History Commons^™

J. C. Penney: The Man, The Store And American Agriculture, David Delbert Kruger

David Delbert Kruger

James Cash Penney And His North Dakota Stores, David Kruger

David Delbert Kruger

Although James Cash Penney opened his first store in 1902, at the age of twenty-six, he kept his business entirely in the western United States for the first twelve years of its existence. By 1914 he was operating about forty stores out of his Utah headquarters, but had no locations east of Montana, Wyoming, or Colorado. Not a single J. C. Penney store existed in the Midwest, and, unlike Montgomery Ward and Sears Roebuck, his chain had no catalog business to cover the agrarian region by mail order.1 However, Penney was well aware of North Dakota’s booming rural population, and …

James Cash Penney: The Impact Of A Main Street Merchant On Oklahoma, David Kruger

David Delbert Kruger

Although not from the Sooner State, J. C. Penney made his mark on Oklahoma and its people through his retail empire based on his golden rule principles. By visiting his store locations in the state, Penney influenced a new generation of company leadership to grow from the small towns in Oklahoma. David D. Kruger explains the impact of Penney the man and J.C. Penney the company on the culture of retail shopping in Oklahoma.

Changing Times, Changing Spaces: The South Dakota Stores Of J.C. Penney, David Delbert Kruger

David Delbert Kruger

When the first J. C. Penney store in South Dakota held its grand opening on 1 April 1916, the celebration took place not in the bustling business district of one of the state's larger cities like Sioux Falls or Aberdeen, but on Main Street in the tiny farming community of Redfield. At the time of the grand opening, Redfield was a fraction of the size of Sioux Falls, with a population of just under three thousand. The small, personable size and agrarian environment of the Spink County seat were, however, consistent with the rural locations the company founder, James Cash …

This Was J.C. Penney: A Century Of James Penney’S Main Street Department Stores In The Rocky Mountain West, David Delbert Kruger

David Delbert Kruger

The article discusses the history of the department store chain J.C. Penney in the Rocky Mountain region of the U.S. West, particularly focusing on Montana. It comments on founder James Cash Penney's early retailing efforts and his time working for the Golden Rule chain of stores. The author examines the configuration, size, and logos of J.C. Penney stores, and describes the shift in the location of stores from main streets to shopping malls. The impact of the Great Depression in the 1930s is also addressed.

Increasing The Value Of Wool In Wyoming And Beyond: The Impact Of Uw's Wool Lab And Library, David Kruger

David Delbert Kruger

At the turn of the twentieth century, little more than a decade after Wyoming attained statehood, a young agricultural student at the University of Wyoming saw a pressing need to improve the quality and reputation of Wyoming wool. When John Arthur Hill became a professor in 1907, the Wool Department he created would go on to not only assist Wyoming sheep ranchers in wool production, but provide the sheep industry with a better understanding of how wool fleeces and fibers could be improved across the nation. Under Hill’s leadership and his later protege Robert Homer Burns, the Wool Department developed …

Jcpenney And His Agrarian Animals: The Award-Winning Livestock Of A Department Store Icon, David Kruger

David Delbert Kruger

Widely known for his department store chain, James Cash Penney (1875-1971) greatly contributed to American agriculture through his horse and cattle breeding enterprises. Beginning in 1917, three years after moving to New York City, Penney began using his personal capital to acquire, breed, and sell outstanding animals for agricultural purposes. By the 1920s, his Guernsey dairy herd had earned a worldwide reputation for quality and production, with herd sire Foremost eventually becoming the namesake for one of the largest dairy cooperatives in the United States. By the 1940s, Penney was personally developing award-winning beef cattle herds on the Missouri farm …

Jcpenney As Cattleman, David Kruger

David Delbert Kruger

Though widely known for his department store chain and its Wyoming origins, James Cash Penney also played a prominent role as a cattleman from the 1920s until his death in 1971. This presentation will explore Penney's personal and professional involvement in the cattle industry, including his significant contributions within the Angus, Hereford, and Guernsey breeds.

Pulling The Wool Under Your Eyes: Preserving A Century-Old Wool Lab And Library At The University Of Wyoming, David Kruger

David Delbert Kruger

Sheep and wool have long been integral to the agrarian heritage of Western states, and still play a vital role in the region’s agricultural economy. From 1907-2012, Wyoming’s sole university supported wool research around the world through its Wool Department, complete with its own wool laboratory and library. When the Wool Department was permanently dissolved and its building condemned for demolition in 2012, the University of Wyoming (UW) Libraries partnered with UW Extension and the UW College of Agriculture and Natural Resources to preserve the unusual print and physical artifacts of this unique collection, as well as disseminate the spirit …

The Main Street Spirit Of Jcpenney: A Department Store Chain In The Downtowns Of Washington, David Kruger

David Delbert Kruger

For the better part of the 20th Century, the JCPenney chain had a rich history of Main Street locations throughout Washington state. The article traces the origins of James Cash Penney's operations in Washington, including the Golden Rule philosophy of its founder and unique architectural features of Penney's downtown locations, notably the company's first metropolitan store that served downtown Seattle from 1931-1982.

University Of Wyoming Wool Laboratory, 1907-2012, David Kruger

David Delbert Kruger

The University of Wyoming Wool Laboratory operated on campus from 1907-2012, in which time the sheep and wool industry experienced great change. For over a century, the faculty of the Wool Lab carefully cataloged research associated with sheep and wool, accumulating a collection of over 1,000 individual titles, 10,000 bound journal articles, correspondence, equipment manuals, and data notebooks, and a set of 872 preserved wool samples dating from 1837. This collection, now housed at the Emmett D. Chisum Special Collections Library at the University of Wyoming, is thought to be one of the most unique and complete collections of sheep …

"The Most Interesting Trip I Have Ever Taken Among The Stores": James Cash Penney's Return To Wyoming In The Great Depression, David Kruger

David Delbert Kruger

The article explores James Cash Penney's return trip to Wyoming during the Great Depression, and contextualizes the Wyoming origins of the JCPenney department store chain. Penney's ongoing relationship with the state after the Great Depression is also explored.

This Was J. C. Penney: A Century Of Main Street Department Stores, David Kruger

David Delbert Kruger

Talk given as invited plenary speaker, providing an overview of the boom and bust of Main Street department stores throughout Montana, with particular emphasis on James Cash Penney and his Golden Rule/JCPenney department store locations.

Pulling The Wool Under Your Eyes: Preserving A Wool Lab And Library At The University Of Wyoming, David Kruger

David Delbert Kruger

Since 1909, the University of Wyoming boasted a Wool Department and one of the few wool laboratories, libraries, and scouring plants in the United States. With the decommissioning of the wool laboratory and library in 2012, University of Wyoming Libraries is working to preserve its vast contents including wool samples, book and scrapbook collections, and the process of wool research itself. University of Wyoming Libraries has partnered with UW Extension and the College of Agriculture to help preserve the history of wool research.

J. C. Penney: Missouri Man, Wyoming Institution, David Kruger

David Delbert Kruger

Traces the business career of James Cash Penney (1875-1971), founder of the national chain of J. C. Penney stores. Born in Missouri, Penney came to Wyoming in 1902 and became partners with Guy Johnson and Thomas Callahan, owners of the small chain of Golden Rule stores. Penney opened a store in Kemmerer, Wyoming, that was immediately successful. A deeply religious man, Penney believed in making his store a part of the community rather than exploiting the customers. Business quickly expanded and more Golden Rule stores opened, and, eventually, Penney bought out his partners. At its peak the Penney chain numbered …