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B. Altman was a lengendary New York Department store and became known as "the palace of trade". The store, like several others (Best & Company, Bonwit Teller, and others) descended from the dozens of grand emporiums that graced New York in the late 19th century, an era when department stores were among the city's first public places to feature electricity, elevators, and escalators. The store was founded by Benjamin Altman who according to store publications, was devoted to the principle of "an upright, honest merchant who could make fair dealing and impeccable reliability the watchwords of his life". The foundations of the Altman business were a small store on 3rd Avenue, near 10th Street. Altman repotedly selected "his merchandise with the fine artistic taste and the infallible sense of values which were among his most salient characteristics, and paying cash for every bill of goods he purchased, he early established, both for himself and his store, a reputation for reliability which has never been assailed because it is unassailable." Altman's was one of the most important New York department stores in the early 1990s. Selected pages from the 1915 catalog have even been published to illustrate American fashions of the the 1910s. At the time, New York was America's fashion center.
The store was founded by Benjamin Altman who according to store publications, was devoted to the principle of "an upright, honest merchant who could make fair dealing and impeccable reliability the watchwords of his life". The foundations of the Altman business were a small store on 3rd Avenue, near 10th Street. Altman repotedly selected "his merchandise with the fine artistic taste and the infallible sense of values which were among his most salient characteristics, and paying cash for every bill of goods he purchased, he early established, both for himself and his store, a reputation for reliability which has
never been assailed because it is unassailable." Alman was an American entrepreneur of some note. He was also a trendsetter in several areas. He sold fine fabrics for custom-made dresses while at the same time he showed off the possibilities of the sewing machine with ready-to-wear goods. He was both an innovative employer and salesman. He took much more care than most emplyers of the day to provide amenities for his employees. He also introduced the idea of home delivery to his clientel.
Mr. Altman began with a small dry goods store on 3rd Avenue in 1865, the last year of the Civil War. He then opened a new store on Sixth Avenue. The store was still unpretnenious, but Sixth Avenue was a more important shopping center. The store was located between 21st and 22nd Streets.
B. Altman was a lengendary New York Department store and became known as "the palace of trade". The store, like several others (Best & Company, Bonwit Teller, and others) descended from the dozens of grand emporiums that graced New York in the late 19th century, an era when department stores were among the city's first public places to feature electricity, elevators, and escalators. Altman's was one of the most important New York department stores in the early 1900s and had an affluent consumer base.
Altman in 1876 took possession of more spacious quarters on 6th Avenue at 19th Street. The store at this location established itself over the next 30 years as a leading New York City department store. The company claims that it became recognized as the leading dry goods house of the city of New York. According to the company history, "Its elegant appointments, its atmosphere of refinement, appealed to the most elusive members of society, not only of its own city, but far afield; while the superiority of its varied merchandise became a household word in the world of fashion."
With the success of the 6th Avenue store, Altman decided to follow the northward trend of the retail trade and began palanning for an uptown store "whose commodiousness should be commensurate with the constantly growing demand". The company in 1905-6 erected a new store on the east side of 5th Avenue, between 34th and 35th Streets. The first parcel of land for its site had been acquired by Mr. Altman some ten years earlier; and from time to time thereafter other lots had been purchased or leased from their various owners until Mr. Altman possessed what he believed to be an ideal site for the imposing store he purposed to erect in the heart of New York's most exclusive shopping district.
Mr. Altman sought with his new building to create "a store in which shopping was to become a pleasure instead of a task; a store in which the patron's need were not merely to be supplied, but anticipated; a store in which the personal comfort, not of patrons only, but of employees also, was to receive the most thoughtful consideration." The store of B. Altman & Co. becomes not only one of the largest dry goods establishments in the world, but also one of the most completely equipped. It occupied an entire city block. The company reported that "Within this immense building every modern improvement known to architectural and engineering science is in active operation, rendering it technically perfect as to light, heat, ventilation and distribution of floor space." The new building, like the original building, follows in detail the dignified style of the Italian Renaissance. Considerable expense was devoted to construction. French limestone was quarried and imported. Some of the top floors were done in white glazed brick. Large display windows lent distinction to the Madison Avenue corners. The wide ground floor storefront windows
were decorated with sculptures as well as clothing displays to attract customer attention. Commuters on the 6th Avenue Elevated Subway (referred to as the 'El' by New Yorkers), consumers' were drawn by the ornate second story-view. There was a spacious vestibule, with marquise extending over the sidewalk to the curb, convenient for patrons arriving in carriages and private motors. There was even a "commodious" carriage entrance, with enclosed portico for the shelter of patrons awaiting their vehicles.
