The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1906-04-21
BUTLER BROS. COME
TO MINNEAPOLIS
One of the Largest Jobbing Companies
in America Selects This City as Cen
y. ter of the Great Northwest.

There are to be ten large, roomy ele-
vators. Eight will be heavy freight |
elevators with speed of $50 feet a
minute. Two passenger elevators will
have speed of 800 feet minute
Lighting and Power.
The Minneapolis General Electric
company has already made twenty.
year contract for the entire lighting of
the building and for power for the eie-
vatOrs and such other machinery as Will
be needed in the various departments.
The machines and lighting equipment
will be of the most modern types and
specially adapted to the pusp pose Tor Tor
current will be run into the building
from the Taylors Falls substation IN
Northeast Minneapolis and transformed
for use in the building.
Direct trackage from the Minneapolis
& st. Louis road will run thru the
entire length Of the building from Sec
ond avenue N, making it possible, to
handle all incoming and outgoing ship.
ments direct from car to platform or
expense in labor or carriage. This sys-
tenn is used by the company in all It's
storage and stock warehouses and is
but sample of the systematic economy
followed in all details Of the business.
The offices and administration depart
ments will be on the ground floors; The
sample rooms will be on the top floors,
to lighting and display facilities. The
skyights will be of the saw tooth type,
admitting light from the north only,
thus assuring an even light without
bright sunlight OF sharp shadows.
Widespread Benefits.
Indirectly all the jobbing interests
and the general business of Minneapolis
will be benefited by the establishment
Of the Butler branch. Thousands of out
side merchants who heretofore have
done all or part Of their buying else
where will naturally be attracted to
Minneapolis, where the interests repre-
scented are as varied as in any jobbing
center of the country. Hundreds OF
| merchants who have not been in the
habit of visiting Minneapolis will come
here to buy and all Minneapolis jobbers
will be equally benefited.
The Butler Brothers company employs
no travelling statesmen, doing all it's
business by catalog with retail mer-,
chants exclusively. The company al
ready has $4,000 customers in the Min
neapolis territory and most of these
" LII Hdhc LIOlu OHS W lOuI GI1pS W
Minneapolis every year.
The winning of the Butler house is
decisive victory for the public affairs
organization. Of the Commercial Club
and those who have been associated
with it in the fight. St. Paul, thru it's
newly formed Business Men IS league,
! put up a fight that called for the ex-
ercise of all the diplomacy and skill at
the command Of the local workers. The
Butler project was the first that the
! st. Paul organiza ton went after and it's
failure is a particularly bitter pill for
! the St. Paul interests to swallow.
Bitter Pill for St. Paul.
For several years the Butler company
has maintained branch sample store
in St. Paul and the hopes of St. Paul
were based on this attachment to their
city When they learned, however, that
the representatives of the company who
were investigating the situation were
not satisfied with st. Paul and had
| turned to Minneapolis in search Of bet
ter accommodations, they began the
hight in earnest. The loss is a BODY
blow to st. Paul $ hopes and means that
1t IS to be the .second-rate .jobbing town,
with the establishment Of Minneapolis
IN the front rank. . -
WI representatives or the Butler
company have been in MINNEAPOLIS at
various. times during the negotiations
Il: A. Stillwell of Chicago, managing
directors; H. P. Knapp of St.. Louis
wee president; j. C. Schofeld of Chi
cago, treasurer, and E. A, CUNNINGHAM
OF Chicago, director It is doubtful #
there are four men in the United States
outside of the twin cities who have haG
more thoro education in the advan
tages and business of the two cities
than have these four
Until it was decided to come to Min
neapolis, the Butler representative
alternated between Minneapolis and st
7 Paul IN conference with the two com
m1ttees. On the part of the Minneap
Oils. workers the business was vigor
ously and systematically followed up
The city was not thrown at the feet O.
the company, but the welcome extended
left nothing wanting. The men VIII,
have been most interested and activ,
and who have devoted their time am
energy to the project since its incep
ton nearly three months ago are NOR
than pleased at the success of thei
campaign for Minneapolis. Active il
the work have been w. W. Heffelfnge1
W. A. burst, John Leslie, Wallace G
Nye. E. w. Decker B. F. Nelson, Lucia
Swift, Walter Badger, W. s. Jones an
In the sessions that were held her
! Minneapolis jobbers, many of them com
petitors of the Butler company, wer
: called In to offer their opinions. On
, influence of great value to the Mime
apolls cause was the location here of tn
Hurtv-Simmons company, a. branch O
I the Simmons Hardware company of 81
= Louis. Frank w. Hurtv, it's vice presj
dent and treasurer, former ST.. Pau
man, did yeoman duty, giving the rea
4 sons why the Simmons interest chos
: Minneapolis rather than St. Paul 70
y ITS new northwestern branch, even tn
:, = larger established business could h
L bought in St. Paul than was availabl
i here. Other former st. Paul bushes
: men who have found MINNEAPOLIS to b
o the; real business city, contributed e1
: fectively.< -
Il Lively Campaign Ended.
f Finally after meeting of the Butte
= Brothers directors, in Chicago. on Marc
~, it was announced that the compan
y would come here under one certain col
q dition. The proposition of the Wake
:, interests did not quite meet this an
! again the business interests iumpe
into the breach to evolve a pla
: whereby the two could be brought t,
gether. Butler Brothers were informe
by telegraph that their proposition ha
been received and was accepted. TT