Thalhimer's - December 19th, 1909

Fur coats anyone? PETA would have a field day with this great full page Thalhimer's ad from the Times-Dispatch on December 19th, 1909: Sheep, Lynx, Fox, Chinchilla, Pony, Wolf, Seal, Mink, Opossum, Rabbit and even Skunk!

Rountree's Leather Shop - December 18th, 1910

100 years and two days ago--December 18th, 1910--this amazing full-page ad from Rountree's Leather Shop ran in the Times-Dispatch. Rountree's occupied part of the block on Broad Street where the new federal courthouse building now resides.

Nolde Brothers Bakery Ad - December 1909

Although the writing is a bit over the top in this Nolde Bros Bakery ad from the December 19th, 1909 Times-Dispatch, I have to admit it's making me a little hungry. This ad is from about 15 years before the construction of of the now Nolde Condos building on Broad St in Church Hill, occupied by the bakery until the 1970s.

The Boulevard Bridge - March 1970

No EZ Pass here, just your friendly neighborhood toll collector. From March of 1970 comes this great shot of the Nickel Bridge toll booths, back when the toll was actually a nickel.

Photo courtesy of VCU Libraries

Frank Zappa at The Mosque - November 3rd, 1972

From the October 26th, 1972 issue of the University of Richmond's newspaper The Collegian, comes this great ad for Frank Zappa and his Mothers with guest Tim Buckley at The Mosque (now The Landmark Theater) on Friday November 3rd, 1972. Tim Buckley would die of a heroin overdose less than three years later.

The University of Richmond's Digital Initiatives has 89 years of The Collegian, as well as many other great collections, on it's website.

Photo courtesy of the University of Richmond's Boatwright Library/Digital Initiatives

Wards TV (Circuit City) - 1950s

Here's a picture from the 1950s of the original Wards TV store at 705 West Broad Street. Love that giant neon sign! Wards TV opened this first store in 1949, and later became Circuit City. I believe this building stood where VCU's Technology Administration Building now sits, about a block from the intersection of Belvidere and Broad.

Tonight at the Byrd Theater is the Richmond premiere of the new documentary "A Tale of Two Cities: The Circuit City Story." Check out circuitcitystory.com for details, a lot of great info on the history of Circuit City, and some clips from the film.

First block of East Broad Street - 1908

The first block of East Broad Street in 1908, looking in the direction of Church Hill from the East/West dividing line. To give some perspective, the first building on the left is still standing, and Dabney Bros & Co (third store on the left) is now the Art6 art gallery. There's a lot of great stuff going on in this scene!

Photo courtesy of The Library of Congress

Broad Street Station - March 1975

Richmond's Broad Street Station (originally Union Station) in March of 1975, eight months before it closed. The building opened in 1919, and ran passenger trains consistently up until it's closing. Less than a year after this picture was taken, the Science Museum of Virginia began moving into the building, and has occupied it ever since. Other than being a little dirtier, it doesn't look a whole lot different than today, with the exception of the Amtrak Rail Passenger Station sign on the left.

Photo courtesy of VCU Libraries

Main Street Station, Hurricane Agnes - 1972

Here's a fitting post for this rainy Wednesday morning...Main Street Station at the height of the flooding from Hurricane Agnes in June of 1972. This shot was taken from the I-95 bridge. As a result of Agnes, the James River crested at a peak of 36.5 feet, flooding parts of downtown Richmond (the flood wall wasn't completed until 1995).