About the Author
Graham Anderson is a second-year MA student at Florida Atlantic University (FAU) in Boca Raton, FL. His MA will be completed in Fall 2026, after which, he plans to pursue his PhD. After spending five years as a public high school history teacher, he realized his love for continual learning and research and became a Graduate Teaching Assistant at FAU to immerse himself in academia. His main interest is American history from the late nineteenth century to the late twentieth century, with a specific focus on capitalism and its presence and impact on American society. Interest in European history, art history, and broader visual culture complement this main interest.
Document Type
Article
Abstract
Marshall Field's, Chicago's most famous department store, was much more than dark green bags and festively decorated street windows. This pioneering retail behemoth, via its founder and executives from the late nineteenth century until the late twentieth century, embraced innovation and changing consumer landscapes to meet its shoppers' desires. Specifically, this fabled organization led postwar Chicagoland, and much of the United States, on a rapid expansion into the suburbs. Opening dozens of branches and shopping center locations, Marshall Field's paved the way for postwar suburban living and development by offering its familiar brand and experience in the outskirts of urban life. A story more about growth, than retail or high-class shopping, this organization facilitated postwar economic progress, in the form of construction, real estate, and job creation, while also courageously enabling a new standard of living and helping to warm the waters for Chicagoans dreaming of relocating from the urban core. What were postwar Chicagoans' perceptions of Marshall Field's social, cultural, and economic impact at this time? Did they recognize its ability to drive growth and development? Surveying Chicago's newspapers in the postwar era will enable an understanding of the magnitude of Marshall Field's suburban growth and its positive effect on metropolitan Chicago, as well as the appreciation that local editors, political leaders, and citizens held about this Chicago icon. Even though the organization and brand no longer formally exists, the legacy of Marshall Field's can still be seen and felt today in the form of edge cities, shopping centers and malls, and of course, The Great Tree in the Walnut Room during Christmastime.
Recommended Citation
Anderson, Graham
(2026)
"Giving Chicago What It Wants: Reactions to Marshall Field’s Postwar Suburban Expansion,"
Madison Historical Review: Vol. 23, Article 11.
Available at:
https://commons.lib.jmu.edu/mhr/vol23/iss1/11
