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Levy, Hannah, 1905-1984

 Person

Biography

Hannah Levy became a nationally known fashion expert, traveling extensively to New York, Europe, and Asia to buy clothes for Fashion Bar, which was started by her brother Jack in 1933. Fashion Bar became the largest privately owned chain in Colorado. Hannah was born in the town of Haigerloch, near Stuttgart in Southern Germany, on May 19, 1918, to Raphael and Bertha Hilb Levy. Hannah's uncle, Isidore Hilb, came to Denver in the early 1900s and founded Hilb and Company, a wholesale clothing supply business. Jack Levy came to Denver in 1923 to work at his uncle's company as a salesman. Hannah Levy reached New York in 1925, working at menial jobs for 20 months to earn enough money for a train ticket to Denver. She worked as a cleaner, a nanny, a manicurist, and a delicatessen worker. Hannah Levy supported many Jewish, civic, and cultural causes, including Temple Emanuel, Rose Hospital, the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, the Denver Symphony, Jewish Community Center, and the University of Denver's Holocaust Awareness Institute.After a 50-year career at Fashion Bar, Hannah Levy died December 1, 1984.

Citation

Not found in LCNAF or VIAF. mmata 2016-10-26

Sources: https://www.immigrantentrepreneurship.org/entry.php?rec=268 (article by Jeanne Abrams (2016). Tales of a Little Trunk by Hannah Shwayder Berry. Obituaries.

Found in 4 Collections and/or Records:

Fashion Bar and Levy Family Papers

 Collection
Identifier: B097
Abstract Siblings Hannah, Jack and Edward Levy immigrated to America in the 1920s. Jack Levy came to America in 1923, headed to Denver, and began working at his uncle's business, Hilb and Company. Edward Levy reached Denver in 1925 and also started working for Hilb and Company, eventually becoming the president. After working in New York City for 20 months at menial jobs, Hannah moved to Denver in the fall of 1927. Jack started as a traveling salesman for the Hilb company and Hannah as a shop-girl at...
Dates: 1938-1993; Coverage: 1900-1993

Hannah Levy as a Young Woman, between 1930-1939

 Item
Identifier: B063.08.0039.00005
Abstract

Hannah Levy sits in an outdoor setting in the early 1930s. Hannah and brother Jack Levy are the founders of several women's clothing retail stores, in Colorado: the Hosiery Bar, Fashion Bar, and Hannah. She also became a leading Colorado philanthropist and helped support numerous community institutions, including the Rose Hospital and the University of Denver.

Dates: between 1930-1939

Levy Family Portrait, circa 1929

 Item
Identifier: B063.05.0005.00023
Abstract

Bertha and Raphael Levy stand in the center, surrounded by their children. Jack and Hannah stand to Bertha's right, and Edward Levy is to Raphael's left. Kate and Ruth Levy are sitting in the grass. This photograph was taken in Denver, Colorado. Hannah and Jack Levy were the founders of the Fashion Bar retail women's clothing stores throughout Colorado.

Dates: circa 1929

Oral History Interview with Siblings Hannah and Jack Levy, 1983 October 18

 Item
Identifier: B098.01.0005.00116
Abstract "Siblings Jack and Hannah Levy discuss the Levy family history, how they started the retail store, Fashion Bar, and the development of their stores. They also talk about the fashion business. Siblings Hannah and Jack Levy were born in Haigerloch, Germany. Jack Levy immigrated to the United States arriving in Denver, Colorado in 1923 at the age of 14. Hannah Levy immigrated to the United States, arriving in New York in 1926 at the age of 20. She lived on her own in New York for nearly two...
Dates: 1983 October 18

Filtered By

  • Subject: Merchants X

Additional filters:

Type
Archival Object 3
Collection 1
 
Subject
Jewish merchants 3
Social life and customs 3
Clothing trade 2
Colorado 2
Department stores 2