The S.H. Kress & Co. five-and-dime opened at its original location at 211 N. Mesa Ave. on Nov. 6, 1907, drawing "throngs of people" and filling the street as shoppers waited for a chance to enter the store.
Over the decades, the Downtown landmark survived setbacks and transformations. One of those devastating moments happened on Aug. 11, 1924, when a fire originated in the basement that heavily damaged the store.,
Entire block menaced by flames
Kress Store Blaze Wrecks Two Floors; Throws 57 Out of Work
Aug. 12, 1924, El Paso Times
“Fire which originated from an undetermined cause, which was discovered in the basement of the S.H. Kress five and ten-cent store at 211 Mesa Avenue yesterday morning about 7:30 o’clock, caused damage amounting to about 75 per cent of the total value
of the stock, according to C.C. Kline, manager of the store. The entire basement and first floor were wrecked, and stock destroyed by fire and water in the other stories.
“Fifty-seven employees of the store were temporarily thrown out of work, according to Mr. Kline, who stated last night that the store would be re-opened as soon as possible.”
Kress building expanded, air conditioned
While in El Paso for an annual meeting of with Kress store area managers, W.L. Baker, vice president of Kress & Co., announced that the Kress store will be extended to the site of the old Federal building, across from San Jacinto Plaza.
“Mr. Baker said that the company will be glad to give consideration to the request of the Chamber of Commerce Woman’s Department to make the building of Spanish hacienda style of architecture.”
It was also revealed that the new building would be air-conditioned.
Plans for the new building called for demolishing the Mesa Avenue structure and for the new building to be erected on the site of the old Federal building at Oregon and Mills Streets, extending from Oregon to Mesa Avenue and front 53 feet on Mesa.
The building was expected to cost more than $200,000.
Kress serves its last lunch
For generations of El Pasoans, Kress was more than a department store. Its lunch counter became a downtown gathering place where customers shared meals, conversation and friendships.
That tradition came to an end on Feb. 22, 1997:
Elena Lozano was in her spot, the middle of a group at the Kress lunch counter, casting a gold-capped smile, winking broadly beneath perfectly penciled eyebrows.
Sitting on a swivel stool, shoulder-to-shoulder with her compadres, her conversation mixed with the sizzle of eggs frying and the clatter of forks on plates.
“These people are like family. Friendly. We like to talk…it’s a good place.” Lozano said. But her face saddened as she thought of her friends behind the counter, many long-time workers at Kress who will have to find new jobs.
The Kress lunch counter and popular Downtown hangout for 90 years shut off its grill and closed Saturday. It was a preclude to the closing of the entire department store in early April.
To hundreds of faithful customers and the people who served then, the city lost a unique and irreplaceable institution when the last cup of coffee was served.
Building long vacant
The building later housed other businesses but was then vacant for many years.
In 2018, Franklin Mountain Investments, led by businessman Paul Foster, acquired the property and announced plans to restore the landmark.
A groundbreaking ceremony followed in 2023, and a media tour on Oct. 5 offered a glimpse of the building's future. Renovations bring a food hall and two retail spaces to the first floor. Plans include a private theater and sports bar on the second floor, along with a basement spa that will connect to the Plaza Hotel across the street.
"So many El Pasoans have a memory, me included, of coming down here," said William Kell, chief operating officer for Franklin Mountain Investments. "We used to buy plastic model cars and, with my friend, put them together. They had a good-sized toy section here. I think we're going to hear those kinds of stories over and over."
Trish Long may be reached at tlong@elpasotimes.com.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: El Paso's Kress Building begins new chapter
