Antique Lampson Pneumatic Tube SystemI went to the bank yesterday to deposit a check at the drive through. They have a pneumatic tube system to get the goods to the teller. Once while accompanied by a grandchild I remarked that similar tubes were used in department stores to get change and send notes. She was amazed. Frankly I was amazed the first time I saw one. I must have been 5 or 6. I wonder if anything ever got stuck in them. Isn't it funny with all the things that have disappeared in the last 60 years, such as many of those department stores, that the tube mechanism has survived.
I got to yakking about how stores like Frederick & Nelson (gone with the dodo) had not just those tubes but elevators with elevator operators in them. They asked you what floor you wanted and announced each floor as it came near along with a synopsis of it's goods. F&N was where I saw my first escalator as well. And it was in Frederick's that I lost my 2 1/2 year old son on the escalator. I was pregnant as a house with his brother and as we got on the down escalator he snatched his hand out of mine, ran back up, and jumped onto the up escalator effectively putting to floors between us. A helpful clerk got on the phone and got a second clerk to round up my runaway while the first clerk trekked back up two floors with me to collect my wandering child. She kept asking if I shouldn't be staying home, I did look about to deliver but wasn't and she walked me and junior out to my car. That's customer service for you and F&N was famous for that.
Frederick and Nelson in 1929 - Seattle, Washington. Photo Asahel Curtis.Frederick and Nelson also had a bakery, a tea room and a millinery department at one time. When I started high school women still wore nylons, heels, gloves, and hats when they went shopping downtown. Frederick's also took back anything they sold, no questions asked. I got my made-to-order chocolate wedding cake from their bakery in 1966. They made an addictive chocolate candy called fudge half dips, dark chocolate wrapped around a walnut fudge center that just peeked out the top of each piece. To die for! I think they were the precursor of to all those truffles abounding everywhere now. They also made the original frangos which are now peddled by Macy's. Later as the store began to have financial problems they put paraffin in the chocolate of the half dips. A great howl began including an article in the paper and the original recipe was restored. Christmas was amazing there. Somewhere I have pictures of solemn, shy little me on Santa's lap at Fredericks.
All this grew out of a trip to the bank. Wonder what else in my memory bank, if I could just get some human RAM I could get at it. Oh, oh, now I'm thinking of Jack LaLanne, someone else none of my grandkids have heard about.
Labels: Frederick and Nelson, pneumatic tubes
posted by Celia | January 26, 2011
12 Comments:
Freddie's Tea Room was THE place to go with Grandma! And do you remember their famous chocolates, Frangos? Yum, we used to get them from my mother-in-law each Christmas!
When I was pregnant and easily distracted, I drove off from the bank drive-through with the plastic tube still in my car! Had to drive around again to return it! My daughter won't let me forget this!
Loved this trip down memory lane. The vaccum tubes always amazed me, too. Then there was actually getting fitted for bras by the lady that knew what she was about. The lady in the ladies room, ever helpful with kids, bags, tissues, etc. I have a set of the British comedy "Are you being Served" CD's if your interested. Just e-mail where to send.
Thanks for jogging my memory.
Brighid - can't find an email for you, left one on your page, I loved "Are you being Served."
Katiekono - still love those Fragoes, mmmm!
Oops! I mean Frangos!
Here we had Marston's. I got my first dress up clothes and heels at Marston's. Even today when we get an item of clothing in the store with a Marston's label, all the volunteers go ga-ga over it. Yes, famous lunch room, elevators with operators, school uniforms, but no escalator there. Walker Scott down the street had the first escalator in town. Imagine WS is now a parking garage, and Marston's was bought by Broadway which was absorbed into Macy's. No fun there.
loved this! I remember all of it! and another thing about the elevator ladies...remember the castanets? OLE!
Celia, I love stories like this. Reading about your memories helps me make connections to my own. Thank you.
Wow- what a walk down memory lane this provided me! I remember the tubes being sent up and down in the major department stores when Mother purchased items. Later I recall the metal plates they put the charge cards in to imprint them onto the sales receipts in purple ink. I loved the tube system as a kid. I wondered about the destination, who the people were at the other end and what exactly they were doing. I loved riding the elevators with the elevator operators (many had small short stools by the button panel where they would sit), and just last year rode an elevator in Seattle which still had an operator! It was in the office building of a large law firm, and i was shocked to find someone there when the door opened!
I never heard of your F&N department store, but we had our own similar one in Atlanta - Rich's. It eventually became part of Macy's. Rich's had its own Tea Room called the Magnolia Room where fancy luncheons were served daily while models walked the runway in the room's mid-day fashion shows. There was a bookstore in Rich's where authors appeared for readings and book signings, the place where I met my first favorite author! There was also a fabulous bakery there serving delicious pastry items. Before there were the suburban malls, this very large store was contained within two buildings, 5-6 stories tall, each across the street from the other, connected by a "bridge" that crossed the street on one of the higher floors. There on the bridge we could also have lunch at a small restaurant. What memories I have attending those fashion shows and feeling so grown up! Thanks for stirring up these memories!
I remember those charge card plates. I imagine most larger cities had their own F&N, right now their original building is occupied by Nordstrom.
I mean F&N type department stores. I miss them.
The fudge half dips were wonderful! Would love to have some again! They were a prized holiday gift in out family and lasted for a while in the freezer because they were too good to share! YUM!
I worked at F&N during Christmas break in college in 1982 - what a blast! Anyone have a recipe for those Fudge Half-Dips???
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