The Clothing Industry - A Family Tradition

It seems that most of my grandmother's family was involved in the clothing industry.  Whether it be millinery work, tailoring, or selling, these career choices keep appearing in the stories of my ancestors.  Another interesting fact is that it is through this line of work that my family lines intertwine and their names become a large part of Ripley's history.  

As I have written before, the Thill family brought their hat making skills to this country from the Alsace region of France which helped them establish a foothold in the Cincinnati business world.  As his mother's son, Nicholas Becker, Jr. continued the path and created a secure future for his son as Louis later followd in his father's footsteps.  

My great-grandmother, Amy Montgomery Becker's maternal grandfather was a gentleman from Germany named Michael Linn.   Upon his arrival in Ripley in 1855, Michael established the M. Linn General Store on Main Street selling clothing and other items.  When Michael died in 1910, his son, William F. Linn, along with two of his brothers, continued running the store which at that point was called M. Linn and Co. Dry Goods.    

After Amy and Louis's marriage in 1911, they lived in Stuebenville, Ohio where Louis was employed as a clothing salesman.  They returned to Ripley in 1922, at which time, Louis purchased M. Linn Clothing Store presumably from William F. who had opened another store, Linn's Men and Boy's Clothing also on Main Street.  Louis renamed his new store Becker's Department Store.

I'm not sure when Catherine's millinery shop on Second Street closed, but with Louis's purchase of M. Linn's Clothing, the family's tradition of work found in the clothing industry continued and these two families, the Linn's and the Becker's, would come to play an important part in the economy, and therefore the history, of Ripley, Ohio.

The advertisements for M. Linn & Co. were found in The Ripley Bee newspaper in 1911.  

      

The facts about the establishment of M. Linn's and Becker's Department Store were found in my great-grandfather, Louis's obituary and the book, Ripley, Ohio - Its History and Families published and compiled by the Sesquicentennial Historical Committee for the 1962 celebration of Ripley's Sequicentennial. 

Inside the Hat Store

Last week I posted a picture showing the outside of my ggg-grandmother's millinery shop.  Today's picture is of the inside, as well as a family portrait.  The photograph is not labeled so there was some investigative work to do before I could name the people.  The "investigative team" was made up of my mom, her sister, and myself.  We aren't professionals, but I think we hit the correct identifications.  Having the twins in the picture was a huge help!  My mother also recognized her grandfather, Louis, as a child which helped a lot, too!

There is no date on the photograph, but the twins, Edith and Ethel, standing in their plaid dresses, helps to give an approximate year when it was taken.  Their birth year was 1890, and I think they look about three.  

That's their brother, Louis, standing to the left.  He must have been about five or six years old.  His grandmother, Catherine Thill Becker, is seated next to him while her son, Nicholas, Jr. is standing behind her.  I'm not absolutely sure, but it is logical that the lady next to Nicholas, Jr. is his wife, Anna Beyersdoerfer Becker.  She and Nicholas were my great great grandparents and the parents of Louis and the twins. 

The older gentleman sitting next to the twins is most likely Nicholas Becker, Sr., husband of Catherine.  We do not know for sure who the lady standing in the right corner behind him is, but I have my guesses.  I think she might be Anna's sister, Flora.  In the 1900 census, Flora is listed as a milliner.  She and Anna were very close right up to their deaths, having died only months apart.

The store seems quite small and crowded.  In later years, it would become a living area for the Becker family once the store, at that location, was closed.  Looking at all the cases and mirrors, I can just imagine the ladies of Ripley coming in to pick out the ribbons and other notions to adorn their hats.  

I'd like to thank my cousin, Nick Renneker, and his sister, Patsy, for sending me the pictures of the hat store.  We share Nicholas and Anna as their great, and my great-great, grandparents, yet only came to "find" one another last year through Ancestry.com.   It truly pays to share your family history through genealogy sites such as Ancestry, Footnote, Genealogybank, etc.  You never know who and what will come your way!