Joseph Horne Co.
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The Joseph Horne Company, often referred to simply as Joseph Horne's or Horne's, was an American
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 ...
chain based in
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...
. The store was one of the oldest in the country being founded on February 22, 1849, but was often overlooked as it maintained only a regional presence. The chain ceased operations in 1994 after being merged with the
Lazarus Lazarus may refer to: People *Lazarus (name), a surname and a given name * Lazarus of Bethany, a Biblical figure described as being raised from the dead by Jesus * Lazarus, a Biblical figure from the parable of the Rich man and Lazarus * Lazar ...
division of
Federated Department Stores Macy's, Inc. (previously Federated Department Stores, Inc.) is an American holding company of department stores. Upon its establishment in 1929, Federated held ownership of the regional department store chains Abraham & Straus, Lazarus (departm ...
.


Founders

Joseph Horne (1826–1892) was born in
Bedford County, Pennsylvania Bedford County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 47,577. The county seat is Bedford. The county is part of the Southwest region of the commonwealth. History 18th century According to ...
, the son of John Horn and Catherine Otto, grandson of Henry Horn, who had served in the Continental Army. Joseph moved three counties west to Pittsburgh and found his first job in the retail trade with Christian Yeager. Soon, Joseph moved to the F.H. Eaton store, and became a partner. He bought the business in 1849, at age 23, renaming it The Joseph Horne Company. He joined forces with Christian B. Shea and A. P. Burchfield, whose families intermarried and entered the business. He married twice — first to Mary Elizabeth Shea, later to Emma Galway — and sired numerous children. His son Durbin Horne, born in 1854, was among Horne's children who followed their father into the family business. Joseph Horne died in 1892. Christian Bernard Shea (1835–1900) was the brother-in-law of Joseph Horne, and his founding partner in The Joseph Horne Company. Shea was involved with both halves of the family business — retail (Joseph Horne Co. Department Store) and wholesale (Pittsburgh Dry Goods Company). Durbin Horne and Christian Shea were both members of the
South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club The South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club was a Pennsylvania corporation that operated an exclusive and secretive retreat at a mountain lake in St. Michael, Pennsylvania, near the community of South Fork. Its members were more than 50 extremel ...
, whose defective dam, altered to benefit the club, caused thousands of deaths during the 1889
Johnstown Flood The Johnstown Flood, sometimes referred to locally as the Great Flood of 1889, occurred on Friday, 31 May 1889, after the catastrophic failure of the South Fork Dam, located on the south fork of the Little Conemaugh River, upstream of th ...
.


