The evening world. [volume] (New York, N.Y.) 1887-1931, 1920-11-19
HOW THEY
STARTED
BY Appleton Street
~s~~s~~~~~NS
OpyrigiTt. 1870. by the Press lrIhll ding Co
CTbe New Yors Evening Norld.)
No. q. JOIN WANAMAKkR.

NOs o. SOhLN " hNh"dhEhe
John Wanamaker's father was q
yulk-maAer, ana the boys earliest
J,D was that Of turning bricks and
doing small tasks arOund the brick
yard. Ills first OUTSIDE employment
vas as erIand boy for a finn OF pub
usueIs at Sl.25 week. But even in
,nOae carly Jays ne mad hanhering
Ior su4ung things, and wnen sLill in
AlS ,vvus gOt p.d-e as ClGrn IN
lcJUI store. before he was twenty
uC Was scar salesman IN the Tower
Ian CIOJutAS sore, tHen Tie la Best
IN IhIlAuJlpnia.
Ii was not long before there we're
customers who NUulu AK for John
Wen they came to tDe sore and
wUu.u pei init NOBODY else to wait on
thcHl, Col. J, Nj. Bennett, the pro-
prCtOr. took a keen interest in his
young employee and was fond OF pre-
utDtug a brilliant tutuIe for him.
"JOun Is the most Ambitious boy
we We ever mad here" Col Bennett
used to tell his friends. HE 3 always
tnlnhluB Of new IDEAS for the store,
and WHAT'S more they are practical
iueds-tney work He'll be a great
merchant SOM day"
BY the time he was twenty three
years Odd young Manamaker had
saved $1,000, and with this he de-
rIuUd to embark in business for him.
sell. He got friend, Nathan Brown,
10 so in with HIM on partnership
lass and on April 9. 1851 the store
OF Manamaker a. Brown opened for
business at thee corner OF Sixth and
Market Streets, Philadelphia. The
first days sales totaIled $24.67. You've
probably heard some advertising man
ell how the youthful merchant put
The 81 cents in the cash drawer and
took the S24 and bought space in a
a. wspdpCr to advertise his bargains
to the public. The advertising must
lave been effective, for the little
s lore prospCred from the beginning.
! IS first years sales we're nearly $25,-
600 But to accomplish this the young
merchant worked like a Trojan, fire.
quently delivering purchases to Gus
toners himself in the evening after
ne had spent all day behind tho
counter.
Within few years Mr.. Wanna
maker had developed his store into
| the largest retail clothing store in the
country Then. in 1875, he bought
the old Pennsylvania freight station
| in Philadelphia and made 1t the site
for his Grand Depot n truly i'm
wense emporium for those days. The
! Grand Depot was opened in the year
Of the Centennial Exposition, and the
thousands Of visitors from all parts
If the country who focked to Phila-
| dClphia found it quite as much an
attraction and object OF interest a.
| the Centennial exhibits themselves.
| In 1896 Mr.. Wanamaker came to
I New York and bought the A. 7.
/ stewart store on Broadway, both
business and building. The follow
/ ing year he erected the fourteen
| story building on the adjoin ng
| block, giving his New York store an
| eQu pment that set a new standard
! for merchandising. In both the Phil
adolphia and New York stores are
many beautiful embcll shments,
works Of art and priceless antiques.
| The chair OF John Hancock and the
desk Of James Madison arc in Mr..
| Wanamaker's New York office. One
valued treasure in his Philadelphia
office is n llfelike portrait ofsPresi-
! lent benjamin Harrison, under
whom Mr.. Wanamaker served as
Postmaster General. Mr. Wanna
maker Is now eighty-two years old.