The Legacy of Freedlander's

By Laura Merrell

The Freedlander’s store endured, in one form or another, from 1884 to 2009. The same family that founded the store ran it for three generations. Eventually the business succumbed to pressures that many similar one of a kind department stores in America experienced, as larger national chains became strong competition. Although the building was torn down after it closed, a plaque on West Liberty Street marks where the historic and well loved store once stood.