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Digitized by the Internet Archive 
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 http://archive.org/details/baltmancosenlargOObalt 
 
B ALTMAN & CO 
 
B ALTMAN & CO'S 
 
 ENLARGED STORE 
 FIFTH AVENUE ' MADISON AVENUE 
 THIRTY^ FOURTH AND 
 THIRTY^ FIFTH 
 STREETS 
 
 NEW YORK 
 
 MCMXIV 
 
/WWII 
 
 ClAWiC 
 AA 
 
 NM 
 
 ■2 ALT 
 
 COPYRIGHT, 1914, BY B . A L T M A H & CO., NEW YORK 
 
 ILLUSTRATIONS AND PRINTING II Y BARTI. ETT-ORR PRESS 
 
HE evolution of a great city is, on a less titanic 
 scale, representative of the evolution of the 
 Universe. The same cosmic forces — aggressive, 
 inexorable — work in unison to bring order out 
 of chaos; and as, in the realm of Nature, 
 mountains, valleys and oceans are evolved by 
 slow and painful processes from what was originally formless and 
 void, resulting in beauty where beauty was not — so the concentrated 
 needs, energies, ambitions and endurance of a community, fused 
 together in the melting-pot of civic development, result in the 
 gradual up -building of a vast commonwealth, imposing in its 
 commerce, splendid in its art, magnificent in its humanitarianism. 
 
 The greatness of a city is measured always, in the minds of 
 men, by its commercial importance. Where the central marts of 
 business are, there are also to be found all that is most admirable, 
 because most progressive, in human experience. The world we live 
 in is essentially a vital world, pulsating with vigorous life. It is 
 a world of workers ; of men who dream great deeds, and do them 
 before the dream is finished. It is a world in which nothing is 
 too insignificant to merit man's consideration ; no goal too exalted 
 to be beyond his attainment. And it is the men who have possessed 
 the intuition to recognize these sublime truths, and the courage to 
 pattern their lives thereby, who have achieved success. 
 
 9 
 
Such a man was Benjamin Altman, who, in the days when the 
 city of New York was scarcely out of its infancy, gave to the dry 
 goods house which proudly bears his name — and as proudly the 
 impress of his dominating personality — the impetus which forced 
 it onward and upward, through years of patient, unremitting labor, 
 to its present prosperity. Mr. Altman, even in those early days, 
 fully grasped the potentialities of the upright, honest merchant who 
 could make fair dealing and impeccable reliability the watchwords 
 of his life, in and out of business; and, throughout his long and 
 eventful career, never did he deviate from the path of integrity 
 that he had mapped out for himself in the beginning. 
 
 The foundations of the Altman business were laid in a small 
 store on Third Avenue, near Tenth Street. Here Benjamin Altman, 
 then little more than a youth, but already equipped with the keen 
 discernment and balanced judgment of maturity, began to carve 
 out his great future. Selecting his merchandise with the fine 
 artistic taste and the infallible sense of values which were among 
 his most salient characteristics, and paying cash for every bill of 
 goods he purchased, he early established, both for himself and his 
 store, a reputation for reliability which has never been assailed — 
 because it is unassailable. 
 
 Toiling early and late, dedicating all that he had and was to 
 his work, he was rewarded by the steady growth of his business. 
 In the early seventies he removed it from Third Avenue to Sixth 
 Avenue — then an important shopping center — where he occupied 
 an unpretentious store between Twenty- first and Twenty-second 
 Streets. In 1876 he took possession of more spacious quarters 
 on Sixth Avenue at Nineteenth Street, where the Altman store 
 made history for itself for thirty years. It was during these 
 eventful years that the store came to be recognized as the leading 
 dry goods house of the city of New York. Its elegant appoint- 
 ments, its atmosphere of refinement, appealed to the most exclusive 
 members of society, not only of its own city, but far afield; while 
 the superiority of its varied merchandise became a household word 
 in the world of fashion. 
 
 Meanwhile Mr. Altman, with unerring prescience of the in- 
 evitable northward trend of mercantile New York, and urged by 
 
 10 
 
BENJAMIN ALTMAN 
 
 THE FOUNDER 
 
the rapid and persistent increase of his business, began to plan for 
 an uptown store whose commodiousness should be commensurate 
 with the constantly growing demand. In 1905-6 the firm of 
 B. Altman & Co. erected their new store on the east side of Fifth 
 Avenue, between Thirty-fourth and Thirty-fifth Streets. The first 
 parcel of land for its site had been acquired by Mr. Altman some ten 
 years earlier; and from time to time thereafter other lots had been 
 purchased or leased from their various owners until Mr. Altman 
 possessed what he believed to be an ideal site for the imposing 
 store he purposed to erect in the heart of New York's most 
 exclusive shopping district. 
 
