McCrory-McLellan Stores Corp. - 1915 dated Specimen Stock Certificate - Specimen For Sale

Specimen Stock printed by Security-Columbian Banknote Company. McCrory Stores or J.G. McCrory\'s was a chain of five and dime stores in the United States based in York, Pennsylvania. The stores typically sold shoes, clothing, housewares, fabrics, penny candy, toys, cosmetics, and often included a lunch counter or snack bar. They also exclusively sold Oriole Records, one of the most popular \'dime store labels\' from 1921 to 1938. John Graham McCrorey (1860\"1943) opened his first store in Scottdale, Pennsylvania, in 1882. By 1885, the chain had five stores in Pennsylvania. McCrory was known for his thrifty nature, so much so that he legally dropped the e from his last name so he would not have to pay for extra letters on his store signs. One of the firm\'s policies was to acquire locations whenever property could be found at a reasonable purchase price. In November 1925, approximately ? of its stores were leased, with the remainder owned by a subsidiary, the McCrory Realty Corporation. The retailer\'s gross sales approached $30 million by the mid-1920s, when it operated 187 stores. With 244 retail units in its chain, the company entered bankruptcy in January 1933. The company was dissolved, but it was eventually re-established as McCrory Stores and resumed operations. One of the early investors was Sebastian Spering Kresge, who later founded the S.S. Kresge chain, which became Kmart. In 1899, Kresge traded his interest in the McCrory\'s Memphis, Tennessee store for McCrory\'s interest in the Detroit, Michigan, store, giving him control there. In 1987, the Kmart Corporation sold its remaining Kresge and Jupiter stores in the United States to McCrory Stores. At its height, McCrory\'s operated 1,300 stores under its own name and as TG&Y, McLellan (merged in 1958), H. L. Green, Silvers, G.C. Murphy, J.J. Newberry and Otasco, which it had acquired through the years. McCrory\'s parent Rapid-American also owned Lerner Stores and National Shirt (acquired by McCrory\'s in 1960). Meshulam Riklis purchased McCrory in 1960 and merged it with the rival H.L.Green Co. and moved its headquarters to Springettsbury Township, York County, Pennsylvania, in 1963. At the time it was the fourth largest retailer in the United States. Riklis controlled McCrory\'s through the Rapid-American holding company, which was managed by Samuel Neaman. Riklis\' famed sleight of hand, shifting assets between notable brand name successful companies and holding companies is best exemplified by his handling of McCrory Stores, driving the brand name into bankruptcy while keeping the assets. Among the retailers controlled by McCrory\'s at the time were Best & Co., Lerner Shops, and S. Klein. The company continued to thrive and grow during the 1960s and \'70s. McCrory Stores purchased the 439 unit J.J. Newberry Company in 1972. It operated Newberry as a separate division and continued to open stores under the Newberry banner. On January 1, 1981, McCrory purchased the S.H. Kress & Co. chain from Genesco. The 66 store chain, once a fierce rival, was a natural fit for the variety store chain. As the economic expansion of the 1980s progressed, so did the s Item ordered may not be exact piece shown. All original and authentic.