partnership in the house, which then (in 1860) took
the name of Joseph Hamill & Co. In 1868 the
senior partner, Mr. Hamill, retired, and the firm-name
then became Brookmire & Ranken, under which title
it has continued to flourish until the present day. Of
the career of this firm and of its present standing it
is only necessary to remark that it is not only a lead-
ing house in its particular line, but may fairly be re-
garded as representative of the general trade of St.
Louis in its stability and its capacity for expansion.
The scene of its operations has been at the great dis-
tributing point for the mighty Mississippi valley, in-
viting operations on a large scale, and not only in-
volving the use of large capital, but imperatively
demanding the employment of decision, judgment,
and nerve. The house has also had to pass through
many stormy seasons of trade, when success depended
upon close and accurate observation and clear and
speedy judgment; but its uninterrupted progress
through wars and panics and its present prosperity
may be taken as conclusive evidence that its managers
(at whose head has stood Mr. Brookmire for nearly
fifteen years) possessed those necessary qualities in a
marked degree.
The secrets of Mr. Brookmire's success have been
thoroughness and system. Such were the qualities
which led to his remarkably speedy promotion to a
partnership, and they have proved to be the founda-
tion stones of his subsequent fortune. Upon assum-
ing the obligations of a partner, he aspired to be a
leader among men of his particular line of business,
not only in those routine matters which every grocer
is supposed to master, but in those particulars which
perhaps a majority neglect. In such matters as the
chemistry of his trade, for instance, he is especially
well informed, and his knowledge has greatly con-
tributed to the judicious and successful management
of the firm's large business. His mechanical tastes
are strong, and he figures as the inventor of several
patents of special ingenuity and in general use among
the trade, by whom Mr. Brookmire's inventive genius
is properly appreciated.
Mr. Brookmire has often been solicited to serve the
public in various official capacities, but has always
declined, having no taste for the excitements of such
a life, although deeply appreciating the honor his
fellow-citizens sought to pay him. He is, however, a
close observer of public affairs, and his influence as a
citizen has ever been exerted on the side of economy
and honesty in the management of the city, State, and
national governments.
Outside of his own business, Mr. Brookmire has
not cared greatly to interest himself; his reputation
(by which he hopes hereafter to be best remembered)
is that of one of the most successful grocers of St.
Louis. Nevertheless his name is associated with
some enterprises of considerable importance. He is
also a valued member of several boards and societies,
including the popular St. Louis Legion of Honor;
and the possession of considerable real estate in various
parts of the city still further identifies him with St.
Louis. Without a particle of pretense or affectation,
he is one of the best representatives of the self-con-
tained and aggressive class of business men who have
made St. Louis known and respected throughout the
great Mississippi valley.
In January, 1867, Mr. Brookmire married Miss
Anna Forbes, daughter of Dr. Isaiah Forbes, an old
and well-known citizen.
One of the important branches of the grocery busi-
ness is the sugar trade. In 1881 the receipts were
58,535 hogsheads, 128,393 barrels, 320 boxes, and
15,108 sacks. The receipts of coffee during 1881
amounted to 243,239 sacks, and the annual value
of this trade is set down at over $500,000. The
pre-eminence of St. Louis as the largest interior
coffee market in the world is still maintained. Her
shipments of coffee are about twenty-five per cent,
greater than those of Chicago, Cincinnati, or New
Orleans. The receipts of butter during 1881 ag-
gregated 8,247,401 pounds, and the receipts of
cheese to 109,272 boxes, the total value of the trade
being estimated at $1,500,000. Several firms are
engaged in the direct importation of tea, their busi-
ness aggregating over $500,000. The trade of St.
Louis in oysters and fish is estimated at about the
same amount, and the trade in fruits and nuts
aggregated in 1881 the sum of $800,000.
v\*a* R ;
^*
TRADE, COMMERCE, AND MANUFACTURES.
1241
The trade in molasses, coffee, rice, and tea is shown in the following tables :
RECEIPTS AND EXPORTS OF MOLASSES, COFFEE, AND RICE FOR EIGHTEEN YEARS.
YEARS.
MOLASSES.
Receipts.
Exports.
1882
Bblt.
57,608
52,750
26,243
21,234
16,426
13,285
13,270
19,679
24,726
15,962
12,263
17,449
Kegs.
68,833
83,419
14,555
3,562
528
1,894
2,870
13,568
15,472
6,548
9,463
5,238
5,221
5,053
4,189
996
761
1,461
Hhds.
