B. Altman and Company
Encyclopedia
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
-based department store
Department store
A department store is a retail establishment which satisfies a wide range of the consumer's personal and residential durable goods product needs; and at the same time offering the consumer a choice of multiple merchandise lines, at variable price points, in all product categories...
and chain founded in 1865 by Benjamin Altman
Benjamin Altman
Benjamin Altman was born and died in New York City. He was the son of Bavarian Jews who emigrated to America in 1835 and opened a small store on Attorney Street in NYC....
which had its flagship store at Fifth Avenue
Fifth Avenue (Manhattan)
Fifth Avenue is a major thoroughfare in the center of the borough of Manhattan in New York City, New York, United States. The section of Fifth Avenue that crosses Midtown Manhattan, especially that between 49th Street and 60th Street, is lined with prestigious shops and is consistently ranked among...
and 34th Street
34th Street (Manhattan)
34th Street is a major cross-town street in the New York City borough of Manhattan, connecting the Lincoln Tunnel and Queens-Midtown Tunnel. Like many of New York City's major crosstown streets, it has its own bus routes and four subway stops serving the trains at Eighth Avenue, the trains at...
in Midtown Manhattan
Midtown Manhattan
Midtown Manhattan, or simply Midtown, is an area of Manhattan, New York City home to world-famous commercial zones such as Rockefeller Center, Broadway, and Times Square...
from 1906 until the company closed on December 31, 1989.
One of the first American department stores to open out-of-town branches, Altman's eventually opened locations in Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
(St. Davids
St. Davids, Pennsylvania
St. Davids is an unincorporated community in Radnor Township, Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is served by its own train station. St. Davids is home to the main campus of Eastern University, a four-year, liberal arts university affiliated with the American Baptist Churches...
, 1965, Willow Grove
Willow Grove Park Mall
Willow Grove Park Mall is a three-story shopping mall located in the unincorporated community of Willow Grove in Abington Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania at the intersection of Easton Road and Moreland Road...
, 1983), New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
(Short Hills
Short Hills, New Jersey
Short Hills is an unincorporated area located within the township of Millburn, in Essex County, New Jersey, United States. It is a popular commuter town for residents who work in New York City...
, 1958, (replacing the earlier nearby East Orange store), Ridgewood
Ridgewood, New Jersey
Ridgewood is a village in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the village population was 24,958. Ridgewood is an affluent suburban bedroom community of New York City, located approximately northwest of Midtown Manhattan.The Village of Ridgewood was...
/Paramus, 1967
Paramus, New Jersey
Paramus is a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough population was 26,342. A suburb of New York City, Paramus is located between 15–20 miles northwest of Midtown Manhattan and approximately west of Upper Manhattan.Paramus is one of...
), and New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
state (Manhasset, 1947
Manhasset, New York
Manhasset is a hamlet and neighborhood in Nassau County, New York, on the North Shore of Long Island. As of the United States 2010 Census, the population was 8,080....
, West Babylon
West Babylon, New York
West Babylon is a census-designated place in the town of Babylon in Suffolk County, New York, United States. The population was 43,452 at the 2000 census.-Geography:West Babylon is located at ....
and White Plains, 1930
White Plains, New York
White Plains is a city and the county seat of Westchester County, New York, United States. It is located in south-central Westchester, about east of the Hudson River and northwest of Long Island Sound...
). A short-lived location in Cincinnati opened during the L.J. Hooker ownership period, and two mall locations in Buffalo
Walden Galleria
Walden Galleria is an enclosed shopping mall located in the town of Cheektowaga, New York. Walden Galleria comprises more than of retail space, with 250 stores on two levels, including a food court and a movie theater. Anchor stores include Best Buy, Dick's Sporting Goods, DSW Shoe Warehouse,...
and Syracuse
Carousel Center
Carousel Center is a , seven-story super-regional shopping and entertainment complex on the shore of Onondaga Lake in Syracuse, New York. It has eight anchor store slots - currently filled with Best Buy, Bon Ton, Forever 21 , JCPenney, Macy's, Lord & Taylor, and Sports Authority...
were physically completed but never occupied by Altman's during that same time.
History
The store that would become B. Altman and Company began on the Lower East SideLower East Side
The Lower East Side, LES, is a neighborhood in the southeastern part of the New York City borough of Manhattan. It is roughly bounded by Allen Street, East Houston Street, Essex Street, Canal Street, Eldridge Street, East Broadway, and Grand Street....
as a family-owned store, which by 1865 had come to be solely owned by Benjamin Altman
Benjamin Altman
Benjamin Altman was born and died in New York City. He was the son of Bavarian Jews who emigrated to America in 1835 and opened a small store on Attorney Street in NYC....
, one of the brothers in the family, and was located at Third Avenue
Third Avenue (Manhattan)
Third Avenue is a north-south thoroughfare on the East Side of the New York City borough of Manhattan, running from Cooper Square north for over 120 blocks. Third Avenue continues into The Bronx across the Harlem River over the Third Avenue Bridge north of East 129th Street to East Fordham Road at...
and 10th Street
10th Street (Manhattan)
10th Street is an east-west street from the West Village neighborhood of the New York City borough of Manhattan to Avenue D in the East Village. East of Sixth Avenue it changes heading, from east-northeast to east-southeast. Traffic is eastbound as far as Tompkins Square Park, of which it marks...
