Category:Leh's Department Store

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Main Wikipedia article: Leh's.

Henry Leh opened the first Department store in Allentown in 1850 as a shoe and boot boot retailer.

The store opened in April 1850 as a shoe and boot retailer by Henry Leh. Leh was a native of Heidelberg Township, born in 1830. The main store, located at the southeast corner of Hamilton and Church Street, was located there throughout its existence.

Henry Leh manufactured large numbers of boots for Union Army troops during the Civil War, and records show he was the first shoe manufacturer west of Philadelphia.

Leh's store was the first ready-made clothing store available in Eastern Pennsylvania. In 1874, Horatio B. Koch, a former school teacher, joined the firm and in 1884 he was made a partner. Later, he married Sally Leh, daughter of Henry. Henry Leh's sons, George H and John, were added to the firm in 1889. As the popularity of the Leh's store grew, he added lamps, trunks, valises and daguerreotypes to his stock of merchandise

In 1880 Leh also opened Lion Clothing Hall. This was a store of ready-to-wear clothing in a separate storefront at the southeast corner of Center Square. The Lion Clothing Hall had a large brass Lion outside of entrance as an advertising icon. Leh Eventually sold the clothing hall and it later became the Shankweiler & Lehr men's store which remained in business as (Khuns and Shankweiler) until 1982.

When the Spanish-American War broke out in 1898, he also received an Army contract for boots and shoes. Christmas season found the store packed. The arrival of Santa Claus was a major event. Although not quite as flamboyant as Max Hess's showplace at 9th and Hamilton, Leh's still held its own. When Henry Leh passed in 1910, all of Allentown's stores on Hamilton Street closed on the afternoon of the funeral.

The shoe factory which Leh started in 1850 was discontinued in 1911 to make room for expansion. Leh's Department Store was remodeled and expanded into a modern large department store in 1912. During the Christmas season the store was packed with customers. Also, the arrival of Santa Claus was a major event. Although Leh's was not quite as flamboyant as Max Hess's showplace at 9th and Hamilton, Leh's still held its own.

Horatio Koch passed in 1920 and Henry W. Leh, son of George H Leh along with Henry T. Koch, became members of the firm. They were followed in 1924 by John H. Leh and in 1927 by G. Edward Leh, both sons of John Leh. In 1950, the fourth generation entered the partnership; John Leh II and H. Thomas Leh. David Leh became a partner in 1955. William Leh and T James Koch were the fifth generation of owners

Leh's celebrated its 100th birthday and was remodeled again with a new storefront in 1950. In 1970, Leh's built a large parking deck on Walnut Street, between Maple, Church and Emery Streets that connected to it's main store. Leh's also expanded to the Whitehall Mall in 1979, wen it took over the bankrupt Zollinger-Harned mall store.

By the 1990s, the business climate of the Hamilton Street shopping district was declining. The Leh's Hamilton Mall store closed in 1994. It was sold to Lehigh County, who uses the (greatly) remodeled building as its administrative headquarters with some departmental services.

The Whitehall Mall store closed in 1996, ending the buisness after 146 years.

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