Bbls.
74,060
67,655
40,707
30,035
32,990
26,524
26,202
40,393
36,136
22,269
24,209
42,758
27,891
25,857
19,862
14,789
12,072
10,444
Ke
117,
125,
37,
36,
39,
27,
37,
65,
37,
20,
18,
31,
21,
20,
17,
14,
11,
H,
1881
7
77
1880
1879
1878
12
25
390
2,495
1,489
1,111
1877
1876
1875
1874
1873
1872
1871
1870
14,166
27,465
16,568
8,802
6,616
10,589
1869
1868
1867
1866
1865
COFFEE.
Receipts. Exports.
Bags.
255,880
245,239
303,649
267,533
201,080
197,099
191,543
166,914
153,919
142,863
135,792
169,058
113,950
135,491
92,669
98,617
90,367
60,106
Bags.
254,842
233,616
277,184
207,938
190,950
180,696
179,025
202,192
179,548
142,778
141,970
159,730
112,621
107,853
91,615
80,344
65,985
56,963
RICE.
Receipts.
Exports.
Sk>. & Bbls.
PJcgs.
49,305
48,797
48,661
50,281
39,399
34,608
34,213
28,154
25,600
20,467
22,386
26,563
20,379
24,665
17,991
24,465
18,115
24,553
10,997
12,019
7,649
10,764
6,620
15,148
6,448
10,971
9,593
10,804
9,020
9,781
6,069
7,560
3,977
5,344
2,035
RECEIPTS OF TEA.
Year. Pkgs.
1882 35,641
1881 35,518
1880 34,908
1879 52,799
Year. Pkgs.
1878 '. 37,702
1877 65,189
1876 26,008
The importation of sugar at St. Louis from 1865
to 1882 is presented in the following table, as well as
the shipments to the interior:
RECEIPTS AND EXPORTS OF SUGAR FOR EIGHTEEN YEARS.
Year.
Receipts.
Exports.
1882
HJidK.
42,867
58,535
68,182
65,235
65,004
51049
49)415
36,389
36,647
33,532
30,024
35,532
23,289
23,742
16,628
19,730
14,686
17,889
Bbls.
179,900
128.393
126,061
89,993
75,028
66,103
54,311
51,680
56,068
35,314
36,275
31,353
10,597
24,529
15,973
19,819
12,119
8,189
Boxes.
102
320
225
1,224
7,735
30,494
60,985
40,690
80,836
50,656
60,762
38,050
56,255
61,041
44,196
29,924
43,607
29,410
Bags.
84,672
15,108
779
595
20,792
6,400
12,908
8,031
39,774
19,735
5,057
47
114
409
516
2,112
1,049
Hhds.
1,921
2,853
4,150
6,615
4,059
5,816
7,691
7,424
6,292
3,566
7,006
9,390
5,160
4,648
3,374
2,855
1,985
1,852
Bbls.
319,034
294,796
331,014
256,544
250,240
238,090
236,276
252,770
223,641
152,198
150,175
138,675
98,243
9fi,9'.
80,208
67,670
57,548
53,069
Bags.
19,581
12,171
19,420
33,008
48,013
40,901
53,755
41.458
21,144
25.168
18,797
10,053
10,870
21,125
22,735
24,849
17,960
1881
1880
1879
1878
1877
1876
1875
1874
1873
1872
1871
1870
1869
1868
1867
1866
1865
David Nicholson, one of the representative men in
the grocery trade of St. Louis, was born in the vil-
lage of Fowlis Wester, in the county of Perth, Scot-
land, on Dec. 9, 1814. His parents were in only
moderate circumstances, and he was reared in the
sharp and rigorous school of comparative poverty.
He received in early youth such education as the
Scottish rural schools then afforded, but being fond
of books and of ready intellect and more than ordi-
nary aptness, he was a promising scholar. His parents
were of the most rigid integrity, and instilled early
into his mind and being the principles of the strictest
uprightness and honesty.
After his school-days his first employment was the
toilsome service of a grocer's apprentice in the city
of Glasgow. An apprenticeship in Scotland in those
days meant thorough instruction in all the details of
the trade to be learned, and when young Nicholson
had served his time he had an all but perfect knowl-
edge of the business as then conducted. Afterwards
he went to the town of Oban, in the West Highlands
of Scotland, and there entered the service of a mer-
chant who had been attracted by his activity and
energy thus early developed in the store at Glasgow.