The Altman Store, Fifth Avenue and T 
 
HE opening of the Fifth Avenue store of 
 B. Altman & Co. marked an important epoch in 
 the mercantile history of New York. The aristo- 
 cratic avenue, so long sacred to the resident wealth 
 and fashion of America's metropolis, had for some 
 time been gradually yielding — with more or less 
 gentle protest — to the encroachments of business; now it grace- 
 fully capitulated. The high-class dry goods store, with its beautiful 
 architecture, its allure of attractive merchandise, its fashionable 
 clientele, brought about a transformation that was at once decisive, 
 brilliant and complete. 
 
 But Mr. Altman's ideal had not yet been attained. The store 
 he planned was still larger, still more commodious; a store in 
 which shopping was to become a pleasure instead of a task; a 
 store in which the patron's needs were not merely to be supplied, 
 but anticipated; a store in which the personal comfort, not of 
 patrons only, but of employees also, was to receive the most 
 thoughtful consideration. It was to be a store of infinite resources ; 
 equipped with every device calculated to contribute to the greatest 
 efficiency of service; 
 in brief, a store of 
 the highest modern 
 order. 
 
 With these aims 
 in view, the twelve- 
 story addition on 
 Madison Avenue 
 has been erected. 
 With its comple- 
 tion, the store of 
 B. Altman & Co. 
 becomes not only 
 one of the largest 
 dry goods estab- 
 lishments in the world, 
 but also one of the most 
 completely equipped. It 
 
 Fifth Avenue Entrance 
 
The AHman Store. Madison Avenue and Thirty-fifth Street 
 
occupies an entire city block, extending east from Fifth Avenue 
 to Madison Avenue, and north from Thirty-fourth Street to 
 Thirty-fifth Street. Within this immense building every modern 
 improvement known to architectural and engineering science is in 
 active operation, rendering it technically perfect as to light, heat, 
 ventilation and distribution of floor space. 
 
 The new addition, like the original building, follows in detail 
 the dignified style of the Italian Renaissance, complete harmony 
 of design and character being preserved throughout. French 
 limestone, quarried and imported especially for the purpose, has 
 been used in constructing the entire building (the Madison Avenue 
 front alone excepted) up to and including the eighth floor, the 
 remaining four floors (of the superstructure) being of white glazed 
 brick. On the side fronting Madison Avenue the central elevation 
 is of white brick above the second floor, the corner pavilions at 
 each side being of French limestone to the eighth floor. Large 
 display windows lend distinction to the Madison Avenue corners 
 at Thirty-fourth and 
 Thirty- fifth Streets; 
 and a spacious vesti- 
 bule, with marquise 
 extending over the 
 sidewalk to the curb, 
 forms a stately and 
 impressive entrance, 
 especially convenient 
 for patrons arriving 
 in carriages and pri- 
 vate motors. 
 
 A very commodi- 
 ous carriage entrance, 
 with enclosed portico 
 for the shelter of 
 patrons awaiting 
 their vehicles, is lo- 
 cated on Thirty-fifth 
 Street. 
 
 Madison Avenue Entrance 
 
HE comfort and convenience of their patrons 
 have ever been a paramount consideration with 
 B. Altman & Co. To render shopping as agree- 
 able as possible by reducing to a minimum the 
 labor and fatigue involved, by endeavoring to 
 obviate the congestion incident to special sales, 
 and by insuring courteous attention on the part of employees, 
 has been from the beginning one of the fundamental principles of 
 the house. 
 
 The enlargement of the store, increasing its floor area more 
 than fifty per cent., involves no change in the established policies 
 of the administration, but it opens the way for a fuller realization 
 of its business ideals and a broader development of its vast 
 resources than have hitherto been possible. With so much more 
 floor space available, every one of the store's many departments is 
 now enabled to extend the scope of its activities. The facilities 
 for the effective display of merchandise are materially augmented, 
 and the larger selling space assures to patrons appreciably better 
 opportunities for examining and selecting goods. Also, it is now 
 within the power of B. Altman & Co. to cater to the needs of an 
 infinitely larger clientele than ever before, and to present for the 
 inspection of the public immense stocks of thoroughly reliable 
 merchandise marked at popular prices. 
 
 The name of Altman has, from the earliest days of the business, 
 been regarded as a synonym for integrity, excellence of quality and 
 efficiency of service. It has not, however, been generally known 
 that the house makes a special feature of its moderate prices. With 
 practically unlimited facilities for purchasing, both at home and 
 abroad, high-class goods at first hand — that is to say, direct from 
 the manufacturer — thus eliminating the no inconsiderable profits 
 of the middleman, B. Altman & Co. are enabled to give their 
 patrons the benefit of the saving, and to offer their goods at prices 
 that are frequently far below the actual market values. 
 
