Strohmeyer & Arpe Co., 139-141 Franklin St., New York, 2005  

Strohmeyer & Arpe are a wholesale grocery export and import company. The company began as F. G. Strohmeyer & Co. around 1883 at 55 Pine St. in New York City. Strohmeyer was Frederick Gottfried Strohmeyer (1852-1931). He was born in Bremen, Germany, 20 Feb. 1852, and immigrated to the U. S. in 1878. Arpe was Herman Arpe (1855-1926). His passport application in 1902 stated that he was born in Aumund, Province of Hannover, Germany, 3 April 1855, and that he immigrated to the U. S. in 1871. He seems to have been employed at F. G. Strohmeyer from the beginning of the business, and had his name included in the firm name around 1895.

The building at 139-141 Franklin St., New York City, is a 10-story brick and stone warehouse and office building constructed by Strohmeyer & Arpe for its own use in 1909. Their sign in copper letters over the entrance likely dates from the building's original construction.

The company occupied this building from 1909 to 1967/68. In the mid-1970s they moved to Milburn, New Jersey.

Strohmeyer & Arpe are still in business (as of Feb. 2009), and are now located in Short Hills, New Jersey. Their web site is www.strohmeyer.com. They continue to deal in wax and honey, which were two of the products that were featured in their listing in Trow's New York City Directory in 1891: "Fish, Honey, Wax."

Copyright © 2009 Walter Grutchfield