Leading Business Men of Fairfield County

Charles W. McCord, Successor to McCord & Stillman, Wholesale and Retail Dealer in Carpets, Oil Cloths, Mattings, Rugs, Window Shades, Upholstery Goods, etc., No. 375 Main Street. — The great advance made in popular taste and culture, as shown by the various ar- ticles of household adornment and utility, is one of the most significant signs of the times, and in no department of house-furnishing is the result of such progress and discrimination more mani- fest than in that relating to floor covering of various kinds. The gaudy and* bizarre patterns in carpets, for instance, once so universal and prevalent, are now seldom seen unless we search in some auction room or other repository of cast- away and superseded goods. An establishment wherein the most fashionable and modern de- signs in carpetings, oil cloths, mattings, rugs, etc., are sure to be found is that of Mr. Charles W. McCord, located at No. 375 Main street. This gentleman began business in May, 1886, under the firm name of McCord & Stillman, but as Mr. Stillman retired a few months ago, he now carries on the establishment alone. Mr. McCord was born in this city, and has had a large experience in his present business. His store is at 375-377-379 Main street, and is fully stocked with the goods above-mentioned; a magnificent assortment of draperies, upholstery goods, window shades, etc., being also on hand. Mr. McCord is the agent in Bridgeport for the celebrated Lowell carpets. The New York Decorator and Furnisher says of these: "A Lowell carpet, on the other hand, is, so far as the weight, durability and fineness of the fabric are concerned, the same as in our grandmothers' days. Every decline in price has been overcome by improved processes and the in- troduction of more rapid machinery. It only differs from the carpet of half a century ago in the improvement which has been made in all manufacturing processes, and of which the Lowell Company has been among the first to avail itself. In tact, had it not been for the en- lightened liberality of this concern it is doubtful wThether Mr. Bigelow would ever have been able to perfect the powTer loom, which laid the found- ation of the modern carpet industry. Amid all the vicissitudes of trade, no matter how keen the competition at home or from abroad, without re- gard to tariffs, either on competing goods or on the raw material, the Lowell carpet has always been the same and has always been quoted as the standard. Very few outside the trade have any idea how bitter has been the fight to maintain its right to this supremacy. The ladies of '47, like those of '87, were wont to feel for the hollow stick, which even then was a distinguishing mark of Lowell goods, and it was not till the company took the matter to the United States Court that it was able to establish its right even to a trade mark. Year after year it has been employing a corps of the best trained designers it could find in any quarter of the world, and year after year, in spite of the quasi protection of the Patent Laws, it has seen its best patterns produced in inferior goods, not only by a thousand cheap looms of Philadelphia, but by the best manufac- turing skill of England. But it has never faltered in its straightforward course. Meanwhile the methods of the company have been those which belong to the best school of mercantile integrity. No dealer ever makes a claim for shortage in Lowell goods, for he is aware that the piece invariably overruns the the ticket mark, and that the answer to his claim will invariably be, ' Send it back.'" Mr. McCord employs ten efficient assistants, and courteous and prompt service is guaranteed to every customer. Geo. K. Birdsey, Manufacturer and Jobber in Teas, Coffees, Spices and Grocers' Sundries, Xos. 438 and 440 Water Street.— The wholesale tea and coffee business of Mr. Geo. K. Birdsey was established in 1854 by H. Wales, succeeded some years after by Birdsey & Wales and fourteen years ago Mr. Birdsey assumed the entire control and has succeeded in developing the business greatly by shrewd management and experience. From ten to fifteen men are employed in the various departments of the business. The store which is located at Nos. 438 and 440 Water street comprises a four-story building covering an area of 40x90 feet and fitted with all necessary improvements for the promotion of the business. The large orders which are daily received are filled with invariable promptness and dispatch and the store presents a scene of continual busi- ness activity that finds a counterpart in but few of the leading establishments of the city. The most efficient personal supervision is exercised in all the varied details of the business. The build- ing is large and commodious, abundantly pro- vided with all modern improvements and well fitted up with all requisite machinery. This house does a large business in roasting coffees and grinding spices for which it possesses all