 This condition applies even to a department of such magnitude 
 as that devoted to Oriental Rugs (of which a detailed description 
 will be found on page 35). Every year B. Altman & Co.'s own 
 rug experts make a six months' trip to the Far East, penetrating 
 
 16 
 
■7 
 
Klevators, Main Floor 
 
into the fastnesses of the Caucasus, into the most remote districts 
 of Turkey and Persia, and into the little-known interior of Asia 
 Minor, where they make their selections piece by piece, buying 
 genuine antiques direct from their owners, and modern pieces, in 
 many instances, from their makers. Thus, B. Altman & Co.'s 
 annual sale of Oriental Rugs, which extends over a period of 
 several weeks, is recognized as an important event in the rug world, 
 and is awaited with eager impatience by those who know that at 
 this sale rugs of the finest qualities and unquestionable authen- 
 ticity are very frequently sold at less than half their regular 
 selling prices. 
 
 «9 
 
VISITOR to the Altman store, paraphrasing a 
 certain famous saying, once appositely described 
 it as "a store of magnificent distances." If this 
 could be truly said of the edifice as originally con- 
 structed, the statement must of a certainty carry 
 infinitely greater weight to-day, in consideration 
 of the extended area secured by the completion of the Madison 
 Avenue addition. Surveying the interior from the Fifth Avenue 
 entrance, on the Main Floor, the visitor's gaze — following the 
 course of the broad central aisle — meets a perfect perspective, 
 which terminates only when it reaches the vestibule on Madison 
 Avenue. The supporting columns, modeled on severely classic 
 lines, present from every point of view a series of graceful colon- 
 nades, the architectural beauty of which cannot fail to appeal to 
 the artistic sense. Glancing upward toward the great rotunda, 
 which rises majestically over the center of the original building, a 
 glimpse is afforded of the upper floors, lending breadth and vivacity 
 to the picture. Add to these features of interest the spacious 
 aisles, balanced on either side by displays of merchandise, alluring 
 in form and color; the lofty ceilings, the unrestricted daylight 
 which pours in from all four sides, the perfect ventilation, the 
 efficient service — and the result is a store which meets every 
 aesthetic as well as every practical requirement. 
 
To the right of the Main Floor, as one enters from Fifth 
 Avenue, is the enlarged department for Men's Furnishings, which 
 now extends more than half the entire length of the store on the 
 Thirty-fourth Street side. Completely separated from the sec- 
 tions devoted to general merchandise, the floor arrangement of this 
 department has been planned with careful forethought for the 
 convenience and privacy of the store's male patrons. Not only 
 is it easily accessible from the Fifth Avenue entrance, but the 
 Thirty-fourth Street entrance leads directly into it. 
 
 The increased floor space now given to it has made it possible 
 for this department to add very materially to its sphere of activity. 
 Here, under the new arrangement, will be found complete and 
 comprehensive assortments of Men's Wear, including Hats and 
 Shoes. There is also a Custom Shirt section, which makes a 
 specialty of fine Shirts for general and dress wear. 
 
 It is not possible, in a work of necessarily limited scope, to 
 afford a detailed description of every department in a store as large 
 as is this of B. Altman & Co.; but among those especially worthy 
 of attention on the Main Floor is the Silk Department, famous for 
 its wealth of textile treasures — the richest products of the silk- 
 weaver's art; the department for Real Laces, where are shown 
 some of the rarest and most beautiful specimens of antique lace 
 to be found in America, besides many exquisite modern pieces; 
 the Dress Goods Department; the Silverware Department; and the 
 section reserved for Leather Goods. Very considerably enlarged 
 
 is the Camera Department, which is 
 
 z: 
 
SCENDING to the Second Floor, either by one 
 of the gracefully proportioned stairways or one of 
 the spacious elevators, the attention is instantly 
 riveted by the broad, airy spaces, the restful color 
 scheme, the pervasive atmosphere of refinement 
 and dignity. It is characteristic of the Altman 
 system, originated by Mr. Altman himself — who, as an organizer, 
 had no superior — that, notwithstanding the tremendous volume 
 of business transacted in the store every day in the year, there is 
 everywhere apparent a certain poise, which conveys to the keen 
 observer the mental impression of a great organization kept under 
 
 perfect control — a gigantic piece of well-constructed, well-cared-for 
 machinery of which every infinitesimal part is accurately placed 
 and keyed. This is, indeed, distinctive of the personality of the 
 Altman store — a personality acquired through more than half a 
 century of earnest effort, intelligent study and vital experience. 
 
 With so large an area of additional space at its disposal, the 
 Second Floor has been entirely rearranged. New departments 
 have been introduced; those already existing have been greatly 
 extended and improved. Massive mahogany fixtures and display 
 
 2." 
 
Misses' and Girls' Departments 
 
 cases — the latter enhanced by the fine merchandise tastefully 
 arranged within them — form an attractive contrast to the rich 
 moss-green of the soft Wilton floor-covering, the whole presenting 
 a most pleasing aspect to the gaze of the interested visitor. 
 
