Then I could buy the yardgoods next door at Pogue's. :-) They also carried fragrances and cosmetics I had seen in New York and, later, Paris that weren't available anywhere else between NY and Chicago. The outside of the building had a faience facade made in 1907 by the famous local Rookwood Pottery, which is still there, even if it is decorating a TJ Maxx. As an architect, I thought you might appreciate the pictures: http://visualingual.wordpress.com/2008/06/05/gidding-jenny-department-store-downtown/
Thanks for collecting these old memories! My 14 year old daughter is amazed by the very idea of these old Grand Dames and would love to have a time machine to go back and visit their heyday, since there is nothing like them any more. Me, too. :-)
Hello Lark!
ReplyDeleteThank you very much for sharing such lovely memories and giving us an insight to the world of Cincinnati retail.
The Camargo detail is one which I did not know - and it is thoroughly fascinating!
Bruce
Hi. My Aunt passed away last fall at the age of 91 and we are slowly going through some of her things....I have a possible cuff link jewelery case with the logo of Pogue's Men's Shop Cincinnati and a crest on the underside of the lid. So I looked the company up on the Internet and found this site. Thank you for keeping the history of this company alive!
ReplyDeletejust saw this sight,,,,I worked in the advertising dept at Pogue's from 1970- 1976....most everything written is true but a few minor details...
ReplyDeletethe store had a downtown location, Kenwood, Tri County and Northgate..that is it!....
Pogie and Patter were created out of necessity...for several years we had a white Santa and a Black Santa and there was much confusion as how to promote each of them(and they were on different floors) so the reindeers solved that problem and they were in the arcade so everyone was happy.
The Sales promotion director came from Neiman Marcus and his expertise brought new light and interest to the department store business rather before it became SALE, SALE SALE!!! Pogue's knew exactly how to promote it self and to do alot of self promotion rather than specific products.... Christmas, with the carolers, Spring Gardens in the Arcade, A British ForthNight,, Around the World, and Italian Nights and the fashion show when Halston, Betsey Johnson, Oscar de la Renta would all come in,,,,and not to forget
Estee Lauder came to the store when we launched YOUTH DEW
perfume
The Christmas Catalogs were gorgeous "magazines" actually always at lease 120 pages! ( I know because I was in charge and lived and breathed Christmas from May thru October!) We would hire models from New York, Chicago,,,,,,,
As you can see I can go on and on....it was a VERY EXCITING TIME for retail......not like today ...fun to talk about the good aold days!