Hecht's
Encyclopedia
Hecht's, also known as Hecht Brothers, Hecht Bros. and the Hecht Company, was a large chain of department store
Department store
A department store is a retail establishment which satisfies a wide range of the consumer's personal and residential durable goods product needs; and at the same time offering the consumer a choice of multiple merchandise lines, at variable price points, in all product categories...

s located mainly in the mid-Atlantic and southern region of the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

.

As of 2005, Hecht's had some 81 stores in 19 markets in Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...

, the District of Columbia, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...

, North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...

, Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...

, Delaware
Delaware
Delaware is a U.S. state located on the Atlantic Coast in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It is bordered to the south and west by Maryland, and to the north by Pennsylvania...

, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...

, and Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...

. Its locations in New Jersey, Delaware, and the majority of those in Pennsylvania were operated under the name of Strawbridge's
Strawbridge's
Strawbridge's was a department store in the northeastern United States with stores in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware. In its day a gracious urban emporium, the downtown Philadelphia flagship store added branch stores starting in the 1930s and together they enjoyed annual sales of over a...

. Hecht's flagship store was in Washington D.C. and its administrative office was in nearby Arlington, Virginia.

Hecht's was founded and was long operated as a family firm. It was purchased in 1959 by The May Department Stores Company which in turn, was acquired by Federated Department Stores on August 30, 2005. On February 1, 2006, Federated dissolved the former May Company divisions, and the existing Hecht's stores were divided between Macy's East
Macy's East
Macy's East, New York, New York is a division of Macy's, Inc.. It is the operating successor to the original R.H. Macy & Co., Inc. and operates the Macy's department stores in the northeast U.S. and Puerto Rico. Over the years it has been known as Macy's New York and Macy's Northeast...

 and Macy's South
Macy's South
Macy's Central, with its divisional flagship store at Lenox Square, and headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, is a division of Macy's, Inc.. It has stores in Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia.Following Federated's...

. The replacement Hecht's store in Chevy Chase, Maryland
Chevy Chase, Maryland
Chevy Chase is the name of both a town and an unincorporated census-designated place in Montgomery County, Maryland. In addition, a number of villages in the same area of Montgomery County include "Chevy Chase" in their names...

, took the Bloomingdale's
Bloomingdale's
Bloomingdale's is an American department store owned by Macy's, Inc. .Bloomingdale's started in 1861 when brothers Joseph and Lyman G. Bloomingdale started selling hoop-skirts in their Ladies Notions' Shop on Manhattan's Lower East Side...

 name. On September 9, 2006 the Hecht's name was phased out in favor of the nationally known Macy's
Macy's
Macy's is a U.S. chain of mid-to-high range department stores. In addition to its flagship Herald Square location in New York City, the company operates over 800 stores in the United States...

.

History

The Hecht Company was founded in 1857 by Samuel Hecht, Jr. The Hecht family was Jewish and came from the little village of Langenschwarz (now part of Burghaun
Burghaun
Burghaun is a municipality in the district of Fulda in the state of Hesse in Germany.Burghaun itself is a small town with about 3,800 residents...

), Kreis Hünfeld, Hesse
Hesse
Hesse or Hessia is both a cultural region of Germany and the name of an individual German state.* The cultural region of Hesse includes both the State of Hesse and the area known as Rhenish Hesse in the neighbouring Rhineland-Palatinate state...

, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

 where Samuel was born on December 10, 1830. His father Meyer (aka Meier or Maier) Hecht was a cattle dealer or driver who was drowned in Langenschwarz on June 12, 1835. Meyer's parents were Anschel (aka Anshil or Asher) Hecht who was a fur dealer and Güta (aka Giet) née Goldschmidt who was born in Bellersheim, Kreis Hungen, Hesse
Hesse
Hesse or Hessia is both a cultural region of Germany and the name of an individual German state.* The cultural region of Hesse includes both the State of Hesse and the area known as Rhenish Hesse in the neighbouring Rhineland-Palatinate state...

, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

.

Samuel's brother Simeon arrived in America on the ship Agnes on September 2, 1844 listed as Sam Hecht, age 21. Meyer's widow Hannah or Hanne Miriam (née Bachrach) was probably born in Hesse
Hesse
Hesse or Hessia is both a cultural region of Germany and the name of an individual German state.* The cultural region of Hesse includes both the State of Hesse and the area known as Rhenish Hesse in the neighbouring Rhineland-Palatinate state...

, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

 in 1789 or 1790. She left Germany with Samuel and his brother Reuben and immigrated to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

; they arrived in Baltimore
Baltimore
Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...

, Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...

 on December 15, 1847 on the ship Schiller.

Samuel's brothers Jacob, Moses and Raphael (aka Vogel) and sister Adelheid (aka Ettel or Edel) arrived in Baltimore on the ship Albert on July 31, 1845 which departed from Bremen, Germany. There may have been another brother Ansel (aka Asher Ralph) who immigrated to Baltimore but he has not been found on any passenger lists. Asher Ralph appears in Baltimore city directories between 1844–1858; Ansel appears in New York City directories from 1858.

Samuel Hecht became an itinerant peddler selling his goods in and around Baltimore and on the Eastern Shore of the Chesapeake Bay
Chesapeake Bay
The Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in the United States. It lies off the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by Maryland and Virginia. The Chesapeake Bay's drainage basin covers in the District of Columbia and parts of six states: New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and West...

. After a decade of itinerant peddling, he settled down and started what would become the Hecht stores. On Jan 5, 1854 Samuel married Babette Wolfsheimer in Baltimore. He died in Baltimore on February 7, 1907.

Baltimore stores

In 1857 Samuel Hecht opened a used furniture store on Aliceanna Street (near South Broadway) in Baltimore, Maryland.

By 1870 this venture had moved to a more auspicious location at 412 South Broadway where the name 'HECHT' can still be seen, carved in foot-high letters into the granite lintel over the doorway. Clothing was added to the lineup in 1879 under the name of Hecht's Reliable. Shortly thereafter a carpet and matting establishment was opened in Baltimore at 310 West Lexington Street.

Over the front of the new store on Lexington Street was a sign reading 'Samuel Hecht, Jr. & Sons,' reflecting the development of the firm as a family enterprise. Four of Samuel's sons eventually joined him in business. They were, in order of age: Emanuel (Manny), Albert S., Alexander (Alex), and Moses S. Hecht.

Emanuel Hecht joined his father in business in 1880. In 1886 he and Albert were listed as partners with their father. Alex and Moses came into the firm later and contributed to its success. Samuel Hecht died on February 7, 1907 in Baltimore. His sons, and later his grandsons, carried on the business.

The growth of the firm continued in Baltimore with the opening of the Hecht Brothers store on Baltimore and Pine streets in 1885, the Hub store in Baltimore in 1897, and Hecht Brothers at Howard and Franklin streets in 1926. Hecht stores were also established in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

 and Easton, Maryland
Easton, Maryland
Easton, founded 1710, is a town within the Easton District of Talbot County, Maryland, United States. The population was 11,708 at the 2000 census, and 14,677 according to current July 2008 census estimates. It is the county seat of Talbot County. The primary ZIP Code is 21601, and the...

. There was also a branch in Annapolis, Maryland
Annapolis, Maryland
Annapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Maryland, as well as the county seat of Anne Arundel County. It had a population of 38,394 at the 2010 census and is situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east of Washington, D.C. Annapolis is...

. However, the most important move was into Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....


Washington stores

The Hechts opened a store in Washington on March 20, 1896, which moved to a grand glass and marble store at the corner of 7th and F Streets Northwest
Washington, D.C. (northwest)
Northwest is the northwestern quadrant of Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States, and is located north of the National Mall and west of North Capitol Street...

 in November 1925. Alexander Hecht directed the Washington part of the business for the family.

