Staff leaving the Sixth Avenue and 8th Street Barnes & Noble on its last day December 31, 2012 were pretty blunt in the sign they left on the door: “Closed Forever.”
It’s hard to imagine what might come next. Seth commented on the closing over at my original post and said he believed at one point the building was a Nathan’s. It’d be fun to go into the building’s history – I’m sure it’s been done. If you’ve seen one, please let me know!
Previously at WSP Blog, November 30, 2012: Barnes & Noble 8th Street Closing
P.S. Lighting is on its way to the Dog Run!
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Yes, that used to be Nathan’s. I hasten to add it was not the sterile fast-food franchise version of Nathan’s you’ll find in malls and food courts today, but a real honest-to-goodness full-fledged branch of Nathan’s equal to the Coney Island original. That was my favorite place when I first moved to the Village in 1973. (There was another branch in Times Square as well.) As you might be able to guess, I’ve never quite gotten over losing it! But even my Nathan’s was an interloper on that corner; before that it was Nedick’s, a chain virtually forgotten now but once every bit as ubiquitous as Starbucks is today. Nedick’s was at that location for many years, perhaps decades, and I’ve heard some old former hippies complain that when it closed they blamed Nathan’s for taking away a favorite local hangout.
Hey Richard,
Thanks for all this amazing information and your own personal references. Re: Nathan’s: “A real honest-to-goodness full-fledged branch of Nathan’s equal to the Coney Island original.” Nice! I’ve definitely heard of Nedick’s. Hard to imagine one day Starbucks going the way of Nedick’s (but then hard to imagine Barnes & Noble’s closing too). Thanks for the great historical background. I know there are photos – haven’t had a chance to look but will do so.
Thanks again!
Cathryn.