The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1915-09-08
The Pioneer Wholesale
Dry Goods House
Of Iowa

n the days half century or more
ago when railroads were still classod
| as q luxury and not as q necessity,
and when steamboat traf1c thrived on
the upper Mississippi river, . little
village, naturally located at the foot
OF great stretch Of rapids became
the terminal OF this trade. From It
great wagon trains made their way
to other portions Of the state and to
lneighboring states. carrying ponderous
loads Of goods.
In this environment was born some
lof the factories OF Keokuk, and one
|of these. the Irwin-rhillips company.
has grown from year to year until It
|ls ranked now as one OF the largest
wholesale drygoods houses In the
central west and the largest In Iowa.
Inc wagon trains have been converted
into freight cars, the prairie roads
have been metamorphosed into steel
rails, and steamboat traffic has ebbed
but the house which had its inception
through the combination OF natural
location and resources has grown to
be ono OF the busiest In the state. &,
Two factories, one located in Keo.
kuk adjoining the four story. ware
rooms and offices, and the other in
Hamilton, ILL.,. Just across the rive.
are needed to supply the demands OF
the trade which has expanded i'm
mensely In the sixty years that the
house has been organized.
Years before the white man came to
the foot Of the rapids to settle, tile
name Of an Indian chief was known
throughout the valley. A few years
before Athis wholesale house became
an established business, the name OF
this Indian chief became only another
unit In history, and soon became only
memory. More than forty years ago,
when the Irwin Phillips factory sought
something distinctive In the way Of
trade marks, the 1eadsesof the bust
ness hit uponsA mark which has be IN.
distinctive and which Is known now
over territory far greater than the
old Sax and Fox chief had ever dream
ed of possessing, In even his most
optimistic moments.
For nearly half century the shirts
and overalls which have been turned
out of the Irwin-Phillips factory by
the thousands have been stamped with
the words, Indian Head, The re-
mainder OF the old trade mark shows
likeness Of old Chief Keokuk, taken
from the picture which is officially ac- i
copied by the city as the best like, /
ness OF the indian for whom the town
is named.
Thus did one OF the factories, one
Of the cogs in the Industrial machin |
cry Of the city OF its birth. honor both |
the city and the old chief for whom 1t
was named, In its trade mark. 1t has |
helped In this way to spread the
name Of KeOkuk through q vast ter !
ritory.
The Irwin Phillips company was
established almost sixty years ago. 1t
took rank at once as one Of the lead
ing houses In the Mississippi valley.
and has gained strength with each
year. The company now has twenty
statesmen, who sell goods In southern
Wisconsin, in Illinois, east to prac-
tically the Indiana line. all OF Iowa,
northern Missouri, Nebraska, South
Dakota and Kansas. The employees In
the various departments number s251l
persons. The. house has three rest
dent buyers in New York City, in ad-
dition to the four regular department.
buyers. who keep In close touch with
the demands of the trade and are Ia
New York markets four to i've times
each year.
To carry on this large business and |
to house adequately the largest whole
sale dry goods house in Iowa, large I
floor space is necessary. On the mrs.
and second floors in the main buildings |
are kept the piece goods and dry
goods, such as muslins. calicoes, wool
goods, silks and velvets. The third |
floor Is given over to the notion de-
partment. This is one of the big !!
features Of the company. There on dis
play can be found domestic and foreign |,
laces, and fancy white goods from
and American mills.
The fourth floor perhaps is one OF
the most Interesting for here is to be
found the display of the actual prod
ucts Of the manufacturing department
Of the big factory. The products OF
The Keokuk and Hamilton factories
are displayed here, and shipments are I
made daily from these stocks, white
the machines are turning out addition
al products.
A separate building adjoining the
factory is devoted to underwear and
hosiery-two of the strong staples
which have helped materially to put
I