An 'Elegant Era' at Fehrs Jewelry

Interior at Fehrs Jewelry, Manitowoc

It was the end of an ‘elegant era’ when Fehr Jewelry Store closed in downtown Manitowoc. The store, considered Wisconsin’s oldest jewelry store at the time, began in 1855 and closed its doors in 1988.

Gustave Karl Fehrs was born in the Prussian Province of Saxony in 1829. It was there that he learned the watchmaker profession and became quite talented in his field. Gustave and his wife, Emma, immigrated to the United States in the 1850s and settled in New York for a year before coming to Manitowoc around 1855.  When the Fehrs family settled here, the community had only 1,900 citizens and G.K. Fehrs was the first to create a watch and jewelry store.

While Fehrs began his business in 1855, it is unknown where the original store building was located. In 1865, land was purchased in downtown Manitowoc from Sylvester A. Wood to construct a store. By 1867 a glamourous Italianate style building was constructed at 910 South 8th Street in Manitowoc, with mahogany display cases made by Alexander H. Revell and Company of Chicago. The Fehrs family lived above the store with their 3 children.

Mr. Fehrs had soon built quite a reputation for himself as a leading state-wide judge of precious stones - particularly diamonds, rubies and emeralds. Local jewelers could have their name placed on the watches they created - ensuring the quality of the watch to his customer using his own good name in the community. Many citizens would come and set their pocket watches by the jewelry store clock each day. There was also a large clock, which looked like a watch, on the street in front of the jewelry store. Before 1920, these clocks were used to identify the location of jewelry stores – just as barber poles were placed outside barbershops.

Gustave operated the store until his death in 1898 and his son, Gustave Adolph, took over the proud legacy in Manitowoc. The Fehrs were considered experts in their field and their knowledge was often sought by jewelers in Chicago and Milwaukee. “G.K. Fehrs” and “G.A. Fehrs” was proudly displayed on many watches and other jewelry items at the turn of the 20th century. The store employed many talented repairmen as well, including watch repairman Edgar G. Hansen Jr.

Gustave Adolph expanded the store’s optometry services in the late 1800s. It is estimated that he fitted thousands of residents in Manitowoc County with glasses, particularly in the years before 1910. It was under his ownership that green marble was added to the front of the building in 1933.

The jewelry store’s operations transferred to a new owner, Frank Vander Zanden of Green Bay, in 1935. The Vander Zanden family also had a long legacy in the business, which began in Green Bay in 1893. Under Vander Zanden’s ownership, the store retained the Fehrs’ name and expanded the business to include glassware, fine china, and photography. The younger Fehrs continued for a few years in the optical business from the store’s famed downtown location. After the Fehr family left the upstairs living quarters, numerous tenants could be found in the space including doctors’ offices, the District Attorney’s office, and the Selective Service draft board during the Korean Conflict.  Vander Zanden’s daughter, Suzi, and her husband, C.W. (Duff) took over operations after her father’s passing in 1979.

In 2008, the historic space was once again filled with jewelry from Modern By Megan. The Baroque architecture and beautiful mahogany display cases continue to share the traditional fine Tiffany-style of the historic jewelry industry.