Sears Crosstown in Memphis

When it opened in 1927, Sears Crosstown, now Crosstown Concourse, was the southeastern regional warehouse and distribution center for the Sears Catalogue mail-order empire. Each day, more than forty-five thousand orders were processed by more than 1,500 workers. As a result, Sears Crosstown became known locally as “the Wish Building.” For more than half a century, the iconic building and its surrounding neighborhood flourished until the decline of Sears in the 1980s. For decades, the once dynamic destination for commerce was vacant and shuttered. Then a unique group of Memphians emerged to resurrect Sears Crosstown with a plan most thought was impossible.  In his latest book, Bill tells the story of “the Wish Building”—its past, present and future.

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Bill's Blog More Posts »

JA MORANT AND THE PARADE INSIDE HIS CITY

I have been a devoted fan of the Memphis Grizzlies since they moved to Memphis from Vancouver over 20 years ago.  While I don’t want to ...

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MY PREACHER FATHER NOTICED A MAN OF FAITH IN JIMMY CARTER. LET'S REMEMBER HIM SO.

My father was a Southern Baptist minister.  He admired Jimmy Carter for many reasons, not the least of which was the fact that Carter was a fe...

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FROM 51 TO NEARLY TEN MILLION

On December 7, 1974, I attended a basketball game at Alumni Gym, a then 50-year-old building on the campus of the University of Tennessee in Knoxvi...

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Bill's Books More Books »

Why Can't Mother Vote?

Why Can't Mother Vote?

On August 18, 1920, thirty-year-old Tennessee State Representative Joseph Hanover walked through the lobby of The Hermitage Hotel in Nashville to b...

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Full Court Press: How Pat Summitt, a High School Basketball Player, and a Legal Team Changed the Game

Full Court Press: How Pat Summitt, a High School Basketball Player, and a Legal Team Changed the Game

In his latest book, Bill has teamed up with a brilliant young writer—Amanda Swanson—to tell the story of a game-changing lawsuit, Victo...

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The Other Fellow May Be Right: The Civility of Howard Baker

Milk & Sugar: The Complete Book of Seersucker

Bill Haltom’s definitive guide to the quintessential Southern fabric covers all things seersucker. From the origins and history of the seersu...

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See Bill Speak

2015 | Inside Politics

Nashville, TN

Bill joins host Pat Nolan to discuss his book The Other Fellow May Be Right: The Civility of Howard Baker.