Selected pages from the 1915 catalog have even been published to illustrate American fashions of the the 1910s. At the time, New York was America's fashion center.
Altman sought to make his store from the very beginning as "a synonym for integrity, excellence of quality and efficiency of service". Altman sought to create value for his scustomers by buying direct from the manufacturer, eliminating the not costs of middleman, B. Altman & Co. claimed that as a result that this enabled the compamy to give their patrons, "the benefit of the saving, and to offer their goods at prices that are frequently far below the actual market values."
The Boys' Department was on the 2nd floor in a 1914 description. It was part od a floor combining departments of special interest to mothers. The second floor in fact consisted of: "Women's Blouses; Bathing Costumes; women's, Misses' and Children's Shoes; Misses' and Small Women's Attire; Girl's and children's Dresses and Coats;
Women's French and American-made Underwear; Women's Knit Underwear; Corsets; Misses' and Children's Underwear; Infants' and Little Children's Wear and Nursery Furnishings; Colored Petticoats; Sweaters and Shawls; House Dresses, Aprons, Maids' Dresses and Caps and Nurses' Uniforms; Young Men's and Boys' Clothing; Boys' Furnishings." The company's own description of some of the 2nd floor departments is interesteing:
Infants' and Little Children's: "The Infants' and Little Children's Departmentwhich includes in its stock a large assortment of nursery furnishings as well as everything necessary for the little one's wardrobe, has been arranged in the form of a semi-enclosure,
especially with a view to securing the privacy desired for selecting at leisure the dainty little garments comprising the layette."
Girls' and Misses' Wearing Apparel: "Closely adjacent are the departments for Girls' and Misses' Wearing Apparel, the latter also including gowns and outergarments for small women. These departments are now situated on the north and west sides of the store, instead of on the east and south, as formerly. An interesting feature of the Misses section is a small display room in the Paris style, the interior of which is finished in French gray. This is intended primarily for the exhibition of misses' imported model gowns and wraps.
Young Men's Clothing: "A new department on this floor, meriting special mention because of its importance, is that devoted to Young Men's Clothing. Here is to be found everything that is smart in apparel for the modern young man, for street, sports or dress wear. Like the Men's Furnishing Department, it is entirely isolated from the sections given over to feminine attire; and it is capably handled by men accustomed to catering to the sartorial needs and tastes of the well-dressed young man."
Boys' Clothing: "The long-established Boys' Clothing Department, completely stocked with new assortments of garments for every day, school and dress wear, is located in the same section of the store, both being in the Madison Avenue addition, on the Thirty-fifth Street side."
Others: "Other interesting departments, which cannot be described at length for lack of space, are those reserved for Women's, Misses' and Children's French and American-made Undergarments; Knitted and Silk Underwear; Women's Blouses; Women's House Dresses and Aprons and Maids' and Nurses' Uniforms; Shawls and Sweaters; and Women's, Misses' and Children's Shoes. Here, also, is the Corset Department, showing large assortments of French corsets and brassieres of the finest makes and materials, as well as the popular American types. A special feature is made of corsets measured and fitted to the figure, and made by expert corsetieres in workrooms in the establishment."
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We know that Altman's was still operating in the 1950s. Altman's closed in 1989, the end of an era for New York shoppers. New York City has since opened a state-of-the-art library on five levels of former B. Altman Department Store.
Altman store publication "B. Altman & Company", 1914.
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