A.J. Freiman Limited, or Freimans ( ), was a landmark

department store A department store is a retail establishment offering a wide range of consumer goods in different areas of the store under one roof, each area ("department") specializing in a product category. In modern major cities, the department store mad ...

at 73 Rideau Street in

Ottawa Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, Canada, founded in 1918 by Archibald J. Freiman.

History

Archibald Jacob Freiman was born in

Lithuania Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, P ...

in 1880, and emigrated to

Hamilton, Ontario Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Ontario. Hamilton has a 2021 Canadian census, population of 569,353 (2021), and its Census Metropolitan Area, census metropolitan area, which encompasses ...

. Freimans rose to become the most successful department store in Ottawa because of its prominent location at Mosgrove and Rideau Streets, its aggressive marketing and its low prices. The company also operated stores in Westgate and St. Laurent Shopping Centres, as well as discount stores called Freimart in Shoppers City West and Shoppers City East. Then owned by A.J. Freiman's son, Lawrence (who wrote a book about the store),

Hudson's Bay Company The Hudson's Bay Company (HBC), originally the Governor and Company of Adventurers of England Trading Into Hudson’s Bay, is a Canadian holding company of department stores, and the oldest corporation in North America. It was the owner of the ...

acquired the company in 1972 and rebranded it to The Bay in 1973. The former Freimans store continued to operate as a retail store of The Bay until the chain's closure in 2025, and an adjoining arcade linking Rideau Street to the Byward Market is named the Freiman Mall in honour of the longtime Ottawa retailer. In addition, the laneway around the north side of the nearby National Arts Centre which provides access to the

box office A box office or ticket office is a place where ticket (admission), tickets are sold to the public for admission to an event. Patrons may perform the transaction at a countertop, through a hole in a wall or window, or at a Wicket gate, wicket. ...

has been named Lawrence Freiman Lane. Freimans was also the centre of an important battle against

antisemitism Antisemitism or Jew-hatred is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who harbours it is called an antisemite. Whether antisemitism is considered a form of racism depends on the school of thought. Antisemi ...

. In the 1930s, Ottawa police officer Jean Tissot, affiliated with

Adrien Arcand Adrien Arcand (October 3, 1899 – August 1, 1967) was a Canadian fascist politician, writer, and journalist. He founded and led the far-right National Unity Party of Canada from 1934 until his death in 1967. During his political career, he procl ...

's fascist movement, attempted to rally Christian Canadians to boycott Jewish businesses. Freimans, as the most prominent Jewish owned business in Ottawa was at the centre of his attacks. As a result, Freiman filed suit against Tissot, who was subsequently found guilty of criminal libel. The staunch condemnations of Tissot in the mainstream press and the utter failure of his movement to find support among the people led to a sound defeat for antisemitism in Ottawa.

Notes

References

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External links

A.J. Freiman Limited fonds(R3487)
at

Library and Archives Canada Library and Archives Canada (LAC; ) is the federal institution tasked with acquiring, preserving, and providing accessibility to the documentary heritage of Canada. The national archive and library is the 16th largest library in the world. T ...

Freiman family fonds (R6882))
at

{{coord, 45.426148, N, 75.692587, W, region:CA-ON_type:landmark, display=title Department stores of Canada Buildings and structures in Ottawa Companies based in Ottawa Defunct retail companies of Canada Shops in Ottawa Privately held companies of Canada Hudson's Bay Company 1918 establishments in Ontario

History

See also

Notes

References

External links