EVG reader Jason Solarek spotted this on Ninth Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue yesterday. The piece of box on the street reads: "Fashions from S Klein on the Square."
Not sure how this ended up here — given that the last S. Klein closed 41 years ago. Someone cleaning out a closet... or discarding a department store box collection?
S. Klein is well-known to longtime residents. Here's a thumbnail history via Forgotten New York:
Samuel Klein founded the discount chain S. Klein in 1906, with the flagship store at Union Square East and East 14th Street, and the business eventually grew as large as 19 stores in the metropolitan area before the inevitable decline. The Union Square flagship closed in 1975.
The last of the S. Klein stores closed in 1978.
Today, the Zeckendorf Towers and the Food Emporium occupy the former S. Klein space.
