The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1894-03-05
GROWN TO MILLIONS
Great Increase of the Local Whole
sale Millinery Business.
Ranks Next to the Grocery Business
Packers Ahead of Last Season
Cereal Products.

In a recent issue of the Journal an article
showing the growth Of the whole
sale grocery business, ii having. in a few
years, gone from business of three or
four million dollars a year TO over eight
million dollars in 1898. Inquiry shows that
in rank in the increase in wholesale bust
ness. next comes the millinery houses. of
which there are now three large establish
ments covering acres of floor room. The
present wholesale houses. Fahnley & Nc
Crea, Griffith Brothers and the indianapolis
Millinery Company are all outgrowths of
old and less important concerns as to vol
ume Of business. The last-named IS new
house, established by young men from the
older firms. The two older firms each, in
1893. sold nearly S1.000,000 worth of goods.
Every year with them for some years past
has shown an increased business over the
preceding year. one of these establish
ments occupies six floors. 80 by 300 feet in
length, and six floors, 20 by 10 in length,
another six floors 80 feet by 22O in length,
a third four floors, 50 by 125 feet in length.
From this it will be seen that their floor
room exceeds that of any other branch of
business unless it be the wholesale grocers.
These three millinery houses keep twenty
six travelling statesmen on the road and the
goods of these three establishments are
sold in Indiana. Illinois. Missouri, Ohio, Ken
lucky, Michigan, Iowa, Tennessee, Ala
bama and Georgia principally.
j. w. Copeland established the first whole
sale millinery house in this city, in the
Blackford Block. now occupied by the
other offices. He came here in 1854 and
started business in a retail way. but in
five years his business reached such a vol
ume that his friends advised him to estab-
lish wholesale house. In 1871 after hav-
ing built up an immense trade for those
DAYS ne was burned out. After the fire he
moved into a building which stood where
Tanner x Sullvan's store now stands. In
1873 Mr.. Copeland retired from business.
At that time he had one large house 10
compete with and one or two smaller es-
Establishments. In the early business career
of MI. Copeland he made hat blocks and
kept we'll up with the fashion, and was
the only house manufacturing them at that
time in this or several adjoining states.
He shipped blocks 10 Cincinnati Dayton,
Louisville St Louis and many other points
and built up a large trade in that direction.
Manufacture of Cereal Products.
The indianapolis Touring mills in Febru-
airy turned our $50 barrels of flour, which
was S6O4 more barrels than in February,
1893. A large per cent. of the flour was
exported, the export demand the last few
weeks being much better proportionately
than the home demand. In the month Of
February there were handled on the
switches leading to the cerealine works 464
carloads of grain and it's products. About
two-thirds of the cars handled were ship
ping corn to the cerealine works, the other
third in shipping out the product from
the corn. Last month forty more loaded
cars were handled on the cerealine switches
than in January.
The National starch works, General Man
ager Piel states, are now running day and
night In February the works converted
as eco bushels of corn into starch Mr.. Plel
states that home and foreign demand for
their product has improved of late, but
at no point are they running other works
i'm the associa ton so near their capacity
as here as this is the most complete plant
and located favOrably 10 getting such corn
as makes the best starch.