Page 24 - 2019 August The Journal of Antiques and Collectibles
P. 24
During the first half of the 19th century, general stores stocked primarily
necessities, but as the economy prospered after the Civil War, more and more
luxury items made their way onto the shelves. Not all these goods were locally
grown, made in the “Big City,” or even Made in America. Store ledgers from
the mid-1800s show such items as sugar from India, tea from China, coffee
from South America, fine fibers from Asia, and citrus fruits from Sicily. The
transport of goods over rail, rivers, and oceans, and the advent of refrigerated
transport in the second half of the century brought new goods from far off
places to new, growing consumer markets through general stores across an
expanding America.
More Than Just the Basics
Most of the food staples to be found in a 19th century general store would
be familiar to us today. In many instances items such as coffee beans, sugar,
flour, dried beans, spices, teas, molasses, and candy were displayed in bulk, to
be individually weighed and sold based on the customer’s requested amount.
Granulated white sugar was delivered in 100-pound sacks and then dumped
into a covered metal box to be scooped out, weighed, and packaged in paper
bags. Coffee beans also came in large sacks. When someone wanted a pound or
two the clerk scooped out the beans, weighed for amount, and then ground
them in a colorful, typically red, big-wheeled mill sitting on the counter. Few
items for most of the 19th century came to the general store in individual
packages or cans. A cash register and scales were common countertop staples.
The apothecary section of the store was well represented with a large number
of patent medicines, remedies, soaps, toiletries, and elixirs. In the dry goods Old General Store in Wyoming, Illinois
section, one could find bolts of cloth, pins, and needles, thread, ribbon,
buttons, collars, and undergarments, in addition to ready-made clothes, shoes,
and hats. All this in addition to farm equipment, rifles and ammunition, pots
and pans, lanterns, dishes, and dozens of other items of everyday life. By the
mid-19th century, shop owners were installing glass display cases and
expanding their offerings to include jewelry, musical instruments, cutlery, and
other items of refinement and recreation.
In addition to the tin boxes, wooden barrels, crates, sacks, candy, and
apothecary jars, and the beautiful wood and glass display pieces that make
general store items so much fun to collect, by far the most popular and highest
valued items for collectors fall under the category of general store advertising.
In the early 19th
century, Americans pro-
duced the majority of
their own food, clothing,
furniture, and other
provisions. They were
more inclined to buy
commodity raw materials
than finished goods. As a
result, companies did not
see the need to invest in
more than basic advertising
to associate their company Post office and general store in the ghost town of St Elmo, CO
name with the goods they
provided. The public did
Antique 6 drawer spool cabinet not have to be taught
sold for $875 at Harp Gallery to distinguish between
goods within most
categories; consumers judged products by inspection and by merchants’
reputations, not by brand names. Often, in rural communities and small towns,
the simple availability of a product was its strongest selling point.
Industrialization Bypasses The General Store
By 1840, industrialization was leading more goods being produced in
American factories than in American homes. Demand would outstrip supply
for several more decades as a robust post-Civil War economy expanded West,
thanks to the rapid growth of inter- and intra-state rail transport throughout
those rural communities. These frontier families were often in search of the gold
and accompanying business opportunities that opened up in California. This
movement brought new market opportunities for makers and manufacturers of
finished goods, products, equipment, and luxury items from larger established
cities to bring them to the West. Most of those products came through the gen-
eral store first, with the storekeeper as the arbiter of what products and goods
would be made available to his customers. He based this on his understanding
of their needs and the socially acceptable norms of his community. As a result,
consumers in rural, particularly farming communities had limited options and
choices for goods based on what the local storekeeper selected or could source.