 On this floor are located the departments of special interest to 
 mothers. The Infants' and Little Children's Department, which 
 includes in its stock a large assortment of nursery furnishings as 
 well as everything necessary for the little one's wardrobe, has been 
 arranged in the form of a semi-enclosure, especially with a view 
 to securing the privacy desired for selecting at leisure the dainty 
 little garments comprising 
 the layette. Closely 
 adjacent are the de- 
 partments for Girls' 
 and Misses' Wearing 
 Apparel, the latter 
 also including gowns 
 and outergarments 
 for small women. 
 These departments 
 
 are now situated on the north and west sides of 
 the store, instead of on the east and south, as 
 formerly. An interesting feature of the Misses' 
 
 Layette Room 
 
section is a small display room in the Paris style, the interior of 
 which is finished in French gray. This is intended primarily for 
 the exhibition of misses' imported model gowns and wraps. 
 
 A new department on this floor, meriting special mention 
 because of its importance, is that devoted to Young Men's Clothing. 
 Here is to be found everything that is smart in apparel for 
 
 Women's, Misses' and Children's Shoes 
 
 the modern young man, for street, sports or dress wear. Like 
 the Men's Furnishing Department, it is entirely isolated from the 
 sections given over to feminine attire; and it is capably handled 
 by men accustomed to catering to the sartorial needs and tastes 
 of the well-dressed young man. The long-established Boys' 
 Clothing Department, completely stocked with new assortments 
 of garments for every day, school and dress wear, is located in 
 the same section of the store, both being in the Madison Avenue 
 addition, on the Thirty-fifth Street side. 
 
 24 
 
Other interesting departments, which cannot 
 be described at length for lack of space, are those reserved for 
 Women's, Misses' and Children's French and American-made 
 Undergarments; Knitted and Silk Undenvear; Women's Blouses; 
 Women's House Dresses and Aprons and Maids' and Nurses' 
 Uniforms; Shawls and Sweaters; and Women's, Misses' and Chil- 
 dren's Shoes. Here, also, is the Corset Department, showing large 
 assortments of French corsets and brassieres of the finest makes 
 
 and materials, 
 as well as the 
 popular Ameri- 
 can types. A 
 special feature 
 is made of cor- 
 sets measured 
 and fitted to 
 the figure, and 
 made by expert 
 corsetieres in 
 workrooms in 
 the establish- 
 ment. 
 
 French Display Room 
 
 25 
 
26 
 
MERGING at the Third Floor from the elevator 
 on the Madison Avenue side of the store, one 
 finds oneself directly in the Fur Department. 
 Spacious, well arranged and equipped, the rich 
 tones of the handsome furs displayed on forms 
 and in show cases presenting an artistic contrast 
 to the soft Quaker gray of the carpet and woodwork, this may 
 not improperly be termed the most attractive — as it has also been 
 quoted as the most extensive — retail fur department in America. 
 
 It is an undisputed fact that in no other department store is 
 the volume of business so large in furs of the finest and costliest 
 qualities. B. Altman & Co.'s resident representatives abroad are 
 constantly in touch with the greatest fur centers of the world, and 
 any unusually rich "find" is at once communicated to them; hence 
 it is not at all an extraordinary incident in the history of the house 
 when a rare set of matched sables which an empress might covet — 
 the value of which rises far into the thousands — comes across the 
 ocean to enrich for awhile the Altman display and, a little later, 
 to grace the piquant loveliness of some American princess. 
 
 The higher-cost furs do not, however, constitute the entire 
 stock of this department. Women of moderate resources may 
 find here fur garments and smaller fur pieces, of excellent 
 appearance and wearing qualities, which may be purchased at 
 prices easily within their means and which will afford entire 
 satisfaction. The colossal success of the great Fur Sale which 
 takes place annually early in the 
 
 fur season — and which attracts 
 eager purchasers from nearly 
 every State in the Union — is 
 sufficient evidence that the fact 
 is very widely recognized that 
 here may be obtained genuine 
 fur bargains. 
 
 Practically all of the depart- 
 ments for Women's Ready-to-wear 
 Apparel are situated on the Third 
 Floor. Here are the sections for 
 
 Fur Storage Vaults 
 
 27 
 
Linen Dresses and Trimmed Millinery. Women's, Misses' 
 and Children's Riding Habits have a section all their own, which 
 includes both ready-to-wear and made-to-order garments ; and here, 
 too, may be found all the accessories of the equestrienne's costume. 
 
 The Mourning Department, a semi-enclosed section entirely 
 apart from, though closely contiguous to, the departments for 
 gowns and suits, is generously supplied with every essential of 
 
the correct mourning outfit, including not only gowns, wraps and 
 millinery, but also such minor accessories as neckwear, gloves, 
 hosiery, shoes, etc. It may pertinently be added that the Depart- 
 ment has excellent facilities for furnishing complete mourning 
 outfits at short notice. 
 
 The Special Order Department for Dressmaking and Tailoring 
 is also located on the Third Floor, in exclusive salons wherein 
 models, sketches, materials, etc., may be examined and discussed 
 at leisure and in the luxurious environment which every woman 
 of taste and breeding appreciates. 
 