. In 1877, the store, wanting to expand, relocated to 621 Sixth Avenue
Sixth Avenue (Manhattan)
Sixth Avenue – officially Avenue of the Americas, although this name is seldom used by New Yorkers – is a major thoroughfare in New York City's borough of Manhattan, on which traffic runs northbound, or "uptown"...
between 18th and 19th Streets. This neo-Grec
Neo-Grec
Neo-Grec is a term referring to late manifestations of Neoclassicism, early Neo-Renaissance now called the Greek Revival style, which was popularized in architecture, the decorative arts, and in painting during France's Second Empire, or the reign of Napoleon III, a period that lasted...
building was put up in four stages, and was designed by David and John Jardine
David and John Jardine
The brothers David , John E. and George Elliott Jardine were architects of Scottish nationality, sons of a Scottish architect-builder of Whithorn, Wigtownshire; they took up American citizenship and practiced in New York City, forming "one of the more prominent, prolific and versatile...
(the original building, 1876-77, and the 1880 extension), William Hume (1887) and Buchman & Fox (1909-1910).
By 1906, though, Altman's had moved out to a new block-long building at 351-57 Fifth Avenue running from 34th
34th Street (Manhattan)
34th Street is a major cross-town street in the New York City borough of Manhattan, connecting the Lincoln Tunnel and Queens-Midtown Tunnel. Like many of New York City's major crosstown streets, it has its own bus routes and four subway stops serving the trains at Eighth Avenue, the trains at...
to 35th Streets, which was expanded in stages through 1913 to 188-89 Madison Avenue
Madison Avenue (Manhattan)
Madison Avenue is a north-south avenue in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, United States, that carries northbound one-way traffic. It runs from Madison Square to the Madison Avenue Bridge at 138th Street. In doing so, it passes through Midtown, the Upper East Side , Spanish Harlem, and...
. The original Fifth Avenue building and the extensions were all designed by Trowbridge & Livingston
Trowbridge & Livingston
Trowbridge & Livingston was an architectural practice based in New York City in the early 20th century. The firm's partners were Samuel Beck Parkman Trowbridge and Goodhue Livingston ....
in Italian Renaissance style. Altman's was the first big department store to make the move from the "Ladies' Mile" shopping district
Ladies' Mile Historic District
The Ladies' Mile Historic District was designated in May 1989, by the New York City Landmark Preservation Commission to preserve an irregular district of 440 buildings on 28 blocks and parts of blocks in Manhattan, from roughly 18th Street to 24th Street and from Park Avenue South to west of the...
, where the dry goods emporia had been located, to Fifth Avenue. The neighborhood was still primarily residential at the time, and the design of the new building was planned to fit in with the palatial mansions around it. Following Altman's example, the other big stores followed and made the move uptown as well.
In the 1930s, Altman's made one of the early entries in the suburbs, with branches opening in East Orange
East Orange, New Jersey
East Orange is a city in Essex County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census the city's population 64,270, making it the state's 20th largest municipality, having dropped 5,554 residents from its population of 69,824 in the 2000 Census, when it was the state's 14th most...
(later relocated to Short Hills), White Plains and Manhasset. The foresight of the organization in geographical selection can be seen in that the Short Hills location is now The Mall at Short Hills
The Mall at Short Hills
The Mall at Short Hills is a high-end mall in the Short Hills area of Millburn, New Jersey, United States. The mall developer is The Taubman Company...
, the White Plains location is now The Westchester
The Westchester
The Westchester is a , upscale shopping mall in downtown White Plains, New York. It is owned and operated by Simon Property Group and is home to some of today's most fashionable and well-known retailers, many with their only location in affluent Westchester County, New York...
shopping mall, and the Manhasset location is adjacent to the Americana Manhasset
Americana Manhasset
Americana Manhasset is a high-end, open-air shopping center located in Manhasset, New York. It is the largest and most well known shopping center in the area, sometimes commonly referred to as the "Miracle Mile"....
, which opened nine years after the Altman's store.
When Benjamin Altman died he left no heirs, and besides his art collection going to the Metropolitan Museum, his stock in the stores was placed in a foundation, the Altman Foundation. In 1985, due to changing IRS rulings, the Foundation sold the stores to an investor group that included members of the Gucci
Gucci
The House of Gucci, better known simply as Gucci , is an Italian fashion and leather goods label, part of the Gucci Group, which is owned by French company PPR...
family and two principals from financial firm Deloitte & Touche.
After Altman's death
In 1987 Australian real estate development company L.J. HookerL.J. Hooker
LJ Hooker is an Australian real estate franchise, founded in 1928, currently owned by Janusz Hooker, the grandson of founder Sir Leslie Hooker and was established in 1928.-History:...
and its CEO, George Herscu, purchased the controlling interest in the B. Altman stores (as well as Bonwit Teller
Bonwit Teller
Bonwit Teller was a department store in New York City founded by Paul Bonwit in 1895 at Sixth Avenue and 18th Street. In 1897 Edmund D. Teller was admitted to the partnership and the store moved to 23rd Street, East of Sixth Avenue...
