There are many of us who lament the loss of Newburgh’s shopping district with the onset of the urban renewal program. Going through the glass plate negatives I was gifted with, there was one which captured the storefront of Schoonmaker and Sons at 94 and 96 Water Street. There is no date on the plate, but from others in this collection I’d venture to guess this was taken between 1900 and 1920. The elegance of the window display defines a dry goods business which, for its time, was beyond compare.

John Schoonmaker was from Gardiner arriving in Newburgh in 1853. Recognizing the growing demand for dry goods, John, with two partners, Samuel C. Mills and Alanson Y. Weller, purchased the small business at the northwest corner of Second and Water Streets, 80 Water Street, from Col. Isaac Wood, Jr. The doors were opened on May 12th, 1863, during the Civil War. We need to remember at this time Newburgh was not only a simple village, but also a trading center for the area with the availability of rail and river transportation.

Mr. Mills retired in 1885, and Mr. Weller in 1898. After Mr. Weller’s retirement, Samuel V. Schoonmaker, son of the remaining partner, joined the firm and the name was changed to Schoonmaker and Son.

In the short span of ten years, the enterprise had grown to the point where expansion was necessary to allow meet the consumer’s demand so the store moved to 94 – 96 Water Street, in 1873. The prosperity of the business was astounding by any standards! The 94 – 96 Water Street location was later expanded with the addition of 98 – 100 Water Street, increasing the footprint of the store, with the store front on Front Street opening in 1924. The store now encompassed an entire city block! In 1925, the enterprise went public and stock was issued as they incorporated. They continued to expand and another store was added to the corporation in Beacon in 1929.

Those days, almost 130 years ago, you didn’t have, and probably no one even had the concept, that one day people would be able to order merchandise on their cell phones and it would be delivered to their doorstep within 24 hours. However, in 1898, Schoonmaker and Son promoted free roundtrip rides from Peekskill on the Steamer Emeline, Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays to visit the store. No purchase was needed!

Schoonmaker and Son was the premier shopping mecca between Albany and New York City during those years. People today sometimes fail to realize around 1900, the automobile was just coming into vogue, with railroads and steamers being the main means of transportation other than horse drawn carriages and wagons. This store offered the latest from the New York City metropolitan area without having to travel there.

For the purpose of this article, I have included newspaper ads from the Newburgh Register, the Newburgh Daily News, and the Highland Register which were the main newspapers of that era.

I’ll share one memory I have of the store, which is deeply etched into my mind. I was a toddler and shopping with my mother when, for whatever reason, I decided I wanted a powder puff. Why? I haven’t a clue. However, when my demand was denied, I laid down on the floor and had a temper tantrum, screaming and crying, banging my feet and fists for all I was worth. When I realized my mother hadn’t reacted, I paused in my performance and looked about. She was gone!

My mother was wise. Knowing I wouldn’t easily stop, she stepped outside, through one of the glass side doors, through which she could watch me without me seeing her. When my tantrum transformed into panic, she returned and we were reunited! I was elated! I never had another tantrum.

Later in life, when I was caring for her in her declining years, we often joked about this epic event which I claimed had scarred me for life. One of the last Christmases we celebrated together, in an ornate gift box, was a powder puff she had a close friend get for me. If any of you want to know, I still have this fond token of love, but if you think I’ll reveal where it’s secreted, you clearly wrong. Best Christmas present ever!