I remember when you could go to the Sears Roebuck catalog and buy almost anything from a house to live in to traps for trapping your own fur animals to frames to cure the hides on to guns to shoot anything from sparrows to elephants, the list is endless. You could almost have said that if they didn’t have it you didn’t need it.
Twenty years ago, or probably more, someone re-published the first Sears and Roebuck catalog as well as one or two others.
And you are correct, from complete house kits freighted to your location, pages upon pages of rifles, shotguns, handguns, ammo, and reloading tools. Even ghilly suits. All manner of farm equipment, musical instruments, clothing from skin to shoes.
Truly an amazing emporium that must have seen magical at the time. Really the model on which Amazon is based.
Somewhere I have the original copy and one other.
You made me curious to see if the re-print of the original Sears and Roebuck Catalog was still available.
Amazon (natch) has it for $13.88
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1602390630?ie=UTF8&force-full-site=1&ref_=aw_bottom_links
Also available are the Sears Home Builder’s Catalogue of that era as well as a Montgomery Ward one.
Darn, you’ve just reminded me of my late dad laughing over the product copy for a 25 cent hammer.
Went something like this:
This is our cheapest hammer. It’s not very good but will do in a pinch. See our better and best hammers that are still bargains.
As I recall there are quite a few other copy gems like it throughout the pages. Darn things also make a good preppers list of things to have in a world without juice.