In big cities and growing towns, stores could solicit new customers by simply
hanging a decorative sign outside their place of business indicating the type of
establishment it was – boots for shoemakers, eyeglasses for opticians, and a
mortar and pestle for a pharmacy. Stores took out advertisements in the
newspapers of the day to list the products they carried (these were primarily text Shop in the mining city of Sonora, CA
with very few images) and the qualities of the many goods they sold. This
Journal of Antiques and Collectibles
22
necessities, but as the economy prospered after the Civil War, more and more
luxury items made their way onto the shelves. Not all these goods were locally
grown, made in the “Big City,” or even Made in America. Store ledgers from
the mid-1800s show such items as sugar from India, tea from China, coffee
from South America, fine fibers from Asia, and citrus fruits from Sicily. The
transport of goods over rail, rivers, and oceans, and the advent of refrigerated
transport in the second half of the century brought new goods from far off
places to new, growing consumer markets through general stores across an
expanding America.
More Than Just the Basics
Most of the food staples to be found in a 19th century general store would
be familiar to us today. In many instances items such as coffee beans, sugar,
flour, dried beans, spices, teas, molasses, and candy were displayed in bulk, to
be individually weighed and sold based on the customer’s requested amount.
Granulated white sugar was delivered in 100-pound sacks and then dumped
into a covered metal box to be scooped out, weighed, and packaged in paper
bags. Coffee beans also came in large sacks. When someone wanted a pound or
two the clerk scooped out the beans, weighed for amount, and then ground
them in a colorful, typically red, big-wheeled mill sitting on the counter. Few
items for most of the 19th century came to the general store in individual
packages or cans. A cash register and scales were common countertop staples.
The apothecary section of the store was well represented with a large number
of patent medicines, remedies, soaps, toiletries, and elixirs. In the dry goods Old General Store in Wyoming, Illinois
section, one could find bolts of cloth, pins, and needles, thread, ribbon,
buttons, collars, and undergarments, in addition to ready-made clothes, shoes,
and hats. All this in addition to farm equipment, rifles and ammunition, pots
and pans, lanterns, dishes, and dozens of other items of everyday life. By the
mid-19th century, shop owners were installing glass display cases and
expanding their offerings to include jewelry, musical instruments, cutlery, and
other items of refinement and recreation.
In addition to the tin boxes, wooden barrels, crates, sacks, candy, and
apothecary jars, and the beautiful wood and glass display pieces that make
general store items so much fun to collect, by far the most popular and highest
valued items for collectors fall under the category of general store advertising.
In the early 19th
century, Americans pro-
duced the majority of
their own food, clothing,
furniture, and other
provisions. They were
more inclined to buy
commodity raw materials
than finished goods. As a
result, companies did not
see the need to invest in
more than basic advertising
to associate their company Post office and general store in the ghost town of St Elmo, CO
name with the goods they
provided. The public did
Antique 6 drawer spool cabinet not have to be taught
sold for $875 at Harp Gallery to distinguish between
goods within most
categories; consumers judged products by inspection and by merchants’
reputations, not by brand names. Often, in rural communities and small towns,
the simple availability of a product was its strongest selling point.
Industrialization Bypasses The General Store
By 1840, industrialization was leading more goods being produced in
American factories than in American homes. Demand would outstrip supply
for several more decades as a robust post-Civil War economy expanded West,
thanks to the rapid growth of inter- and intra-state rail transport throughout
those rural communities. These frontier families were often in search of the gold
and accompanying business opportunities that opened up in California. This
movement brought new market opportunities for makers and manufacturers of
finished goods, products, equipment, and luxury items from larger established
cities to bring them to the West. Most of those products came through the gen-
eral store first, with the storekeeper as the arbiter of what products and goods
would be made available to his customers. He based this on his understanding
of their needs and the socially acceptable norms of his community. As a result,
consumers in rural, particularly farming communities had limited options and
choices for goods based on what the local storekeeper selected or could source.
In big cities and growing towns, stores could solicit new customers by simply
hanging a decorative sign outside their place of business indicating the type of
establishment it was – boots for shoemakers, eyeglasses for opticians, and a
mortar and pestle for a pharmacy. Stores took out advertisements in the
newspapers of the day to list the products they carried (these were primarily text Shop in the mining city of Sonora, CA
with very few images) and the qualities of the many goods they sold. This
Journal of Antiques and Collectibles
22
