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San Francisco architect Albert Pissis (1852-1914) designed the first and second flagship Emporium Department Stores at this location on Market Street. Initially, the retailer Adolph Feist operated the building as a bazaar, (comparable to the city's already Golden Rule Bazaar), a loose confederation of individual merchants housed in the same building. This large-scale, retail experiment didn't work, and, subsequently, a new owner, Frederick W. Dohrmann (1842-1914), pursued a merger with the Golden Rule Bazaar to operate in the new building. This merger enabled the Bazaar to open in larger quarters and for Dohrmann's new business to operate without its main competition. Gradually, Dohrmann shaped the new organization into a modern department store, running the Emporium with great success until it was taken over by his son, A.B.C. Dohrmann. The younger Dohrmann would later (1927) merge the Emporium with Oakland's Capwell Store, creating an even bigger retail entity with better buying power.

Demolished; this department store, built of unreinforced masonry, operated for 10 years before falling victim to the San Francisco Earthquake and Fire of 04/18-19/1906. Following its destruction, the Emporium relocated to a temporary location on Van Ness Avenue, operating there between 1906-1908.

PCAD id: 14452