R. H. Stearn and Company

R. H. Stearn & Company, or Stearn's as it was commonly called was an upper-middle market department store based in Boston, Massachusetts.

The flagship store was located on Treemont Street, opposite the famed Boston Common, in the section of Boston called Downtown Crossing. The store was located a couple of blocks away from its primary competitors on Washington Street, these being Filene's and Jordan Marsh.

R. H. Stearn carved out a niche as being a more service orientated store than it's competitors, and it was considered by many to be the "carriage trade" store of the Boston area. By the mid-1970s the changing face of the retail market place caught up with the store, and it did not have the financial backing like Filene's or Jordan Marsh, who where both owned by large national retail holding companies. At the time of Stearn's demise Filene's was owned by Federated Department Stores, and Jordan Marsh was owned by Allied Stores.

R. H. Stearn operated through the Christmas Shopping Season of 1977, and closed down in January 1978 after holding a liquidation sale.

Former locations

(list incomplete)

Boston, Flagship Store, Treemont Street, now mixed use retail and offices.

ources

Boston Globe, photo history of Downtown Crossing.