[4] Ayres met his first wife in Chardon, Ohio, but she died of consumption (tuberculosis) within a few months of their marriage.

[1] James Thomas, Ayres's business partner in New York, acquired a 25 percent interest in the Indianapolis store.

[7] Ayres remained in New York for two years as the Indianapolis store's senior partner and its resident buyer.

Their second home was demolished in 1962 as part of the city's urban renewal efforts and highway construction projects.

[1][9] Before his death Ayres had begun to acquire property at the intersection of Washington and Meridian streets, where he intended to build a new store.

Frederic M. Ayres took over the business following his father's death and completed construction of an eight-story building that opened in 1905.

Lyman S. Ayres II, Fredric's son and grandson of the store's founder, followed Griffith as president and later became chairman of the board.