Donaldson’s

Donaldson’s, also known as William Donaldson and Company and L. S. Donaldson’s, was a Minneapolis department store located on Nicollet Avenue and Sixth Street. Started by two immigrant brothers, the company grew to be one of the major retail chains in the Twin Cities, rivaling Dayton’s for much of the twentieth century.

Originally born in Scotland, the brothers William and Lawrence S. Donaldson worked as salesmen across the United States before moving to Minneapolis. William arrived around 1881 and worked for the firm Auerbach, Finch, Van Slyke and Company. In 1882, he opened his own store at 309 Nicollet Avenue with a small stock of men’s and women’s clothes, and by the next year, Lawrence had joined him.

In 1883, when he could no longer renew his store’s lease, William Donaldson bought a space at Nicollet Avenue and Sixth Street in the Glass Block—a building known for its large number of plate-glass windows. Together, William and Lawrence purchased the Colton Company firm, which owned the Glass Block, and started their own business.

From the start, the Donaldsons’ store fared well, despite its location on what were then the outskirts of downtown. By the end of their first year in business, they had outgrown their space. In April 1884, they tore down the original Glass Block and replaced it with a larger version. The new building afforded the people of Minneapolis with a cosmopolitan landmark and became a local attraction.

When William Donaldson died in 1899, Lawrence took over as sole owner and president of the company. In 1907, the name of the company was formally changed from William Donaldson and Company to L. S. Donaldson’s.

After the name change, the store continued to thrive. In 1912, Lawrence Donaldson bought out Gimbel-Zimmer, another Nicollet Avenue retailer. The entire city block was now in his possession.

Like other early twentieth-century department stores, Donaldson’s was not merely a shop that sold household goods and quality clothing. Rather, it was a public center that hosted civic and cultural affairs. It provided a venue for fashion shows, art collections, special exhibits, Christmas programs, and lectures.

When Lawrence Donaldson died in 1924, customers began to refer to the store simply as Donaldson’s. In 1929, it was acquired by a holding company called Hahn Department Stores (later Allied Stores). Hahn allowed Donaldson’s to keep its name and staff, including managers.

By the mid-twentieth century, the Twin Cities retail landscape was poised for change. A survey commissioned by Donald Dayton showed that Minnesota’s winter weather limited stores’ ability to do business all year round. To address this problem, the Dayton Company hired Victor Gruen to design Southdale Center—the world’s first indoor shopping mall—in 1952. The center opened in 1956, with competitors Dayton’s and Donaldson’s as its anchor tenants.

In 1961, Donaldson’s acquired the Golden Rule of St. Paul and reopened the store as Donaldson’s Golden Rule. Three more openings extended the company’s reach to malls in Brookdale (1962), Rosedale (1969), and Ridgedale (1974).

In 1980, Donaldson’s St. Paul outlet moved across the street from the site of the old Golden Rule. The new store launched with an impressive and much-anticipated grand opening that included legendary baseball player Mickey Mantle signing autographs. When a section of the City Center shopping complex was completed in downtown Minneapolis in 1982, the original Donaldson’s relocated there from the Glass Block. A few months later, on Thanksgiving Day, the much-beloved Glass Block burned down due to arson.

By 1987, Donaldson’s totaled twelve stores across Minnesota and Iowa and was greatly loved by consumers. The store, however, could no longer compete against Dayton’s. Chicago merchandiser Carson Pirie Scott bought the company and changed its name to Carson’s. Without the local name recognition of Donaldson’s, Carson’s stores in Minnesota failed to prosper.