ABSTRACT:  The bulk of this collection consists of family papers from Richard and Ethel Herzfeld.  Also included are materials pertaining to Milwaukee's Boston Store.  The Boston Store materials include advertising, correspondence, items pertaining to a 1934-1935 strike, financial reports, newspaper clippings, and photographs.  The family papers mainly consist of photographs and films of Richard and Ethel and their daughter Carol Ann, their homes, and travels.  Correspondence, journals, family documents, and memorabilia are also included in the collection.    

ACCESS RESTRICTIONS: There are no access restrictions on the materials, and the collection is open to all members of the public in accordance with state law. However, the researcher assumes full responsibility for conforming with the laws of libel, privacy, and copyright which may be involved in the use of this collection (Wisconsin Statutes 19.21-19.39).

ARRANGEMENT:  The collection is arranged into two series:  1) Boston Store and 2) Family Papers.  Within these series, materials are arranged alphabetically by folder title and then chronologically.

Photographs filed under "Herzfelds with Friends and Family" feature Richard, Ethel, and/or Carol Herzfeld with members of their family and personal friends.  Photographs filed under "Friends and Family" do not feature Richard, Ethel, or Carol Herzfeld, though other members of the Herzfeld or Davis family may be pictured.

SCOPE AND CONTENT:

1. Boston Store, 1914-1966.  This series contains information regarding the operation and history of Boston Store. It includes correspondence, employee newsletters, negotiations, and contracts concerning the Clerks' Strike of 1934-1935, wherein employees, primarily female sales clerks, demanded fair wages and working hours; papers relating to the 1948 sale of Boston Store to Federated Department Stores, Inc.; stock, shareholder, and financial paperwork; newspaper clippings from 1914 to 1951; and memorabilia, which consists of two 1920s Boston Store film envelopes. There are also graphic designs, slides, and photographs of the interior and exterior of Boston Stores in Milwaukee, Manitowoc, and Oshkosh from 1900 to 1955.

2. Family Papers, 1847-1980.  This series contains a large collection of Herzfeld and Davis family photographs spanning one hundred years from circa 1880 to 1980. Photograph subjects include: family vacations, cruises, sailing and yachting, European travel, Richard's and Ethel's college years, interiors and exteriors of family homes in Wisconsin and Florida, portraits and candids. There are also photographs of Milwaukee cityscapes and Wisconsin , including downtown buildings, the freeway, the War Memorial, Holy Hill, and octagon barns. These subjects can also be found in the following formats: stereo slides, slides, plastic negatives, and glass plate negatives.  [Note: family photograph albums, 1915-1930 and 1920-1955 are missing as of 12/4/2007.]

Aside from photographs, the collection also contains family documents such as naturalization papers, marriage and birth certificates, and passports; personal letters and postcards to and from Richard, Ethel, Carol, and other friends and family from 1896 to 1952; travel journals and logs documenting sailing trips (1930-1935), and cruises and other trips (1951-1958); two albums about Carol's dog, Lamp Chop; newspaper clippings featuring death announcements, community involvement, and personal interests, such as Richard Herzfeld's photography; and assorted memorabilia (1925-1958), consisting of dance cards, graduation books, calling cards, cruise souvenirs, and a Milwaukee Yacht Club newsletter.

BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE:  The Herzfeld family was prominent in Milwaukee during the first half of the twentieth century. Carl Herzfeld (d. 1930) was a founder of the Herzfeld-Phillipson Corporation which bought and managed the Boston Store from 1906 to 1948. In 1895, Carl Herzfeld married Helena Phillipson, the sister of his business partner, Richard I. Phillipson. As head of the Air Service Committee of the Association of Commerce in Milwaukee, Carl Herzfeld aided in developing airports and air travel around Milwaukee, including establishing the first air freight of goods into Wisconsin in 1911.  

Carl Herzfeld’s son, Richard Phillip Herzfeld (1898-1980) was a civic leader. Born and raised in Milwaukee, he served in World War One before he graduated with a B.A. from the University of Wisconsin in 1920. Richard Herzfeld was a member of the Greater Milwaukee Committee for Community Development, a founder of the Better Business Bureau of Milwaukee, vice president and director of Federated Department Stores, Inc., and a campaign manager for the Community Fund (now the United Way), among other organizations. As a member of the Greater Milwaukee Committee for Community Development, Richard Herzfeld helped to develop plans for the Milwaukee Public Museum, the Milwaukee County Stadium, the Milwaukee County Zoo, and the Expressway. 

