Freese's Department Store

Freese's Department Store was a central retail establishment in downtown Derry, Maine, during the mid-twentieth century. While its Bangor counterpart was grander, the Derry branch was a familiar landmark for local children and adults alike. The store's most significant narrative function occurs in the spring of 1958, when it becomes the unlikely site of Richie Tozier's narrow escape from a brutal beating at the hands of Henry Bowers, Victor Criss, and Belch Huggins.

Richie Tozier's Escape

After being chased across much of downtown Derry, Richie, exhausted and terrified, dodged into the mouth of Freese's revolving door as a last resort. Henry Bowers, unfamiliar with the physics of such a device, nearly lost his fingertips trying to grab Richie as he trundled around and into the store. Pelting downstairs with his shirttail flying, Richie heard the revolving door give off reports almost as loud as TV gunfire, signaling that his pursuers were still after him. He ran through the basement level, past ladies' lingerie and housewares, and finally reached the toy department. There, he found an emergency exit door. Slamming the push-bar, he triggered the alarm, then immediately doubled back and dropped to his hands and knees in the next aisle. When Henry, Belch, and Victor thundered into the toy department and raced for the now-closing door, a sales clerk in a blue nylon duster appeared, but the three bullies ignored him and charged out into the alley. Richie then trotted back toward ladies' lingerie, escaping the immediate threat. This incident, which ended with Richie sitting on a bench near the Paul Bunyan statue, was a formative moment in his childhood, cementing his view of Henry Bowers as a genuine menace.

The Store's Destruction

By 1985, Freese's Department Store had become a symbol of Derry's changing fortunes. During the catastrophic storm and subsequent collapse of downtown Derry on May 31, 1985, the store was severely damaged. Almost half of Freese's sank into the street and the Canal beneath it. The top half slued out over the street, appearing in danger of toppling over like a pile of badly stacked books. This destruction was part of the widespread devastation that saw much of Derry's commercial center fall into the Canal, a physical manifestation of the town's long history of violence and decay.

Narrative Significance

Freese's Department Store functions as a microcosm of Derry's dual nature. For Richie Tozier, it is a place of temporary sanctuary, a space where a child's quick thinking can outwit brute force. For the adult Losers returning in 1985, it is a ruin, a testament to the town's ongoing decay and the physical collapse that mirrors the spiritual and moral rot at Derry's heart. The store's destruction is part of the larger cataclysm that follows the final defeat of It, suggesting that the entity's death is inextricably linked to the physical unmaking of the town itself.