[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 116 (Wednesday, August 17, 1994)]
[Senate]
[Page S]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: August 17, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
            THE 100TH ANNIVERSARY OF ROGERS DEPARTMENT STORE

  Mr. HEFLIN. Mr. President, September 4, 1894, marked the beginning of 
a legacy for Maj. Benjamin Armstead Rogers, for the small town of 
Florence, AL, and indeed for the entire northwestern region of the 
State. On that date, nearly 100 years ago, Major Rogers and his two 
sons, Thomas McLemore and Benjamin Armstead, Jr., opened the Surprise 
Store at the corner of Court and Mobile Streets in Florence. As 
recorded in the Florence Gazette, the opening was accompanied by Ben 
Rogers, Jr., leaving for New York to buy stock.
  The Rogers family had arrived in Florence confident of the town's and 
area's future, and they wanted to play a part in its development. The 
family's ideas and vision about retail merchandising varied 
significantly from those of the average tradesmen of the day. They 
marked each and every item with its exact price and their policy of 
``One price-plain figures'' led to their success. The store that still 
stands at the corner of Court and Mobile Street today is a living 
testament to the Rogers' success over the last century.
  Five generations of the Rogers family have now worked at this 
location. A large part of the vitality of downtown Florence today is a 
direct result of the Rogers' commitment to maintaining the life of the 
central business district. Like most major department stores in recent 
decades, they have had opportunities to relocate to modern, state-of-
the-art suburban shopping malls, but have chosen to remain as one of 
the anchors of downtown business. There are now Rogers stores in 
Decatur and Muscle Shoals, AL, as well.
  Rogers family members have also taken a leading role in community 
service and have played pivotal roles in the progress and development 
of north Alabama. They have served as members of the chamber of 
commerce, the Rotary Club, United Way, Boy Scouts of America, the YMCA, 
and the Alabama State Legislature. Corinne Rogers Zaccagnini, a great-
great granddaughter of the founders, presently works for Senator 
DeConcini on the Security and Cooperation in Europe Commission.
  I salute the Rogers family and congratulate them on the 100th 
anniversary of Rogers Department Store. It has become a legendary 
institution in this part of Alabama, and is poised for an even brighter 
future.

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