Founder of JC Penney

James Cash Penney, a businessman and entrepreneur, built a mega-corporate retail chain by investing into a dissolved partnership and staying committed to managing three stores on his own. Penney invested his financial savings and personal life to ensure his dreams became a reality while remaining true to those less fortunate around him. On the verge of financial destruction, Penney turned his growth towards spiritual involvement and reaped the rewards of his selflessness. His indelible impression also inspired a young Sam Walton to develop one of the most prosperous retail chains in the world.

James Cash Penney was born on a small, rural farm outside of Hamilton-Caldwell County, Missouri. Penney was born into a large family with six other siblings presiding his birth and five thereafter; however, only six survived into adulthood. Penney's love life seems rather unstable because of three failed marriages to Bertha Alva Hess, Mary Hortense Kimball, and Caroline Marie Autenrieth. Penney had two daughters by the end of this third marriage, including Mary Frances Penney and Carol Penney.

James Cash Penney's life-long affiliation and Freemason initiation into the Wasatch-Lodge of Utah, has garnered recognition to his success. As a dual member of the Scottish and York Rites, James Cash Penney was awarded 33rd degree status on October 16, 1945, whereby he received the Gold Distinguished Service Award directly from the General Grand Chapter and Royal Arch Masons. By 1958, James Cash Penny was an established member of the Alpha Gamma Rho and Alpha Kappa Psi.

James Cash Penney, an aggressive entrepreneur, began his endeavors by working in a small retail-chain called the Golden Rule. He would eventually seize his share in a one-third partnership between Guy Johnson and Thomas Callahan in order to open a new store. Penney invested two thousand dollars and relocated to Kemmerer, Wyoming to build and open the new store. In 1907, Callahan and Johnson withdrew their shares in the partnership, which allowed Penney to invest in the three established stores. The sole proprietorship did not stop Penney from pursuing his dreams. His determination manifested a side-hobby cutting down trees to keep the stores running.

Penney finally hired his first salesman to manage the Kemmerer store. Earl C. Sams, his first sales manager, soon partnered with Penney to open a location in Eureka, Utah. This sparked a series of store openings, which totaled thirty-four in the Rocky Mountain States by 1912. Penney incorporated his series of stores under the name "J.C. Penney Company," then relocated the company to Kearns Building in Salt Lake City, Utah. J.C. Penney began a rapid expansion that totaled 120 independent stores heavily concentrated in the west but stretched far passed the eastern-side of the Mississippi. In 1929, the J.C. Penney Company had 1,400 stores nationwide.

Penney's direct involvement in managing the company played an active role in its success. In fact, Penney's visitation to a store in Des Moines, Iowa would change the face of retail indefinitely. He trained Sam Walton, a young management trainee straight out of college, on how to wrap packages with a conservative amount of ribbon. Penney did not manage his stores on a daily basis, however, he remained as the chairman of the board until 1946. Penney also revered the "Blue Laws," which enforced religious standards, by closing down the J.C. Penney stores on Sunday.

James Cash Penney's net worth totaled more than one and a half million dollars annually by 1924. This allowed Penney to engage in philanthropic causes during the 1920s. Penney and real-estate partner Ralph W. Gwinn invested in the Florida market, which included 120,000 acres in Clay County. A percentage of the real estate in Clay County became Penney Farms, a visionary project aimed at creating an experimental farming village. This development also led to the formation of Foremost Dairy Products, Incorporated, that was managed by Paul E. Reinhold. However, a major financial setback occurred due to the stock market crash and the Great Depression era that left Penney's investments in ruin. James Cash Penney was able to borrow against his cash value life insurance polices to ensure the store met its payroll expenses. Penney enrolled into the Battle Creek Sanitarium to seek treatment for the ill-health effects he was facing after his facing financial ruin. This pivotal movement led to Penney's conversion to a born-again Christian status.

Penney recovered from the financial setbacks of the Great Depression, which allowed him to continue his charitable works during the 1930s and 1940s, including the James C. Penney Foundation in 1954. In 1999, the J.C. Penney Foundation was restructured as the Penney Family Fund and holds no affiliation with the J.C. Penney Co., Inc. The fund exists in conjunction with the Common Counsel Foundation, a consortium of philanthropic foundation and donors based out of Oakland, California. The J.C. Penney Fund also supports organizations located in Oregon, California, and Washington state that aim to advance human rights, community development, political campaigns, and economic awareness, while also aggressively upholding government accountability and environmental conscientiousness.

Penney suffered from a fall that fractured his hip on December 26th, 1970, which eventually led to a heart attack a few weeks later. James Cash Penny passed away on February 12th, 1971 and was buried at the Woodlawn cemetery in Bronx, New York, not too far away from established retailer F.W. Woolworth.

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Founder of JC Penney

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