West-Jersey pioneer., 1871-07-07
ALEXANDER T. STEWART.
HIS WHOLESALE HOUSE ON BROADWAY.


HIS WHOLESALE HOUSE ON BROADWAY.
This structure, with the exception of ont
which belongs to the same proprietor, is til.
largest ever built in the United States fo
private purposes. Its white marble front
with successive ranges of gracefully proper
toned Corinthian columns, extends from
street to street, and the body of the build
ing covers about an acre of ground. 1t il
here that Mr.. Stewart now carries on the
wholesale part Of his great business in what
is called by us in the United States "dry
goods" which includes every thing sold by
the mercer, draper, hosier, upholsterer, ha.
berdasher, glover, and mantua maker. His
annual sales in this one department reach
the enormous sum of forty millions of dol.
lars, and far surpass in amount those of any
tradesman or merchant in the world. III
the conduct of this immense business eight
hundred persons are constantly employed.
The customers of the establishment are
scattered all over the vast continent OF
America. Every where in the North, South,
East, and West, in each large city and
small town, there are tradesmen who an
nounce in capitals ON their shop fronts, or
in emphatic advertisements of the local pa
pers, that the wares they have for sale have
come from Stewart This is deemed the su-
rest way of commencing them to purcha.
sers. When the rebellion broke out there
was due from Southern dealers to Mr. Stew
art the large sum of two million dollars
in gold, the greater part of which has prob
ably been long since put down to his "profit
and loss" account
Some few years ago Mr.. Stewart, finding
that his warehouse in the lower part of
Broadway, where he had hitherto conducted
his wholesale and retail business together,
was too small for the two, and anticipating
the progress of the city, built another and
still larger structure mile further up on
| the great thoroughfare.
HIS RETAIL ESTABLISHMENT.
Passing the long range of substantial
wholesale warehouses which bound Broad
way on either side for nearly mile, we
reach what may be termed the retail portion
of the street. The same want of symme-
try and regularity, the same quickened
movement of thronging passers, the same
apparently insolrable jumble of omnibuses,
carts, and equipages of all kinds, and the
same display of Haunting signs and trade
symbols confuse the eye throughout. But
on reaching the upper part of the thorough
fare the scene assumes gayer and more
holiday look. The shop-windows glow with
display of vari-colored stufs and wares;
great hotels, theatres, museums, coffee
houses, and restaurants throw out their
Haunting banners stylish equipages line
the street richly dressed danes sweep the
sidewalks with their heightened trains
and lounging, over-dressed men gather
about the marble hotel porches, or saunter
up and down the street.
The great retail warehouse of Stewart.
like his wholesale one has no external sign
or symbol, or any indication whatsoever of
the kind of business conducted within it,
or of the name of the proprietor. Nor does
it need any. There is not an inhabitant of
New York who is not familiar with "Stew-
arts store" and not stranger that does
not Immediately become, on arriving in the
city, acquainted with it. The structure
itself is SO large and imposing, and SO prom
inently placed in that universal thorough
fare, Broadway, that it at once strikes the
eye of every visitor. Though not as vet
fully completed, portion of it has been oc-
cupied for several years. When finished, it
will cover two acres and a quarter of ground,
upon every inch of which there will be
solid construction of iron and masonry. 1t
has height of seven and depth of two
stories, descending fifty feet below ground.
The first-hoor will extend in one clear space
over the whole two acres of this building
site, unbroken by a single partition. The
upper part of the structure will be sup
ported only by the sidewalks and great
range of iron pillars.
This spacious hall opening directly to the
four streets which the great building will
face, is to be exclusively devoted to sales,
and in its fifteen different departments the
purchaser will find every thing embraced by
that comprehensive American word "dry
goods F" which he may demand, from
glove to Turkish carpet. The upper sto-
ries will be used for manufacturing the va
rious articles of the ladies' wardrobe, man
tillas, cloaks ETC., all of which are sold in
this universal bazar
In the early part Of the afternoon at the
fashionable shopping" hour five thousand
persons mostly women, may be counted at
the same moment in this great establish
ment, and the daily average number of Wis
itors is nearly twenty thousand. There are
twelve hundred people employed in the re-
tail department alone, making, with the
eight hundred in the wholesale, two thou
sand persons to whom Mr.. Stewart giyes
sales amount in value to ten millions of
dollars which, added to the forty millions
sold at wholesale, makes the vast sum of
fifty millions Thus Mr.. Stewart alone sells
the sixth of the whole value of tie "dry
goods" consumed each year throughout
the United States
Half million of dollars worth of the
siugle article of gloves are sold each year in
the retail establishment; and it is not sur
prising to hear that one of the largest glove
manufacturers of Paris devotes his whole
time and resources exclusively to supplying
the immense demand of his great American
customer.
All kinds of "dry goods" can be fur
nished at this establishment, from shilling
calico to an Indian shawl at many thousand
dollars. There are constantly on sale cash
mere from four to five thousand dollars,
and lace shawls from three to four thousand
dollars EACH. Mr.. Stewart, on a late visit
to Europe, not finding articles of silk for
dresses sufficiently rich and costly for the
A arso r1xox s%ov, ia