WEILERS…
The story of the development of the Anchor Building in Portland, Indiana, from our humble beginnings in the 1830’s.

The citizens of Jay County would not have a 1926 two-story, cement and steel,  art deco building to restore in 2006 if there had not been many industrious endeavors of those who have gone before.  The large department store business that was to occupy the  building, erected in 1926 on the south-east corner of Main and Meridian Streets, can trace its existence to the very beginning of Jay County and Portland.

Jay County was established by the Indiana Legislature in January of 1836.  The site of the county seat was selected in June of that year, and the first session of the Board of County Commissioners was held on November 8, 1836.  Robert Huey erected the first Court House, a log structure on the northwest corner of Main and Meridian Streets, in May of 1837 and obtained a license to open the first store in Portland by September of the same year.

Sometime in the years to follow a large three-story building was erected on the northeast corner of Main  This building was known as Miller’s Hall and was the center of the lives of the early pioneers of Jay County.  There were rooms on the first floor that served as retail business areas, offices on the second floor for governmental and private use and then a large hall on the third floor that served as the social gathering place for the new little village of Portland. and Meridian Streets.

Hugh Hanna opened a general store in the second building to the north  of Miller’s Hall.  Our early settlers could not afford to purchase many of their needs from a store and existed mostly on what they could raise or make for themselves.  Therefore, the stock carried by this early store would have been meager.

Raphael Kirschbaum purchased this store from Hanna in 1857.  Our records show that Kirschbaum was a mere 15 years of age at the time.  He was born in Bavaria, Germany and had immigrated to the United States.  The 1860 census tell us that he was a merchant and within three years of purchasing his retail business had assets of $4,300.  This was a sizeable sum for those days.

Isaac and Carrie Silvernale came to Jay County in 1862, and Isaac became associated with the Kirschbaum store.  The store was then known as Kirschbaum and Silvernale.  That same year Mr. Kirschbum moved on to Union City, Indiana and established another store there. 

Isaac Silvernale was also born in Bavaria, Germany and came to America at the early age of three.  He was raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.  He lived for a time in Cincinnati, Ohio and married his wife, Caroline Rubel, also a native of Bavaria, while there.

 Kirschbaum and Silvernale remained on the north-east corner of Main and Meridian until 1867.  At this time they moved across the street to the north-west corner.  A three story brick building was erected on this site in 1872.  This building was remolded and enlarged in 1875.  It was the largest building in this part of the mid-west west and was erected at a cost of $25,000.

The new Kirschbaum and Silvernale Store was from this point on referred to as a department store.  There were five main departments.  The ground floor was occupied with dry goods, clothing, millinery and shoe department.  Coats and carpets were sold on the second floor.  The third floor was used for storage.  The store at this time had an annual trade of $100,000.

Raphael Kirschbaum retired from the firm in 1887 and the store from then on was known as Silvernale’s Department Store.  The 1880 census shows the Silvernales living in Portland with their niece, Bertha Strauss; nephew, Julias Strauss; a boarder, Morris Weiler; a boarder, Mary Lang; and another border, Samuel Face.  Everyone with the exception of Mr. Face had been born in Bavaria, Germany.  Isaac Silvernale was listed as a dry-goods merchant, his wife as keeping house, Samuel Face as a tailor and everyone else as clerks in a dry-goods store.  It is our belief  that there is a great possibility that all of these people were either related or came from the same area in Bavaria.

Isaac worked very hard in the dry goods business for thirty years before he retired from active business in 1890.  Mr. and Mrs. Silvernale spent most of the next 25 years in Europe.  During the summer months they would live in southern France, and the winters were spent in Italy.

The Silvernales were well know for their uprightness and strict integrity in every way.  Isaac donated large sums of money to charity prior to his death, and Carrie donated the entire remainder of their holdings to charity upon her own death in 1917.

Morris Weiler, the boarder in the Silvernale home, immigrated to the United States in 1872 at  13 years of age.  An older brother, Abe Weiler was already here and saved the money to help Morris come here.  Morris was

an apprentice and handyman in the Silvernale Store.  Morries purchased the department store in 1889 and changed the name to Weilers.

Abe and Morris continued to save their money and three more brothers came to America—Charles, Meyer and Adolph.  Charles became engaged in a dry-goods store in Farmland, Indiana.  Abe Weiler was located in Indianapolis, and Adolph Weiler was involved with a store in Hartford City.  During the following years two more Weiler Brothers, Isaac and Marion, joined their brothers in America and became active with the various stores.

