The story
Sears arrived at the 14 Mile and John R. corner in 1965, standing alone before the rest of the mall was built around it. The enclosed Oakland Mall opened in 1968, anchored by Hudson's and including an S.S. Kresge dime store -- fitting, since Kresge's corporate descendant Kmart was headquartered nearby in Troy. A two-story wing anchored by JCPenney was added in the 1979 expansion.
The anchor lineup tells the story of half a century of American retail consolidation. Hudson's became Marshall Field's in 2001, then Macy's in 2006. Sears closed in 2018; part of that space became a Hobby Lobby in December 2022. Macy's -- the last thread back to the original Hudson's -- closed on March 23, 2025. Through all of it, the JCPenney from the 1979 wing has stayed open.
What's There Now
Still operating as an enclosed mall, now anchored by JCPenney, Dick's Sporting Goods, At Home, and Hobby Lobby (in the old Sears).
Everything that was here
- 1968–present · still open
Oakland MallStore
When Oakland Mall opened in 1968, the enclosed shopping mall was still a relatively new idea in metro Detroit -- and Sears had actually beaten the mall to the spot by three years.
See the map in 1969 →
Did you know?
Connected places
May Department Stores Company (HQ)
The Walnut Room
Gus Mayer
Dayton's Department Store
Doom Town / Survival Town
Cloverleaf Mall
Explore the full web of connections on the map.
Nearby history
Vinsetta Garage (Restaurant)
The Somerset Collection
Great Lakes Crossing
Baker's Keyboard Lounge
Cranbrook Educational Community
Marvin Gaye House
Know something about Oakland Mall? An old photo, a date, a memory of what stood here before?
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