The Sibley's Christmas Tunnel - Our Favorite Destination

Ask any older Rochesterians about the Christmas tunnel at Sibley’s and they’ll wax nostalgic, lost in memories of what was one of the highlights of their childhoods.

“When I went downtown with my mother I stared at the decorations in Sibley’s, McCurdy’s, Forman’s, Edwards, National’s and all the other stores. The windows of every store were alive with sparkling lights, colorful scenes, beautiful models wearing elegant clothes. Inside the stores there were garlands of evergreens festooned against the walls. Wreaths hung everywhere. Little twinkling Christmas trees graced the counter tops. Beautifully wrapped packages with velvet or satin bows showed shoppers how their gifts might look if they would only buys their gifts right then. I longed to receive such gifts. I knew I would open the gifts slowly to savor the excitement and to save the gorgeous paper and bows. On Sibley’s fourth floor we marveled at Toyland—a tableaux of holiday-fun, storybook figures, winter scenes—amazing to us and dazzling.”[1]

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“Each holiday season Joe Benet would bring his kazoo and play Christmas carols at the toy department of the former Sibley’s department store in downtown Rochester.

‘He was there every year without fail,’ said Gary Mervis, founder of Camp Good Days.

That was until he was too sick. He was diagnosed with lung cancer and his progressing sickness ended the longtime tradition.

In 1984 Camp Good Days started the Kazoo Fest in honor of Benet, to benefit the programs Camp Good Days provides to children who have cancer and their family members.

It was the idea of his son, Bill Benet, to start an event in tribute to his father.

‘He told me that when his father was receiving his cancer treatments it always broke his heart to see the young kids receiving their treatments, because he had lived a life, and they had not,’ said Mervis.”[2]

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“Having been born and raised in Rochester, I cherish many Christmastime memories of the city.

Back in the 1950s, my mother would take me on the bus downtown during Christmas week. There I would see the Christmas spirit in all its glory. We would visit most all of the stores, some smaller ones like Neisner’s and Woolworth’s as well as the larger ones like Edwards, The National, McCurdy’s and, of course, Sibley’s….But far and away my most treasured moments were the visits to Sibley’s toy department. We would walk through the Secret Tunnel and follow the story so eloquently displayed, from beginning to end. Then, at the tunnel exit we would wait in line to chat with Santa. Then we’d buy a kazoo and a Santa balloon. And then, to get to the elevators or escalator, we had to walk right through the entire toy department. What a rush!

After a very long day, my mother and I would board the bus to return home to our apartment. We did this each year until I outgrew the mystique (so I thought).

During the mid-’80s, I explained my feelings about those adventures to my wife. So, with much excitement and enthusiasm, we packed up the four kids and made the same bus trek. Once we got to Main and Clinton, Christmas music filled the air. The adventure was on. I gave each child $1 and watched as each deposited it in the Salvation Army kettle. We went directly to Sibley’s as the other stores had closed and/or moved. The Secret Tunnel was still there but it was based on and surrounded by heavy-duty commercialism - very disappointing. The kids seemed to like it, though. My kids were too old for the Santa thing, but were enjoying it all nonetheless. The kazoo guy and his sidekick with the balloons were still there. I bought four kazoos. On the bus home, I wished I hadn’t.

The unfortunate thing now is that most all of the stores downtown have closed and the Secret Tunnel no longer exists, at least physically. In my heart, thanks to my mom, there will always be a Santa, a Secret Tunnel and a kazoo guy.”[3]

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“Jon Armstrong of Newfield, Tompkins County, said scenes of Ralphie and his brother bundling up in layers to play outside remind him of what he had to do ‘back in the day ‘ growing up in Canandaigua.

‘I have home movies of the big snowfalls in Canandaigua from the late ‘50s and early ‘60s,’ Armstrong said. A department store scene in the film reminds him of annual trips to Rochester’s former downtown Sibley’s store to see Santa Claus and a ‘huge’ model train display, he said.”[4]

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“Remember the pre-Christmas magical lull that used to manifest years ago? It was a time for childhood innocence when parents, dressed in their Sunday best, took their children to Sibley’s downtown to see Christmas lights all aglow, and tiny caricatures of elves and fairies behind store windows.

Kazoos were the rage and, an old man dressed like Santa, stood nearby in Sibley’s Department Store while tooting a shiny golden kazoo. Of course, the kids would ask Mom and Dad to buy kazoos for them, and from then on, the kids’ trek became musical. Kazoos weren’t expensive and no special talent was needed for kids to play them.”[5]

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“I want to walk with my father again through Toyland in Sibley’s the way we always did every year - past moving statues acting out a Christmas story. Music playing, snow falling, soft pastel-colored decor, a fable being told: It was mesmerizing.

I want to meet my dad beforehand at the Manhattan and feel the warmth hit me as I come in from the cold to the welcoming restaurant on East Avenue. We used to meet there at this time every year. After dinner we’d walk across Main Street to Sibley’s and go upstairs to Toyland.”[6]

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“It was snowing big, fluffy flakes. We had just come home from our annual trip to downtown Rochester to see Santa, and the wonder of the visit still ran through my mind. As we walked along the street, the snow crunched under our feet, our breath as visible as that of a fire-breathing dragon. The windows of Sibley’s and McCurdy’s that we passed each held their own wonderland scene. They showed animated dolls, brightly lit Christmas trees and model trains chugging over mountains of fluffy cotton.

