Weekly expositor. (Brockway Centre, Mich.) 1882-1894, 1882-10-12
THE WHOLESALE BUSINESS
IN DETROIT.

| The leading wholesale dealer In
books and stationery in the beautiful
City Of the Straits, or anywhere in the
Michigan Peninsulas, by undisputed
precedence, is Thorndike Nourse. This
young gentleman came from Boston to
the Northwest about ten years ago.
bringing to the city of his choice an in
valuable reinforcement of the charac-
teristic shrewdness, energy, and enter
prise of the Hub. He became a men,
Der of the then notable firm of 4. b.
Smith q Co., occupying the spacious
premises now used by the American
Express Company, at the southwest
corner of Griswold and Fort streets.
He remained with Messrs Smith q Co.
for about seven years, and upon the dis
solution of that house in 1880, assum-
ed and carried on its business, with
| successive engagements and
increasing prosperity. until this
year, when he mainly retired from
the retail trade, and devoted his
abilities to his growing and hope
full wholesale interests. For several
years, under E. B. Smith & Co., and
then Thorndike Nourse. the establish
ment had been popularity maintained on
| Woodward avenue, northeast corner of
Larned street, where well stocked re-
| tail store and some of the lighter
branches of Mr.. Nourse's own business
are still conducted. This location, how
ever, was not satisfactory as perma-
nent place for the broader trade which
he contemplated. At his instance, ac-
cordingly, the proprietor of the site
now occupied lat Nos. AZ, 40, and 81
Larned street, southeast corner of
Shelby,) erected the elegant Mcmillan
building, which fills worthy place in
the recent and noble architecture of the
city. In the spring of 1882 Mr.. Nourse,
whose ideas had been embodied in every
feature of the edifce, took the entire
lease of it and now occupies nearly
the whole with the various de-
partments of an establishment which
has already come to be one of the
most marked characteristics of the
manufacturing and wholesale inter-
ests of Detroit. A considerable panora-
ma would be required even to hint the
beauty of the views to be had from
parts of it, across the city and the
broad river to the dominion of Her
Britannia Majesty, or to indicate its
eligible situation for business 1t is
scarcely more than a biscuit-toss from
the post-office, whose site, by the
recent decision of the Government au-
thorities, is to remain undisturbed, ex-
cept by early extension and improve.
ment, for, probably, the next fifty years.
at least. 1t is within five minutes
walk of all the principal steamer land
ings and hotels; is directly upon the
horse-cars, running to the Central
depot, the chief railway station in the
city; and is within pistol-shot of every
other trainway in the place. The
| famous Woodward avenue is but two
blocks distant; Jefferson avenue but
one block. Better judgment i'm the
choice Of present and permanent To-
cation for such a business could not
have been had.
The edifice thus fortunately occupied
by Mr.. Nourse is six stories high, in.
GLIDING the basement story. Entering
this, the clatter of busy machinery
cheerily greets the visitor, for Mr..
Nourse is printer, binder and publish
er, as we'll as bookseller and stationer.
To his presses, in printing rooms and
bindery, comes large work from far and
near; in one recent case-that of huge
encyclopedia for subscription circula-
ton, across two states and part of an
other, even from the interior of Iowa,
and passing Chicago printers on the
way. For that matter, well-known
Chicago house, having a heavy con-
tract for Reproduction of the Supreme
Court reports OF Michigan, has all the
mechanical work done by Mr.. Nourse;
and no heater work, in sill particulars
of Typography and binding, appears in
the law-books of any state in the union
or country of the world. His workshops
are also constantly engaged in turning
out the issues Of two of the publishing
houses of Detroit-among the most
popular subscription books in the mar
ket, largely by reason of their superior
presentations to the eye. A vast deal
of occasional and transient work is al
so turned out of the various branches
of the manufacturing department.
Mr.. Nourse is likewise himself a
publisher of no small productivity.
Among the more important work bear
ing his imprint, are the thirteen vol
umes of the "handy volume Shakes
peare," for which there is steady and
increasing demand; the writings of the
celebrated Orestes A. BrownsOn, long
editor of the Boston Quarterly ReUieao,
prepared by his son, now a resident Of
Detroit lin press), a new edition of DR..
John Browns "Rob and His Friends"
superbly illustrated with original steel
plates. and retailed at the price of five
dollars; Webb's sword Method" and
the accompanying apparatus, which
have been the means of introducing an
improved way of learning to read into
many thousands of schools; Smiths
Interest Tables; School Registers, in
two sizes; and Smiths Class-Book.
By all the printed productions of the
house the basement story is kept music
al with the movement Of fine Camp
bell four-roller press, a complete Camp.
bell and CranstOn, and several other
presses are in motion above and below
stairs. Mr.. Chas. Kamerhoff is "on
deck" in his department, and Mr.. H.
r. Winn is foreman in the composing.
room. This is at the other extreme OF
height, occupy ing the well-lighted and
ventilated uppermost story, to which,