Furniture Row
By the mid-nineteenth century, the first several blocks of Royal Street were known as Furniture Row, for the quantity and quality of furniture stores that could be found there. Shoppers looking to furnish their homes in the latest styles could walk down the street and find dining sets, parlor suites, and bedroom furniture, as well as the carpets, curtains, wallpaper, and mirrors to complete a room. Although many of the stores had workshops for upholstery and repair work, the majority of the furniture on the street was imported from manufacturing centers across the Atlantic, along the Eastern Seaboard, and up the Mississippi River. Sometimes merchants received shipments on the same vessels as their competitors down the block.
William McCracken (active 1832?–72)
Born in Belfast, Ireland, William McCracken was one of the most successful furniture manufacturers and dealers on Royal Street. He began his business with his brother John around 1832, worked by himself through most of the 1840s and 1850s, and then partnered with his younger brother James by 1860. In addition to making custom furniture for homes and businesses at their manufactory on Derbigny Street, the McCrackens were one of the largest importers of domestic furniture to New Orleans. Each fall and spring, they received freight almost daily on ships from Boston and New York. Despite losing $11,000 worth of stock when a fire burned down several buildings on Furniture Row in 1860, the McCrackens remained leaders in the industry. After William’s death in 1872, the firm continued under the name McCracken & Brewster.
Prudent Mallard (active 1838–74)
Prudent Mallard was one of the most famous providers of fashionable furniture in the Gulf South. His shop was known for monumental armoires in the revival styles of the Victorian era, massive tester beds with carved cabochons on the head and footboards, and delicate parlor furniture in the French taste. Like many furniture retailers, Mallard had trouble getting payment from his customers and was forced to declare bankruptcy twice. The inventories from each of his bankruptcies show that Mallard did not own any materials for manufacturing furniture, only for finishing and upholstery work. He imported furniture directly from the centers of style in France and New York and employed skilled craftsmen to assemble and upholster these pieces for the local market. In addition to fine furniture and upholstery, Mallard also sold imported “fancy goods” such as French porcelain, mantel clocks, and bronze ornaments to complete the decor of stylish homes.
Henry Siebrecht (active 1839–90)
Henry Siebrecht established his business in New Orleans by taking over an upholstery and paperhanging store on Royal Street. He suffered greatly from the 1860 Furniture Row fire, losing $24,000 in property and $15,000 in stock to the blaze, but he continued to operate his furniture business, despite several more financial setbacks, until 1890. Siebrecht retained contacts with manufacturers in his native Germany and was one of the few furniture retailers importing stock directly from European ports.
C. Flint & Jones (1845–66)
Cyrus Flint, an experienced furniture retailer, partnered with James H. Jones to open a furniture warehouse on Royal Street in 1845. The firm was soon receiving regular shipments of furniture from New York. Advertisements describe C. Flint & Jones as a wholesale and retail dealer of furniture, mattresses, damasks, cords and tassels, sofa springs, casters, and other hardware for making, upholstering, and installing furniture. By the late 1850s, an increasing amount of the firm’s inventory was arriving on steamboats from up the Mississippi River. Many of these ships held crates of furniture from Cincinnati, home to the Mitchell & Rammelsburg Furniture Co. In 1866 Robert Mitchell and John and James Craig announced that they were taking over the business of C. Flint & Jones as a branch of the Mitchell & Rammelsberg Furniture Co.
