ROWLAND HUSSEY MACY

August 30, 1822 — March 29, 1877

Linda Willard

Rowland Hussey Macy, the fourth of six children born to Quaker parents John and Eliza Myrick Barnard Macy, was born on Nantucket Island on August 20, 1822. His father was a storekeeper, and his mother was a housewife. The Macy family was one of Nantucket’s first settlers. They were among the nine English families who bought the island in 1659 for thirty pounds sterling and two beaver hats.

At the age of fifteen, Macy left home and found work on the whaleship, Emily Morgan. One trip was more than enough for Macy! It is thought that during his time on the whaleship, he had a red stare tattooed on either his hand or forearm. This red star would become the iconic trademark for the Macy Department Store.

Macy and his brother Charles moved to Marysville, California in 1850 at the height of the Gold Rush. Macy and Charles opened a dry goods store in Marysville, however, the store failed. Charles remained in California, however, Macy returned to the East Coast.

Between 1843 and 1855, Macy opened four retail stores, all of which failed. Macy wisely learned from his mistakes and in 1858, opened a store in New York City. This store was established under the name R.H. Macy Dry Goods. The store was located at the corner of Sixth Avenue and 14th Street. This was a significant distance for other dry goods stores at the time. On the first day of business on October 28, 1858, the sales totaled $11.08, or about $346. 39 in today’s money.

Finally, Macy had a successful business! The business grew and Macy expanded into neighboring buildings. Macy offered many unique services and advertising ideas. Macy offered a one-price policy, no haggling, the price on the tag was the price the item sold for. Macy also offered on-site custom-made clothing for men and women. He also had a policy that purchases were made with cash only, not with credit. Macy also used eye-catching advertising in his newspaper ads. Macy’s Department Store was the first retail store to have an in-store Santa Claus for the children during the Christmas season.

Macy was also far ahead of his time in working with newspaper reporters to report significant events at the store. One such event was when he promoted a saleswoman, Margaret Getchell to store manager in 1866. This made Getchell the first woman to hold an executive position with a major American retail store.

The move to New York from Haverhill, Massachusetts, also brought a change in the logo for the store. The original store logo was a rooster. When the store moved to New York, the now-famous red star became the logo.

In 1844, Macy married Louisa Houghton. Macy and his wife were the parents of three children, two sons, and one daughter. The oldest son, Charles, died as an infant.

The son of a Nantucket Island storekeeper became the founder of what is now the world’s largest department store.

Macy died on March 29, 1877, in Paris, France from Bright’s disease. Macy is buried in the Woodlawn Cemetery in the Bronx, New York.