City - NY - Fashion statement 1905 Tile

Colorized photo from 1905 Original Title: R.H. Macy and Co Photographer: Detroit Publishing Location: 151 West 34th St., NY The first Macy's was opened in 1851, by R.H Macy, who was originally a whaler. It's said that he was lost at sea, when he used the guidance of a star to get home. And that's why Macy's uses a star as their symbol. He even got a star tattoo! The store was too small, and he needed something larger, built in 1901, this particular store was opened, and is still there now, though now its twice the size taking up that entire rear block. However this scene is from 1905 and it sure is buzzing. See that smaller building on the corner? On that spot there was a small parcel of land owned by Reverend Duane Pell, who wanted to sell the land to Macy for $250,000 (about $7.4 million today). However instead he sold it to Henry Seigel of the Siegel-Cooper Dept Store (his competitor). He wanted to leverage the land for a grand trade belonging to Macy's 14th St holdings. But Macy didn't agree to the terms, and instead built around that spot. Later on Siegel put up his own building and slowly filled it with tenants. That building is still there, but totally covered in either signs or a huge shopping bag, which is what's there right now, as of this writing. On the right, you'll see some cool owl statues. That is the roof of the Herald building which was torn down in the 1920's. The guy that owned it, loved owls, and when the clock on the building, would chime, the owls eyes would light up green and blink! You can still see the owls and the bell, its right there across the street. The statue on 35th Street is of William Earl Dodge (1805-1883), millionaire, humanitarian, philanthropist and for many years, President of the Chamber of Commerce.