C. H. Baker was a chain of shoe stores that operated in Greater Los Angeles and elsewhere on the West Coast from 1904 through about 1991.

Charles Harris Baker (1969–1939)

The stores were founded by Charles Harris Baker (b. Dec. 23, 1869,

Martin County, Indiana Martin County is a county in the U.S. state of Indiana. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 10,327. The county seat is Shoals at the center of the county, and the county's only incorporated city is Loogootee, on the county' ...

, moved to Los Angeles in 1880 and Pasadena in 1889, died in an auto accident August 22, 1939,

Pasadena, California Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial district. I ...

) In about 1898, Baker started as an employee in Hamilton's shoe store in Los Angeles at a salary of $12 per week. He began his shoe business around 1900, initially or at some point as a partnership, Hamilton & Baker.

C. H. Baker stores

In 1904, the partnership with Hamilton was dissolved, and C. H. Baker took over the business, then located at 239 S. Spring St., the central shopping district of Los Angeles at that time. By 1928, C. H. Baker had 13 stores: 4 in central Los Angeles, one in Hollywood and Pasadena, 4 in San Francisco, and 3 in Portland, Oregon. Their stores were located in most major malls in Southern California until about 1991. In 1939, Harris died in a car crash, and his son John Harris Baker managed the chain, which at that time had stores in 10 communities.

Hollywood store

In 1923, C. H. Baker opened a store at 6664 Hollywood Boulevard, at that time the second-most-important shopping district in Los Angeles after

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

and Seventh Streets in

Downtown Los Angeles Downtown Los Angeles (DTLA) contains the central business district of Los Angeles. In addition, it contains a diverse residential area of some 85,000 people, and covers . A 2013 study found that the district is home to over 500,000 jobs. It is ...

. That store had more demand for the latest fashions; its sales were about $100,000 the first year and $400,000 annually in 1928.

External links

6 views of Baker Shoe Store, 6664 Hollywood Blvd., 1933

Image of C. H. Baker Hollywood store, 1923

Sketch of C. H. Baker store, Pasadena, 1927

References

{{reflist Footwear retailers of the United States Defunct retail companies of the United States Defunct companies based in California