History

Soon after Joseph Horne bought the Eaton Co., the Joseph Horne Company became a leading Pittsburgh department store. The store was initially located on Market Street, then moved to the recently completed Mercantile Library Hall on
Penn Avenue Penn Avenue is a major arterial street in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh and Wilkinsburg, Pennsylvania, Wilkinsburg, in Pennsylvania, United States. Its western terminus lies at Gateway Center (Pittsburgh), Gateway Center in Downtown Pi ...
—now the site of the O'Reilly Theater—in 1871. In 1881, the firm built a new building at Wood Street and Liberty Avenue for its wholesale division. In 1891, at age 65, Horne sold the wholesale side of his company's operations to the Pittsburgh Dry Goods Company. The flagship Horne's store at Penn Avenue and Stanwix Street in
Downtown Pittsburgh Downtown Pittsburgh, colloquially referred to as the Golden Triangle, and officially the Central Business District, is the urban downtown center of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. It is located at the confluence of the Allegheny River an ...
originally opened on July 31, 1893, and was subsequently rebuilt twice after devastating fires in 1897 and 1900. The six-story main building and a seven-story addition dating to 1923 were both designed by Boston-based architects
Peabody and Stearns Peabody & Stearns was a premier architectural firm in the Eastern United States in the late 19th century and early 20th century. Based in Boston, Massachusetts, the firm consisted of Robert Swain Peabody (1845–1917) and John Goddard Stearns ...
. The neighboring building on Penn Avenue, originally an office building, also became part of the department store in 1903. The store complex still stands and several Horne's signs remain on the building as they do at the former Pittsburgh rival
Kaufmann's Kaufmann's was a department store that originated in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The store was owned in the early 20th century by Edgar J. Kaufmann, patron of the famous Fallingwater house. In the post-war years, the store became a regional chain ...
on Smithfield Street. In 1966,
Associated Dry Goods Associated Dry Goods Corporation (ADG) was a chain of department stores that merged with May Department Stores in 1986. It was founded in 1916 as an association of independent stores called American Dry Goods, based in New York City. History ...
(ADG) acquired Horne's, and ADG expanded operations of Horne's to several stores in suburban
mall Mall commonly refers to a: * Shopping mall * Strip mall * Pedestrian zone * Esplanade Mall or MALL may also refer to: Places Shopping complexes * The Mall (Bromley), London, United Kingdom * The Mall (Patna), Bihar, India * The Mall (Sofia) ...
s throughout the Pittsburgh region as well as in
Erie, Pennsylvania Erie is a city on the south shore of Lake Erie and the county seat of Erie County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, fifth-most populous city in Pennsylvania and the most populous in Northwestern Pen ...
and
Northeast Ohio Northeast Ohio is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural region that comprises the northeastern counties of the U.S. state of Ohio. Definitions of the region consist of 16 to 23 counties between the southern shore of Lake Erie and the foothills ...
. In December 1986, Horne's was acquired by a local investor group following ADG's acquisition by
May Department Stores The May Department Stores Company was an American holding company of department stores founded in 1877 by David May. It operated several regional department stores throughout the United States, which were managed as distinct business divisions ...
. The local buyout was part of May's divesting of the Horne's chain, since May was already the owner of cross-town rival Kaufmann's. Two years later, the Arkansas-based department store chain
Dillard's Dillard's, Inc. is an American department store chain with approximately 267 stores in 29 states and headquartered in Little Rock, Arkansas. Currently, the largest number of stores are located in Texas with 57 and Florida with 42. The company a ...
and
Edward J. DeBartolo Sr. Edward John DeBartolo Sr. (May 17, 1909 – December 19, 1994) was an American businessman. In 1971, his Ohio-based corporation was ranked 47th among the nation's top 400 construction contractors. In 1983, DeBartolo was included on ''Forbes'' m ...
agreed to acquire Horne's, with plans of combining it with another recent acquisition for Dillard's — the Ohio-based
Higbee's Higbee's was a department store founded in 1860 in Cleveland, Ohio. In 1987, Higbee's was sold to the joint partnership of Dillard's department stores and Youngstown-based developer, Edward J. DeBartolo. The stores continued to operate under ...
store chain. The deal was canceled abruptly, resulting in several years of litigation. Dillard's eventually agreed to acquire five Ohio Horne's stores as part of a legal settlement in 1992. In 1994,
Federated Department Stores Macy's, Inc. (previously Federated Department Stores, Inc.) is an American holding company of department stores. Upon its establishment in 1929, Federated held ownership of the regional department store chains Abraham & Straus, Lazarus (departm ...
acquired the remaining ten Horne's stores and merged them with its
Lazarus Lazarus may refer to: People *Lazarus (name), a surname and a given name * Lazarus of Bethany, a Biblical figure described as being raised from the dead by Jesus * Lazarus, a Biblical figure from the parable of the Rich man and Lazarus * Lazar ...
division, completely ceasing all operations of any store under the Horne's name by August 29, 1994. This caused some anger among Pittsburgh shoppers, as Horne's was the oldest store in the city and had been a 145-year-old Pittsburgh tradition. After its closure the company was often praised for surviving 145 years with only a maximum of 15 stores. Several former Horne's locations operating as Lazarus closed in 1998. Those that remained eventually became "Lazarus-Macy's" and in 2006 were joined with Kaufmann's in the nationwide
Macy's Macy's is an American department store chain founded in 1858 by Rowland Hussey Macy. The first store was located in Manhattan on Sixth Avenue between 13th and 14th Streets, south of the present-day flagship store at Herald Square on West 34 ...
consolidation.


Flagship store

The former Joseph Horne Company flagship department store is located at the corner of
Penn Avenue Penn Avenue is a major arterial street in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh and Wilkinsburg, Pennsylvania, Wilkinsburg, in Pennsylvania, United States. Its western terminus lies at Gateway Center (Pittsburgh), Gateway Center in Downtown Pi ...
and Stanwix Street in downtown Pittsburgh. The L-shaped structure is actually three buildings built over the course of time. The central six-story building is by , fronting on Penn Avenue, and was originally built in 1893 to a design by Pittsburgh architect
William Smith Fraser William Smith Fraser (July 19, 1852 – April 27, 1897) was an American architect based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Fraser is best known for his designs for the Herron Hill Pumping Station (1896), a City of Pittsburgh List of City of Pittsburgh ...
. In 1897, the building was almost completely destroyed by a fire even though it had been built using early
fireproofing Fireproofing is rendering something (Building, structures, materials, etc.) resistant to fire, or incombustible; or material for use in making anything fire-proof. It is a passive fire protection measure. "Fireproof" or "fireproofing" can be u ...
technologies. The results were widely discussed by engineers and some of the lessons learned were incorporated into the replacement building designed by Boston-based architects
Peabody and Stearns Peabody & Stearns was a premier architectural firm in the Eastern United States in the late 19th century and early 20th century. Based in Boston, Massachusetts, the firm consisted of Robert Swain Peabody (1845–1917) and John Goddard Stearns ...
. The new building was very similar in size and appearance to the original. The building was again heavily damaged by a fire in 1900 but fared better this time with the walls and steel frame surviving largely intact. The building to the east on Penn Avenue was also designed by Fraser and built in 1895. Originally a four-story office building, it was separated from the Horne store by a single house whose owner had refused to sell. When the house burned down in the 1897 fire, the office building—also badly damaged—was rebuilt and expanded into the adjoining space. Subsequently, the Horne department store took over the office building in 1903, and its height was increased to six stories. Struthers & Hannah were the architects for the remodeling. The third building, which makes up the rear of the present structure, is seven stories high and is also attributed to Peabody and Stearns. It was built in 1922–23. The store had four entrances — two on Stanwix Street, and two on Penn Avenue and contained of selling space, making it the city's second largest department store. The store bore the Horne's name until August 29, 1994 when it became Lazarus. Lazarus only remained in the building for one year before closing the store and building a new location on Fifth Avenue. Oxford Development Co purchased the building with hopes of ground level retail while renting floors two through seven to Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield. Old Navy opened on the first two floors in 1996, but closed in 2003. Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield then purchased the structure and occupies the office space to this day with retail space at ground level. The department store complex was designated a
Historic Landmark A historic site or heritage site is an official location where pieces of political, military, cultural, or social history have been preserved due to their cultural heritage value. Historic sites are usually protected by law, and many have been rec ...
by the
Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation The Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation (PHLF) is a nonprofit organization founded in 1964 to support the preservation of historic buildings and neighborhoods in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. In 1966, PHLF established the Revolvi ...
in 1982.


