Lord served an apprenticeship in the trade of iron moulder, rising to be master of the craft. He worked in James Taylor's iron-foundry and in 1824 married Taylor's daughter and emigrated to America shortly thereafter. He borrowed $1,000 from his wife's uncle and in 1826 established a "dry goods" store at 47 Catherine Street in what is now
Two Bridges, Manhattan, New York. In 1826 he was joined by his young wife and child, whom he had left in England. His wife's cousin, George Washington Taylor, joined in 1834, and the store was named Lord & Taylor. James S. Taylor, Lord's brother-in-law, replaced George Taylor in 1845, and the store moved to
Grand and
Chrystie Streets in 1854. In 1870, the Broadway store moved a mile uptown, to a new
cast-iron building at Broadway and
20th Street, in the area known as the "
Ladies' Mile". ==Retirement in England==