Another Once-Thriving Massachusetts Mall Is Demolished

When Eastfield Mall opened in Springfield, Massachusetts, in 1968, it quickly became the place to shop. To the detriment of downtowns everywhere, shopping malls became the rage.

And then they weren't.

Eastfield Mall, owned by Mountain Development Corporation, was constructed in 1967 by the Rouse Company. The mall's three original anchors were Forbes & Wallace, Steiger's and Sears. As with many shopping malls in these days of online shopping, retail stores came and went. Then there were no more.

In 2011, JCPenney, Macy's and Sears anchored Eastfield Mall. JCPenny closed that year and Macy's closed in 2016. Sears folded in 2018. The mall closed on July 15, 2023.

Demolition of Eastfield Mall began in August of 2023.

What remained of the mall was bulldozed just before Valentine's Day 2024. The former Sears building, owned by a different company, remains standing, at least for now.

A sign erected at the Boston Road property says "Springfield Crossing," which appears to be an open-air retail complex similar to Fall River's SouthCoast Market Place. The sign says, "New Development Coming Summer 2025."

Folks here along the SouthCoast recall when the once-thriving Silver City Galleria Mall attracted shoppers to Taunton in droves. That mall failed when shoppers stopped showing up and was demolished in February 2021.

SouthCoast Marketplace replaced Fall River's failed Harbour Mall, and the former Swansea Mall is now the struggling Swansea Center, currently in development under Brady Sullivan Properties. Work on the property is also expected to include a residential community.

Several online websites pay tribute to past malls, including some from Massachusetts and Rhode Island, that have closed.