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Explore stories in Northwest history through highlights from MOHAI’s collections. Search by keyword below or browse the entire online collection by entering the asterisk symbol (*). Filter your search by type of materials.

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308 results for: Retail and Department Stores

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Image of Make the bosses take the losses! flier, Seattle, May 1975
Ephemera

Make the bosses take the losses! flier, Seattle, May 1975

In May 1975, Eddie Bauer, a prominent Seattle clothing manufacturer, fired over 70 garment workers without notice. Most were women - members of the United Garment Workers Union Local 17. On May 17, some two-dozen people picketed the downtown Seattle Eddie Bauer store in protest. The laid off workers blamed the company for firing them because of their union membership,…
ID Number:2002.23.3.54.1
Date:1975
Image of Street clock outside Carroll's Jewelers, Seattle, February 1975
Photograph

Street clock outside Carroll's Jewelers, Seattle, February 1975

This street clock was commissioned by Thomas J. Carroll, the founder of Carroll’s Fine Jewelry, established in 1895 in Seattle. The clock was made by Seattle clockmakers Joseph Mayer and Sons and stood for decades at the jewelry store’s entrance at Fourth Avenue and Pike Street. Carroll's Fine Jewelry closed in 2008, and that same year the clock was moved…
ID Number:2002.46.1358.22
Date:1975
Image of Frederick & Nelson, Seattle, circa 1918
Postcard

Frederick & Nelson, Seattle, circa 1918

The first Frederick & Nelson retail store opened in 1889, right after Seattle's great fire. By 1916, the company was doing so well that it built a large new store at Fifth Avenue and Pike Street, which many people thought was too far out of town. Frederick & Nelson was one of Seattle's landmark companies for over a century. It…
ID Number:2002.48.656
Date:Circa 1918
Image of Retailers manning booth at Pure Food Show, Seattle, February 19, 1908
Photograph

Retailers manning booth at Pure Food Show, Seattle, February 19, 1908

The Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906 was the first of a series of significant consumer protection laws which required manufacturers meet certain standards of purity, and that information printed on food or drugs labels be accurate and true. One of Seattle's finest department stores at the time, Bon Marche, began hosting an annual food show where suppliers could…
ID Number:2004.61.1
Date:1908
Image of Duncan & Sons catalog, circa 1920
Ephemera

Duncan & Sons catalog, circa 1920

Duncan & Sons, Inc. sold supplies for shoes and sold and repaired leather saddles and harnesses in Seattle from 1898-2007. The company was an important local business and was a large city employer in the first part of the 20th century. The catalog pictured here gives an excellent look into the business as it was in the 1920s. The catalog…
ID Number:2007.36.1
Date:Circa 1920
Image of Pacific Outfitting Company employees outside storefront, Seattle, circa 1915
Photograph

Pacific Outfitting Company employees outside storefront, Seattle, circa 1915

The Pacific Outfitting Company of Seattle was founded in 1907 by Polish immigrant Alfred Shemanski (1875-1966). The store was one of several in a chain begun by Alfred and his brothers, including the Eastern Outfitting Company in Portland started by Joseph Shemanski. The Pacific opened as a clothing store for women, soon expanding to sell men’s apparel as well. The…
ID Number:2008.3.18.2
Date:Circa 1915
Image of Pacific Outfitting Company clothing display and customers, Seattle, circa 1930
Photograph

Pacific Outfitting Company clothing display and customers, Seattle, circa 1930

The Pacific Outfitting Company of Seattle was founded in 1907 by Polish immigrant Alfred Shemanski (1875-1966). The store was one of several in a chain begun by Alfred and his brothers, including the Eastern Outfitting Company in Portland started by Joseph Shemanski. The Pacific opened in Seattle in a storefront at 422 Pike Street as a clothing store for women,…
ID Number:2008.3.18.3
Date:Circa 1930
Image of Pacific Outfitting Company storefront display welcoming Loyal Order of Moose, Seattle, circa 1920
Photograph

Pacific Outfitting Company storefront display welcoming Loyal Order of Moose, Seattle, circa 1920

The Pacific Outfitting Company of Seattle was founded in 1907 by Polish immigrant Alfred Shemanski (1875-1966). The store was one of several in a chain begun by Alfred and his brothers, including the Eastern Outfitting Company in Portland started by Joseph Shemanski. The Pacific opened as a clothing store for women, soon expanding to sell men’s apparel as well. The…
ID Number:2008.3.18.10
Date:Circa 1920
Image of Pacific Outfitting Company employees, Seattle, circa 1925
Photograph

Pacific Outfitting Company employees, Seattle, circa 1925

The Pacific Outfitting Company of Seattle was founded in 1907 by Polish immigrant Alfred Shemanski (1875-1966). The store was one of several in a chain begun by Alfred and his brothers, including the Eastern Outfitting Company in Portland started by Joseph Shemanski. The Pacific opened as a clothing store for women, soon expanding to sell men’s apparel as well. The…
ID Number:2008.3.18.16
Date:Circa 1925
Image of Santa Claus and
Photograph

Santa Claus and "sleigh" in front of the Bon Marché building on Second Avenue and Pike Street, Seattle, circa 1915

The Bon Marché was founded in 1890 by German immigrant Edward Nordhoff and his wife Josephine. Originally located in Seattle’s Belltown district at First Avenue and Cedar Street, in 1896 it moved to a more central location downtown at Second Avenue and Pike Street. This photo shows Santa Claus standing atop a wagon in front of the Bon Marché building.…
ID Number:2009.20.68
Date:Circa 1915
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MOHAI stands on the historic and contemporary lands and shores of the Duwamish, Suquamish, Muckleshoot, and other Coast Salish Nations. We acknowledge the forced displacement of Native Communities from this land while honoring the endurance of the Duwamish people who still live here.
Address: 860 Terry Ave N, Seattle WA, 98109
Phone: 206 324 1126
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