1424 Assembly Street
Site of Stern's Department Store
Polish immigrant Gabriel Stern (1892-1981) moved to Columbia in 1915. In June 1940, he relocated his Lexington-based Stern’s Department Store to this site, where he primarily sold suits, hats and dresses. Here Stern also taught the next generation of Jewish businessmen important sales and customer service skills. In the 1960s, Stern’s son, Henry, and son-in-law, Ted Solomon, began mainly selling shoes and renamed the store Stern’s Shoe City by 1975. The building remained an Assembly Street landmark until its demolition in 1989.
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Gabriel Stern, 17, poses in a Kielce, Poland, photography studio, c. 1909. Image courtesy Marcie Stern Baker
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Image courtesy of Anne Stern Solomon
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Anne and Ted Solomon stand on Assembly Street during the demolition phase of the building, 1989. Image courtesy Anne Stern Solomon
