Simmons (John) is born in Little Compton, Rhode Island.

John Simmons comes to Boston in 1814 to work in the tailor shop of his brother, then opens his own shop on Ann Street in 1818. He then moves to a shop in Quincy Market and develops an innovation that revolutionizes the clothing industry in 1826.* Simmons moves his greatly-expanding business to a new building at the corner of Water Street and Congress Street, in which he opens The Clothing House on the ground floor. He retires from the clothing business in 1858 to manage his real estate investments. Simmons dies in 1870, leaving a bequest to establish a women’s college that is named for him and opens in 1902.*