Hecht's was the first store in Washington to offer national brands. It also boasted the first parking garage and first elevator
Elevator
An elevator is a type of vertical transport equipment that efficiently moves people or goods between floors of a building, vessel or other structures...

. Its relatively open policies made it popular among African-Americans as well as the white populace.

A tour of Norman Rockwell
Norman Rockwell
Norman Percevel Rockwell was a 20th-century American painter and illustrator. His works enjoy a broad popular appeal in the United States for their reflection of American culture. Rockwell is most famous for the cover illustrations of everyday life scenarios he created for The Saturday Evening...

's Four Freedoms
Four Freedoms
The Four Freedoms were goals articulated by US President Franklin D. Roosevelt on January 6, 1941. In an address known as the Four Freedoms speech , he proposed four fundamental freedoms that people "everywhere in the world" ought to enjoy:# Freedom of speech and expression# Freedom of worship#...

 paintings, intended to rally support for the Allied cause in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

 and the purchase of war bonds, premiered at the store in 1943.

In July 1951, a mixed race group began to picket outside the store, protesting racial segregation in the store's cafeteria. The offending policy was changed in January of the following year.

Hecht's moved its flagship store to a new building in downtown Washington in 1985. The former Hecht Company main building, now across from the Verizon Center
Verizon Center
Verizon Center is a sports and entertainment arena in Washington, D.C., USA, named after telecommunications sponsor Verizon Communications, and has been nicknamed the "Phone Booth" because of its association with telecommunications companies...

, was extensively renovated and reopened in 2003 as Terrell Place, honoring Mary Church Terrell
Mary Church Terrell
Mary Church Terrell , daughter of former slaves, was one of the first African-American women to earn a college degree. She became an activist who led several important associations and worked for civil rights and suffrage....

's role in desegregating that and other public accommodations in Washington.

Hecht's operated the last local department store in downtown Washington, in a structure at the corner of 12th and G Streets NW built in 1985 and renovated in 2003. Now a Macy's location as of September 2006, the building has a direct entrance to the Metro Center
Metro Center (Washington Metro)
Metro Center is the central hub station of the Washington Metro rapid transit system in Washington, D.C. Metro Center was one of the original Metro stations, and has been in service since March 27, 1976....

 station of the Washington Metro
Washington Metro
The Washington Metro, commonly called Metro, and unofficially Metrorail, is the rapid transit system in Washington, D.C., United States, and its surrounding suburbs. It is administered by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority , which also operates Metrobus service under the Metro name...

.

Into the suburbs

After World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

, Hecht Company began to build new stores in the suburbs around Washington
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....

 and Baltimore
Baltimore
Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...

. Outside the center of Baltimore, Hecht's opened a store in Edmondson Village in 1955, followed by another in Northwood
Northwood, Baltimore
Northwood is a neighborhood in the northeastern section of Baltimore, Maryland in the United States. Northwood is served by the New Northwood and the Original Northwood community associations. The area is also home to the Northwood Shopping Center and the Northwood Baseball League...

 in 1956.

In 1947 they opened a large three-story department store in a cornfield in Silver Spring, Maryland
Silver Spring, Maryland
Silver Spring is an unincorporated area and census-designated place in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. It had a population of 71,452 at the 2010 census, making it the fourth most populous place in Maryland, after Baltimore, Columbia, and Germantown.The urbanized, oldest, and...

, just north of Washington, D.C. The wisdom of this move was initially questioned; however, within a few years, more room was needed, and a fourth story was added to the building. That store was later converted in 1992, to become City Place Mall
City Place Mall
City Place Mall, at the intersection of Fenton Street and Colesville Road in downtown Silver Spring, Maryland, is a , five-story shopping mall that opened on April 2, 1992...

