Remembering Woolworth’s

by Karen Plunkett-Powell

  A satisfactory agreement was reached with all parties. The F. W. Woolworth Company, along with the Greensboro Sit-In Movement, would receive national recognition for their donation to the Smithsonian; the members of the Sit-In Movement Inc. would also continue with their own local museum plans.

  There was great excitement and flurry of activity on Elm Street the day the dismantling began. Under the supervision of trained Smithsonian preservationists, Woolworth workers carefully dismantled the objects. The Greensboro community also assisted, and their carpenter’s union donated their labor for the cause. Among those who gathered to watch, were several people who were there that winter and spring three decades before, when Greensboro had been thronged with protesters and media. Finally, the crates holding metal and Formica icons of that turbulent period were shipped to Washington D.C. Through a generous grant from TROY Systems, Inc., and additional support from the Futron Corporation, the exhibit became a reality.

  The Smithsonian decided to name the exhibit “Sitting for Justice.”

  The exhibit has been available to the public since 1995, and the Greensboro lunch counter is now part of the Smithsonian Institute’s National Museum of American History collection. The counter portion of the exhibit is flanked by newspaper articles and photographs of the sit-in’s participants. It presently resides in the building’s main hallway, which connects displays of the Star Spangled Banner and a monumental sculpture of George Washington. According to Smithsonian curator, Lonnie Bunch, “We felt that it was important to have an icon of race that cried, in the words of poet Langston Hughes, “I, too, am America.’”

  TIME CAPSULE MEMORY

  “Heartfelt Moments”

  I grew up in a rural community in the 1950s, so going to the five-and-dime (a few miles away) was always a big treat for me. My mother worked very hard, and was only off on Sundays and Mondays. Sundays would invariably find me seated beside her on a church pew, and just as religiously, on Mondays we would sit together at the Woolworth’s counter and enjoy a ham sandwich with lettuce. It was the only time that I felt I had my mother’s undivided attention, and the Woolworth’s lunch counter became a shrine for me. My precious mother is now gone, but I could never pass the old stores without reliving those special childhood memories.

  —Susan Graham, VA

  Each F. W. Woolworth’s counter across America held a special, unique meaning for its former occupants. Where in Greensboro, North Carolina, the significance is primarily historical, there are other cities which remember their lunch counters as the place where personal histories were made. Whether they were seniors sipping a cup of hot coffee on a cold winter afternoon, or children popping balloons in the hope of winning a food prize, the patrons of Woolworth’s took their experiences to heart. The lunch counters, perhaps more than any other aspect of the Woolworth story, have generated the most nostalgic memories.

  Chapter Nine

  A Store For All Seasons

  “For sixty years Woolworth’s has been steadfast in the belief that Santa must not pass by so much as one chimney when his reindeer prance over the roof tops of America. How much of this glad Christmas scene is of Woolworth’s making? How much of it was made possible by the loose change in Santa’s purse? More Christmas joy for more homes is the miracle wrought each year by Woolworth’s!”

  Sixty Years of Woolworth souvenir booklet, 1939

  A Winter Wonderland for the Working Class

  Just as millions of people recall their experiences at the Woolworth’s lunch counters, so do they recall the old Red-Fronts during the holidays, especially during the December holidays.

  “December is our harvest time,” Frank Woolworth once told his managers. “Make it pay!”

  And they did.

  For good or ill, the F. W. Woolworth Co. played a large part in commercializing Christmas, forever altering the seasonal shopping patterns of the working class. This trend started out rather innocently in the 1880s, when Frank introduced his customers to the American version of a new “ready made” tree trimming called a Christmas Ball. One thing led to another, until the aisles of his Red-Fronts were filled with additional “ready-made” goodies such as garlands. Christmas choo-choo trains, simulated evergreens, and elaborate nativity sets. Following World War II, plastic was introduced on a wide scale, adding an entirely new selection of gaudy, colorful, inexpensive items to decorate the home and entertain the masses. To make certain that people knew about this plethora of minutiae, the company started distributing holiday catalogs, jammed with descriptions of the latest gift fads (such as adjustable metal roller skates) and the old stand-bys (such as shaving lotion). By the 1950s, F. W. Woolworth was a firmly established holiday haunt for bargain hunters, as the Red-Fronts had become more bazaar than dimestore. A casual stroll through the aisles offered a pleasant though sometimes overwhelming assault on the senses, full of the vivid colors, sounds and aromas of a cut-rate Winter Wonderland.