NE of the most important ramifications of 
 B. Altman & Co.'s vast establishment is the 
 department for Interior Decoration, located on 
 the Fourth Floor. Maintaining its own studios 
 in the building, with a personnel composed of 
 qualified artists, this department is amply prepared 
 
 to undertake interior decorative work in all of its branches. Several 
 of America's best known hotels and theatres, as well as a large 
 number of private residences, owe their interior beauty to the 
 artistic resources of the Altman studios. A specialty is made 
 of period interiors, every detail of decoration, with furnishings, 
 draperies and upholstering to harmonize, being carefully planned 
 by men who are experts in their individual lines. 
 
 Of equal interest is the department for Decorative Laces, 
 correlated to the Lace Curtain Department. Here, too, is to be 
 found a staff of competent artists, with unusual facilities at their 
 disposal for the designing and making to order of fine lace cur- 
 tains and decorative lace pieces of every type and period. The 
 Upholstery Department is another of the distinctive features of 
 
the Fourth Floor, its display 
 including very large and com- 
 prehensive assortments of 
 curtain materials, cretonnes, 
 decorative drapery fabrics, etc. 
 
 An extensive department 
 on this floor is devoted to Art 
 Objects, Bric-a-brac and Lamps. 
 Among other items of more than 
 passing interest shown here is 
 a choice selection of Italian marbles and 
 decorative pieces in terra cotta, especially 
 appealing to persons of culture and artistic 
 taste. 
 
 The Fancy Needlework Department, offer- 
 ing many dainty articles of special feminine 
 interest, is also attractively housed on the Fourth Floor; and 
 here, too, are the departments for Household and Decorative 
 Linens, Imported and Domestic Bed-furnishings and other utili- 
 tarian commodities. 
 
 lyHjl 
 
 Art Objects, Bric-a-brac and Lamps 
 
HIEF among the interesting features of the 
 Fifth Floor are the Executive Offices, consisting 
 of the President's Room, the Board Room and 
 an anteroom or reception office. This suite of 
 offices is unique in that it presents to the gaze 
 of the visitor, in facsimile, the interiors of three of 
 the most impressive rooms in Mr. Altman's Fifth Avenue home. 
 From that wonderful art repository, now dismantled, has been 
 brought the carved woodwork which conceals the walls of what 
 may truthfully be termed one of the most beautiful and most 
 remarkable office suites in the world. The room reserved for 
 the President, Mr. Friedsam, is Mr. Altman's library in duplicate, 
 and contains, among many objects of interest, his desk and other 
 library furniture; his dining-room has been as faithfully reproduced 
 in the Board Room; and the anteroom is a replica of his famous 
 Renaissance room. 
 
 The Writing and Rest Room for women patrons of the store 
 is also located on this floor, in the Madison Avenue addition. 
 The reposeful atmosphere of the room — accentuated by the care- 
 fully modulated light, the softly carpeted floor, the comfortable 
 chairs, the graceful writing tables, with their supplies of engraved 
 stationery — has been attained only after thoughtful consideration 
 of the most insistent needs of the tired shopper. The walls of 
 this room are paneled in mahogany ; the mahogany furniture is in 
 the Adam style. The upholsterings are of rich blue velvet, har- 
 monizing with the blue of the 
 carpet. Adjoining this room 
 is a smaller one, for the 
 use of patrons who 
 may be indisposed, 
 or of mothers with 
 infants. Within 
 easy reach are the 
 telephone booths, 
 the Bureau of In- 
 formation and the 
 General Offices. 
 
 Writing and Rest Room for Patrons 
 
 32 
 
The Executive Offices 
 
34 
 
The Rug Department, occupying some seventy thousand 
 square feet of floor space and admittedly the largest department 
 of its kind in America, is the only retail sales department on the 
 Fifth Floor. It occupies virtually all of the space on this floor 
 in the main building, and carries a stock of individually selected 
 rugs the retail value of which, estimated collectively, approximates 
 two and one-half million dollars. The most ingenious methods 
 are employed in the displaying of the rugs, even the supporting 
 columns being impressed into the decorative scheme; while the 
 entire floor is flooded with mellow light afforded by a system of 
 indirect illumination, installed especially for the purpose of reveal- 
 ing the true color values in the selection of rugs. 
 
 The Oriental Rug section, in particular, merits the visitor's 
 keenest attention. Within the enclosure designated as the Antique 
 Room, which is reserved for the display of choice rugs, are several 
 rare antique specimens, fully authenticated, which are well calcu- 
 lated to make a direct appeal to the connoisseur. Some of these 
 have been honored by the special notice of that distinguished 
 authority, Professor Bode; while others enjoy the distinction of 
 having been reproduced in the Martin Book. 
 
 One section of this department is set apart for Oriental rugs 
 of unusually large sizes; another is reserved for Chinese rugs; 
 and a most interesting branch is the repair section, which main- 
 tains at all seasons a staff of Orientals expert in the making and 
 repairing of valuable rugs. 
 
