20th century
As reported in the Carlisle Evening Sentinel on October 31, 1902, the store chain had two additional locations under the name "Bon-Ton Millinery" in Trenton, New Jersey, and five Pennsylvania locations: Carlisle, Lancaster, Lebanon, Altoona, and East Liverpool. The name "Bon-Ton" was drawn from a British term connoting the "elite" or "high society".
Through World War I and the Roaring Twenties, the Grumbacher's store chain grew bigger, and in 1929, the company was incorporated as S. Grumbacher & Son, Inc. In 1931, Max's son, Max Samuel (M.S.), joined the company. When Max the elder died in 1933, his widow, Daisy, and their two sons, M.S. and Richard, continued the business, forming a partnership in 1936.
The Bon-Ton was a popular store destination on the classic radio show Fibber McGee and Molly,[3] which aired from 1935 to 1959.
Following World War II, the Grumbacher family expanded operations even further. In 1946, an additional Bon-Ton was opened, in Hanover, Pennsylvania. Two years later, the company moved outside Pennsylvania, acquiring Eyerly's in Hagerstown, Maryland, and, in 1957, purchasing McMeen's in Lewistown, Pennsylvania. These early moves set Bon-Ton's policy of growing into adjacent areas by opening new stores and acquiring existing businesses.
Over the next three decades, The Bon-Ton Stores continued to expand. In 1961, M.S.'s son, M. Thomas "Tim", entered the business, representing the fourth generation of Grumbachers. During the 1960s, the company opened new Eyerly's and Bon-Ton stores in several Pennsylvania communities and one in West Virginia. In 1969, they retired McMeen's name. During the 1970s, as the popularity of shopping centers began to grow, The Bon-Ton opened 11 new stores in Pennsylvania and West Virginia.
During the 1980s, the retail department store industry rapidly consolidated as major chains bought their competitors. The Bon-Ton Stores began the decade by opening more stores, establishing a new division, Maxwell's, and acquiring L S Good, including its Fowler's department stores. When Tim Grumbacher was made CEO in 1985, the company operated 18 stores in four states. Two years later, the company made a major move, buying the 11-store Pomeroy's chain from Allied Department Stores. That purchase allowed the company to move into seven new markets in Pennsylvania.
In 1991, The Bon-Ton acquired J.W. Rhodes in Ithaca, New York.[4] The Bon-Ton entered the Lancaster, Pennsylvania, market in 1992 with the acquisition of two Watt & Shand locations in downtown Lancaster and Park City Center. The company continued to expand its presence in the Albany region in 1993 with a store in the Wilton Mall in Saratoga Springs in the former Addis & Dey's space. In the late 1980s, the company also acquired a York, Pennsylvania-based family-operated department store, Mailman's, from Stanley Mailman, which converted to a Bon-Ton location.
In July 1994, The Bon-Ton purchased the 127-year-old Adam, Meldrum, and Anderson Company chain based in Buffalo, New York, for $42.6 million (~$ in ), converting all locations to The Bon Ton. Around the same time, The Bon-Ton purchased Chappell's of Syracuse, New York, and Hess's of Allentown, Pennsylvania.
The Bon-Ton initially retained and operated Hess's flagship location until 1996, when it closed after nearly 100 years of continuous operation. The site was eventually demolished. Its Allentown store, Hess's former south Allentown location, was the anchor of the South Mall.
In 1994, The Bon-Ton entered the Rochester, New York market in three former McCurdy's locations, and in a former McCurdy's space (originally Iszard's) in Elmira, New York. The following spring, the company opened a fourth Rochester location in a former Sibley's/Kaufmann's location. In March 1995, The Bon-Ton closed the landmark downtown Lancaster store. Later that year, they closed the downtown AM&A's location. 1998's expansion included a new store in Westfield, Massachusetts, making it The Bon-Ton Stores' first presence in New England.