Some windows contained scenes of the manger with the newborn baby lying in the hay and the bright star shining overhead. There were shepherds with flocks of sheep, joined by the wise men on their camels, all traveling toward the stable that the star shined upon.”[7]

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“[Lew] Bracey remembers the abundance of it all. An entire floor for kids alone, another floor for upscale shoppers and the basement for bargains and out-of-date items.

‘I feel like it’s cold where Sibley’s used to be,’’ says Appleby, remembering Christmas in the ‘50s. ‘They had a wonderland for children,’’ she says. ‘It was a piece of artistry.’’

Glass cases, she recalls, lined a hallway in the store. In them were toy-making elves and Santa, or perhaps cartoon characters in fake, fluffy snow.

Christmas decorations at Sibley, Lindsay & Curr Co. are among the most elaborate in Rochester when they go up in 1953. Holiday shoppers throng sidewalks in 1955.

A holiday fixture at Sibley’s was the second floor ‘Magic Corridor,’’ which included this Santa’s helper using a loom.”[8]

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“I have very fond memories of Sibley. Lindsey, and Curr (the original name, I believe). As a small child, we always went to view the Christmas tunnel, which was completely magical. (I believe that the tunnel that was used for Christmas was the “discount” tunnel during the rest of the year.) At the end of the tunnel, Santa was sitting on his throne. 

Also at the end of the tunnel, Sibley sold these wonderful kazoos in the shape of trumpets. I was very little and my mom thought I was too young to use one. My cousin who is eight years older and he got one...arrgh!

We always parked in the Sibley ramp so we entered through their supermarket, that included the wonderful bakery...oh, that cheesecake!

As one passed through the supermarket, the cafe was right there! We always bought a chocolate malted on our way out. If I recall correctly, there was another snack bar on the first floor near the book department and the “fancy” restaurant on the sixth floor.

I was in the Inter-High Choir and we always sang at Sibley’s during the Christmas season. We first sang in the first floor shoe department and then up in the restaurant. Such fun!

My other big memory is that we always met people under the clock. I think that was a Rochester right of passage, being old enough to meet friends “under the clock at Sibley’s”.

What a loss to the community!”[9]

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Ahhh! Sibley’s! As a child for me IT was Christmas. First you had to check out their exterior decorations. All the storefront windows had such fabulous decorations and then the rest of the exterior was done with a village scene type decor, connecting all the windows. When I went inside the first thing I remember hearing was the kazoos. As a kid the kazoos were magical and the only place you could get them was at Sibley’s, at Christmas. The final stop for me was the toy department and Santa Claus. Toys r Us couldn’t compare to the magic in Sibley’s toy department. The tunnel with all the miniature scenes, the best Santa Claus and finally the toys and the trains. I loved watching all the Lionel and HO train sets they had on display.

Back then it wasn’t just Sibley’s though, there was McCurdy’s, Grants and Edwards and then Midtown. They all made downtown magical. Unfortunately my children didn’t get to see that magic. The Malls just aren’t the same.[10]

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Yes, I remember Sibley’s - how could I not!  

On quite a few Saturdays, Mary Ann, Debbie, & I would take a bus downtown and spend all our $ - then walk home. One of our normal treats was a chocolate frosty at Sibley’s. It was sold on the 1st floor along the wall.

Before then I remember going to see Santa at Sibley’s. That was the “real” Santa - not the ones at the other stores. The tunnel was a must. One of my best memories was going there before Thanksgiving and it was not decorated for Christmas - but the day after Thanksgiving - it suddenly was full of Christmas decorations. The main floor had decorations in every direction you looked.

Before the Midtown clock - when you said “the clock” downtown - you meant the clock on the main floor of Sibley’s.[11]

[1] Rochester History, “Growing Up in the Old Neighborhood – a Memoir of Joseph Avenue, Part Two,” by Ruth Lempert, Summer 2002, Vol. LXIV, No. 3., pp. 12-13

[2] Tori Uthe, “A classic kazoo-filled holiday season - One man and his solo musical act inspired a holiday tradition,” Greece Post, December 20, 2007

[3] Laine Williams, “Holiday memories of downtown Rochester do warm the heart,” Democrat and Chronicle, December 23, 2005.

[4] Rachel E. Dewey, “It’s a wonderful tradition,” Daily Messenger (Canandaigua, NY) - December 18, 2005

[5] Letter to the Editor, “When Christmas was magic downtown,” Webster Post, December 1, 2005.

[6] Mary Pat Kane (reader), “Dreaming of bustling Main Street of yesteryear,” Democrat and Chronicle, December 8, 2002.

[7] Donna Burlingame Gividen (reader), “CHRISTMAS SURPRISES,” Democrat and Chronicle, December 25, 2001.

[8] Lisa Hutchurson, “Retro Rochester,” Democrat and Chronicle, December 17, 2000.

[9] Noreen D. Halpern, resident of Rochester, private correspondence, April 1, 2008.

[10] Sue xx, resident of Rochester, private correspondence, March 31, 2008, [email protected].

[11] Patricia Rapp Crayton, resident of Rochester, private correspondence, March 31, 2008.