Boutis Bros
Boutis Bros., Furriers, etc., 141-143 W. 28 St. (2004)

At the top in the middle is Boutis Bros. / Furriers. (Click for closer view.) The Boutis brothers were Konstantin Boutis (1892-?) and Zacharias Boutis (1882-?), immigrants from Greece in 1912. Konstantin Boutis, registering for the World War I draft in 1917, cited Kastoria, Greece as his birthplace. Zacharias Boutis, registering a year later, says "Turkey." The area around Kastoria, in northern Greece near the Macedonian border, was probably still controlled by the Ottoman Turks until some time after the war. So very likely both brothers were natives of Kastoria. The brothers started their company ca.1917, and they were located here at 141 W. 28th St. from 1922 to 1926. They were in business under the name Boutis Bros. until 1929. Successor companies included Natzis & Boutis (1932-1933), Boutis Fur Co. (1934-1944), and Boutis Bros., Fur Coats (1940-1963).

Beneath Boutis (very faded) is Lenkowsky Bros. / Furriers. The Lenkowsky brothers were Nathan Lenkowsky (1891-1978) and Solomon Lenkowsky (1894-1962). They were immigrants from Russia, Nathan in 1905 and Solomon in 1910. Their partnership as furriers began around 1920 and was located here at 141 W. 28th St. from 1923 to 1925. The business survived for many years after, mostly around the corner at 330 7th Ave. at 29th St. (until around 1959/60).

At the bottom of the stack on the left (squeezed between the edge of the building and a window) is Pantzer Bros. / Hemstiching / Waists. (Click for closer view.) There were 3 Pantzer brothers: George Pantzer (1889-1969), Max Pantzer (1890-1984), and Sidney Pantzer (1892-?). All immigrated from Bucharest, Romania in 1900 with father and mother, Aaron and Ethel Pantzer. They appear in the 1910 US Census living with their mother, Ethel, now a widow, at 229 South 3rd St., Brooklyn. George is 20 years old and lists his occupation as "Bookkeeper, Department Store." Max, 18, and Sidney (called Samuel), 16, are clerks in a "Tailoring Establishment." Pantzer Bros. was formed ca. 1914. In 1917 all three brothers registered for the World War I draft listing their occupation as "Hemstitching, Pantzer Bros., 141 W. 28th St." By the 1920s only George and Max are listed as still with the company. They left 141 W. 28th St. in 1922, and about this same time formed a second company called Pantzer Novelty Mfg. Co. Possibly this represented expansion of their business beyond pleating and hemstitching. Pantzer stayed in business until the early 1940s.

< previous || next  >      index      map      signs by date      signs by name