. The second suburban store opened on November 2, 1951, at Parkington in Arlington, Virginia. It cost $6.5 million to construct the 300000 square feet (27,870.9 m²) store and it was the largest suburban department store on the east coast at that time. On November 2, 1958, Maryland Gov. Theodore R. McKeldin ceremonally opened its third suburban D.C. Hecht Company store at Prince George's Plaza, in Hyattsville, Maryland
Hyattsville, Maryland
Hyattsville is a city in Prince George's County, Maryland, United States. The population was 17,557 at the 2000 census.- History :The city was named for its founder, Christopher Clark Hyatt. He purchased his first parcel of land in the area in March 1845...

. Gov. J. Millard Tawes
J. Millard Tawes
John Millard Tawes , a member of the United States Democratic Party, was the 54th Governor of Maryland in the United States from 1959 to 1967. He remains the only Marylander to be elected to the three positions of State Treasurer, Comptroller, and Governor.-Early life and family:Tawes was born to...

 did the honors on August 29, 1960, when he opened the fourth suburban D.C. store; the 168000 square feet (15,607.7 m²) store at Marlow Heights Shopping Center
Marlow Heights Shopping Center
The Marlow Heights Shopping Center is an open air shopping complex located in Marlow Heights, Maryland, on Branch Avenue at St. Barnabas Road , and is positioned just south of Iverson Mall.-History:...

.

May Company

The Hecht chain was acquired by the May Company
May Company
May Company may refer to several American businesses:*The May Department Stores Company, a defunct retail company acquired by Federated Department Stores in 2006**May Company California, a defunct California department store that merged with J. W...

 in 1959. At this time, the historic 1924 Bernheim-Leader store on the corner of Howard and Lexington Streets in Baltimore was renamed Hecht's, becoming its flagship store in the Baltimore area. It closed in 1988, one of the last department stores to remain in the downtown district. In 1998, it was declared a city landmark, and has since been renovated into apartments owned by Southern Management.

Many other stores acquired later were also rebranded as Hecht's. Hecht's acquired Miller & Rhoads
Miller & Rhoads
Miller & Rhoads was a Virginia-based department store chain. Throughout its 105 year life-span, the store played an active role in the Richmond community, along with its friendly cross-street rival Thalhimers.- Origins :...

, based in Richmond, Virginia
Richmond, Virginia
Richmond is the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in the United States. It is an independent city and not part of any county. Richmond is the center of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Greater Richmond area...

, by cherry-picking the best locations when this venerable chain dissolved in 1990. Thalhimer's
Thalhimer's
Thalhimers was a department store in the Southern United States. Based in Richmond, Virginia, the venerable chain at its peak operated dozens of stores in Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and one store in Memphis, Tennessee....

, based in Richmond, Virginia, was acquired from Carter Hawley Hale Stores in 1990 and consolidated under Hecht's name in 1992. Hecht's took over ten Hess's
Hess's
Hess's was a department store chain based in Allentown, Lehigh County, Pennsylvania in the United States.- History :The department store known as Hess Brothers was founded on February 19, 1897, by Charles and Max Hess. Max Hess came to Allentown in 1896 on a business trip and envisioned a...

 stores, based in Allentown, Pennsylvania
Allentown, Pennsylvania
Allentown is a city located in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is Pennsylvania's third most populous city, after Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, and the 215th largest city in the United States. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 118,032 and is currently...

 in 1994. Three of those re-opened as Hecht's and the others were operated by corporate siblings Kaufmann's
Kaufmann's
Kaufmann's was a department store that originated in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It was owned in the early 20th century by Edgar J. Kaufmann, patron of 'Fallingwater' and the Kaufmann's Desert House. In the post-war years the store became a regional chain in the eastern United States, and was last...

 and Filene's
Filene's
Filene's was a Boston-based department store owned by Federated Department Stores , and May Department Stores . It operated throughout New England and in New York.-Early years:...