ITH a philanthropist for its founder, it is not 
 surprising that the house of B. Altman & Co. 
 devotes much care and thought to the welfare of 
 its employees. For the women and girls there is 
 a spacious, airy recreation room on the eleventh 
 floor, furnished with cosy chairs and liberally 
 supplied with books and magazines. In addition to this, a portion 
 of the roof has been enclosed to provide a rest room for women 
 employees who need quiet and a smoking-room for men employees, 
 the remainder being subdivided into a solarium and an open-air 
 roof garden and promenade, from whence may be obtained a magni- 
 ficent view of New York City, the East River and Long Island. 
 
 The twelfth floor of the new 
 addition has been given over in 
 its entirety to the use of the 
 employees. Here are separate 
 luncheon rooms for men and 
 women, and a roomy, sanitary 
 modern kitchen, in which is pre- 
 pared the wholesome, palatable 
 food that is served, at mini- 
 mum prices, in the adjoining 
 luncheon rooms. 
 
 Extending practically the 
 entire length of the new addition 
 on the Thirty-fifth Street side are the medical offices, a large, 
 specially constructed suite consisting of patients' waiting-room, 
 physician's consulting-room, surgery, and men's and women's 
 wards, with a total of seven beds. The equipment of these 
 rooms has been as scientifically worked out as that of the best 
 type of modern hospital. A physician, assisted by two graduate 
 nurses, is in charge of the Medical Department, the expense of 
 which is borne wholly by the firm, no tax of any kind being made, 
 either directly or indirectly, upon the employees. Incidentally, 
 it should be mentioned that patrons of the store, if seized with 
 sudden illness while in the establishment, are given emergency 
 treatment free of charge. 
 
 ; " " ' Physician's 
 Offices 
 
 3« 
 
The medical work among the employees does not consist 
 entirely in emergency relief, although a great amount of help is 
 given in this way. The history of every case is tabulated, and 
 all cases requiring protracted attention are carefully followed up, 
 so that a permanent cure is effected where ordinarily only tempo- 
 rary relief would be secured. When the diagnosis indicates 
 malnutrition, the milk diet required is not only prescribed, but 
 supplied; and a large number of ill-nourished young persons have 
 been correspondingly benefited. When instruction in personal 
 hygiene is needed — as it frequently is, among the younger em- 
 ployees — it is given kindly, sympathetically, thus establishing 
 between instructor and patient the sense of kinship that is born 
 only of true humanitarianism. It is a significant fact that, since 
 the establishment of the Medical Department, the general efficiency 
 of the working corps has been materially increased. 
 
 No one mark of the firm's interest in its employees has been 
 more sincerely appreciated than the inauguration of the shorter 
 business day. Throughout the year the store is now opened at 
 9 a. m., while during the Summer season it is closed daily at 5 p. m., 
 except on Saturdays. The Saturday schedule during the Summer 
 months is as follows: June 15th to July 1st: 9 a.m. to 12 noon. 
 July and August: The store is closed all day Saturday. Sep- 
 tember 1st to September 15th: 9 a. m. to 12 noon. In addition 
 to these vacation hours, in which every employee is a participant, 
 a two weeks' vacation, with pay in advance, is allowed to all em- 
 ployees who have been with the firm three years or longer; those 
 of more than one year's standing and less than three receiving 
 one week, with advance pay. 
 
 Added to these interesting phases of the store's relationship 
 with its employees, a school is maintained in the building for the 
 younger employees. Here instruction is given daily, excepting 
 Saturday, in reading, writing, spelling and arithmetic. 
 
 The Mutual Benefit Association is a fraternal organization 
 established and supported by the employees themselves. Its 
 main object is to provide for liberal sick and death benefits; and 
 although membership is not compulsory, its roll numbers more 
 than 2500 names. 
 
 37 
 
Telephone Switchboard 
 
 N the upper floors of the building are assembled 
 the numerous industries which make of the Altman 
 establishment a vast human beehive. Here are 
 the immense storerooms for reserve merchandise 
 — for this is a wholesale as well as a retail house, 
 and every day brings in its augmentations of stock 
 from home and foreign markets, while every day witnesses a 
 tremendous output. Here, too, are the workrooms — for gowns, 
 suits, riding habits, furs, millinery, corsets, men's shirts, lace 
 curtains, decorative laces, upholsteries, lamp shades, table decora- 
 tions, etc., etc. 
 
 The Mail Order Department, on the Eighth Floor, is deserving 
 of special mention, were it only for the fact that it reaches out its 
 helpful hands to patrons of the store all over the world. The 
 woman who resides far beyond visiting distance of any store, 
 whether in America or a foreign territory, may readily supply 
 herself, through the agency of this department, with the latest 
 novelties in fashion, without any personal trouble whatever and 
 with no more delay than is required for the transmission of 
 the order and the shipment of goods. The regular staff of the 
 
 38 
 
department includes a large force of expert shoppers, who are 
 fully competent to select from the store's various departments any 
 merchandise that may be called for, from the smallest individual 
 item to an entire wardrobe. 
 
