Woodward & Lothrop

Samuel Walter Woodward (1848 – August 2, 1917) and Alvin Mason Lothrop (1847–1912) opened a dry goods store in Chelsea, Massachusetts, in 1873, and maintained several stores in the Boston area. In partnership with Charles E. Cochrane, on February 8, 1880 they moved to Washington. For many years, their department store would sponsor a "Founders Day Sale" in early February to commemorate the move.

Woodward, Lothrop & Cochrane opened at 705 Market Space (now the United States Navy Memorial) at the intersection of Pennsylvania Avenue and 7th Street N.W., in Washington, D.C.'s downtown shopping district. The first store was so successful that within a year, they moved to a larger location at 921 Pennsylvania Avenue. After flooding in 1886, they moved again to the corner of 11th and F Streets NW. Woodward and Lothrop purchased Cochrane's share of the partnership, and the new store was renamed Woodward & Lothrop. The lavatories of the store were popular places for men Cruising for gay sex in Washington, D.C. at lunchtimes and in the afternoon.

Woodies expanded into suburban shopping malls after World War II, but the owning families resisted expansion by amalgamation, and the chain grew slowly. It became a target of takeover attempts in the 1980s, resisting a leveraged buyout by Ronald Baron in February 1984 but accepting a $277 million (~$706 million in 2024) bid later that year from Detroit shopping center mogul A. Alfred Taubman.

But Taubman had incurred substantial debt during his '80s acquisitions, which included the Philadelphia-based Wanamaker's department stores in 1986 as well as Sotheby's auction house and various properties. The early 1990s recession, while historically mild, disproportionately impacted real estate and department store retail. The greater Washington area was also affected by sharp reductions in defense spending after the end of the Cold War, leading to a loss of consumer confidence.

Woodward & Lothrop, Inc., filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on January 18, 1994, with $608 million in total assets and $659 million in total liabilities. Drastic cost-cutting and increased sales figures did not return the firm to profitability, however, and the chain, including its John Wanamaker subsidiary, was liquidated. On June 21, 1995, seven of the remaining Woodward & Lothrop locations were sold to J. C. Penney and the rest plus the Wanamaker's locations were sold to May Department Stores Company. By November 1995, all Woodies stores had completed liquidation sales and were permanently closed.

Flagship store

Soon after moving into the historic Carlisle building in 1887, Woodward & Lothrop outgrew its space and began expanding, purchasing the neighboring properties. By 1897 it occupied almost the entire block surrounded by 10th, 11th, F, and G Streets NW. In 1898 and 1902, the buildings were renovated behind a new facade facing G Street designed by Henry Ives Cobb. Two additional floors were added in 1912 and 1913, and yet another building added in 1925.

The building attained its lasting form in 1927. It stands ten stories and once held over 400,000 square feet (37,000 m2) of retail space; the exterior was decorated in cast iron and leaded glass accents with flower designs and the Woodward & Lothrop monogram. It was declared a D.C. Historic Landmark in 1964.

The store hired the architect Michael Graves to redesign its street floor in the 1980s where he incorporated the company's signature W&L monogram plaques on the columns.

After the chain's liquidation, the store stood empty while developers and city officials debated its future. The city first lobbied to have the location reopened as a Macy's, but Macy's owner, Federated Department Stores (now Macy's Inc), demurred; the space was too large, in need of renovation, and situated in downtown Washington, where shopping had declined relative to the suburbs. Finally, the Washington National Opera purchased the building in 1996 for $18 million (~$33.1 million in 2024), seeking to have it renovated into its new home.