While yet in his eighteenth year he came to Amer-
ica, landing at Montreal, and afterwards proceeded to
Ottawa, but finding no employment in the business
to which he had been disciplined and educated, he
engaged as tutor to the children of the postmaster,
where he remained until learning that his employer
had withheld his letters, apparently for fear of losing
his services as a teacher, he gave up his position.
He then learned the trade of a carpenter, and worked
as such at Hamilton and other Canadian towns, also
at Erie, Pa., and Chicago, and in 1838 removed to
St. Louis, where he continued to follow that occupa-
tion. Physically strong and mentally quick, he was
noted above many of his fellow-craftsmen for rapid
and superior workmanship. Some of the finest orna-
mental woodwork in St. Xavier's Church, St. Louis,
was done by him, and he often referred to it with
pride in later years.
In 1843 he relinquished the trade of a carpenter to
1242
HISTORY OF SAINT LOUIS.
embark in the grocery business, and formed a part-
nership with William Strachan, who was at that time
a wine merchant of St. Louis. The title of the firm
was Strachan & Nicholson. Mr. Strachan became
surety for the obligations incurred in establishing the
business, but no cash capital was invested. Mr. Nich-
olson was the sole manager and director of the new
interest thus created, which was originally estab-
lished at Fourth and Market Streets. His thorough
business training now asserted itself, and under his
direction the business prospered and soon attained
large proportions. After a number of removals in the
passing years, necessitated by the steady growth of
its trade, the house finally in 1870 settled in the
present commodious building, Nos. 13 and 15 North
Sixth Street, between Market and Chestnut Streets, a
structure erected by Mr. Nicholson himself to meet
the modern requirements of a continually increasing
business. The house contains five floors, each fifty
by one hundred and thirty-five feet, and at the pres-
ent time employs a force of fifty assistants.
Mr. Nicholson's remarkable success as a merchant
may be attributed to his unremitting diligence, and
the conducting of all his business transactions, small
and large, on the basis of strictly honorable princi-
ples, to his promptness in payments, and the hand-
ling of only the best goods. In all his thirty-seven
years of commercial life no one having a just claim
was ever turned away from, his counting-house with-
out receiving his due, and the name of David Nichol-
son was never commercially dishonored at home or
abroad.
He had great contempt for the " sharp practices"
common in the trade, and despised those who were
guilty of them. He was original in his business
methods, having little respect for the stereotyped ways
of others, and did not follow them.
The establishment always occupied its own distinct
position in the grocery system of St. Louis. It was,
however, thoroughly progressive and aggressive ; its
growth was co-extensive with that of the city, and it ul-
timately came to be recognized throughout the country
as a leading house. It was also well known abroad,
for Mr. Nicholson was the first, and also the largest,
importer of foreign groceries in this market, at times
chartering vessels and loading them with cargoes
solely for his own account, and dealt directly with the
merchants and producers of almost every foreign
clime. He did more than any other man in the St.
Louis trade to educate the community to the impor-
tance of purchasing superior goods, and to induce the
consumption of commodities hitherto unknown in
this market.
From the time of his coming to St. Louis, Mr.
Nicholson took a very active and practical interest in
the development and growth of the city, and gradu-
ally, as his means permitted, became a large real es-
tate owner, and left many enduring tokens of his en-
terprise scattered throughout the city. He erected
the beautiful " Temple Building," at Fifth and Wal-
nut Streets, and had he built nothing more this hand-
some structure would have been a convincing evidence
of his superior taste and spirit. But few men in St.
Louis ever built more largely or after a better style
than he did. A man of commerce by education and
practice, he was nevertheless a mechanic by nature.
As a lifelong friend happily remarked, " the spirit of
a builder lived in him," and the bent of his genius
took form in many stately edifices. One of his most
I tasteful improvements was " Nicholson Place," laid out
and adorned by him, and which he stipulated should
! be occupied only by dwellings of " elegant design and
substantial character."
During the civil war David" Nicholson was a stanch
and unswerving Unionist, an outspoken adherent of
the loyal cause, and prominent in the counsels of its
i friends. Through the darkest days of civil strife,
from 1861 to 1865, he never doubted the final tri-
umph of the lawfully constituted powers, that of the
'. government of the United States. In a career noted
for its activity and industry his charities were many,
his ever-open hand responded munificently to the
generous impulses of his noble heart.
