Sibley, Lindsay & Curr Company, known informally as Sibley's, was a

Rochester, New York Rochester is a city in and the county seat, seat of government of Monroe County, New York, United States. It is the List of municipalities in New York, fourth-most populous city and 10th most-populated municipality in New York, with a populati ...

–based

department store A department store is a retail establishment offering a wide range of consumer goods in different areas of the store under one roof, each area ("department") specializing in a product category. In modern major cities, the department store mad ...

chain with stores located exclusively in the state of New York. Its flagship store, at 228 East Main Street in downtown Rochester, also housed its headquarters and featured an elegant executive dining room on the top floor.

History

The Department Store Years

Rufus Sibley, Alexander Lindsay, and John Curr were employees at the Hogg, Brown & Taylor dry-goods store in

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

. Wishing to go into business for themselves, they investigated potential sites and settled on the growing city of Rochester. Their first storefront, often called "the Boston store" by locals, opened in 1868. When the company opened a new 12-story, flagship store in the Granite Building, it was among the five largest department stores in the country at the time. Sibley Building southwest side

In 1905, after the disastrous 1904 " Sibley fire" gutted the Granite Building and much of Rochester's dry goods district, Sibley's moved to its final location, the Sibley Building at the northeast corner of East Main Street and Clinton Avenue. By 1939, Sibley's was the largest department store between

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

and

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

. With the postwar growth of the suburbs, Sibley's expanded outside the city in 1955 with its first branch location at Eastway Plaza in Penfield. The chain would eventually grow to 15 locations throughout the Rochester and Buffalo region. The company was acquired by the Associated Dry Goods Corporation in 1957. In 1962, competitors B. Forman Co. and McCurdy's collaborated to construct Midtown Plaza, right across Main Street from Sibley's. Sibley's was connected to the new mall by an enclosed third-floor walkway, part of the Rochester Skyway system. In 1969, Sibley's opened a location at 400 S. Salina Street in downtown Syracuse. The 1980s saw the gradual downsizing of Sibley's. In 1980, the entire fifth floor of the store was cleared out and leased to General Motors Rochester Products Division for use as offices. The in-store bakery closed in 1980, followed by the grocery store in 1981. The parent company of Sibley's was acquired by

May Department Stores The May Department Stores Company was an American holding company of department stores founded in 1877 by David May. It operated several regional department stores throughout the United States, which were managed as distinct business divisions ...

in 1986, and by 1988 only three floors of the building were open for shopping. Sibley's downtown Buffalo location closed in 1987, followed by the Syracuse location in 1989. Management attempted cost-cutting measures, which only served to drive away what few customers were left. Sibley's downtown Rochester store closed on January 31, 1990, and its name was merged into May Company's

Kaufmann's Kaufmann's was a department store that originated in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The store was owned in the early 20th century by Edgar J. Kaufmann, patron of the famous Fallingwater house. In the post-war years, the store became a regional chain ...

brand. Most of its suburban locations, after converting to Kaufmann's, became part of

Macy's Macy's is an American department store chain founded in 1858 by Rowland Hussey Macy. The first store was located in Manhattan on Sixth Avenue between 13th and 14th Streets, south of the present-day flagship store at Herald Square on West 34 ...

by 2006.

Monroe Community College – Damon City Campus calls Sibley Building Home

In 1991 the

State University of New York The State University of New York (SUNY ) is a system of Public education, public colleges and universities in the New York (state), State of New York. It is one of the List of largest universities and university networks by enrollment, larges ...

's Monroe Community College, also known as MCC, opened its second campus at the Sibley Building. The downtown campus continued to operate here until the completion of a new downtown campus in 2017, which is now located at nearby

Kodak Tower Kodak Tower is a 19-story skyscraper in the High Falls District of Rochester, New York Rochester is a city in and the county seat, seat of government of Monroe County, New York, United States. It is the List of municipalities in New York, ...

, the headquarters of the Kodak Company.

Today – Sibley Square

Now under a new name
Sibley Square
the iconic Sibley Building is undergoing a major overhaul, transforming the historic site into a combination of retail, commercial (offices), and upscale residential units. The renovations seek to combine the historic treasure of this architectural space while also creating a sleek, modern atmosphere for today's standards.

Developer

The curren
Sibley Square
project is being developed b
WinnCompanies
a

Boston, Massachusetts Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

–based award-winning development firm.
WinnCompanies
was founded in 1971 by Arthur Winn.

Address Change

The current address o
Sibley Square
is:
250 East Main StreetRochester, NY 14604
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References

External links

DeadMalls.comSibley Square Official WebsiteWinn Companies
{{City of Rochester, NY Defunct department stores based in New York State Retail companies established in 1868 Retail companies disestablished in 1990 Companies based in Rochester, New York Defunct companies based in New York (state) 1868 establishments in New York (state)