 Another keenly interesting feature of the establishment is the 
 artificial refrigerating plant for the safe storage of furs, rugs and 
 draperies. The walls, ceilings and floors of the storage vaults 
 (illustrated on page 27) are completely encased in thick sheathings 
 of cork, insuring evenness of temperature and absolute protection 
 against moisture. The storage plant covers an immense area, as, 
 although the floor space is divided into compartments, mainly as a 
 protective measure against fire, the vaults extend across the entire 
 width of the ninth floor of the building. All of this space is kept 
 cool and dry by the refrigerating apparatus in the basement. 
 None of the coils composing it are located in the storage vaults ; 
 hence there is no possibility of damage to the valuable articles 
 stored through leakage from faulty pipes or moisture deposits. 
 
 39 
 
ELOW the level of the street, in subterranean 
 regions all undreamed of by the great majority of 
 B. Altman & Co.'s patrons, are to be found the real 
 marvels of the building's working equipment — the 
 complicated machinery which is responsible for 
 light, heat, ventilation, motor power, etc. Sta- 
 tistics are not usually interesting to the general reader, but they 
 supply the only tangible means of conveying even a remote idea 
 of the magnitude of an organization such as this. 
 
 In the sub-basement is the Engine Room — spacious, well 
 lighted and ventilated, every part of it controlled by system of 
 the highest order. The red-tiled floor is as clean as that of a 
 New England kitchen, and everywhere there is the gleam of 
 polished metal. The Chief Engineer's office is so situated that 
 practically the entire room is within the range of his vision when 
 he is seated at his desk. As a result of unrelaxing vigilance, the 
 discipline maintained is flawless. There has never been a shut- 
 down since the plant was first put into operation. 
 
 The great engines in this room have an aggregate capacity of 
 3600 horse power; the ten boilers in the adjoining Boiler Room 
 a capacity of 3000 horse power, with a steam pressure of 160 
 pounds to the square inch. The coal bunkers are capable of 
 containing 2000 tons. ' 
 
PA 
 
 The electric power 
 plant is one of the lar- 
 gest in the city of New 
 York, with a dynamo 
 capacity of 2400 kilo- 
 Ill watts. It generates all 
 the electricity required 
 not only for the lighting 
 of the building, but for 
 the driving power of elevators, 
 motors for pneumatic tubes, sewing 
 machines, etc., as well as the motors 
 for the immense ventilating equipment. 
 To insure perfect ventilation of this great building — a matter of 
 the first importance, considering that, in addition to the immense 
 number of patrons constantly passing in and out, nearly 4000 
 employees are occupied therein on every working day — a system 
 has been installed for filtering, cleansing and humidifying the air 
 supplied by the fresh-air fans, amounting to 200,000 cubic feet 
 per minute. The exhaust fans for withdrawing vitiated air have 
 an equal capacity; hence there is no loophole for the accumulation 
 of stagnant air in any part of the establishment. 
 
 The Tube System 
 
is an important result of the enlargement of the 
 building. There are now twenty-two passenger elevators, besides 
 five small elevators for private or fitting-room use, ten elevators 
 for the use of employees, and two truck elevators of vast size and 
 capacity, making a total of thirty-nine, all of modern type. 
 
 Among the numerous improvements rendered possible by the 
 building of the new addition must be included the extension of 
 the pneumatic tube service and of the delivery conveyor system. 
 In the tube service, for the transmission of the cash carriers, there 
 are now no fewer than sixteen miles of brass tubing. 
 
 The delivery conveyor system consists of a number of spiral 
 chutes extending from the top floor of the building to the 
 basement ceiling, with outlets on every floor so placed as to be 
 easy of access from all departments. Attached to the basement 
 ceiling are traveling platforms, or conveyors, in which are 2767 
 feet of canvas belting, moving at an average rate of four miles 
 per hour and leading directly from the chutes to the packing 
 tables in the Delivery Department. Here the goods are packed, 
 addressed and placed on other conveyors, which carry them 
 immediately to the drivers' bins, each of which is assigned to 
 a special route. Merchandise purchased on the Main Floor, 
 however, is packed at the counters, whence it is dropped to the 
 conveyors through trap-doors placed in the floor and carried 
 automatically to the bins, ready for delivery — thus effecting an 
 appreciable saving in time. It may be noted, in passing, that the 
 
 4* 
 
bins are constructed entirely of metal tubing, with divisions of 
 wire mesh, and are built at an elevation from the floor to insure 
 perfect sanitation. 
 
