Throwback Thursday: From shopping to start ups, remembering the holiday season at Bowling Green Mall
As the holiday shopping season gets underway, we thought it would be fun to walk down memory lane as we remember where southern Kentucky used to shop. While the interstate interchanges connecting Bowling Green to Nashville and Louisville were under construction, a modern marvel was being built where Nashville Road meets Campbell Lane.
Greenwood Mall may be a place where Bowling Green shops today — but over 50 years ago, the heart of holiday hustle lived at a different mall. In 1967, the Bowling Green Mall opened as one of Kentucky’s earliest enclosed shopping centers — a bold, midcentury modern marvel that redefined how southern Kentucky gathered, shopped, and celebrated the holidays.
The mall introduced a then-new idea: multiple box stores and local retailers under one roof, with climate-controlled walkways, wide corridors, and centralized free parking making it a destination — especially during the holiday season.
From department stores and jewelers to five-and-dimes and fashion boutiques, the Bowling Green Mall bustled with seasonal energy — Santa sightings, gift browsing, and families running into neighbors between stores. Stores included the A&P, Castner-Knott, Golden Farley, Behr’s, Woolco, Zales, Lees Books, Merle Norman Cosmetics, Radio Shack, Jones Barber Shop, So-Pro Fabrics, and more. The first shoppers at the mall could win a new 1968 Dodge Dart, a color television, and thousands of dollars in prizes. There was even a 16-foot sperm whale named Willy on display for the grand opening.
That Bowling Green Mall location no longer operates as a retail hub — but its story didn’t end. In many ways, it simply evolved. Today, it’s home to the WKU Innovation Campus and small business accelerator — still open to the public for business, with its iconic midcentury entrance and original mall hallways intact.
Where storefronts once sold holiday gifts, offices and studios now house startups, media companies, and technology firms. The same layout that once supported retail now fuels creativity, entrepreneurship, and new ideas. It’s a fascinating reversal — what began as a centralized home for retail brands is now a hub for many small businesses, incubating innovation rather than inventory.
And during the holidays, the building takes on a special kind of nostalgia — a reminder of shopping trips past, while quietly shaping Bowling Green’s future. While Greenwood Mall carries on many indoor holiday shopping traditions today, the former Bowling Green Mall remains a living landmark — proof that good design, good ideas, and community spirit never go out of season.
