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Howes
Block pictured in 1899 and then one year later in 1900.
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The Clinton Daily Herald Monday August 27, 1900 p. 5
ARE
GOING TO BUILD
H.G. and V.G. Coe Will Erect Fine New Building
Will be Constructed on Ground East of Howes’ New Block – Will
be Fifty Feet Front and Ninety Feet Deep – Elks to Occupy Second
Floor.
The
Clinton Daily Herald Saturday September 1, 1900 p. 3
NEW
HOWES BLOCK
Something About Clinton’s Fine New Business Structure
First and Second Floors to be Occupied by Reid & Conger –
Nine Suites of Office Rooms on Third Floor – All are rented
– The List of Tenants
The new Howes block is rapidly nearing completion and within
a few days will be well filled up with tenants. The interior
of the building is handsomely finished, and has all of the modern
improvements. The first and second floors will be occupied by
Reid & Conger’s department store, which will be opened within
a few days to the public. The work of moving the goods from
the present store building will be commenced at once. There
are two entrances to the building for the second and third stories,
one in the northwest corner, the other in the southeast. The
elevator is reached by the northwest entrance, through the marble
wainscoted lobby, with tile floor. The wood work is of oak and
the lobby is set off in an artistic manner by a fancy Greek
boarder. In the hall will be found an office bulletin. The elevator
will be run by electricity. It is of lattice work, with bronze
finish. The store rooms are patterned after the modern buildings
and have high ceilings and galleries.
Messrs. Reid and Conger and Architect Rice and Mr. Howes visited
a number of cities and secured the best information obtainable
in reference to store buildings and the knowledge they received
enabled them to plan for a modern interior. On the third floor
are nine office suites and a photograph gallery. The office
suites contain four and five rooms each, and are large and well
ventilated and have excellent light. The photograph gallery
will be occupied by Gilbert Temple.
The offices will be occupied by the following:
One and two, Dr. Herbert R. Sugg Three and four, Marvin Gates
Five and six, Dr. Millbourne. Seven and eight, Dr. J.H.F. Sugg.
Nine, ten and eleven, C.H. George. Twelve and thirteen, D. Hollawell.
Fourteen and fifteen, J.L. Rice. Sixteen and seventeen, Gilbert
Temple. Eighteen, D.H. Sheppard.
As there are two large halls through the building, on the third
floor, and an air shaft, all of the rooms are well lighted and
the circulation of air is excellent. The rooms are finished
in cypress, with maple floors. All are piped for gas and water
and have electric light wires. In the building are fine closets
and wash stands, altogether making it a modern and convenient
block. In the basement is a complete steam heating plant, with
sufficient capacity to heat a building twice the size of this
block. There is also a store room in the basement, 35-140 feet.
Some of the office tenants will move in at once and it is thought
all will be in their new quarters inside of two months.
The
Clinton Daily Herald Tuesday September 11, 1900 p. 3
Reid
& Conger – Meet me on – The Balcony – Saturday – About 9 a.m.
Howes
Block Corner Fifth Avenue and Second Street Saturday
Morning At 9 O’Clock
The doors of our new store will be thrown open to the public,
and a cordial invitation is extended to everybody to visit the
Model Dry Goods Establishment of the state. The building was
designed and built for us – and Mr. Howes, Mr. Rice, the architect,
and ourselves, spent weeks in securing the best and latest features
in modern store building. The inside arrangement was designed
by a Chicago architect whose specialty is store fittings. We
have an entirely new system of lighting – the best yet invented.
To see this alone will be worth a visit in the evening. Another
feature that is new to Clinton, and will interest you, will
be the package carrier system. No more waiting for clerks to
do up your purchases. Everything goes to the wrapping counter
in the balcony. Still another innovation that will be especially
appreciated by the ladies will be a quick electric elevator
service to the second floor and balcony. The second floor is
the most attractive part of the new store – don’t forget it.
Don’t miss the balcony, reached either by the elevator or the
easy flight of stairs. Here you will find a room fitted up especially
for the ladies, with easy chairs, writing desk, stationary,
toilet rooms, etc., and here you have a view of the entire store.
The most interesting part of the whole store is the goods it
is stocked with, a description of which we will leave for another
chapter.
