When penguins, monkeys, x-ray shoe measurements and Santa Claus in the basement made for a memorable Christmastime adventure
by Mark Birkelien (Dundalk Patch, 12/18/2010)
HESS MONKEY TOWN print by Charlene Clark charleneclarkstudio.com
There was a time when the local, tired, poor huddled masses gathered together outside in frigid weather and took simple pleasure in watching penguins swim and play.
I’m talking about the Eastpoint Shopping Center before it succumbed to early 1970s modernism and was converted to the enclosed Eastpoint Mall we know today.
This was the old, outdoor Eastpoint Shopping Center that was anchored on one end by Hutzler’s and on the other by Hochschild-Kohn, each founded in Baltimore, in 1858 and 1897, respectively.
Eastpoint Shopping Center, Baltimore County Legacy Web, Photo by Blakeslee-Lane Studio, 1960
When I was a kid a trip to Eastpoint was a real event, not only at Christmas, but any time.
Penguins were on year-round display in a corner window at Hochschild’s, and real-life monkeys could be found gallivanting around at the Hess Shoe Store.
Continue reading “Remembering Christmastime at the Old Eastpoint Shopping Center” at DundalkPatch.com.
I remember them well. The monkeys were removed after numerous complaints about them gratifying themselves in front of the kiddies.