Richard Herzfeld began working at Boston Store in 1920 as a stock boy, then worked in the Advertising Department, as buyer for the Notions Department, and as the Merchandise Manager of Linens, Domestics and Yards Goods. In 1928, Herzfeld was elected to the Board of Directors. He became vice president in 1931 and president in 1940. After selling Boston Store to Federated Department Stores, Inc. in 1948, Herzfeld soon became vice president and director of Federated Department Store, Inc. until his retirement in 1953.

Ethel Ann Davis Herzfeld (b. 1896), Richard Herzfeld’s wife, was born in Chicago and attended Milwaukee-Downer College. She received her B.A. degree from Wellesley College in 1920. Her mother, Emma J. Davis, resided on Marietta Avenue in Milwaukee.

Carol Ann Herzfeld (1924-1972), the daughter of Richard and Ethel, was born April 9, 1924. She graduated from Milwaukee-Downer Seminary in June 1942.  Carol died November 29, 1972.

BOSTON STORE ADMINISTRATIVE HISTORY:  Julius Simon opened Julius Simon’s Notions in Milwaukee in 1897. The store's name was changed to Boston Store in 1899.  “Boston” was used to epitomize high style in clothing. In 1903, Carl Herzfeld, Richard I. Phillipson, and Nathan (Nat) Stone founded the Herzfeld-Phillipson Corporation and took over the management of several of Julius Simon’s departments. Simon sold the leases to the Herzfeld-Phillipson Corporation in 1906.

Boston Store had the first air shipment of goods into Wisconsin in 1911 and in 1927 became the first Wisconsin store to receive transcontinental shipment by air.  The 1934 Clerks’ Strike was the result of retail clerks demanding the right to unionize to negotiate fair wages and hours.

In 1948, the Herzfeld-Phillipson Corporation sold Boston Store for a sum of $8,000,000 to Federated Department Stores, Inc. of Cincinnati, Ohio, managed by Fred Lazarus, Jr.  P.A. Bergner & Co. of Peoria, Illinois bought Boston Store from Federated Department Stores, Inc. in 1985. Most recently, in 2005 Bon-Ton Stores, Inc. bought out Saks, Inc.'s Northern department store group, which included Boston Store.

Richard I. Phillipson (1870-1949) was born in Germany and moved with his family to Milwaukee at age 16. Phillipson and his father, Martin, established the Phillipson Company in 1894 and ran a small dry goods store on the west side of Milwaukee. Phillipson was secretary and merchandising manager of the Herzfeld-Phillipson Corporation from 1906 to1935 and was president when Federated Department Store, Inc. bought Boston Store in 1948.

Nat Stone (1866-1931) served as president of Herzfeld-Phillipson. Stone’s son, Medford Stone, became assistant secretary of the Herzfeld-Phillipson Corporation when Richard Herzfeld became president in 1940.

COLLECTION CITATION: This collection should be cited as:

Herzfeld, Richard and Ethel. Records, 1847-1980. UWM Manuscript Collection 232. University Manuscript Collection. Archives. UWM Libraries. University of Wisconsin--Milwaukee.

RELATED COLLECTIONS:

Founding Industries of Wisconsin (Survey project). Records. (UWM Manuscript Collection 41)  

ACQUISITION:   The Richard and Ethel Herzfeld Foundation donated the bulk of this collection to the Library Council of Southeastern Wisconsin's Archives Committee in December 1994.  In August 2005 the Library Council of Southeastern Wisconsin transferred legal ownership of the collection to the Archives.  Carmen Haberman donated a small collection of additional records (accession number 2003-017) to the Archives in September 2003.

PROCESSING:  Jessica Sawinski, Diana Giordano, Suzanne Krause, Jason Klitgaard, and Christel Maass processed this collection at the Archives from December 2005-February 2006.  

MARC RECORD SEARCH TERMS: The following terms were used in the online bibliographic MARC record to this collection:

• Boston Store.
• Business records--Wisconsin--Milwaukee.
• Davis family.
• Herzfeld, Carl.
• Herzfeld, Carol Ann.
• Herzfeld family.
• Herzfeld-Phillipson Corporation.
• Photograph collections--Wisconsin--Milwaukee.
   

