History, industry, and architecture come alive in this book documenting the six-year transformation of one of the Southeast's largest buildings into a mixed-use civic anchor in2016. The cavernous Sears, Roebuck and Company distribution and retail center, erected in 1925, was last used by the city's public works departments and stored countless items inside its 2.1 million square feet of space. Architect & photographer Blake Burton captured the viscera of the abandoned building, recording its various forms of construction and reconstruction, and finally its sparkling presence along the rail line that now serves as an urban corridor for bicyclists and joggers. The book includes an illustrated essay by historian Jerry Hancock―an expert on Sears's impact on the South―and a foreword by architectural historian Robert M. Craig. This book is a valuable resource for history and architecture buffs as well as municipalities contemplating the future of their own landmark industrial structures.

192 Pages, including over 150 full color photographs, blueprints, and historic images. Signed by the author.