Horne's Tree

The lighting of the Horne's Christmas tree at the flagship store was a long-held holiday season tradition. The six-story electric tree occupied a place on the corner of the building at Penn Avenue and Stanwix Street and viewers would crowd the area for a show and the lighting. Crowds also eagerly awaited the Christmas window displays at Horne's. The tree is still displayed annually in the tradition of Pittsburgh's
Light Up Night Light Up Night is a family festival in the city of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania coinciding with the unofficial start of the Christmas Christmas and holiday season, holiday shopping season. Many retailers in Downtown Pittsbur ...
at the Horne's building.


Left over Horne's

Several years after the closing of the last Horne's stores, several signs remain at the historic downtown flagship store building, each bearing the Horne's name. On the southwest corner of the building, two bronze plaques remain reading "Joseph Horne Co Dry Goods Importers and Retailers". Also, the
frieze In classical architecture, the frieze is the wide central section of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic order, Ionic or Corinthian order, Corinthian orders, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Patera (architecture), Paterae are also ...
above the two entrances in the first structure reads "1849 – Joseph Horne Co. – 1879" marking the founding of the company and the year of construction, while the frieze of the 1922 addition bears that date. The sidewalk slabs adjoining the entrances have inlays of the Horne's logo.


Horne's and popular culture

Artist
Andy Warhol Andy Warhol (;''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''"Warhol" born Andrew Warhola Jr.; August 6, 1928 – February 22, 1987) was an American visual artist, film director and producer. A leading figure in the pop art movement, Warhol ...
worked at a Horne's location in the store's display department as a summer job in 1947. The television series ''
Twin Peaks ''Twin Peaks'' is an American Surrealist cinema, surrealist Mystery film, mystery-Horror film, horror Drama (film and television), drama television series created by Mark Frost and David Lynch. It Pilot (Twin Peaks), premiered on American Broad ...
'' referenced a fictional Horne's store and owner, Ben Joseph Horne, which were inspired by the real Horne's. Series co-creator Mark Frost attended
Carnegie Mellon University Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. The institution was established in 1900 by Andrew Carnegie as the Carnegie Technical Schools. In 1912, it became the Carnegie Institu ...
in Pittsburgh. Horne's also appeared in movies, including the
Monroeville Mall Monroeville Mall is a shopping mall that is located in the municipality of Monroeville, Pennsylvania, east of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. It is situated on heavily traveled U.S. Route 22 Business (US 22 Bus.) near the jun ...
location, which was shown in George A. Romero's 1978 movie '' Dawn of the Dead''. The Pittsburgh flagship store was the site of the 1987 erotic thriller, ''
Lady Beware ''Lady Beware'' is a 1987 American thriller film directed by Karen Arthur and starring Diane Lane, Michael Woods and Cotter Smith. It was filmed on location in and around Pittsburgh. Plot Katya Yarno is a window dresser for Horne's departmen ...
'', which starred
Diane Lane Diane Lane (born January 22, 1965) is an American actress. Her accolades include nominations for an Academy Award, three Primetime Emmy Awards, and three Golden Globe Awards. Lane made her film debut in George Roy Hill's 1979 film '' A Littl ...
as a window designer employed there. This was Horne's most notable appearance, as in addition to the location, the store's name appeared. Diane Lane's character worked at Horne's.


See also

*
List of department stores converted to Macy's This is a list of department stores converted to Macy's and sister brand Bloomingdale's by way of mergers and acquisitions. Macy's became a national brand through these conversions, and replaced many regional department stores with local heritage ...
*
List of defunct department stores of the United States This is a list of defunct department stores of the United States, from small-town one-unit stores to mega-chains, which have disappeared over the past 100 years. Many closed, while others were sold or merged with other department stores. Depar ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Horne, Joseph Company Defunct department stores based in Pittsburgh Companies based in Pittsburgh Defunct companies based in Pennsylvania Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation Historic Landmarks American companies established in 1849 Retail companies established in 1849 1849 establishments in Pennsylvania Retail companies disestablished in 1994 1994 disestablishments in Pennsylvania