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LEAD: Beatrice Fox (July 17, 1887 - November 29, 1968)  was a Jewish philanthropist, educator, labor reform pioneer, and president and director of G. Fox & Co. from 1938 to 1959. Upon her father's death in 1938, she took over the Hartford, Connecticut-based G. Fox & Co. Under her stewardship, it became the largest department store in America. While executive of this enterprise she also lead the nation in labor reform programs such as the 40-hour work week and a retirement program. As a female executive, she recognized the importance of educating women in business and management. From 1938-1959 she made her store available to the Connecticut College for Women (now Connecticut College) as a training program for retail education. After creating the Beatrice Fox Auerbach Foundation, she began extensively investing her time in various philanthropies. In 1945, she established the Service Bureau for Women's Organizations. She was on the board of Hebrew Union College in Cincinnati and won numerous awards such as the Tobe award for distinguished service by others in her industry, a certificate of lifetime membership in the NAACP, “Boss of the Year” from the Greater Hartford Jaycees, the Distinguished Public Service Award from the State Bar Association in 1962 and the Human Relations Award of the Connecticut-Western Massachusetts Region of the National Conference of Christians and Jews in 1964. While she did not graduate from college, Auerbach was awarded honorary degrees at Trinity College, Wesleyan University and Saint Joseph College. The School of Business Administration at the University of Hartford named Auerbach Hall in her honor, the library at the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art was renamed the Auerbach Art Library, and and a new unit was built under her name at St. Francis Hospital in Hartford, CT. After 27 of years as executive, Auerbach sold the business to the May Company in 1965, declaring that “One thing you can be certain of is that I won’t be spending it on yachts and horses, but for the benefit of the people.” Auerbach died in Hartford on November 29, 1968. She was inducted into the Connecticut Women's Hall of Fame in 1994.

Bio:

Beatrice Fox was born on July 17, 1887 in Hartford, Connecticut. Born to Moses and Theresa Fox, she was the eldest of two daughters. Her father Moses was the son of Gerson Fox, a successful dry goods salesman and founder of the G. Fox and Co. emporium in Hartford, CT ; an enterprise of which she would later become the president. While Auerbach did attend the Beacon School, a private girls’ school in Hartford, and the Benjamin Deane School in New York, she did not obtain any degrees. Auerbach instead attributed her education to the extensive travels she and her family took during her childhood.

In 1909 during a trip to Europe with her family, Beatrice met George Auerbach. After marrying George Auerbach in 1911, the coupe moved to Salt Lake City where his family owned a department store.

In 1916, Auerbach gave birth to her first child, Georgette. In 1917, the family returned to Hartford to recover from a fire at G. Fox & Co. Their second child, Dorothy was born in Connecticut in 1919. Upon her father's death in 1938, she took over the Hartford, Connecticut-based G. Fox & Co. Under her stewardship, it became the largest department store in New England. While executive of this enterprise she also lead the nation in labor reform programs such as the 40-hour work week and a retirement program.

After 27 of years as executive, Auerbach sold the business to the May Company in 1965, declaring that “One thing you can be certain of is that I won’t be spending it on yachts and horses, but for the benefit of the people.” Auerbach died in Hartford on November 29, 1968.

G FOX & CO

Auerbach took over her family business in 1938, after her father passed away. Under her leadership, G. Fox and Co. became the largest department store in America. There, she commanded a workforce of 3-5,000 people at a time. Auerbach was a labor reform pioneer, instituting the five-day, 40-hour work week, retirement plans and paid sick leave. She also gave interest-free loans to employees in crisis. As an executive, she revolutionized the industry with her free delivery service, telephone order service and automated billing. Auerbach also made it a priority to hire African American men and women to work in her store.


 * Labor reform (in her store)
 * "five-day, 40-hour work week, retirement plans and other significant improvements for the company’s 3,000 employees"
 * non-profit lunch service
 * health services
 * Interest-free loans for employees in crisis

PHIL
 * Executive
 * Revolutionized industry
 * Free Delivery service
 * (toll-free) telephone order service
 * automated billing
 * one of the first major retailers to hire black women and men

Auerbach was dedicated to enriching not only the lives of her workers, but her community as well. With the wealth that she had accumulated from the success of G. Fox and Co., she founded the Beatrice Fox Auerbach Foundation, a charitable and educational organization dedicated to enriching the public "regardless of creed, sex, color, or race." Within the organization, Auerbach donated to organizations, hospitals, and institutions of higher education. From 1938-1959, she worked with the Connecticut College for Women (now Connecticut College) in a retailing program. She found this to be important as a one of the few women in her field at the time. In 1941, the foundation was poised to become a corporation. This move gained strong support from Congresswoman Chase Going Woodhouse, and was called "the solution to the problem" facing Hartford by Judge Elsner, who presided over this decision. Four years later in 1945, Auerbach established the Service Bureau for Women's Organizations. The goal of this was to teach women how to coordinate activities, run meetings and be effective lobbyists.

Auerbach Major

Because of her work as one of the few women in business administration, Auerbach decided to form a major that prepared young women for higher-level positions. She felt that because “There [were] a number of institutions offering such preparation to young men. The need of more such opportunities for young women [was] self-evident.” From 1938-1959, she worked with the Connecticut College for Women (now Connecticut College) in a retailing program. To gain this degree Auerbach proposed that women take classes in psychology, history foreign language, economics, and English--focusing on business correspondence. During their junior year, the women would take part in a service learning at a business in their field to gain real-life experience. This major was not seen as a new department, but a collaboration between Gov, home economics, social science, and art. To start this program, Auerbach donated $1,350 ($22,634.25 USD today) for the preliminary planning period, and $10,000 ($167,661.11 today) for the two year development of the major. Chase Going Woodhouse, an economics professor at Connecticut College at the time, described Auerbach as having a “forward way of looking at education.”

Some examples of the classes taken were: After graduating, the women who completed the Auerbach Major went on to do great things: Seven women ended up in department store work; Eight were working for the government, two in Naval intelligence, and one working for the Office of Price Administration, where it was said that her experience through the Auerbach major lead them to hire her; one was a travelling instructor for a large business machine company; along with many other accomplishments.
 * Economic History
 * Social and Intellectual History
 * Basic Statistical Concepts
 * Accounting, Banking, Corporation Finance
 * Investment Principles
 * Insurance
 * Labor problems

Although the major was dissolved in 1959, the Auerbach Foundation continued to support a lecture series at the college. In 1951, the Auerbach foundation supported the Service Bureau for Women’s Organizations Conference at Connecticut College.

PHILANTHROPY
 * She established the Service Bureau for Women’s Organizations in 1945. The goal of this was to teach women how to coordinate activities, run meetings and be effective lobbyists.
 * From 1938-1959, she worked with the Connecticut College for Women (now Connecticut College) in a retailing program
 * She allowed the women to use her store to practice classroom theories
 * After selling her private stock in the company in 1945 she proclaimed: “One thing you can be certain of is that I won’t be spending it on yachts and horses, but for the benefit of the people.”
 * On the board of Hebrew Union College in Cincinnati
 * Member of Temple Beth Israel
 * founded by her Grandfather


 * Beatrice Fox Auerbach Foundation
 * donated to organizations, hospitals, and institutions of higher education
 * civically, culturally and educationally oriented
 * Service Bureau for Women’s Organizations
 * "clearing house" for charitable and civic causes

AWARDS


 * Awards
 * Tobe award for distinguished service by others in her industry
 * Tobe award for distinguished service by others in her industry