, Sakowitz
Sakowitz
Sakowitz was a chain of family-owned department stores based in Houston, Texas, United States. The store was founded by two brothers, Tobias and Simon Sakowitz, in Galveston, Texas in 1902. Other family members were working in the cotton mills in Galveston...
and a majority of Parisian) to utilize these chains as anchors in poorly located, yet extravagant, new shopping centers across the country. Knowing virtually nothing about how to operate these various retailing chains, and then placing them in locations with no regard to market recognition or demographics, the strategy failed miserably, and in August 1989 B. Altman filed for bankruptcy protection, with the last store closing in 1990.
Another less well-known but equally catastrophic venture included building two upstate New York stores that were part of a different expansion strategy that never materialized. The suburban Buffalo location at the huge Walden Galleria
Walden Galleria
Walden Galleria is an enclosed shopping mall located in the town of Cheektowaga, New York. Walden Galleria comprises more than of retail space, with 250 stores on two levels, including a food court and a movie theater. Anchor stores include Best Buy, Dick's Sporting Goods, DSW Shoe Warehouse,...
complex was, in fact, fully completed and fixtured but never occupied by Altman's. It would later be occupied in 1991 by local department store, AM&A's
AM&A's
Adam, Meldrum & Anderson Company was a chain of department stores based in Buffalo, New York. It was an institution to generations of shoppers in the Buffalo area. The company remained family owned until its sale to The Bon-Ton in 1994....
, and eventually a Bon-Ton, which vacated in 2006. This former never-opened Altman's location was demolished for a new cinema complex and mall expansion. The Carousel Center
Carousel Center
Carousel Center is a , seven-story super-regional shopping and entertainment complex on the shore of Onondaga Lake in Syracuse, New York. It has eight anchor store slots - currently filled with Best Buy, Bon Ton, Forever 21 , JCPenney, Macy's, Lord & Taylor, and Sports Authority...
Mall location in Syracuse was under construction at the time and redesigned to house a succession of several discount anchors, one on each of the two floors.
The store has long had a reputation for gentility and conservatism. "Altman's program, as it starts its second century, is to retain its image as a carriage-trade store, safely conservative," It was regarded as similar to the renowned Marshall Field & Company in Chicago. Highlighting its sober reputation, the stores included a satellite location of Colonial Williamsburg
Colonial Williamsburg
Colonial Williamsburg is the private foundation representing the historic district of the city of Williamsburg, Virginia, USA. The district includes buildings dating from 1699 to 1780 which made colonial Virginia's capital. The capital straddled the boundary of the original shires of Virginia —...
's Craft House that sold classic colonial reproductions. Two lost treasures from the store are the famous Christmas windows, which rivaled Lord & Taylor
Lord & Taylor
Lord & Taylor, colloquially known as L&T, or LT, based in New York City, is the oldest upscale, specialty-retail department store chain in the United States. Concentrated in the eastern U.S., the retailer operated independently for nearly a century prior to joining American Dry Goods...
's, a few blocks up Fifth Avenue, as well as the Charleston Gardens restaurant, which housed a full-sized facade of a Tara-like Charleston
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the second largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It was made the county seat of Charleston County in 1901 when Charleston County was founded. The city's original name was Charles Towne in 1670, and it moved to its present location from a location on the west bank of the...
home. The St. David's location also had a Charleston Garden restaurant, as did the other branch stores.
Buildings
On March 12, 1985 Altman's Fifth Avenue building was designated a New York City landmark.. When Altman's closed, the building stood vacant until 1996, when the exterior was restored by Hardy Holzman Pfeiffer and the interior reconfigured by Gwathmey Siegel & Associates to be used by the City University of New YorkCity University of New York
The City University of New York is the public university system of New York City, with its administrative offices in Yorkville in Manhattan. It is the largest urban university in the United States, consisting of 23 institutions: 11 senior colleges, six community colleges, the William E...
as their Graduate Center
CUNY Graduate Center
The Graduate Center of the City University of New York brings together graduate education, advanced research, and public programming to midtown Manhattan hosting 4,600 students, 33 doctoral programs, 7 master's programs, and 30 research centers and institutes...
on the Fifth Avenue side, by the New York Public Library
New York Public Library
The New York Public Library is the largest public library in North America and is one of the United States' most significant research libraries...
as the Science, Industry and Business Library on the Madison Avenue side, and by Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press is the largest university press in the world. It is a department of the University of Oxford and is governed by a group of 15 academics appointed by the Vice-Chancellor known as the Delegates of the Press. They are headed by the Secretary to the Delegates, who serves as...
.
In addition, Altman's Sixth Avenue building is part of the Ladies' Mile Historic District
Ladies' Mile Historic District
The Ladies' Mile Historic District was designated in May 1989, by the New York City Landmark Preservation Commission to preserve an irregular district of 440 buildings on 28 blocks and parts of blocks in Manhattan, from roughly 18th Street to 24th Street and from Park Avenue South to west of the...
created in 1989.