CHANGES ARE MADE IN BROWN COMPANY

The Anaconda Standard, Anaconda, 1920-03-01, p.6

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  • headlineHeadline

  • photographPhotograph belonging to the article

  • photographPhotograph belonging to the article

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  • reportThe article, column 1 of 3

  • reportThe article, column 2 of 3

  • reportThe article, column 3 of 3

  • name as printed"to James J. Murphy, Edward Softley"

    James Joseph "James J." Murphy

  • name as printed"to James J. Murphy, Edward Softley"

    Edward Softley

  • name as printed"EDWARD-SOFTLEY."

    Edward Softley

Summary

Sub-head: "Murphy, Softley and Forbis Acquire Controlling Interest From E. A. Brown." Anaconda Standard parallel coverage of the Murphy-Softley founding (same day as the existing Butte Miner clipping 1920-03-01_butte-miner_murphy- softley-forbis-buy-park-st-store). **Two photographic portraits in the clip:** - Top: JAMES J. MURPHY — head-and-shoulders portrait, formal studio pose, dark suit and tie. Same-era portrait as the May 1915 Hennessy's luggage ad (now 5 years older). - Bottom: EDWARD SOFTLEY — head-and-shoulders portrait, also formal studio. Body text: E. A. Brown of the Brown company has disposed of the controlling interest in the Brown company (operating the store formerly known as Green's on West Park street) to James J. Murphy, Edward Softley and John F. Forbis Jr. Murphy and Softley will take possession of the store and the active management on March 1. Mr. Brown is retiring from the business to take charge of other interests. He formerly was president and general manager of Hennessy's. **Mr. Murphy** is a Butte product, having been a resident here practically all of his life. He was connected with the Hennessy company for 22 years, **starting with D. J. Hennessy when the Hennessy store was located in the building now occupied by the Seigel store**. He has been in charge of the boys' department at Hennessy's for about 11 years, was superintendent of the store for some time and was manager of the Hennessy branch store at Centerville for a period of three years, and is well and favorably known in the business world. **Mr. Softley** has been display manager and for a time superintendent of the Hennessy store, his employment with that company covering a period of 17 years. He probably is surpassed by no one in the West in the art of window dressing and displaying goods. Both Mr. Murphy and Mr. Softley have ambitious plans for the new store and announce their intention of making it one of the most exclusive establishment for woman's attire in Butte. Yesterday they received a large number of congratulations from their old associates on their branching out. ARCHIVE SIGNIFICANCE. (a) The earliest known **photographic portrait of Edward Softley**, and the **second** known photographic portrait of JJM (after the May 1915 luggage ad — this one is fuller and more formal). The two portraits side- by-side are book-cover material. (b) Adds the Hennessy- company-founding detail — JJM started at Hennessy's c. 1898 "starting with D. J. Hennessy when the Hennessy store was located in the building now occupied by the Seigel store." The phrase does NOT support a personal-hire reading — only that JJM joined the company while D. J. Hennessy was its proprietor. The earlier Hennessy store location (now Seigel's) is itself a useful Butte-historical-geography datapoint, and the c. 1898 employment-start date anchors the Hennessy company's earlier era.

In its time

Narrative

E. A. Brown sells his controlling interest in the Brown company, operating the former Green's store on West Park street, to James J. Murphy, Edward Softley and John F. Forbis jr., with Murphy and Softley taking over active management on March 1, 1920. Murphy, a lifelong Butte resident, spent 22 years with the Hennessy company — beginning under D. J. Hennessy, latterly running the boys' department and for three years managing the Centerville branch — while Softley served 17 years there as display manager and sometime superintendent. The pair announce plans to make the store one of the most exclusive establishments for woman's attire in Butte.

  • “Mr. Murphy is a Butte product, having been a resident here practically all of his life.”
  • “He probably is surpassed by no one in the West in the art of window dressing and displaying goods.”
  • “Yesterday they received a large number of congratulations from their old associates on their branching out.”

AI-generated (claude-opus-5). Verify against the transcription before quoting.

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Transcription
transcription: complete · confidence high
# CHANGES ARE MADE IN BROWN COMPANY ## Murphy, Softley and Forbis Acquire Controlling Interest From E. A. Brown. *The Anaconda Standard, Monday, March 1, 1920, p. 6. (Dateline header "MARCH 1, 1920." Two portrait photographs in column: JAMES J. MURPHY at top, EDWARD SOFTLEY at bottom.)* E. A. Brown of the Brown com-company [sic] has disposed of the control-ing [sic] interest in the Brown company, which is operating the store formerly known as Green's on West Park street, to James J. Murphy, Edward Softley and John F. Forbis jr. Mr. Murphy and Mr. Softley will take possession of the store and the active management on March 1. [*Portrait photograph captioned:*] **JAMES J. MURPHY.** Mr. Brown is retiring from the business to take charge of other interests. He formerly was president and general manager of Hennessy'sButte: companies, unions & placesHennessy’sfounded 1886The D. J. Hennessy Mercantile Company, Butte’s leading department store. Its 1898 building at Granite and Main also housed the Anaconda company’s offices on the top floor.More in Key terms →. Mr. Murphy is a Butte product, having been a resident here practically all of his life. He was connected with the Hennessy company for 22 years, starting with D. J. Hennessy when the Hennessy store was located in the building now occupied by the Seigel store. He has been in charge of the boys' department at Hennessy's for about 11 years, was superintendent of the store for some time and was manager of the Hennessy branch store at CentervilleButte: companies, unions & placesCentervilleThe hillside neighbourhood between uptown Butte and Walkerville, built among the mine yards and home to many Irish and Cornish mining families.More in Key terms → for a period of three years, and is well and favorably known in the business world. [*Portrait photograph captioned:*] **EDWARD SOFTLEY.** Mr. Softley has been display manager and for a time superintendent of the Hennessy store, his employment with that company covering a period of 17 years. He probably is surpassed by no one in the West in the art of window dressing and displaying goods. Both Mr. Murphy and Mr. Softley have ambitious plans for the new store and announce their intention of making it one of the most exclusive establishment [sic] for woman's attire in Butte. Yesterday they received a large number of congratulations from their old associates on their branching out.

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Open questions

  • Extract the two portraits (JJM + Softley) as portrait assets for the timeline UI on the back-pass. The 1920 JJM portrait is the more formal of the two known.
  • D. J. Hennessey — promote to a full person record if not already present in people.yaml. The c. 1898 JJM-joined-while- D-J-H-ran-the-company datapoint anchors the Hennessey company's earlier era to a still-extant building (now Seigel's).