History of Target Corporation

The history of Target Corporation first began in 1902 by George Dayton. The company was originally named Goodfellow Dry Goods in June 1902 before being renamed the Dayton's Dry Goods Company in 1903 and later the Dayton Company in 1910. The first Target store opened in Roseville, Minnesota in 1962 while the parent company was renamed the Dayton Corporation in 1967. It became the Dayton-Hudson Corporation after merging with the J.L. Hudson Company in 1969 and held ownership of several department store chains including Dayton's, Hudson's, Marshall Field's, and Mervyn's. In 2000, the Dayton-Hudson Corporation was renamed to Target Corporation. Dayton's The Westminster Presbyterian Church in downtown Minneapolis burned down during the Panic of 1893; the church was looking for revenue because insurance would not cover the cost of a new building. Its congregation appealed to George Dayton, an active parishioner, to purchase the empty corner lot adjacent to the original church's so it could rebuild; he eventually constructed a six-story building on the newly purchased property. Looking for tenants, Dayton convinced the Reuben Simon Goodfellow Company to move its nearby Goodfellows department store into the newly erected building in 1902, although its owner retired altogether and sold his interest in the store to Dayton. The store was renamed the Dayton Dry Goods Company in 1903, and was shortened to the Dayton Company in 1910. Having maintained connections as banker yet lacking previous retail experience, Dayton operated the company as a family enterprise over which he held tight control and enforced strict Presbyterian guidelines. Consequently, the store forbade the selling of alcohol, refused to advertise in newspapers that sponsored liquor ads, and would not allow any kind of business activity on Sundays. In 1918, Dayton, who gave away most of his money to charity, founded the Dayton Foundation with $1 million. By the 1920s, the Dayton Company was a multimillion-dollar business and filled the entire six-story building.