I found this Fuller Brushes brochure in an old couch that belonged to my grandparents many years ago. It comes from a time when door-to-door sales were popular, before
I thought the phone number on the pamphlet was interesting (phone 6211). When I read that I got an image in my head of a telephone switchboard operator plugging in those numbers to put the call through. The person placing the call would tell the operator what number they wanted and the operator would plug electrical cords or switches into the corresponding numbers on the board to connect the call.
Watkins salesman travelled the countryside for years selling health remedies, baking products and household items. Many a farm woman has a story to tell about hiding from the Watkins man when she had no extra money to spend. The company got its start when J. R. Watkins began selling liniment in 1868 door-to-door in southeastern Minnesota. During World War II, the company helped the Allied war effort by filling orders for dried eggs, powdered juice packets, vitamin tablets and hospital germicide. In its heyday during the 1940's Watkins was the largest direct-sales company in the world.
My mom recalls the Rawleighs man coming to her parent's farm in the 1930s when she was a young girl. Rawleighs ointment was one of the popular products in their "Good Health Products" line that also included other medicinal treatments, cleaners, brushes and spices. The Rawleighs Company was started by an American in 1906 and used the Watkins business model.
Travelling salesman were a common sight back then. A knock came at your door and a salesman would be standing there looking for shelter for the night. They would often be offered a place to sleep by families; in their house or in the barn. If the farmer wasn't comfortable with them staying over, he would tell them to keep on going down the road. Travelling salesman would travel by horseback, horse and wagon or on foot.
today’s working families and our safety consciousness made door-to-door selling almost unheard of.
If you have read any of my blog stories, you probably have figured out that I am a curious sort. When I found this pamphlet, it got me thinking about the history of travelling salesmen.
The Fuller Brush man was following in the footsteps of travelling peddlers that went back many decades. They were a welcome sight then by people who lived in remote areas. The wares they peddled and the news they learned along the way and shared with each new potential customer was cause for excitement.
I thought the phone number on the pamphlet was interesting (phone 6211). When I read that I got an image in my head of a telephone switchboard operator plugging in those numbers to put the call through. The person placing the call would tell the operator what number they wanted and the operator would plug electrical cords or switches into the corresponding numbers on the board to connect the call.
Watkins salesman travelled the countryside for years selling health remedies, baking products and household items. Many a farm woman has a story to tell about hiding from the Watkins man when she had no extra money to spend. The company got its start when J. R. Watkins began selling liniment in 1868 door-to-door in southeastern Minnesota. During World War II, the company helped the Allied war effort by filling orders for dried eggs, powdered juice packets, vitamin tablets and hospital germicide. In its heyday during the 1940's Watkins was the largest direct-sales company in the world.
My mom recalls the Rawleighs man coming to her parent's farm in the 1930s when she was a young girl. Rawleighs ointment was one of the popular products in their "Good Health Products" line that also included other medicinal treatments, cleaners, brushes and spices. The Rawleighs Company was started by an American in 1906 and used the Watkins business model.
Travelling salesman were a common sight back then. A knock came at your door and a salesman would be standing there looking for shelter for the night. They would often be offered a place to sleep by families; in their house or in the barn. If the farmer wasn't comfortable with them staying over, he would tell them to keep on going down the road. Travelling salesman would travel by horseback, horse and wagon or on foot.
When I was a kid on the farm in the sixties, a travelling salesman came selling bedspreads and large glass framed pictures. He somehow managed to talk my dad into buying one of each. Mom asked him what the heck he bought that for, but he was quite proud of his purchase and my brother and I thought it was a bit of an adventure. I now have that 32 by 18 inch picture in my house and think of the travelling salesman whenever I look at it.
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