Mr. Nicholson possessed many traits which en-
titled him to be classed among the most remarkable
business men of his time. He intensely loved his
business, and his energy in the prosecution of it was
almost unexampled. To this were added unswerving
rectitude, intense hatred of dishonesty and dissimu-
lation of every type, and an outspoken condemnation
of wrong. There was also another side to his char-
acter less publicly known. In his nature, tender as
that of woman, there was an element of poetry that
always belongs to men of fervent feeling. Possessing
a fine mind and an intimate knowledge of Bible his-
tory and teachings, and having read much historical
and current literature of the highest order, he enjoyed
the companionship of large and elevating thoughts,
and in moments of relaxation was a most entertaining
companion. In certain issues which at times sprang up,
regarding his business, he was led into various news-
paper controversies, and proved himself a racy master
of the pen. In his early days he wrote numerous
compositions in verse that were of a high order of
merit, and during the civil war wrote several patriotic
odes that were characterized by unusual poetic inspi-
TRADE, COMMERCE, AND MANUFACTURES.
1243
ration and fervor. His love for the home of his boy-
hood and his native land, which he often visited, grew
as his years were multiplied, and he never ceased to
give evidence of his deep affection and warm friend-
ship for his schoolmates and the companions of his
early years. The scenes and surroundings of his
youth, beautiful in nature and luxuriant in their
adornment, were precious to him, and the thatch-
roofed cottages of his birthplace were ever dear to
his heart. A striking evidence of the tenderness of
his nature was shown in the fact that, having learned
that the roof of the cottage in which he was born
needed rethatching, he promptly forwarded the money
while the community sorrowed ov^er the loss of an
upright and honored citizen.
BELCHERS SUGAR REFINING COMPANY. One
of the most prominent features of the manufacturing
and mercantile interests of St. Louis is the Belcher
Sugar Refinery. The business of which it is the
outgrowth was established in 1840 by William H.
Belcher and Samuel McLean, and in August of that
year the firm of McLean & Belcher invited the atten-
tion of the trade to the fact that they " had on hand
a stock of refined sugars and sugar-house molasses,
a pure article." The refinery was originally located
on Cedar Street, between Main and Second Streets.
THE BELCHER SUGAR REFINERY,
Southeast corner Main and Ashley Streets.
to have it done, and cared for its proper preservation'
ever afterwards.
He was frank and bluff in his manner, and courted
no man's favor, but was also an humble, sincere, and
faithful Christian, and the teachings of his pious home
in Scotland inspired the activities of a long and honor-
able career. He was early schooled in the tenets of
Presbyterianism, and for nearly forty years was an effi-
cient, esteemed, and highly-respected member of the
Second Church of St. Louis. He died on the 26th day
of November, 1880, after a short illness, surrounded
by his family, who mourned the departure of an affec-
tionate, kind, and noble-hearted husband and father,
After it had been in operation a comparatively short
time, Gay, Glasgow & Co., then importing island
sugar, purchased Belcher's interest, and finally Mc-
Lean's interest also. For nearly a year Edward J.
Gay, one of the partners of the firm, gave his personal
attention to the management of the refinery, and in
1843, William H. Belcher returned to St. Louis, and
purchased from Gay, Glasgow & Co. the works in the
old building, on which they held a lease. He gave
his closest personal attention to the business, although
it was then very small; secured the services of practi-
cal refiners, and was gradually gathering confidence,
strength, and ability, when the "high water" of 1844
1244
HISTORY OF SAINT LOUIS.
drowned out his establishment and caused him con-
. siderable loss.
In 1845 a site was purchased on the block between
Main and Lewis and Bates and O'Fallon Streets, and
the erection of new buildings was commenced. Al-
though the building put up was of considerable extent,
it was only the nucleus of the numerous buildings which
afterwards constituted the immense establishment of the
refining company. From this time the business, con-
trolled by William H. Belcher and his brother Charles
Belcher, received a new impetus and steadily increased
in magnitude. Additional ground was purchased and
new buildings were put up from year to year as the
enlargement of operations rendered it necessary. For
ten years the career of the establishment was steadily
successful, and its operations rapidly assumed most
important proportions. During the years 1854 and
1855 some rather extensive operations in Cuba re-
sulted disastrously and heavy losses were incurred,
and early in 1855 the business was transferred to a
corporation now known as the Belchers' Sugar Refin-
ing Company, which was composed of the creditors
of Belcher & Brother, the capital stock being fixed at
one million dollars. The original incorporators were
William H. Belcher, Rufus J. Lackland, George D.
