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Watt & Shand facts for kids
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| Industry | Retail |
|---|---|
| Fate | Acquired by The Bon-Ton |
| Founded | 1878 |
| Defunct | 1992 |
| Headquarters | Lancaster, Pennsylvania |
| Products | Clothing, footwear, bedding, furniture, jewelry, beauty products, and housewares. |
Watt & Shand was a popular department store located in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. It was a large shop where people could buy many different things. The store was open for a very long time, from 1879 until 1992.
Contents
The Story of Watt & Shand
Starting the Store
The story of Watt & Shand began on March 9, 1878. Three friends, Peter T. Watt, Gilbert Thompson, and James Shand, opened a shop called the New York Store. They were all learning about business at the time. Their first store was in Hartford, Connecticut.
The New York Store sold many different items. These included fabrics and fancy goods from both America and other countries. The very first thing they sold was a warm wool shawl for $5. The store was known for its great customer service. They even had a rule to stay open until every customer had finished shopping! Sadly, one of the partners, Gilbert Thompson, passed away during the first year.
Growing Bigger
After Gilbert Thompson's death, Peter Watt and James Shand changed the store's name. It became Watt, Shand and Company. In 1880, they moved the store to a new building in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. This building was at 8-10 East King Street.
In 1885, they made the name even shorter, calling it just Watt & Shand. The store also grew bigger, taking over space at 6 East King Street. In 1889, they added a new section just for ladies' clothing. This included coats, suits, dresses, and underwear.
Expanding the Business
Watt & Shand continued to grow over the years. In 1905, they bought three more buildings next to their store. These buildings were at 23 Penn Square. They eventually took over other businesses, like a liquor store, a hotel, and a hardware store.
Later, Watt & Shand bought other stores too. In 1959, they acquired Appel & Weber, a jewelry store. In 1968, they bought Hager's Department Store. By 1991, the main store downtown was huge, covering about 220,000 square feet. It was made up of seven different buildings joined together!
New Locations and Closing Down
In 1970, Watt & Shand opened a second store. This new store was located at Park City Center, a large shopping mall. This helped the company stay strong when many other big stores were leaving downtown Lancaster. By 1991, the Park City store was making most of the company's money.
However, in 1992, another company called The Bon-Ton bought Watt & Shand. They paid about $10 million for it. The downtown Lancaster store officially closed its doors in March 1995.
The Watt & Shand Building
The main Watt & Shand building was a very important landmark. It stood on the southeast corner of Penn Square in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. The building was designed in a style called Beaux Arts. It had four stories made of light brown bricks. It also had fancy decorations made from terra cotta (a type of baked clay) and marble.
The oldest part of the building was built in 1898. It was designed by a famous architect named C. Emlen Urban. Later, in 1916 and 1925, more parts were added to make the building even larger. In 1999, the building was added to the National Register of Historic Places. This means it was recognized as an important historical site.
Sadly, the building was torn down in 2006. But its beautiful Beaux Arts front was saved! This old facade was used in the new Lancaster County Convention Center and Marriott Hotel complex. This new building was built right where the old department store used to be.