U.S. Census Bureau Daily Feature for March 24.

WASHINGTON, March 24, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Following is the daily "Profile America" feature from the U.S. Census Bureau:

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THURSDAY, MARCH 24: AMERICA'S FIRST SHOPPING CENTER

Profile America -- Thursday, March 24th. Everyone who loves shopping should face Kansas City and give thanks. It was on that city's outskirts that the first shopping mall in the U.S. opened this month in 1923. The Country Club Plaza was designed by Edward Delk and built by J.C. Nichols. Customers had to drive to get there, and it was the first to have stores facing inwards toward a promenade, rather than facing out toward a road. The mall had 150 stores, a 2,000 seat auditorium, and parking for 5,500 cars. Today, the Country Club Plaza is still in business -- along with 105,000 other shopping centers, with a total retail space of over 7 billion square feet. You can find these and more facts about America from the U.S. Census Bureau, online at www.census.gov.

Sources: Kane's Famous First Facts, 2501

Statistical Abstract of the United States 2011, t. 1060

Profile America is produced by the Public Information Office of the U.S. Census Bureau. These daily features are available as produced segments, ready to air, on a monthly CD or on the Internet at http://www.census.gov (look for "Multimedia Gallery" by the "Newsroom" button).

SOURCE U.S. Census Bureau