  And everywhere you looked, you would see the familiar sign: “Welcome to America’s Favorite Christmas Store.”

  Come December, the display windows were transformed into a kaleidoscope of red, green, and gold. The Thanksgiving pumpkins and paper Pilgrims were stored away in favor of silver bells, holly-decked wrapping paper, and spray-on snow.

  Store managers pulled out all the stops to entice shoppers inside, where employees bustled to and fro between counters to help Grandma find the perfect woolen scarf for Grandpa, and a bottle of ”Evening in Paris” for sister Judy. Dads could be seen carrying out large boxes of Christmas lights and ornaments, destined for the family evergreen, moms in tow with enough glittering tinsel to decorate a city block. In the larger Woolworth’s, a piano player was often seated in the back, playing rousing renditions of “Jingle Bells” with the hope of selling sheet music. In the smaller stores, piped-in melodies of “Silent Night” made certain everyone maintained the proper holiday mood.

  The candy counters brimmed over with every type of delectable treat: festive ribbon candy, boxed Schrafft’s candies, pounds of cream Operas, walnut-topped Montevidos, and candy canes as large as your arm. And the toys! Why, the children had never seen so many toys in one place! Everything from Plasticville towns to giant coloring books to fuzzy stuffed bears filled those walls, and baskets of tops, rubber balls, and tiny cars lined the bottom row. When the adults weren’t looking, little brother would grab a Red Ryder toy rifle off the shelf, press the trigger and gleefully listen to the click-click-click, while sister pushed the belly button on a Baby Gurglee latex doll to hear its unique version of waa-waa. In both instances, the result would be the same—the loud utterance of the phrase so sweet to a Woolworth’s managers’ ears: “Mommy, Daddy, I want this!”

  TIME CAPSULE MEMORY

  “Christmas in Kansas”

  My fondest memories of Woolworth’s here in Hays, Kansas, center around Christmas shopping. When I was eight or nine years old, I was given a dollar to spend. I learned to shop carefully, always getting good value for my money. I bought Tangee lipstick, boxes of cotton handkerchiefs, lilac-scented talcum powder, bars of shaving soap and Evening in Paris perfume. To this day, I can recognize the scent of Evening in Paris!

  —Joan McAfee

  Fortunately, it was often possible that those toys would indeed show up under the tree on Christmas day. Woolworth’s reasonable prices and the vast selection enabled the financially challenged family to partake of the season of giving (and spending) in style. If the purse was a little thin, no matter. Woolworth’s offered a convenient layaway plan; just pay as you go, and by Christmas or Chanukah, the treasures would be yours.

  All of this was a boon to the working class, who, until then, could only stare longingly into the beautiful display windows of higher-priced department stores. Now, struggling parents could surprise their children with more than just a handful of walnuts and a tangerine in an old darned Christmas stocking. F. W. Woolworth, along with subsequent dimestores across America and overseas, worked to level
the seasonal playing field.

  The art of securing the season’s most popular items was one of Frank Woolworth’s specialties, and in fact, he was one of the first merchants in the world truly to understand how important it was to feed the frenzy of popular culture and interest, especially the interests of children.

  After Frank died in 1919, his successors carried on this toyland tradition, assuring tidy profits for Woolworth’s stores across the globe. Gene Autry toy guns, Lone Ranger lunch boxes, “make-your-own” Styrofoam ornaments, Shirley Temple paper dolls, Lana Turner cutouts, mood rings, Cabbage Patch dolls, Flintstones’ Color-forms, Nancy Drew books, or Beatles records; whatever caught the youth of America’s winter fancy was prominently displayed at F. W. Woolworth’s five-and-dime stores.

