Papers relating to R. H. Macy and Company
Overview
The papers relating to R.H. Macy and Company are chiefly source material gathered and used by Harvard Business School professor Ralph M. Hower for his study of Macy’s department store of New York.
Dates
- Creation: 1858-1965
Conditions Governing Access
Collection is open for research. Materials stored onsite. Please contact specialcollectionsref@hbs.edu for more information.
Researchers must register and provide valid photo identification before using this collection.
Due to the fragility of the audio tapes and the difficulty with play back, researchers must work with digital copies rather than with the original recordings. Digital use copies for items that were digitized can be accessed only onsite in the de Gaspé Beaubien Reading Room on a designated Special Collections computer. Researchers are not permitted to copy or download any digital files. To request access please contact specialcollectionsref@hbs.edu prior to visiting the library.
Extent
6.5 linear feet (18 boxes)Chiefly source material gathered and used by Ralph M. Hower for his study of Macy's department store of New York. Collection includes correspondence, copies of advertisements, forms, interviews, and a numbered documentary history prepared by Mildred L. Hartsough in 1928-1929. Also includes tapes and typescripts of Arthur M. Johnson’s interviews with four store officials, 1965; hearings in the case of Macy et al. vs. United States, 1958; and selected papers of Donald K. David as director of Macy's, 1942-1955.
The information gathered in these interviews includes the names and job descriptions of many women employees, as well as details about the working conditions: benefits, perquisites, punishments, pay, hours, and advancement opportunities. Most of the interviewees worked in the store between 1870 and 1900.
As early as the 1860s, women held very high positions in the store's management. Macy's first three superintendents were women. R. H. Macy's niece, Margaret (Getchell) La Forge, was his first store manager. She remained in the position until the birth of her first child in 1870. Miss Browyer, who died in 1886, replaced her. Browyer's successor was Miss Martha Toye, who was eventually replaced by her assistant, Mr. Pitt.
Series Outline
The collection is arranged in the following series:
- Series I. Arthur M. Johnson: Interview Project, 1957-1968
- Series II. Donald K. David: R.H. Macy Co., Director: Papers and Correspondence, 1942-1955
- Series III. Ralph Hower: Research Materials, circa 1858-1943
- Series IV. Macy et al. vs. United States: Hearings, 1958
Physical Location
MANU
Provenance:
Gift of Ralph M. Hower. Gift of Mrs. Ralph M. Hower. Interviews were gift of Arthur M. Johnson, 1971. Donald K. David papers were gift of Donald K. David. Court hearings, 1958, were gift of American Jewish Historical Society, 1976.
Processing Information
Processed: 1998-2001
By: Jeffrey Mifflin, September 1998; Sean Perrone, March 1999, June 2000; Scott Tucker, November 2001
Processing Note:
Documents were located and brought together from a number of separate locations at Baker Library Special Collections. Materials were refoldered and reboxed. Paper clips, binders, and rubber bands were removed.
Appendix A
- I. General History of the Firm
- Personal history of the Strauses and R.H. Macy, and early history of the Macy Store, page 1
- Interviews with old Macy employees, page 41
- II. Organization
- Forms, and Members of Firm, and Management, page 115
- Minutes of Meetings of the Council, 1914-1915 (to 1930), page 141
- III. Buying (especially since 1898)
- Buying policy, page 356
- Merchandise scouts, page 438
- Foreign office in Paris, page 447
- Foreign buying, page 465
- Difficulty in obtaining merchandise, page 501
- R.H. Macy, selling agent for other firms, page 522
- Relations with wholesalers, page 530
- Receiving Department, page 541
- Interest in manufacturing, page 558
- Buying –semi finished goods, page 599
- III. Merchandising (especially since 1900)
- Departments in the Macy store, page 601
- Food department, quality of goods sold, page 700
- Mail orders, page 724
- Use of agents in selling, page 804
- Merchandising –miscellaneous, page 835
- Merchandising policy, page 878
- Grading-up policy, page 884
- Merchandising policy publicity, page 887
- The Macy one price selling policy, page 959
- Odd selling prices, page 996
- Price policy –underselling others, page 998
- Use of price comparison shoppers, page 1021
- Price policy –publicity, page 1024
- Cash selling policy, page 1026
- Deposit Accounts, page 1086
- IV. Merchandising (especially since 1900) [cont.]
- Merchandise bonds, page 1183
- Trading stamps, page 1190
- Price cutting, page 1202
- Litigation with publisher over the selling price of books, page 1315
- Macy’s price policy after the War, page 1382
- Checking on former customers, page 1400
- Satisfying the customer, page 1417
- Protection of name and trademarks, page 1509
- Violations of War Food Regulations, page 1539
- Use of Red Star trademark, page 1542
- Infringement by Macy of patents and copyrights, page 1571
- Samples of advertisements showing types and policy, page 1640
- Types of advertising media, page 1669
- Advertising examples, page 1932
- V. Building, Equipment, and Maintenance
- Building and site, old and new (after 1902), page 2301
- Store equipment, page 2327
- Office equipment, page 2375
- Store maintenance, page 2390
- Store protection, page 2410
- Leasing selling space in Macy’s, page 2421
- Getting to Macy’s, page 2453
- VI. Services
- Service departments within the store, page 2480
- Shipment and delivery, page 2548
- VII. Employees
- Miscellaneous, page 2709
- Hours, page 2851
- Payment of employees, page 2876
- Training department, page 2918
- House Magazine, page 2944
- Mutual Aid Association, page 2956
- VIII. Finance
- Statements and reports, page 2997
- Miscellaneous financial, page 3053
- Banking, exchange, etc., page 3061
- Accounting Practices, page 3128
- Insurance, page 3155
- Taxes, page 3174
- IX. Associations and Agreements, page 3202
- X. Charity, etc., page 3234
- XI. Court Cases
- Isidor Straus and Nathan Straus v. the American Publishers’ Association, et al., page 3289
- Bobbs-Merrill Company v. Isidor Straus and Nathan Straus, page 3307
- Charles Scribner & Arthur H. Scribner v. Isidor Straus and Nathan Straus, page 3320
- Victor Talking Machine Company v. Jesse I. Straus, Percy S. Straus, & Herbert N. Straus, page 3337
- XII. Ethics, page 3360
- XIII. Miscellaneous, page 3363
Subject
- Hower, Ralph M. (Ralph Merle), 1903-1973 (Person)
- David, Donald Kirk, 1896-1979 (Person)
- Title
- Papers relating to R. H. Macy and Company, 1858-1965 (inclusive): A Finding Aid
- Author
- Baker Library
- Language of description
- und
- EAD ID
- bak00147
Repository Details
Part of the Baker Library Special Collections and Archives, Harvard Business School Repository
Baker Library Special Collections and Archives holds unique resources that focus on the evolution of business and industry, as well as the records of the Harvard Business School, documenting the institution's development over the last century. These rich and varied collections support research in a diverse range of fields such as business, economic, social and cultural history as well as the history of science and technology.
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