Morris Weiler operated his store from the building on the north-west corner until 1912 when he moved his business diagonally across the street to the Bimel Building.  [This building had first been constructed in Chicago for the 1894 World’s Fair.  The framework was entirely of wood because of the temporary nature of the building.  Portland industrialist, Fred Bimel, purchased the building, had it taken apart in Chicago, shipped it by railroad to Portland and reconstructed on the south-east corner of Main and Meridian.  [For many years the building was home to  Fulton Hardware Store.]  

The south-east corner of Main and Meridian has a history of its own.  Early Portland newspapers refer to this corner as the location of the Trade Palace. [Your Historian is still doing research on the Trade Palace].

The Bimel Building was the largest building in town and the most imposing.  There were four floors in the building.  The Weiler Department Store occupied the basement and first floor of the building.  The second and third floors consisted of rental offices including doctors, dentist, insurance agencies, lawyers, beauty shops, photographers and the Portland Chamber of Commerce.  Lodge rooms and storerooms were on the fourth floor.

Disaster struck the beautiful building and the stores that occupied her just three days before Christmas in 1925.  Ray Sanders, janitor of the Bimel Building / Weiler Building, discovered a fire in the elevator shaft,  located in the east part of the building, as he was opening the building around 6:30 a.m.  Mr. Sanders stated that if there had been good water pressure, the flames could have been squelched.  The janitor tried to combat the flames, but the intense heat drove him from the basement.

R. H. Hartford, an attorney, had a very narrow escape from death in the fire.  Mr. Hartford made his home in his office and was awakened by the smoke from the fire.  A ladder from the Home Electric Shop nearby was placed at his window and he climbed to safety wearing his night clothes.

Within two hours after the fire was discovered, the building was entirely consumed in flames.  Only the wide width of the streets in Portland saved the neighboring business blocks.  Many of the big plate glass windows in surrounding buildings were broken.

The electrical power and telephone service were shut off all over the city.  The interurban service to the city was cancelled until late in the afternoon because of the nearness of the tracks to the fire.  By 8:00 a.m. the floors began to pancake in on each other and the outside walls collapsed inward.

The Commercial Review carried a full account of the disaster on the front page.  The center of that front page carried an editorial entitled “NOW GIVE US PROTECTION!”  The editorial was an attack on local officials for the lack of water pressure in the city and for the poor maintenance of the fire equipment.  It reported that the pressure was so bad that the water from the fire hoses could not even reach the second floor of the Weiler Building.

Morris Weiler echoed the editorial when he said that he would rebuild the building only if the city could assure him that there would be good water pressure in place for the city of Portland.  The city officials were quick to call in experts on the pumps that would be required to provide adequate water pressure in times of fires.

By mid-February, Weilers had leased a vacant lot just south of the Baird Funeral Home on North Meridian Street and plans were released for a one-story temporary wood building to be constructed within a matter of weeks.  Ray Weiler, son of Morris Weiler, was sent by train to New York City to do the buying for the temporary store.

The Weiler Fashion Hutte opened for business March 5, 1926.  The furnishings were of carved walnut and the floors were covered with green velvet carpet.  Only the ladies ready-to-wear lines were sold in this temporary store.  The clerks were dressed in orange sacque uniforms.

Jay County architect, Walter Scholer, was hired to do the plans for the two-story building to be constructed on the same site as the burned-out Weiler Building.  The contract for the construction of the building was awarded to Portland contractor Charles Sanders & Son.  The new building was to be constructed entirely of steel, stone and concrete.  It was said to be absolutely fire-proof.

The construction of the new permanent Weiler Building began immediately after the fire debris was cleared.  The new building was complete, and the store was ready for its formal opening within seven months.

The grand opening took place over a two-day period.  Wednesday evening, October 20, 1926 started with a elegant formal dinner for out-of-town guests and invited local friends.  The dinner was prepared by the ladies of the local Presbyterian Church. 

Following the dinner, the diners adjourned to the new Weiler Store to join the local citizens in an inspection.  There were an estimated 10,000 people in attendance that night. Floral favors were given to all of the women, candy to the children and cigarettes were given to the men.  The Ernie Parks Orchestra entertained the crowd from the mezzanine. The McLellan Store occupied the south section of the new building and also held an inspection open house that same evening.

We almost lost the anchor building of our city when Weilers closed their store in the mid-1970’s.  The beautiful building was on a downward spiral that could only lead to final destruction.  The John Jay Center for Learning and the Portland Foundation will bring the center of Portland back to where it all started when the Weiler Building is refurbished.  All of the citizens of Jay County will have a beautiful and useful building to point to with pride! We’ve come back to the intersection where it all started in 1836.