Soon after striking gold on the banks of the Klondike River in Canada's Yukon Territory, brothers Albert Mayer (1871-1929) and Markus Mayer (1877-1950) established a watch and jewelry making business in Dawson City. Their older brother, Joseph Mayer (1868-1937), started Joseph Mayer Bros. in Seattle, which began by selling souvenir spoons, flatware, and wholesale jewelry, and grew into a major jewelry and watch manufacturing company. Several of the Mayer's cast-iron street clocks can still be seen throughout the Pacific Northwest. In 1920, Joseph Mayer Bros. split into a wholesaling company, run by Albert and Markus, known as Mayer Bros., and a manufacturing company, operated by Joseph, known as the Northern Smelting and Refining Company. Another brother, Emil Mayer (1880-1963), was a wholesale jewelry salesman, and a fifth brother, Herman Mayer (1884-1944) was a jeweler in Everett, Washington. The brothers, all born in Germany, came to the U. S. in the early 1890s, followed in 1907 by their mother, Johanette (Kuhn) Mayer, (1844-1912), and sisters, Amelia Mayer (1875-1968) and Rosa Mayer (1885-).
In this image, a group of men pose in front of the Mayer brothers' store in Dawson City. The sign below the window sill reads "Albert Mayer, Optical Watchmaker & Jeweler."
Caption information Source: The Seattle Sunday Times, February 7, 1904, p. 67 Caption information source: https://web6.seattle.gov/DPD/HistoricalSite/QueryResult.aspx?ID=-1541369527
ID Number: 1979.6792.1
Date: 1898
Physical Description: 1 photographic print mounted on cardboard : b&w ; 6.25 x 8.25 in.
Additional Information: Digital copy of this item available thanks to funding from a 2016 Institute for Museum and Library Services grant. Metadata updated as part of a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services administered by the Library Services and Technology Act, through the Washington State Library, a division of the Office of the Secretary of State.
