Hallgarten & Company
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Investment banking |
| Founded | 1850 |
| Founder | Lazarus Hallgarten |
| Defunct | 1974 (merged with Moseley Hallgarten & Estabrook) |
| Fate | Merged with Moseley Hallgarten & Estabrook |
| Headquarters | New York City , United States |
Area served | United States, Europe |
Key people | Lazarus Hallgarten, Joseph Herzfeld, Samuel Neustadt, William Rosenheim, Bernhard Mainzer, Sigmund Neustadt, Casimir I. Stralem, Donald S. Stralem, Pierre "Pete" Stralem, Arthur Zankel |
| Products | Stocks and bonds dealing, investment banking services |
Number of employees | 870 (at merger time) (1987) |
Hallgarten & Company was a New York City-based investment bank established in 1850 by Lazarus Hallgarten, originally from Hesse.
History
Starting his career in 1850 as a note and exchange broker at 20 Exchange Place, Lazarus Hallgarten eventually founded the banking firm Hallgarten & Herzfeld alongside partners Joseph Herzfeld, Samuel Neustadt, William Rosenheim, and his two sons. After Herzfeld retired in 1867, the company was renamed Hallgarten & Co., transforming into a dealer of stocks and bonds after 1865. The firm capitalized on its European connections to attract German investments into American railroad ventures following the Civil War.
Upon Lazarus Hallgarten’s passing in 1875, Rosenheim and Neustadt departed to Germany to create their own enterprises. The business in New York was continued by Lazarus’s sons with new associates Bernhard Mainzer and Sigmund Neustadt (son of Samuel). Julius Hallgarten, one of the sons and founder of the Hallgarten Prize, died in 1883; Charles Hallgarten passed away in 1908. The firm became a member of the New York Stock Exchange on January 1, 1881.
"Our Crowd"
Hallgarten & Co. belonged to a group of German-Jewish investment banks on Wall Street that emerged in the late 1800s, including firms such as Bache & Co., Lehman Brothers, Goldman Sachs, J. & W. Seligman & Co., and Kuhn Loeb. These institutions, often referred to as "Our Crowd," were interconnected through marital ties; for instance, key figures like Charles Hallgarten, Bernard Mainzer, Casimir Stralem, and Sigmund Neustadt were related by family bonds. The firm also maintained links with Wertheim & Co., founded by former partner Maurice Wertheim.
As the Hallgarten family’s direct involvement diminished, leadership transitioned closely to the Stralem family. Casimir I. Stralem (1886–1932) acted as chief partner; his wife Edith was Sigmund Neustadt’s daughter. Their son Donald S. Stralem (1903–1976) joined as partner in 1932; his spouse Jean Ickelheimer was a prominent philanthropist and art patron connected to the Lehman lineage. Donald’s daughter married Robert Russell, who was a Hallgarten partner from 1950 until 1966; together they established Stralem & Company, which operates today as an asset management firm in New York.
Donald’s sibling Pierre "Pete" Stralem (1911–1997) became partner in 1942 and remained involved through subsequent mergers. Arthur Zankel, known for his philanthropy and as the namesake of Carnegie Hall’s Zankel Recital Hall, served as general partner between 1953 and 1965.
International Finance Pioneer
Hallgarten & Company sustained robust relationships with German banking institutions. By 1904, Berliner Handels-Gesellschaft—active in marketing American securities within Germany—had two partners stationed at Hallgarten & Company’s New York office.
The firm asserted it was the first New York Stock Exchange member to establish a London branch in 1912. In 1968, it was also the initial American company to seek membership on the London Stock Exchange; however, its application was narrowly declined due to the Exchange’s intent to restrict competition from US firms.
In January 1926, Hallgarten expanded by acquiring Boissevain & Company along with its Amsterdam branch, strengthening its role in facilitating US-Netherlands financial dealings.
Between 1922 and 1941, Hallgarten operated out of its own ten-story building at 40-44 Pine Street before moving headquarters to 44 Wall Street. Throughout the 1970s, it retained status as a leading Wall Street institution with offices located in Chicago, London, Paris, Geneva, and Brussels. Previously, it had maintained branches in Amsterdam, Rome, and Berlin. The firm concentrated on serving an exclusive private client base alongside its investment banking operations.
The Merger
At the beginning of 1974, Hallgarten & Company combined with Moseley Hallgarten & Estabrook, which was based in Boston. This merged organization incorporated F.S. Moseley, a Boston-based firm established by Frederick Strong Moseley in 1879. Shortly thereafter, Weeden & Company and C.B. Richard Ellis were brought under the umbrella of the holding company Moseley Securities Corporation, which was publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange.
During the 1980s, particularly after the 1987 Black Monday stock market crash, the firm encountered significant financial strain. In November 1987, Moseley Hallgarten revealed its intention to withdraw from retail brokerage operations, a division responsible for nearly half of its revenue and employing around 325 out of its total 870 employees spread across 30 offices. Initially, the company agreed to sell its retail securities brokerage and investment advisory units to Gruntal & Co. for roughly $15 million in cash; however, this transaction ultimately fell through. Later discussions involved both Gruntal & Co. and Fahnestock as potential buyers.
Although Moseley aimed to maintain its presence as an institutional brokerage, it struggled due to unfavorable market conditions and complications arising from underwriting the Wedtech scandal IPO. These issues culminated in the firm's failure in February 1988.
Current status
Reestablished in New York City in 2003 as Hallgarten & Company LLC by former executives from Polyconomics, the company now dedicates itself solely to investment banking services within the natural resources industry.
Main Office Locations
20 Exchange Place (1850–1865), 28 Broad Street (1865–1902), 72 Broadway (1902–1903), 5 Nassau Street/7 Pine Street – Hanover Bank Building (1903–1920), 44 Pine Street (1920–1941), 44 Wall Street (1941–1974)