SATURDAY MORNING At 9 O’clock
MEET
ME ON THE BALCONY
The
Clinton Daily Herald Saturday September 15, 1900 p. 5
READY
FOR BUSINESS
Ried
& Conger Open Their Large Department Store One of the Best Equipped
Stores in the State – Fine Stocks of Goods Shown in All Departments
– Something About the Arrangements –
Those Employed in Departments
The new department store of Reid & Conger was opened today to
the public and hundreds of people visited their new quarters
in the Howes Block, corner of Fifth avenue and Second street.
The store is an excellent one, is large and roomy and is well
lighted. It is one of the finest appointed store buildings in
Iowa and Mrssr’s. Reed & Conger has just cause to look upon
it with pride. They took great pleasure today in escorting their
customers to the different departments and pointing out the
many advantages of their new home. The interior is finished
in hard wood while the painting is white. The ceilings are high
and the ventilation is good, consequently none of the bad effects
so common in large stores will be felt by the clerks on account
of improper ventilation. On the first floor, on the west side,
are the black dress goods and silks. The colored dress goods,
printed cotton goods and linings are on the Fifth avenue side.
The linen department is at the foot of Fifth avenue entrance,
while the domestic department is under the balcony, on the east
side of the room. In the center is to be found the hosiery,
gloves, fancy goods and notions. These are placed in fourteen
fine upright show cases. On the north side, round the elevator
is the gents’ furnishing goods department. In the next section,
east are the druggist sundries and stationary. In the north
L is the show department. Between the first and second floors,
on the east side, is a large balcony in which are the private
offices of Mr. Reid and Mr. Conger, the bookkeeper’s office
and the office of the cashier. Also the wrapping department.
On the north side of the balcony is the ladies room, fitted
up with easy chairs, with rugs on the floor and other homelike
appointments. The balcony is reached either by the stairs or
elevator. On the second floor, in the southeast corner, is the
millinery department, the arrangement of which has not yet been
completed. East of this is the cloak and ready made suit department.
On the east side is the ladies’ muslin underwear department.
The center of the room is occupied by infants’ garments and
also the embroidery art department. On the Second street side
is the china department, while around the elevator the corsets
are to be found. In the north L, which is 50x70 feet, is the
carpet and upholstery department. The arrangement is such that
the second floor is as attractive as the first, which is saying
a great deal. Both rooms are equipped with the basket parcel
and and cash system, the latest improvement in this line. The
rooms are lighted by the new style of incandescent arc lights.
The building is nicely arranged for toilet rooms. On the first
floor is the lady employee’s’ toilet room; on the second are
the toilet rooms for customers, while the men’s room is on the
third floor. There are three entrances to the building, one
in the southwest corner, another at the southeast corner on
Fifth avenue and the third on Second street, where the elevator
is located. The window space is large and some excellent window
dressing is shown, especially on the Second street side, where
are some fine wax figures, fit to grace any store in the large
cities.
Following
is the list of those in charge of departments, with their assistants:
Mr. Holt of Iowa City, superintendent.
Charles Tucker of Flint, Mich., manager of carpet department;
John Barkow, assistant; Jo Rudolph, carpet layer.
Herman Tetzlaff, manager of dress goods department.
Julius Matthiesen, manager of cloak department;
Miss Nellie Brady, assistant.
W.E. Bartow of Oelwein, manager of china and crockery department;
Miss Gutzmann, assistant.
H.M. Kellogg of Minneapolis, manager of shoe department;
Miss McLaughlin and Miss Irene Mee, assistants.
Miss Lillian Moses, manager of the book department;
Miss Lettie Sturdevant, assistant.
Miss Lizzie Salady, silk department.
Miss Julia Merrill, white goods department.
Miss Minnie Tilleen, ladies’ knit underwear.
Miss Zella Hill, kid gloves.
Miss Eliza Edens, domestics.
Valinda Matthiesen, assistant in domestics.
Miss Anna Dyer, hosiery.
Miss Louise Horn, muslin underwear.
Miss Delia Logan, corsets.
Miss Frances Stroll, notions.
Miss Margaret Richter, laces.
Miss N. Behan, ribbons.
Miss Katherine Carrow, jewelry.
Miss Kathryn Niessalie, cashier and bookkeeper.
Arthur Reid, bundle counter.
Fred Richter, delivery
Roy Kinch, elevator
E.E. Eliason, janitor
