Trade Card: Excelsior Clothiers, Tailors and Furnishers, Cleveland, Ohio
Trade Card - Excelsior Clothiers operated primarily during the 1880s and 1890s at 201-211 Superior Street, a location later renumbered in Cleveland city records as 242 Superior Street. The clearance event depicted on the historic trade card marked a transitional phase where the business announced it was "going out of retail business." During this period in the late 1890s, merchant advertisements indicate that owner Jacob Steinfeld consolidated his operations, briefly shifting his focus strictly toward wholesale manufacturing and real estate investments. However, this departure from retail was temporary. By March 1901, the storefront was actively operating again under his direct namesake as "Jacob Steinfeld, Clothier." It was during this final chapter of operation that the business made major local headlines when ten of its store clerks staged a high-profile strike to protest being forced into rotating vacations without pay. Jacob Steinfeld was a prominent member of Cleveland's German-Jewish immigrant merchant class during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. His success as a retail pioneer allowed him to help shape the city's early commercial landscape while becoming a major figure in its growing Jewish communal network. Operating under the banner of Excelsior Clothiers at 201-211 Superior Street, Steinfeld earned the newspaper moniker the "Old Reliable" clothier. His business was highly regarded for introducing high-volume, affordable, ready-made clothing to Cleveland's working class. Leveraging his retail wealth, he heavily invested in local real estate, hiring the renowned architectural firm Lehman & Schmitt to construct a massive multi-story commercial building on Woodland Avenue in 1891, as well as a large personal estate and barn complex on East 55th Street in 1889. As a highly successful businessman, Steinfeld was a key early member and patron of The Excelsior Club. Founded in 1872, the institution served as the primary social and cultural epicenter for Cleveland's elite German-Jewish community during an era when they were excluded from mainstream Gentile social clubs. Beyond social circles, his philanthropy extended deep into the community; he supported early Jewish orphanages, immigrant relief funds, and welfare charities recorded in historical registries like the American Jewish Year Book. Steinfeld's commitment to his community extended to preserving its history and honoring its dead. He was actively involved in the development and maintenance of Mayfield Cemetery, a landmark Jewish cemetery established in 1887 by the Euclid Avenue Temple and Tiffereth Israel congregations. Upon his death, he was interred there alongside his peers, cementing his legacy within Cleveland's Jewish history.
Associated People/Businesses
- Steinfeld, Jacob
Geography
Subjects
Physical Location
Arc.MS.56, Box 1, Folder 47