THROWBACK THURSDAY: Brown’s Boot Shops
Brown’s Boot Shops was founded in DuBois and expanded in 47 years to 24 stores in the area.
Locations included Bellefonte, Bradford, Brookville, Clarion, Clearfield, DuBois, Emporium, Franklin, Greenville, New Bethlehem, Olean, N.Y., Oil City, Philipsburg, Punxsutawney, Salamanca, N.Y., St. Marys, Warren and Washington.
The Philipsburg store was opened in 1922.
Frederick Joseph Brown founded Brown Boot Shops. He also served as president of Union Banking and Trust Co., for 25 years and was president of Vulcan Soot Blower Corp.
He was a former director of Triangle Spring Co. of DuBois and County National Bank in Clearfield.
Mr. Brown also raised Hereford cattle at Browncrest Farms, an 1,100-acre tract in Lawrence Township.
He was born on the farm in 1886, the son of Lewis and Annie (Read) Brown. He attended school in Clearfield and in boyhood worked in mercantile establishments until he was 21.
In 1907, he came to DuBois to open and take charge of the Conn-Allen Shoe Store.
A year later, he went into the retail shoe business on his own at DuBois, met with success and began acquiring and opening stores in other towns.