The sale of bicycles and a variety of sporting goods continued at 352 High Street. From the mid 1890s, Ford & Ross, Ross, Burgin & Hurtzall, and Ross & Burgin carried on the retail sports and fitness equipment tradition into the 20th century.
Ross & Burgin gave way to Ross & Bray, a new partnership formed in October 1903. Edwin Burgin, a native of London, England, had been in poor health after contracting tuberculosis and couldn’t continue in the business.
A new business, Ross & Bray, was started, with partners William H. Ross & Thomas A. Bray. The store concept differed from the past, as bicycles, once the company’s mainstay, were not prominent in its ads. It was more of a sporting goods, hunting, toy, and games store. The store also had a line of billiards and pool tables. The location remained the same at 352 High Street.
The company heavily advertised, and for several years, its name was on the front page of the Holyoke Transcript. It was actually to the left of the Holyoke Transcript’s scripted name at the top of page 1.
In 1909, W. J. Dumelow, a cobbler, relocated from 452 High Street to the rear of the Ross & Bray store. The store added fireworks, Hoover vacuums, potcards and notebooks to its inventory.
By April 1913, the retail store was having financial problems, and its inventory was sold at auction. The retail storefront was taken by Alling Rubber Company, which relocated a few doorways from 360 High Street to the larger space. Alling Rubber was a retailer of many rubber items, including tires for cars and bicycles, boots, and hoses. The Holyoke shop was part of a 40-store chain and will likely be the subject of a future blog.
This was not the end for the Ross & Bray Company. The business continued to occupy the rear of the Alling Rubber store at 352 High Street, where it made canopies, tents, awnings, and flags.
Clarence E. Provost operated the Ross & Bray business until he died in 1927. The business relocated to 280 Race Street under the direction of Louis Thibideau. The product line remained similar, emphasizing fabrics and frames, with weatherstripping added later. In early 1935, the business moved to 101 Main Street.
In 1943, after 40 years of awning, tent, and canopy production, Thomas A. Bray, the dean of Western Massachusetts awning makers, sold the company to the American Awning Company of Springfield. T. A. Bray, a division of American Awning & Canvas Company, operated at 845 Hampden Street until 1949. The continuum of connected businesses had produced canvas products since William H. Ross started in 1888.
Citations:
Newspapers.com (paid subscription): Citations: Holyoke (Massachusetts) Transcript & Transcript-Telegram; Springfield (Massachusetts) Republican; publication dates and pages are shown.
Ancestry.com (paid subscription): Price & Lee Holyoke, Massachusetts, City Directories
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