Our story
A river port shop, since 1912
Four generations, one family, and the same few things done carefully: cloth by the yard, clothes made to measure, and good things for the house.
Founded by Augustin Delorme
A shop that started at the water
In 1912, Augustin Delorme opened a dry goods store a short walk from the Rondout docks. Bolts of linen and wool came up the Hudson by boat from New York, most of them shipped from France. He sold them by the yard to people who had their clothes made, and kept a bench in the back for a tailor.
The shelves filled out over the years. Children’s clothes. Soaps and scents from England. Spices, herbs and remedies behind a long apothecary counter. Honey from beekeepers up the valley.
Today the family still runs the shop. We cut cloth on the original counter, make clothes to measure in the back room, and keep the shelves to things we would use ourselves.
- The year we opened
- 1912
- Generations behind the counter
- 4
- Departments under one roof
- 6
- Bolts of cloth on the shelves
- 300+
From the docks to Cordage Street
Cloth came by boat from New York, most of it from France. Soap came from England. Honey came down from the hills. Some of that has not changed at all.
- 1912
A dry goods store on Cordage Street
Augustin Delorme rents a narrow brick storefront near the Rondout docks. Linen, wool and cotton arrive by river boat, most of it from France, with locally woven cloth beside it.
- 1920s
A tailor’s bench in the back
Customers buy cloth at the front and are measured at the back. A suit, a dress or a christening gown, made for one person.
- 1930s
Soaps from England, spices behind the counter
Shower soaps and scents arrive from England. The apothecary counter grows: dried herbs, spices and simple remedies, weighed to order.
- 1960s
The neighborhood changes. The shop stays.
Much of the old Rondout is torn down around us. The family keeps the doors open and the counter where it was.
- 2019
The fourth generation
We restore the storefront, reopen the tailoring workroom, and bring back cloth from France alongside cloth from the valley.
What has not changed
Cloth by the yard
Cut by hand on the 1912 counter. Ask for a half yard or a whole bolt.
Made for one person
Every garment from our workroom is cut to one set of measurements.
From the river and the valley
Cloth from France and England, and cloth, wool and honey from close to home.
A person at the counter
Someone in the shop knows every item on the shelves and will tell you plainly if it is right for you.
“I came in for a yard of linen and left with the shirt I have worn every week since.”
Come and see
The counter is still where it was.
The shop is open Tuesday to Sunday on Cordage Street. Come in and we will show you the cloth.