UWM MANUSCRIPT COLLECTION 232. 1. Boston Store, 1914-1966.	BOX	FOLDER
Advertising, Graphic Designs, undated	1
Air Delivery, 1945	2	1
Clerks' Strike, Correspondence and Employee Newsletters, 1934-1935, undated	2	2
Clerks' Strike, Negotiations and Contracts, 1934-1935, undated	2	3
Correspondence, 1938-1955	2	4
Federated Departments Stores, Inc., 1948	2	5
Film, Silk Sale at Boston Store, undated   [Film reel (16 mm) 3]
Financial Papers, 1937-1950	2	6
Herzfeld-Phillipson Corporation Papers, 1930-1959, undated	2	7
Memorabilia, 1920-1966	2	8
Negatives, 1921, undated	2	9
Newspaper Clippings, 1914-1951, undated	2	10
Photographs, Exterior, 1900-1960	3	1
Photographs, Interior, 1934-1936	3	2
Photographs, Interior, 1937	3	3
Photographs, Interior, 1939-1940	3	4
Photographs, Interior, 1941-1945	3	5
Photographs, Interior, 1946-1951, undated	3	6
Photographs, Publicity, 1945-1955, undated	3	7
Slides, 1940-1948, undated	3	8
Stereo Slides, Boston Store, 1948-1950	17	1
Stock and Shareholders, 1945-1955, undated	2	11