  This holiday extravaganza was not, of course, limited to products for children, neither was it limited to the United States. Wherever in the world there was a Woolworth’s variety store, the patrons were assured of seasonal bargains for every age group. A Yuletide trip to Woolworth’s in Germany would offer a stunning selection of glass ornaments, and in Mexico, the December favorites were Christmas piñatas, often hung from the ceilings, swaying from the breeze of a Casablanca-style fan.

  Patrons of the United Kingdom’s Woolworth’s stores had a particular penchant for Christmas crackers, which can best be described as tubes covered in paper, which one grabs by either side and pulls. One is then rewarded with a loud pop, and often, a surprise. Although these never really caught on in the United States, Christmas crackers have been best sellers in the U.K. almost from the minute that Frank Woolworth opened his first “three-and-six pence” shop in Liverpool back in 1909. These crackers still come in a mind-boggling array of colors and styles, from simple red foils and holly, to “luxury crackers” available in “Merry Christmas” and Poinsettia designs, often sold along with matching napkins and candles. Generally, the more expensive the set of crackers, the more valuable the gift inside.

  Whether you were shopping in London, Scotland, New York City, Montreal, or Havana, the holiday season was always a special time of year at F. W. Woolworth’s. It probably seemed as though this discount wonderland was always there, ready to help you find the perfect present for everyone on your Yuletide list. But although it didn’t take Frank Winfield Woolworth long to capitalize on the bonanza of the holidays, it did take several decades for F. W. Woolworth’s to establish itself as America’s quintessential Christmas store.

  TIME CAPSULE MEMORY

  “Happy Chanukah, Morn and Dad!”

  It was in the Woolworth’s in Astoria, NY, back in the 1950s, I would wile away the time pondering the treasures of the stationery section, pouring over the enticing display of makeup, and making friends with the birds. It was the place where I bought my last childhood doll, a two-foot-high bride doll which still sits in its box in my closet. It was also the place where, as a child, I bought my parents their very first Chanukah gifts … toothbrushes!

  —Donna Z. Steinhorn

  Gold Tinsel and Tree Ornaments: 1800s Style

  During his very first Christmas as a proprietor in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, back in 1879, Frank Woolworth immediately grasped the power and potential profits of seasonal shopping. In those days, most of the items on his counters were more useful than fun, and other than occasional silk ribbon, they were not very glitzy. Still, Woolworth made his display windows as festive as possible, and successfully sold off his current stock, including those troublesome “stickers” (slow-selling notions) that never seemed to move at any other time of year. By 1880 he had already started to master his role as the country’s bargain. Santa. The windows were lavishly decorated. Wreaths were hung inside and out, and the first American-made colored glass ball ornaments were introduced and sold out in two days.

  German-made Lauscha ornaments were first introduced to F. W. Woolworth stores in 1890. During World War II, when the German ornaments were unavailable, American manufacturers began reproducing their delicate, colorful style.

  These were the simple “Meyer & Schoenaman” tree ornaments, and although they were not nearly as lovely as their European counterparts, they were a far cry from the traditional homemade popcorn beads and bows. Several years later, tinsel garland made its debut. Woolworth had stumbled across a tiny factory in Philadelphia, where an immigrant named Bernard Wilmsen was turning by hand a small machine which changed imported German gold tinsel into garlands. Woolworth knew these would be hot Christmas items and offered to buy every garland in the place, along with a cache of simple hand-painted American tree ornaments. At first, Wilmsen refused, protesting that he only dealt with jobbers, and besides, all of those decorations were promised elsewhere. Woolworth would not be daunted and persisted until Wilmsen gave in. In return, Woolworth promised he would keep buying from Wilmsen for life. He kept his word. Many years later, in 1939, Mr. Wilmsen recalled the day that changed his life: “Mr. Woolworth had at that time only a few stores, but I grew with Woolworth. I have sold them at least $25 million worth of Christmas tree ornaments, in one year alone $800,000 worth. At first we imported tinsel from Germany. Since the war, I make it myself. Today, at the corner of Haegert and Jasper Streets I have a big factory. I have 225 people working to fill Woolworth’s orders. We sell to all, but Woolworth’s was first. I am the oldest Woolworth’s [ornament] supplier.” Wilmsen, like many other once struggling manufacturers, became very wealthy due to his faith in young, pushy Frank W. Woolworth.

