The Topeka state journal., 1899-11-24
CROSBY OPENING.
Thousands of People Visit the Big De-
partment Store.

When the Kansas avenue doors of
Crosby Brothers store were opened
Thursday night the crowd waiting to
attend the opening filed the sidewalk I
and half the street.
The occasion was the opening of the Z
new building facing on Jackson street
and connected with the Kansas avenue
store. The new building contains the
furniture department. waiting room,
offices and mammoth storage rooms.
The Jackson street doors We're thrown
open as an exit and the 5000 people
that attended the opening went in the
front doors, visited the different de-
partments and left by way of the
Jackson street entrance.
The history of the growth of the CrOs- /
by Brothers store is the story of the
building up of the largest department
store in Topeka. If all the floor space
was, included in a building on one lot 25
by $50 feet it would make a building Il
stories high. There are "a, ,502 square
feet of floor space in the store.
f. H. and w. T. Crosby came to To-
pel1a from St. Louis and started a dry
goods store in the building next to the
Bank of Topeka in 1880. At that time
the entire floor space OF their store was
1,190 square feet. The present floor
space of their Office alone is 1, 222 square
feet. The present store is more than
fifty times larger than the store where
they commenced business.
During the month of October just
passed they did as much business in
their present store as in their first store
for an entire year. In 1895 the firm paid
$36, 925 cash for the Stevenson stock and
moved into the building on Kansas ave
nue~they now occupy. In three weeks
after opening their new store they sold
over $36,925 worth of goods. In 1880
they had five employees. Now they en-
plOy 120 people
Last night Marshalls band of fifty
pieces, stationed on the second floor of
the Kansas avenue building, played
during the evening. The store was
handsomely decorated. The two front
windows represented elegantly furnish
ed rooms. On the first floor of the main
| building the decorations carried out
were of white. In the center of the
light shaft was suspended a horn of
| plenty made of roses. White doves
! were represented flying about. The
goods throughout the store were taste
| fully arranged on the shelves and coun-
! terS and the effect was pleasing.
The millinery department was of Spe-
cial interest to the ladies In the car
pet department a cOzy Turkish corner,
! perfect in every detail, attracted the
| gentlemen. The shoe department was
| reached through colOnade of white
arches. In the furniture department the
! sets of handsome furniture were
| grouped as they would appear in
| room. Every line of furniture, from
! the cheapest kitchen chair to hand
! some dining room and bed room sets,
| was shown
One of the features of the new build
! ing is the ladies' waiting or meeting
| room where easy chairs, a writing desk
/ and everything for the convenience of
| ladies on a shopping tour is at hand.
The window decorations and the dec
! OratiOnS of the store throughout were
! planned and arranged by George Kelly
and Otto Langhanke. Mr.. Langhanke
| is a professional decorator and served
| his apprenticeship in Berlin. He is en-
! pIoyed by the firm to look after the
| trimming of the front windows and the
| store.
So great was the crowd during the
| evening that not One-f1fth of the people
/ could get up to the second and third
| floors to see the superb displays in the
| carpet, drapery, millinery, cloak and
| shoe departments.
Not a single article of merchandise
| in all the magnificent prOfusiOn was
| purchased for the OccasiOn-au were
taken out of the regular stock.
One of the highest compliments paid
| the firm by the surprised people was
| the statement, often repeated: 1.-THE
| goods are too good for the town" But
! Crosby Bios. do not think anything is
too good for Topeka" and they are
right.
Such a store is a great thing for the
! city and a great thing for all the mer-
| chants. 1t brings purchasers to To-
! peka who might go to Kansas City and
! Chicago. The Topeka stores in general
get great benefits from customers who
come here on account of one store and
being here patrOnize many.
The success of Crosby Bros. is due to
their enterprise, progressive spirit and
commercial genius and because, as one
of them said today, I'VE are in love
with our business