. Hecht's acquired Wanamaker's
Wanamaker's
Wanamaker's department store was the first department store in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and one of the first department stores in the United States. At its zenith in the early 20th century, there were two major Wanamaker department stores, one in Philadelphia and one in New York City at Broadway...

, based in Philadelphia, and Woodward & Lothrop
Woodward & Lothrop
Woodward & Lothrop was a department store chain headquartered in Washington, D.C. Woodward & Lothrop was Washington, D.C.'s first department store, opening in 1887. Woodies, as it was often nicknamed, maintained stores in the Mid-Atlantic United States...

, based in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....

, taking over 17 stores acquired in 1995 in joint acquisition with JCPenney. Fourteen stores were consolidated the same year. Thirteen of Strawbridge and Clothier's stores, based in the Philadelphia area, were acquired in 1996. Their management consolidated with Hecht's the same year, but the Strawbridge name was retained and expanded to all the Philadelphia locations.

In the Nashville
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...

 area, Hecht's took over select former Castner Knott
Castner Knott
Castner Knott Company was a Nashville, Tennessee-based regional department store chain. The chain was in business for a century from 1898 to 1998, in its later years as a division of Mercantile Stores Company....

 stores, which had been purchased from East Tennessee
East Tennessee
East Tennessee is a name given to approximately the eastern third of the U.S. state of Tennessee, one of the three Grand Divisions of Tennessee defined in state law. East Tennessee consists of 33 counties, 30 located within the Eastern Time Zone and three counties in the Central Time Zone, namely...

-based Proffitt's
Proffitt's
Proffitt's was a department store chain based in Alcoa, Tennessee. On March 8, 2006, the Proffitt's and McRae's stores were converted into Belk stores. Belk acquired the two chains in July 2005 from Saks Incorporated.-Beginnings:...

 in 2001. Proffitt's previously acquired them as a result of the Mercantile Stores
Mercantile Stores
Mercantile Stores Company Inc. until 1998, was a traditional department store retailer operating 102 fashion apparel stores and 16 home fashion stores in 17 states. The stores were operated under 13 different nameplates and varied in size, with the average store approximating . Store names...

/Dillard's
Dillard's
Dillard's, Inc. is a department store chain in the United States, with 330 stores in 29 states. Headquartered in Little Rock, Arkansas, Dillard's locations are concentrated in Texas and Florida; with a major presence in other states including Arizona, Iowa, Colorado, Wyoming, Kansas, Missouri,...

 merger in 1998, and briefly rebranded them as Proffitt's locations.

Further reading

  • Longstreth, Richard W. "The mixed blessings of success: the Hecht Company and department store branch development after World War II," in Hudgins, Carter L. and Cromley, Elizabeth Collins eds., Shaping Communities: Perspectives in Vernacular Architecture, VI: University of Tennessee
    University of Tennessee
    The University of Tennessee is a public land-grant university headquartered at Knoxville, Tennessee, United States...

     Press (Knoxville
    Knoxville, Tennessee
    Founded in 1786, Knoxville is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Tennessee, U.S.A., behind Memphis and Nashville, and is the county seat of Knox County. It is the largest city in East Tennessee, and the second-largest city in the Appalachia region...

    ). Originally a 1995 monograph published by the Center for Washington Area Studies at George Washington University
    George Washington University
    The George Washington University is a private, coeducational comprehensive university located in Washington, D.C. in the United States...

    .
  • Cultural Tourism D.C.: Terrell Place / Hecht Company Site
  • Goethe-Institut
    Goethe-Institut
    The Goethe-Institut is a non-profit German cultural institution operational worldwide, promoting the study of the German language abroad and encouraging international cultural exchange and relations. The Goethe-Institut also fosters knowledge about Germany by providing information on German...

    : German-American Sites in Washington, D.C., The Hecht Company
  • National Association of Colored Women's Clubs: "Washington D.C. Dedicates Terrell Place"
  • Washington Business Journal, "Bottom line bait," October 24, 2003
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