The Diamond Family's first Diamond's Men's Clothing Store was opened in 1940 in East Cleveland, Ohio, by Joseph Diamond. In 1949, his younger brothers Norman and Herbert became partners in the company, and Norman opened his own clothing store in Downtown Cleveland. By 1965, the brothers operated nine Diamond's Men's Wear stores. When Herbert died in 1996, Diamond's Men's Stores, Inc. operated thirty-five stores with subsidiaries Christian St. John's Limited, Cricket West, and Professional Woman. In addition to their business, the Diamond family is also prominent in civil and social activities. Most notably, Herbert Diamond served as councilman and mayor of Bentleyville, OH from 1977 until his death in 1996. Norman Diamond served as co-chairman of the Jewish Welfare Fund's Mercantile Division in the 1980s. His and Herbert's sons are also active in Jewish philanthropy, including volunteering for Fuchs Mizrachi School and ORT and funding the Diamond Fitness Center and Diamond Scholarship at the Jewish Community Center.
The Diamond Family Papers, 1949-2006 and undated (bulk dates 1970-2006), consist of correspondence, newsletters, awards and certificates, magazine and newspaper articles, Diamond Scholarship records, photographs, and commemorative books. Of special note are the photographs of various Diamond's stores from 1952 and 1996.
This collection is of value to researchers studying the Diamond family, and Jewish philanthropy in Cleveland, Ohio. The collection also documents the history of Bentleyville, Ohio, and clothing stores in Cleveland. those studying the history of business and entrepreneurship in Cleveland, Ohio, in the twentieth century will find this collection useful. All photographs have been kept with the collection.
The collection is arranged alphabetically by document type and then chronologically.
Processed by Samuel Milner in 2007.
None.
[Container ___, Folder ___ ] MS 4987 Diamond Family Papers, Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio
Gift of Norman Diamond in 2006.
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.