When I was a kid in the 40s and 50s there were 3 department stores in Sioux Falls - Montgomery Ward, Penneys, and Younkers. All had mezzanines and pneumatic tubes. The fabric dept was in the basement of all of them.
In my small town we had a K&K merchantile store. They had fabric in the front, then womens clothes, shoes, then mens clothes and groceries in the back. They did not have a fancy machine to measure fabric, just a yard stick glued to the counter. That is where I bought fabric for my first home ec project. There was a woman there named Marie who must of worked there for over 50 years. I think it was the only job she ever had. She was unmarried and did not trust kids and had no sense of humor. She watched us like a hawk when we were in there, sure we were going to damage something.
Life was so much simpler then.