David Davis Walker

David Davis Walker was born on January 19, 1840 on a farm near Bloomington, Illinois to George E. Walker (1797–1864) and Harriet Mercer (1802–1869). His paternal grandfather, Thomas Walker, was an English slave trader.[1] Walker was a first cousin of Senator and Supreme Court Justice David Davis.

At age fourteen, he was sent to the Beloit Preparatory Academy, part of Beloit College in Wisconsin.[2]

In 1857, Walker went to St. Louis for business training with the merchandiser Crow, McCreery & Co., then the largest wholesale dry goods house in the city. He worked his way up from office boy, and became a partner after just eight years with the firm. He became ill as a result of his workaholic habits, quitting in 1878, and spent the next two years recovering.

In 1880, he went back to work, forming Ely, Walker & Co. with Frank Ely and others. The business was a huge success, and in 1883 it was incorporated as the Ely & Walker Dry Goods Company. He remained President of the company until 1892, and thereafter retained the largest interest in the firm. In 1896, the company built a massive warehouse on Washington Avenue in St. Louis, Missouri, which became known as Ely Walker Lofts.[3] His sons David Davis, Jr., Joseph Sidney and George Herbert all had involvement with the Ely & Walker firm, which continued as a major clothing manufacturer until it was acquired by Burlington Industries after World War II, but George went into banking.

Walker married Martha Adela Beaky. They had a son, George Herbert Walker.

Walker died in 1918 at Walker's Point, his son George's seaside property in Kennebunkport, Maine, the modern-day Bush compound now occupied by former President George H.W. Bush. His great-grandson, George H. W. Bush, and his great-great-grandson, George W. Bush, both served as President of the United States.

• David Davis Walker at Find a Grave
• Ely & Walker Dry Goods Company building, now lofts and a gym