The iconic Rike’s Department Store displays were a popular holiday tradition in downtown Dayton for decades and are now featured annually in the Schuster Center’s Wintergarden.
To many Daytonians, it’s just not Christmas without seeing the animated characters that once delighted shoppers at Rike’s.
How it started
The history of the window displays can be traced back to 1943 when the National Cash Register Co. placed five scenes from Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” in its New York City office windows. Dressed in period attire, the figures were incorporated into elaborate backgrounds built by NCR carpenters.
In 1945 Frederick Rike, owner of the Rike-Kumler Co., successfully campaigned to move the display into the windows of his department store at Second and Main streets in downtown Dayton. From that time on, a visit to the windows became a popular tradition for many families in the Miami Valley. The sidewalks around the store overflowed with families gazing at the cheerful characters inside the festive windows.
Many of the displays had moving parts. Examples included a brother in a bunk bed swatting at his sleeping sister below, two little bears on a teeter-totter in the forest, an elf driving a rocket ship in Santa’s Workshop, a dad rocking to and fro as he played his trumpet, a mom hanging an ornament on the tree and a little boy moving his new truck back and forth.
PHOTOS: Take a look back through Dayton’s Christmas past
An end and new beginning
After the store closed in 1991, the window displays were auctioned off to other communities and private buyers. The animated figures and The Tike’s Shop — the kids-only zone where children can shop alone — took up seasonal residence at the Huber Centre. When space issues closed the Huber Centre’s holiday display, many of the remaining animated figures were purchased by the Downtown Dayton Partnership.
The display found a new home in 2003 when the Benjamin & Marian Schuster Performing Arts Center opened and the Downtown Dayton Partnership donated the holiday figures to the Arts Center Foundation. The animated figures were placed into newly created displays.
A makeover
It started on impulse, with Oakwood native Adam Koch offering up his design services, saying he’d love to be involved in the re-imagining of a beloved Christmas tradition that meant so much to him and his family. Some months later, Koch and his partner, Steven Royal, were hired for the job.
In 2017, Koch, a New York-based scenic designer, began giving the beloved displays a makeover after $65,000 was raised for the project.
Credit: Tom Gilliam
Credit: Tom Gilliam
In 2018, two of his redesigned windows, “The Nutcracker” and “The North Pole,” debuted to the delight of thousands of visitors. Four more windows were revealed in 2019: “Woodland,” “Silent Night,” “Snow Day” and “Christmastime,” each with characters from the original windows as well as some newly discovered and donated figures.
After the holidays, the more than 75 individually wrapped characters are stored in the basement of the Schuster Center. Each figure and display is protected to prevent dust and moisture from settling and ensure the treasures for future generations.
PHOTOS: Rike’s Holiday Windows at the Schuster Center
On display now
The charming animated windows have been on display in the Schuster Center’s Wintergarden during the holidays for more than 20 years and still have the power to engage and delight.
Credit: Contributed
Credit: Contributed
The windows are generally available for viewing Monday-Friday 6 a.m.-6:30 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday 8 a.m.-5 p.m. The windows will be closed Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year’s Eve, and New Year’s Day, and will not be available for public viewing during private events.
About the Author