  Perhaps more than any other Christmas decoration, it was the imported German ornaments that caused the greatest stir with Woolworth’s American customers. In 1890, during his first trip to Europe, Frank stumbled upon trimmings the likes of which his Yankee eyes had never seen. These were the beautiful Lauscha tree ornaments, crafted of blown glass and quicksilver, which folklore has it were invented by a poor German glass-blower who created a collection of small glass balls to hang on his family’s tree. Along with elaborate balls, there were hollow ornaments in the shape of pine cones, fruit, flowers, animals, birds, and Santas. During his lifetime, Frank made millions selling these particular ornaments for a nickel and a dime apiece.

  It wasn’t just German Christmas ornaments that made 1890 a banner year for Frank Woolworth. He also made sure he capitalized on the “McGinty” craze, when the singer Maggie Cline had made a huge splash with her rendition of a song called “Down Went McGinty.” So, along with McGinty sheet music, Woolworth made sure he stocked McGinty toy balloons and McGinty watches. Woolworth bought the watches at eight dollars a gross (just over 5¢ a piece), sold them for a dime, and watched with satisfaction as they quickly vanished from his shelves.

  Behind the scenes, Woolworth pushed his managers relentlessly during the holidays, dashing off memo after memo, full of advice and orders. He was absolutely paranoid about employee theft, and told his managers to guard every nickel and dime as if it were their last. In 1892, he was on a real tear, as illustrated by this General Letter:

  “Give your stores a holiday appearance! Hang up Christmas ornaments. Perhaps have a tree in the window. Make the store look different. This is our harvest time.

  TIME CAPSULE MEMORY

  “Hark the Herald Angels”

  Setting up for Christmas was always a big job at Woolworth’s, but we managed to have a lot of fun doing it. In one store where I was a stock boy in the 1960s, our assistant manager, a fellow with a great sense of humor, was setting up an end-cap display of Nativity Figures and stables. He did a terrible job and the manager made him change it three times. When his solemn Nativity scene was finally accepted, he announced that he had made up a special tape on a message repeater. These were before the more modern tape recorders, and they were short loop tapes on which you could record a sales pitch. Intrigued, we all waited for his tape to run. The button was pressed and we heard the following song: “Hark the herald Angels sing, 29 cents for the newborn King, and for ju-ust 10 cents more, you can get a camel that lies on the floor!” Of course, he couldn�
��t use it, but everyone got a good laugh out of it. It was moments like those that broke up the tension and gave all the hard-working Woolworth’s employees a chance to laugh and enjoy a few moments of camaraderie. Although it was off-beat humor, I think even old Frank Woolworth would have chuckled.

  —Robert Bennett, former stock boy

  Make it pay. This is also a good time to work off stickers or unsaleable goods, for they will sell during the excitement when you could not give them away at other times. Mend all broken toys and dolls every day. Also, watch your clerks and customers to see they do not steal. When the store is crowded, don’t allow any boys or girls in the stores at all, unless they are with parents, as most of them come in on purpose to steal. The cashier needs your watchful eye, as it has been the experience of at least one store every year to lose large amounts through the cashier’s dishonesty. Remember, the cashier has the best chance of all to steal.”

  The Christmas season of 1892 was his most prosperous to date, and the profits just kept on climbing over the ensuing years. As the new century dawned, Woolworth had fifty-nine stores with annual gross profits exceeding five million dollars. In 1899, his Christmas trade alone amounted to a half million dollars. That particular year, he even departed from his Scrooge mentality by initiating a Christmas bonus system. Employees received an additional $5.00 for each year of service, with a limit of $25. Of course, there was a catch: