Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1907-06-30
The Three Large Department
Stores Of the City Bring
Many Buyers
Few City Stores Otter Better
Selections Of Goods Or
Better Prices

outside | PURCHASERS TO
ihe City's Benefit
/ am surprised to see three such
large department stores in a city
of this size and you must have a
prosperous community tos support
then. z SIS
This was the remark yesterday Of
travelling man for one ofsthe largest
dry goods houses in the east, and his
remark brings home the fact that In
deed Bismarck must be a prosperous
city to support such large establish
ments.
We who stay at home a good deal
become accustomed to the familiar
business houses, and while we note
from time to time the increase in
store space Of the three department
stores Of the city, we scarcely com
prehend that the expansion is not
wholly due to local conditions in
fact, we do not realize that the large
stocks carried. by these stores are a
loadstone which is drawing more and
more trade to the. city from all the
country tributary thereto, which
means from the south line of the
state to Plaza and from Dawson to
the Montana line.
It is inherent in human nature to
trade where there is the greatest va
riety Of goods, which mems largest
stocks and least prices, SO it has
come about that people who have
heretofore been content to buy at
home now come to the city when
they have large bills to buy, and in
this way not only the department
stores but other lines of business
profit by the attractive opportunities
for wide range of selection offered
BY the locatsJh here of these three
big stores.
WEBB BROS. d.
The Oldest of the department stores
is that Of Webb Bros, and the story
Of this firms rise is quite interest
ing. The Webb brothers came to
Bismarck from the east in 1884 and
bought the furniture store of w. d.
Smith & Co., which stood where
Wachter's barn is now located. In
1890 they were burned out. They at
once rented the west half of the
Gussner block, now used by the In
tarnationaI Harvester Co., and
opened up again.
In 1892 they bought the Dan Eisen-
berg stock Of dry goods, then, located
in the Dakota block, and did business
there for two years, when they con-
solidated both lines of business in the
Raymond block, which is now the
Gussner block, and then conceived
the idea of organizing department
store, an idea which developed rap
idly
When the Mckenzie block was
built at the corner OF Main and
Fourth streets, Webb Bros. leased
the east Is feet of the ground floor,
and later built a brick storehouse
for their furniture and undertaking
parlors on Fourth street. In a short
time they will also have in use an
additional so feet in the Mckenzie
block, in which part they will also
have the use of the second story,
when they win consolidate their
business at the one location.
At the present time they carry dry
goods, carpets. crockeryware, furni-
sture, wall paper, shoes, millinery,
silver and glassware, toys in season.
undertaker's goods and a big stock
of Thousand and one things which.
60 along with all we'll regulated de-.
partment stores.
This store makes q specially OF
household goods. being complete
house furnishers, and in many other
lines not specifically mentioned they
carry stocks which are complete
stores In themselves.
No firm In the state stands higher
commercially than Webb Bros, and
their popularity as men and mers
chants is proved by the large trade
they have built up from . very small
beginning. They do a large mail or
der business and n all things are
strictly up-to-date.
A. w. LUCAS CO.
Another large department store Is
that of the A. w. Lucas Company on
Fourth street, Started In the fall
,of 1850 BY A. w Lucas and VIM,
O'Hara as dry goods store, it is