Quote Originally Posted by DetroitPlanner View Post
Hudson's never had the grandeur of the MF. It did not have enormous multi-story light wells. It was more like a huge version of Carson's. About 20 years ago MF went through a big transformation and additional space was removed when a large central escalator lobby was installed. This took out tens of thousands of square feet of space, but at least allowed the rest of the store to look more full. Prior to then, it still had several closed floors.
The Marshall Field building is a little smaller than Hudson's but Burnham's unified design and stone construction make it a more stately presence than the Hudson's building, which grew incrementally and was faced with a frankly unattractive reddish-brown brick. I am speaking strictly of the architectural character of the respective stores. As retail and civic institutions both stores had very high quality merchandise and highly accommodating customer policies, and both deserved the high regard they enjoyed. I knew Hudson's well growing up in Detroit in the 50's and 60's, and when I moved to Chicago in the 70's I was pleased to find that Field's atmosphere still resembled that of Hudson's some years earlier, while Hudson's sadly showed increasing signs of decline. Nonetheless, I'm pleased to have known both fine stores in their heydays. One cherished memory of Hudson's will always be that big red sign in the night sky, even from way out Gratiot or Grand River a reassuring sight. Field's, too, left me with very good memories. Their great furniture department was where I fitted out my first adult home, and I would still walk from Fullerton to the Loop for a pecan caramel banana split at Field's Crystal Palace!