Humphreys, Charles W. Horn, Edward Walsh, Derick
A. January, William M. Morrison, Edward Wyman,
Joseph C. Cabot, Constance J. Peifers, Edward Y.
Ware, and Charles Belcher. The charter, which was
approved Jan. 25, 1855, fixes the capital stock at the
amount above named, and authorizes its being in-
creased to one million five hundred thousand dollars
whenever the stockholders shall by vote so direct.
Thus organized, and with energetic and experienced
men at the head of affairs, the operations of the refin-
ery were prosecuted successfully. In the general
financial crash of 1857 the business suffered severely,
there being a sudden drop in sugars of from four to
five cents a pound. A loss of from four hundred
thousand to five hundred thousand dollars was
incurred, but the business went on without inter-
ruption. William H. Belcher remained at the head
of the business until the close of 1859, when he re-
moved to Chicago, where he died in 1866. He was
succeeded by Charles Belcher, the junior partner of
Belcher & Brother. Having weathered the storm of
1857, the career of the company since has been one of
steady progress, and it has now reached a position of
commercial influence national in point of view.
The premises occupied by the company consist of a
number of buildings, covering nearly four of the
squares in that part of the city, embracing the main
structure of the refinery proper, bonded warehouses,
cooperage-shops, bone-black houses, and various other
buildings occupied by other departments.
"The sugar refinery proper," says a description of the estab-
lishment written in 1868, "where the different processes of re-
fining are carried on, has a front on Lewis Street, between Bates
and O'Fallon Streets, of two hundred and forty feet, with a depth
of one hundred and twenty-five feet, and is six stories in height.
The first part of this building was erected in 1845, but it has
been added to constantly until it reached- its present propor-
tions. It is built with great solidity, as a great weight has to
be supported in the stories. The processes of refining require
that the building in which they are carried on should be of con-
siderable height, so as to admit of the sugar in solution being
let down from story to story in the various stage?, and to gain
the advantage of the pressure of a column of liquid which is
required in the course of refining. The portion of this build-
ing erected in 1845 stands on the southern half of the square ;
the central portion was erected in 1856, and that covering the
northern portion of the square was built in 1852. The central
part is principally devoted to the clarifying process, the filter-
ing of the liquid sugar, storing or drying hard sugars. In the
lower part of the southern portion of the building the packing
is done, while the northern and the upper floors generally are
devoted to various operations in the work of refining, purging
sugars in the moulds, etc. Here also are the crushing- and pow-
dering-mills, shaving-mills, and other appliances used in the
preparing of the sugar in the different forms for the market.
The vacuum-pans, where the refined solution is reduced again
to the form of sugar by boiling, are situated in a small building
south of the main structure, and fronting on O'Fallon Street.
The basement is used principally as a fill-house, where the
'melted sugar is run into the moulds and allowed to stand until
it is well settled preparatory to drawing. In the rear of the
refinery, and occupying the balance of the square to Main
Street, is a bonded warehouse and other buildings. On the east
side of Lewis Street the bone-black house is situated, with a
front of one hundred and seventy feet on Lewis Street and a
depth of eighty feet. This was built in 1867. On the square
between O'Fallon and Ashley Streets, and covering half of the
entire square, with a front of two hundred and forty feet on
Lewis Street, is a line of warehouses four stories in height, built
in 1852 and 1854. In the rear is the mechanics' shop, occupy-
ing the central portion of the square, and running back to Main
Street. On the square on the opposite side of Main Street is an
extensive cooperage-shop, with a front on Second Street of one
hundred and seventy-five feet, which was built in 1852. On
the northeast corner of the same square is the water reservoir,
built in 1867. The company have water- and gas-works of their
own, and supply all that is needed throughout the refinery
premises. The total value of real estate owned and occupied
at present by the company is not far from half a million dollars,
and the total frontage is about fourteen hundred feet. In some
instances the buildings on different squares communicate by
bridges across the streets, stretching from the upper stories, and
the bone-black house is connected with the refinery by a tunnel
under the street. In various places tramways are laid for the
easy transportation of the trucks containing bone-black."
The company, which still occupies the building at
the corner of Lewis and O'Fallon Streets, is now