adequate machinery and fixtures. Mr. Birdsey has also in stock at all times a particularly flue assortment of grocer's sundries which have given uuiform satisfaction to the trade. He also carries a choice line of tobacco and cigars. Mr. Birdsey is a native of Connecticut and is widely and favorably known. James H. Scribner & Co., Rooms 10 and 11 Connecticut Bank Building, Bridgeport, Real Estate and Insurance. — The prominent real es- tate firm of James H. Scribner & Co., located in the Connecticut Bank Building on Main street, rooms 10 and 11, began business in the city Jan- uary 1st, 1887. These gentlemen make a spe- cialty of real estate in which they have already built up a suprisingly large trade. The office quarters are convenient of access and the accom- modations are all that is necessary for the needs of the business. The firm transact business in every kind of real estate, buying, selling and ex- changing houses, lots and land, they also repre- sent a number of reliable insurance companies, among which we would mention the Equitable Life Assurance Society and the Newark Fire Insurance Co., of Newark, N. J., both old and reliable companies. They also represent the well known firm of Cochran & Walsh, general finan- cial agents of St. Paul and Duluth, Minn. This firm have every reason to feel encouraged at their present favorable prospects for success. They are progressive, public-spirited gentlemen, worthy of the liberal patronage which they have thus far received. 68 LEADING BUSINESS MEN OF BRIDGEPORT. lmi^^fl tUSTOfiSTEAM LAUNDRY m p Pembroke Custom Laundry, 28 and 30 Fair- field Avenue, Bridgeport. — Among the many and varied industries which give employment to many of our people is the laundry business, and prominent in the business in Bridgeport is the Pembroke Custom Steam Laundry, conducted by Mr. O. E. Lindsley. This establishment was started at the location now occupud in 1870 by its present proprietor, at 28 and 30 Fairfield avenue. This extensive work is devoted to the laundrying of all kinds of underwear. A speci- alty is made of collars, cuffs and shirts, also ladies fine wear and family clothes are laundried in the best style, and at short notice and reason- able rates. Mr O. E. Lindsley gives personal attention to the management of this establishment, and every department is systematically arranged, and the utmost care is taken in assorting and returning clothes that none shall be lost or miscarried. Many families avail themselves of the advantages of such an establishment as they are saved all the trouble and inconvenience of the washing and ironing days at home. In May, 1870, Mr. Lindsley started in the business of shirt making and laundering. In 1874, he began laundering collars and cuffs as a specialty for the custom trade, his laundry being the first ever established in Bridgeport. The Pembroke shirt manufac- tory and custom steam laundry owned by Mr. Lindsley is a building 20x100 feet and contains five floors. He has twelve branch offices, and employs between 150 and 200 hands during the busy season. He is a thorough business man, and by strict attention to business has earned deserved success. J. S. Cairoli, D. D. S., Graduate of Maryland College of Dental Surgery, Office, 398 Main St., Opposite Cannon. — Just why the delicate nerves that connect the teeth with the brain are so acutely sensitive is a question which many a hapless sufferer has asked himself when there was sufficient intermission between the horrible twinges from his aching molars to allow the coherency of his reasoning powers to be restored. It is a well known fact that men who have gained national renown for heroic courage on the field of battle have proved weak as women and unmistakably shown the white feather when seated in the dentist's chair. Still, the wonderful discoveries made by mod- ern science have included many in the field of dentistry, and by the aid of nitrous oxide, or laughing gas, and improved instruments and appliances, dental operations have been robbed of almost all their terrors. Skilled practitioners only, however, should be patronized, and one of the most prominent of these in this city is J. S. Cairoli, D. D. S., a graduate of the Maryland College of Dental Surgery, whose office is at No. 398 Main street, opposite Cannon. Dr. Cairoli has practiced his profession here for twenty-two years and enjoys a very large and select patronage. His rooms are finely fitted up, being supplied with all the most improved appli- ances for the practice of dentistry, and all work is done promptly, skillfully and at reason- able rates. A. Krouse & Brothers, Engravers, Die Sinkers and Stencil Cutters, Modelers, Chasers and Mould Makers, Rubber Stamps, etc., of every descrip tion, 243 and 245 Water Street. — A house which has gained an enviable reputation for the high grade of workmanship displayed in its various manufactures is that of A. Krouse & Brothers, doing" business at Nos. 243 and 245 Water street.