 Quite as important as and certainly not less interesting than 
 the indoor sections of the Delivery Department is the outdoor 
 branch, located in the great six-story garage and stable fronting 
 on East Thirty-sixth Street, but extending through to East 
 Thirty-seventh Street. In this wonderfully equipped and per- 
 fectly organized division of the delivery service are housed 85 
 motor wagons and trucks, 157 horse vehicles and 200 horses. 
 It has been stated, and with truth, that in the quality and condi- 
 tion of its equine stock — in every instance of fine strain and 
 high mettle — the house of B. Altman & Co. is superior to any 
 department store in the world. 
 
 43 
 
 Garage and Stables 
 
N concluding this brief history of the house of 
 B. Altman & Co. it is desired especially to 
 emphasize the fact that every square foot of 
 space added to the building, every costly device 
 introduced in its equipment, has been carefully 
 planned with a view to promoting the interests of 
 the store's patrons and of confirming their faith in the store's 
 reliability. It is not alone the impressive exterior of the building 
 that commands attention, nor the convenience and charm of its 
 well-arranged departments, as the visitor sees them. Of equal if 
 not of more consequence is the perfect sanitation of those parts 
 of the building which are unexplored by the visitor. Scientific 
 lighting, heating, ventilation and cleanly surroundings in work- 
 rooms, offices, stock rooms, receiving rooms, packing and shipping 
 rooms, are as vitally important to the store's patrons as to its 
 employees; for these things indicate that the merchandise it 
 handles is subject to the most wholesome conditions up to the 
 moment of delivery into the purchaser's hand. 
 
 It has been, throughout, the earnest endeavor of B. Altman 
 & Co. to provide in every possible way for the personal safe- 
 guarding of the patrons and employees of the Altman store. 
 Non-inflammable material has been used in construction wherever 
 practicable, and the entire building has been made to conform to 
 the stringent regulations of the New York Fire Department. 
 
 The fire-preventing and fire-fighting equipments, which en- 
 compass the building on every hand, are among the most complete 
 in existence, including the new automatic sprinkler and signal 
 systems, the latter connecting with the city Fire Department as 
 well as the private Fire Department in the building; a standpipe 
 system having hose stations so arranged as to reach any part of 
 the building; and a supervisory system which acts automatically 
 in the event of difficulty arising in any part of the equipment. 
 
 For the final word: B. Altman & Co. will continue in the 
 future, as in the past, to direct their unremitting efforts toward 
 maintaining their long-established reputation for best-quality 
 merchandise at reasonable prices, as well as for integrity, courtesy 
 and efficiency of service. 
 
 44 
 
DEPARTMENT DIRECTORY 
 
 FIRST FLOOR 
 Silks and Velvets 
 
 Laces, Embroideries and Trimmings 
 Veilings 
 
 Women's Neckwear 
 Ribbons 
 
 Gloves and Hosier)- 
 
 Millinery (including Misses' and 
 
 Girls' Hats) 
 Black and Colored Dress Goods 
 White Goods and Cotton Dress 
 
 Goods 
 Linings and Notions 
 Umbrellas 
 Handkerchiefs 
 Jewelry and Silverware 
 Toilet Articles 
 Leather Goods 
 Stationery and Engraving 
 Cameras and Specialties 
 Men's Furnishings and Underwear 
 Men's Hats, Coats and Shoes 
 
 SECOND FLOOR 
 
 Women's Blouses 
 Bathing Costumes 
 Women's, Misses' and Children's 
 Shoes 
 
 Misses' and Small Women's Attire 
 Girls' and Children's Dresses and 
 Coats 
 
 Women's French and American- 
 made Underwear 
 Women's Knit Underwear 
 Corsets 
 
 Misses' and Children's Underwear 
 Infants' and Little Children's Wear 
 
 and Nursery Furnishings 
 Colored Petticoats 
 Sweaters and Shawls 
 
 SECOND FLOOR 
 
 (CONTINUED) 
 
 House Dresses, Aprons, Maids' 
 Dresses and Caps and Nurses' 
 Uniforms 
 
 Young Men's and Boys' Clothing 
 
 Boys' Furnishings 
 
 THIRD FLOOR 
 
 Women's Ready-to-wear Suits 
 
 and Dresses 
 Women's, Misses' and Children's 
 
 Riding Habits 
 Dressmaking 
 Mourning 
 
 Women's Coats and Wraps 
 Women's House Gowns 
 Women's Cotton and Linen Dresses 
 Furs and Fur Garments 
 Trimmed Millinery 
 
 FOURTH FLOOR 
 
 Interior Decoration 
 
 Lace Curtains and Decorative Laces 
 
 Upholsteries 
 
 Art Objects, Bric-a-brac and Lamps 
 Household and Decorative Linens 
 Blankets and Domestics 
 Fancy Needlework 
 
 FIFTH FLOOR 
 
 Oriental, European and American 
 Rugs 
 
 Wholesale Upholsteries 
 
 Women's Writing and Rest Rooms 
 
 Public Telephones 
 
 Information Bureau 
 
 Executive Offices 
 
 General Offices 
 
 45 
 
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