Spent $40 on a vintage mall directory map and it totally changed how I explore dead malls

I picked up an old fold-out directory from the Willowbrook Mall in Wayne, New Jersey from 1987 on eBay last month. Cost me about $40 with shipping. When I visited that same mall last weekend, the layout was totally different but I could see exactly where the old arcade and food court used to be. It gave me a whole new way to picture what the place looked like when it was busy. Has anyone else bought old mall maps or brochures to help with your trips?

2 comments

2 Comments

brooke53323d ago

Oh yeah, I've definitely done this. I picked up a map from the old Monmouth Mall from the 90s and it made a huge difference when I walked through there last year. The food court was totally different but I could see where the little arcade used to be and it was wild to picture kids running around there back then. One thing I'd recommend is make sure the map is actually from the right time period for the mall you're visiting, because some of those directories got updated so often. I learned that the hard way with a map that was from the wrong decade and it just confused me more than helped.

maryadams23d ago

@brooke533 you just described how everything gets a nostalgia tax these days, doesn't it?