John G. Myers Company

John G. Myers Company

Industry	Department store retail
Founded	1887; 138 years ago (1887)
Founder	John Gillespy Myers
Defunct	1970 (1970)

John G. Myers Company was a department store in Albany, New York built in 1887 and owned by John Gillespy Myers.[1] The building where the store was located, a five-story structure at 39 N. Pearl St., collapsed on August 8, 1905 killing 13 people.[2] The collapse was the worst disaster of its kind in Albany's history at the time.[3] Charges of manslaughter and criminal negligence were made against the building's contractor, John Dyer Jr., and architect, Clark L. Daggett, but a grand jury failed to convict them and the charges were dropped.[1]

John Gillespy Myers

After the collapse the store reopened at 37 N. Pearl St. and stayed in business until 1970.[4]

References

1. Lais, C. J. (July 18, 2019). "From the archives: A deadly department store collapse, and more". Times Union.
2. "SCORES ARE BURIED IN BIG STORE RUINS; Thirty Dead, Firm's Estimate, in Albany Building Collapse. RESCUERS STILL HEAR MOANS Hospitals Filled with Injured; Ten Bodies Found – Careless Workmen to Blame. SCORES ARE BURIED IN BIG STORE RUINS". The New York Times. August 9, 1905. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved March 15, 2018.
3. "Albany, NY Department Store Collapse, Aug 1905 – Walls Cave In". Archived from the original on September 30, 2019. Retrieved November 8, 2021.
4. "John G. Myers (1831–1901): Owner of Myers department store". Times Union. Retrieved March 15, 2018.

42°39′2.7″N 73°45′6.2″W