The Bon Marché was founded in 1890 by German immigrant Edward Nordhoff and his wife Josephine. Originally located in Seattle's Belltown district at First Avenue and Cedar Street, in 1896 it moved to a more central location downtown at Second Avenue and Pike Street. This photo of the exterior of the Bon Marché is looking north from Union Street to Pike Street on Second Avenue. All three connected buildings of the Bon Marché are visible: the 1902/1904 building which was the store's second location, the Green Building, annexed in 1907, and the 1911 addition.

Written on verso: 1927-1929. Typed on verso: THE BON MARCHE, leading department store of Seattle, Wash., established in 1890, does the largest cash business on the Pacific Coast. The business moved in 1896 to a corner of the present site, where it now occupies the entire block front photographed above. A new store building covering an entire square block is under construction in the heart of the new retail district three blocks away.

• Subjects (LCTGM): Bon Marché (Department store)