| | Manuscript Collection | Save | | 1 | Title: | Richman Brothers Company Records
| | | | Creator: | Richman Brothers Company | | | | Dates: | 1924-1992 | | | | Abstract: | The Richman Brothers Company began in Cleveland, Ohio, when Henry Richman, a Jewish immigrant from Bavaria, and his partner, Joseph Lehman, moved their men's clothing manufacturing business, the Lehman-Richman Company, from Portsmouth, Ohio, to Cleveland in 1879. Following the depression of 1893, Lehman retired, and in 1904, Henry Richman turned over the business to his sons; Nathan, Charles, and Henry, Jr., and the business became the Richman Brothers Company. The first retail store was established in Cincinnati in 1906, followed a year later by stores in Cleveland and Louisville, Kentucky. Moving away from reliance on outside piecework, the Cleveland plant at 1600 E. 55 St. was built in 1916. The company incorporated in 1919. Throughout the 1920s-1930s, Richman Brothers continued to open new retail stores. After the deaths of the three Richman Brothers, the company was headed by Frank C. Lewman, and later by George H. Richman, until 1970, when Donald J. Gerstenberger became president and CEO. Expansion continued throughout the 1940s-1950s, despite problems with the Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America which attempted to unionize Richman Brothers. It remained a non-union shop throughout its existence. In 1969, Richman Brothers became a subsidiary of F.W. Woolworth Company. In 1986, corporate headquarters was moved to Massachusetts, and in 1990, its Cleveland manufacturing plant was closed. By December 1992, Richman Brothers Company had been completely liquidated. The collection consists of legal documents including leases and escrow papers, shareholders reports, issues of two company-published employee magazines, Chain Reaction (1967-1984) and Common Thread (1985-1987), newspaper clippings, and miscellaneous documents. | | | | Call #: | MS 4664 | | | | Extent: | 0.80 linear feet (2 containers) | | | | Subjects: | Richman Brothers Company. | Jews -- Ohio -- Cleveland. | Jewish businesspeople -- Ohio -- Cleveland. | Clothing trade -- Ohio -- Cleveland. | Clothing factories -- Ohio -- Cleveland. | Clothing workers -- Ohio -- Cleveland. | Men's clothing industry -- Ohio -- Cleveland.
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| Manuscript Collection | Save | | 2 | Title: | Joseph and Feiss Company Records, Series II
| | | | Creator: | Joseph and Feiss Company | | | | Dates: | 1858-1988 | | | | Abstract: | The Joseph and Feiss Company was founded in 1841 as Koch and Loeb, a general store in Meadville, Pennsylvania. The store moved to Cleveland, Ohio, in 1845, and when Samuel Loeb left shortly after the move, Kaufman Koch expanded the enterprise to three locations. Other partners joined the company, including Jacob Goldsmith and Julius Feiss in 1865 and Moritz Joseph in 1873. As Goldsmith, Joseph, Feiss & Company, an internal factory was opened in 1897 to begin the production of ready-made men's clothing under the Clothcraft label. After changing its name to the Joseph and Feiss Company in 1907, the company became fully incorporated as The Joseph and Feiss Company in 1920 when it moved into its new factory on W. 53rd Street in Cleveland. The company had originally balanced scientific management with benevolent corporate paternalism in order to keep workers happy as well as healthy. In 1934, the company was unionized by the Amalgamated Clothing & Textile Workers Union of America and these paternalistic programs were ended. During World War II, Joseph and Feiss became an important manufacturer of uniforms for the United States army and navy. After the war, the company continued to expand its line of products, purchasing Samuel Spitz Company and its Cricketeer label in 1957 and Windbreaker-Danville in 1962. Joseph and Feiss also owned and operated several subsidiaries, including the Naval Uniform Service, Inc. In 1966, Joseph and Feiss merged with Phillips Van-Heusen Corporation and continued to operate under its own name. In 1989, it was acquired by the German clothing firm Hugo Boss. The Cricketeer label was discontinued in 1995 and in 1997 its Cleveland operations were moved to the Tiedeman Road facility in Brooklyn, Ohio. In 2010, the planned closure of that plant was averted after union negotiations. The plant continues to produce 150,000 suits a year. The collection consists of minutes, correspondence, news clippings, inventories, audit reports, tax records, contracts, legal deeds, blueprints, ledger books, personnel records, and booklets. | | | | Call #: | MS 5054 | | | | Extent: | 17.20 linear feet (11 containers and 15 oversize volumes) | | | | Subjects: | Joseph and Feiss Company (Cleveland, Ohio) | Amalgamated Clothing and Textile Workers Union. | United States. Army -- Uniforms. | United States. Navy -- Uniforms. | Clothing trade -- Ohio -- Cleveland. | Clothing factories -- Ohio -- Cleveland. | Clothing workers -- Ohio -- Cleveland. | Labor unions -- Clothing workers -- Ohio -- Cleveland. | Men's clothing industry -- Ohio -- Cleveland. | Men's clothing industry -- Ohio -- Cleveland -- Marketing. | Fashion design -- Ohio -- Cleveland. | Industrial relations -- Ohio -- Cleveland. | Jewish businesspeople -- Ohio -- Cleveland. | World War, 1939-1945 -- War work -- Ohio -- Cleveland. | Factories -- Ohio -- Cleveland -- Design and construction.
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