Filene's was an iconic Boston-based department store owned by Federated Department Stores (1929-1988; 2005-2006), and May Department Stores (1988-2005). It operated throughout New England and in New York.
Filene’s was founded in 1881 by William Filene under the name Filene’s sons and Co. William Filene was a German Jewish immigrant from Posen, Prussia, who immigrated to Boston in 1848. By 1881 Filene had built up many small retail shops around Bo...
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Filene's was an iconic Boston-based department store owned by Federated Department Stores (1929-1988; 2005-2006), and May Department Stores (1988-2005). It operated throughout New England and in New York.
Filene’s was founded in 1881 by William Filene under the name Filene’s sons and Co. William Filene was a German Jewish immigrant from Posen, Prussia, who immigrated to Boston in 1848. By 1881 Filene had built up many small retail shops around Boston creating his own department store.
Although William Filene is credited with creating Filene’s, it was his sons, Edward and Lincoln who took the store into greatness. Edward and Lincoln were two of the most well known businessmen in America and were responsible for turning their father’s clothing store into one of the largest department stores in the country. The two sons assumed management of the store in 1891 and inherited the store upon their father’s death in 1901. In 1908 Edward Filene opened the automatic bargin annex or Filene's...
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