A Hall & Co
A Hall & Co was a retailer of home furnishings and manufacturer of furniture. The company began trading at 567 George Street in January 1889, but quickly expanded to occupy 561-567 by 1897. Although established by Thomas Hall, the company was named after his wife Annie, and according to an 1897 billhead their head office was in Great Eastern Street London.
An advertisement in the Town & Country Journal for 1897 claimed that A Hall & Co were "the largest home furnishers in NSW" with stock "displayed in 20 large showrooms". A Hall & Co initially imported all of their furniture and furnishings. However, it seems that the company began to manufacture furniture locally by 1897 as a number of locally made items are illustrated in the catalogue of this date. For a few years in the early 1920s, a furniture factory was located on the corner of Goulburn and Brisbane Streets in Surry Hills.
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In 1934 A Hall & Co moved premises to 364-370 Pitt Street. The move was an indication of the growing retail strength of Liverpool/Pitt Street and the declining power of the southern part of George Street following a major relocation of tram routes from George to Pitt Street and the opening of Museum underground railway station in 1926. The department store, Anthony Hordern & Sons, was also prompted in this period to realign its Brickfield Hill emporium by constructing a spacious new Pitt Street entrance. A Hall & Co remained in family hands for much of its existence but was eventually sold to E A Greenwood Ltd in 1962 and the entire stock sold off by May 1965. |
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