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The Catalog Blog

Cool things from 20th-century American Catalogs

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Category: 1940s

What the Well-Dressed WAC will Wear…
Posted on October 9, 2017October 22, 2017

Army Catalog, 1943
What the Well-Dressed WAC will Wear…

1943. World War II. Suddenly there are females now serving the war effort – the Women’s Army Corps, or “WACs”. This Quartermasters’ catalog devotes page after page to official regulation supplies for the new female Army personnel… Continue reading What the Well-Dressed WAC will Wear…

The Stepford Husbands
Posted on September 28, 2017October 22, 2017

Sears, 1945
The Stepford Husbands

Was it hats that Sears was selling, or the American Dream? This catalog illustration portrays postwar manhood so idyllically that it’s hypnotic and a little spooky… Continue reading The Stepford Husbands

This Black Leather Team Harness will handle any farm job
Posted on August 14, 2017October 22, 2017

Brown Fence and Wire, 1941
This Black Leather Team Harness will handle any farm job

The Brown Fence and Wire Company, 1941: This page is eye-catching as much for the date as for the subject matter. It’s early 1941 and this moment, over half of American farms still didn’t have electricity…. Continue reading This Black Leather Team Harness will handle any farm job

Vegetables – Vitamins – Victory!
Posted on July 24, 2017October 22, 2017

Magnolia Seeds, 1943
Vegetables – Vitamins – Victory!

During WWII, growing vegetables was not only patriotic – in a country still pulling out of the Great Depression, it was economical. Those packet of asparagus seeds were 5 cents each, and beans just 10 cents. Continue reading Vegetables – Vitamins – Victory!

Give Dad a Tie for Father’s Day
Posted on June 8, 2017June 8, 2017

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Give Dad a Tie for Father’s Day

B. Altman & Co, 1948: Was there ever a 20th-century gift more associated with fathers than a tie? Continue reading Give Dad a Tie for Father’s Day

Long Gone…both the Fashion and the Firm
Posted on May 18, 2017May 18, 2017

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Long Gone…both the Fashion and the Firm

National Bellas Hess “60th Anniversary Bargains” catalog, 1948. It's just possible this model is wearing an air filter on her head…or a maybe a once-fashionable hat. Continue reading Long Gone…both the Fashion and the Firm

What the Working Man Wears
Posted on April 4, 2017April 4, 2017

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What the Working Man Wears

Montgomery Wards, 1947 / These fellows, thanks to their snappy working wear outfits, could pitch hay or fill up your tank equally well Continue reading What the Working Man Wears

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We're celebrating all the abundance and excitement found in vintage 20th century American catalogs: the exotic, the fashionable, the surprising, the latest, the coolest, the cheapest, the oddest, the choices.

Not just Sears and Montgomery Wards, You could buy anything from a catalog in the 20th century: from a box of raisins to a house, from a computer to a car, from a billy club to an inflatable brassiere. The old-time printed catalogues which arrived in the mailbox showed the 20th-century American Consumer just how to consume.

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