UWM MANUSCRIPT COLLECTION 232. 2.  Family Papers, 1847-1980.	BOX	FOLDER
Albums, Lamb Chop (Family Dog), 1954-1970	12
Certificates, Carol, 1942-1945	4	1
Certificates, Richard, 1917-1979, undated	4	2
Clippings, 1917-1980, undated	4	3
Community Award Medallion, Richard, 1953	12
Correspondence, Carol to Ethel, 1944, 1950-1952	4	4
Correspondence, Carol to Richard, 1933, 1944	4	5
Correspondence, Ethel to Richard, 1938-1944	4	6
Correspondence, Family, 1883-1950, undated	4	7
Correspondence, Friends to Ethel, 1921, 1950	4	8
Correspondence, Mother to Ethel, 1950-1952	4	9
Correspondence, Postcards, 1896-1935	4	10
Correspondence, Richard to Ethel, 1950	4	11
Correspondence, Richard to Ethel, 1951-1952	4	12
Documents of Family Vital Records, 1873-1905, undated	4	13
Documents of Family Vital Records, Oversize, 1847-1890	14
Eulogies, 1932, 1980	4	14
Film, Carl Herzfeld, European Vacation, 1928   [Film reel (16 mm) 10]
Film, Carl Herzfeld, Florida and New York, 1927   [Film reel (16 mm) 11]
Film, Carol as a Baby, 1924-1926    [Film reel (16 mm) 4]
Film, Carol and Trip to Hamburg, circa 1926    [Film reel (16 mm) 9]
Film, Carol's Birthday and Miscellaneous, 1927 [Film reel (16 mm) 3]
Film, Christmas and Miscelleneous, 1949-1950   [Film reel (16 mm) 2]
Film, Ethel and Carol, undated   [Film reel (16 mm) 12]
Film, Family trip on the Harry L. Findlay ore boat, 1957  [Film reel (16 mm) 1]
Film, Family Trip to Florida, 1927   [Film reel (16 mm) 8]
Film, Miscellaneous Family Scenes, undated   [Film reel (16 mm) 6]
Film, Miscellaneous Family Scenes at Home, undated   [Film reel (16 mm) 13]
Film, Pool Party with Family and Friends, 1939-1942   [Film reel (16 mm) 7]
Film, Whitefish Bay Scenes, Carl Herzfeld's Birthday Party, 1928   [Film reel (16 mm) 5]
Glass Plate Negatives, Family, 1890-1920	18
House Donation to University School of Milwaukee, 1977	4	15
Memorabilia, 1925-1958, 1980	5	1
Negatives, Boats and Automobiles, undated	6	1
Negatives, Buildings, undated	6	2
Negatives, Family, 1920-1930, undated	6	3
Negatives, Family, 1921-1922	6	4
Negatives, Family, 1922	6	5
Negatives, Family and Friends, 1920-1930, undated	6	6
Negatives, Family on California Coast, undated	6	7
Negatives, Family Vacation to California, Colorado, and Utah, 1923	6	8
Negatives, Homes, 1915-1925, undated	6	9
Negatives, Milwaukee, undated	6	10
Passports, 1949-1960	5	2
Personal Papers, Richard and Ethel, undated	5	3
Photograph Albums, Family, 1915-1930 [missing as of 12/4/2007]	13
Photograph Albums, Family, 1920-1955 [missing as of 12/4/2007]	13
Photographs, Automobiles, undated	7	1
Photographs, Boats, undated	7	2
Photographs, Carl Herzfeld, 1880-1925, undated	7	3
Photographs, Carol, Candids, 1925-1935, undated	7	4
Photographs, Carol, Candids, 1935-1970, undated	7	5
Photographs, Carol, Oversize, undated	16
Photographs, Carol, Portraits, 1925-1945, undated	7	6
Photographs, Community Organizations, 1950-1963, undated	7	7
Photographs, Davis Family, 1900-1940	7	8
Photographs, Davis Family, Oversize, undated	15
Photographs, Ethel and Carol, Candids, 1925-1975, undated	7	9
Photographs, Ethel and Carol, Oversize, undated	16
Photographs, Ethel, Candids, 1915-1940, undated	8	1
Photographs, Ethel, Candids, 1940-1977, undated	8	2
Photographs, Ethel, Oversize, undated	16
Photographs, Ethel, Portraits, 1915-1940, undated	8	3
Photographs, Friends and Family, 1890-1930, undated	8	4
Photographs, Friends and Family, 1930-1940	8	5-6
Photographs, Friends and Family, 1940-1950	9	1
Photographs, Friends and Family, 1950-1980	9	2
Photographs, General Travel, 1920-1960, undated	9	3
Photographs, Group, Oversize, undated	15
Photographs, Herzfeld Family, 1915-1925	9	4
Photographs, Herzfeld Family, Oversize, undated	15
Photographs, Herzfelds with Friends and Family, 1890-1925, undated	9	5
Photographs, Herzfelds with Friends and Family, 1925-1940, undated	9	6
Photographs, Herzfelds with Friends and Family, 1940-1955, undated	9	7
Photographs, Herzfelds with Friends and Family, 1955-1980, undated	9	8
Photographs, Homes, 3477 N. Lake Drive, Milwaukee, 1930-1939, undated	10	1
Photographs, Homes, 3541 N. Lake Drive, Milwaukee, 1930-1980, undated	10	2
Photographs, Homes, Del Ray, Florida, 1970-1979, undated	10	3
Photographs, Homes, Pine Lake, Wisconsin, 1913-1976, undated	10	4
Photographs, Homes, 1900-1970, undated	10	5
Photographs, Homes, Oversize, undated	15
Photographs, Homes, Unidentified, 1915-1970, undated	10	6
Photographs, John and Richard Herzfeld, 1900-1920, undated	10	7
Photographs, John (Hans) Herzfeld, 1915-1920, undated	10	8
Photographs, Milwaukee and Wisconsin, 1900-1970	10	9
Photographs, Richard and Carol, Candids, 1925-1940, undated	10	10
Photographs, Richard and Ethel, Candids, 1920-1980, undated	10	11
Photographs, Richard and Ethel, Oversize, undated	16
Photographs, Richard and Ethel, Portraits, 1925-1950, undated	10	12
Photographs, Richard, Candids, 1915-1979, undated	11	1
Photographs, Richard, Ethel, and Carol, Candids, 1930-1960, undated	11	2
Photographs, Richard, Oversize, undated	16
Photographs, Richard, Portraits, 1915-1955, undated	11	3
Photographs, Sailing, 1930-1935, undated	11	4
Photographs, Travel to Europe, 1949	11	5
Sailing Logs, 1930-1935	12
Slides, Family, 1950-1960, undated	11	6
Slides, Milwaukee, 1950-1960, undated	11	7
Stereo Slides, Family, 1948-1953, undated	17	2-9
Stereo Slides, Milwaukee, 1947-1953, undated	17	10-12
Travel Journals, 1951-1958	12
Travel Log, 1955	5	4
"Volante" (Yacht), 1931-1977	5	5

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URL: http://www.uwm.edu/Libraries/arch/findaids/uwmmss232.htm
Last edited on December, 2007.
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