POWERS DEPARTMENT STORE:

In February 1881 the store which later became known as Powers Department Stores was founded as the M. D. Ingram Co., located in the center of the Minneapolis shopping district at 215 Nicollet Avenue. The company was founded by M. D. Ingram who purchased the stock of N. B. Harwood & Co., a wholesale company that had just gone out of business.

In February 1882, M. D. Ingram added S. E. Olson as partner and the business was conducted under the name of Ingram-Olson Co., until July 18, 1887 when Ingram died. The name of the company was changed to S. E. Olson Co. following Ingram's death and continued business at the same location.

On Saturday, September 2, 1893 a new and bigger store was opened to the public on the corner of 5th Street and 1st Avenue South (later Marquette Avenue). The building covered one fourth of a block on 5th Street and Marquette, was three stories high with the main entrance on 5th Street, on ground previously occupied by residences and small one story buildings. On Thursday, October 4, 1900, an arcade to Nicollet Avenue was dedicated in a gala event with music by the First Regiment Band and Ringwalls Orchestra.

The H. B. Claflin interests of New York took over the store in January 1901 and A.J. Powers, president of Powers Dry Goods Co. in St. Paul, was made president. His son, Fred E. Powers, was named vice president and assumed active management. By December, the store's name had changed to Powers Mercantile Company. Five years later, on December 11, 1906, a new building on the corner of Nicollet and Fifth Street was opened to the public.

In 1914 the H. B. Claflin Company collapsed and the Associated Dry Goods Corporation secured control of the store, keeping the Powers name. A.J. Powers resigned in 1915, and the store was managed by George E. Merrifield until 1916. R.B. Gage served as president from 1916 until he resigned in 1925.

In January 1926, George F. Williams, who had been with the Fair Store Chicago, assumed the presidency. The first escalators in a department store were installed under Williams' presidency by the Otis Elevator Company in 1929.

Doddrick Olson next served as president, 1938-1951.

Edwin C. Moore became president in 1951. Moore worked part time at Powers while he was attending the University of Minnesota. After his graduation from the University, he started working full time at Powers and worked up through the ranks to become a buyer, merchandise manager, treasurer, and vice-president and merchandise manager at Stewarts in Louisville, Kentucky, before becoming president in 1951.

On August 24, 1955, the first branch store was opened on Highway 7 & Texas Avenue, in St. Louis Park at Knollwood Plaza. At that time, Powers was the first Minneapolis department store with a branch store in another location. A second branch store opened March 16, 1960 at Highland Village on Ford Parkway and Cleveland Avenue in St. Paul.

Alden R. Berman was made president of Powers on July 1, 1963. Berman joined the A.D.G. organization in 1937. Before becoming president of Powers, he was a buyer and merchandise manager at Stewarts in Louisville.

On October 5, 1972, Powers' third branch store at Northtown in Blaine opened and its fourth branch store at Maplewood Mall on White Bear Avenue and I-694 opened on July 31, 1974.

The Associated Dry Goods Corporation sold its Powers Division in 1985 because of its limited growth potential and less than acceptable profit performance to the L.S. Donaldson Company of Minneapolis. In 1987 L.S. Donaldson Company was subsequently acquired by Carson, Pirie, Scott and Company, Chicago.

Historical information was taken from the collection.

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The collection includes business and financial records along with photographs and an annual report (1985) from Associated Dry Goods Corporation.

Business records consist of articles of incorporation, an abstract of title, an appraisal of the lease and leasehold which includes photographs of the Powers Mercantile Company building, advertisements, certificate of name change, contracts, employee handbooks, memorandums, policies, and clippings. Information on the background and history of Powers Department Store is present.

Financial records include accounts payable journals, cash receipts, ledgers, system books, and trial balances.

There are also photographs that document damage from two fires (1904, 1976). Some show one of the fires in progress (1904).

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Availability:

The collection is open for research use.

Preferred Citation:

[Indicate the cited item and/or series here]. Powers Department Store (Minneapolis, Minn.). Records. Minnesota Historical Society.

See the Chicago Manual of Style for additional examples.

Accession Information:

Accession number: 14,175; 16,240; 16,572

Processing Information:

Processing and cataloging of this collection was supported with a Basic Project grant awarded by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC).

Catalog ID number: 990017131850104294

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This collection is indexed under the following headings in the catalog of the Minnesota Historical Society. Researchers desiring materials about related topics, persons or places should search the catalog using these headings.

Topics:

Department stores -- Minnesota -- Twin Cities Metropolitan Area.

Retail trade -- Minnesota -- Twin Cities Metropolitan Area.

Document Types:

Bookkeeping records.

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