Bogen’s Department Store

Cousins, Joseph Bogen (1875-1952) and Bella Bogen (1878-1902) met in New York after they immigrated from Russia in 1893 and 1902, respectively. After they married in 1906, they moved to Denmark, South Carolina, where Joseph’s cousin, Sam Bogen, lived. In search of better opportunities, the Bogens constantly moved, living for stretches of time in Bamberg, Columbia, and High Point, North Carolina. In the 1920s, Joseph operated Bogen’s Department Store on Main Street in Denmark. The store sold clothes, shoes, and dry goods. In 1927, Bogen’s Department Store went out of business. Five years later, Joseph helped open Bogen’s Department Store in Greenwood, South Carolina.