Patrick Byrne Magrane

He started as a merchant selling notions, hosiery, and so forth door-to-door, going on to found the P. B. Magrane store (at first with just a 15-foot front) in 1876.

The couple had eleven children, one of whom, Mary, was the wife of Governor Martin H. Glynn of New York.

In 1917, Magrane Houston announced it would continue paying the salaries of employees who enlisted in the armed forces.

[10] Magrane Houston was involved in an important exclusive dealing case settled in 1922 by the United States Supreme Court, Standard Fashion Co. v. Magrane-Houston Co.[11] Magrane Houston had a contract to carry garment patterns exclusively from Standard Fashion, but then undertook to also sell patterns from another manufacturer.

The Supreme Court ruled for Magrane Houston, holding that the exclusionary practice had the effect of substantially lessening competition in the market for garment patterns.