ST. LOUIS – More than three decades have passed since Famous Barr closed its iconic Southtown St. Louis store. This weekend marks 33 years since the St. Louis community bid farewell.
On Jan. 18, 1992, the beloved Famous Barr location at Chippewa Street and Kingshighway Boulevard officially closed doors.
Famous Barr’s Southtown location, which opened in 1951, became a popular social hub and major economic engine for several south St. Louis neighborhoods. The three-story building was also celebrated for its mid-century architecture, featuing elegant storefronts, expansive windows, and a giant analog clock at its entrance.
In FOX 2 archives from January 1992, ahead of its closure, owners reported that the store had been trending downward for several years due to the growing popularity of shopping malls.
According to Joe Sonderman’s 2024 book “This Day In St. Louis History,” there were proposals to transform the building into a Venture or K-Mart location, but those plans never came to fruition. The original Famous Barr building was demolished in 1995.
Today, a Walgreens now stands on the ground where Famous Barr once stood, with a small shopping plaza just behind it.