Closing Time: Scenes of Retail Ruin

It's hardly a government secret that retailers are struggling. Over the past several months, dozens of major national chains have resorted to shuttering stores in an effort to cut costs.

AnnTaylor(ANN Quote) has announced plans to eliminate 163 locations by 2010; Rite Aid(RAD Quote) intends to close 117 stores this year; Starbucks(SBUX Quote) is on a mission to close nearly 600 outlets in the United States.

Not to mention Gap(GPS Quote), Home Depot(HD Quote), Sears(SHLD Quote), Macy's(M Quote), Office Depot(ODP Quote), J.Jill(TLB Quote) ... the list goes on and on.

To honor the many good stores now shuttered for good, TheStreet.com has compiled the following photo gallery. Trust us when we say that we're hoping to never have to update it again -- although something tells us we will.