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Town of Newfane Historical Society’s Apple Blossom Times Since 1975 Spring 2019 Inside This Issue Spring is in the Air which we hope you enjoy! President’s Letter From the desk of our President One last thing: if you appreciate our newsletters, Minute History It was a wonderful autumn for the society, as I encourage you to renew we created great new memories from our fall your annual membership. The catalog that changed fundraisers. We had good turnouts for the They also make great gifts the world Apple Harvest Festival, Candlelight Tours at for others! Please check your the Van Horn Mansion, and our Annual Carol newsletter address label for Members Update Sing. Thanks to all our society members and current member status. Save the Date volunteers who made these events successful; Members up for renewal have asterisks * at the your hard work was very appreciated! end of their name. Use the enclosed form, or Historical Fun Fact Unfortunately I do not have everyone’s order online at newfanehistoricalsociety.com. names who helped, and thus don’t want to Membership is a vital way to support our society, Van Horn Mansion Tours single certain people out while appearing to especially during these quieter months. neglect others. Please know your efforts made a Calendar big difference in keeping our historical society Enjoy the coming spring, and we look forward to alive and well! writing again in May. Minute History As our locations are closed for the winter, this edition of our newsletter has additional space Vicki Banks For a short time Olcott was a to allow for a more extensive historical article, President known port on water routes at a time when boating was among the fastest ways to travel. Boats and ships of The catalog that changed the world all shapes and sizes passed The immeasurable effect of the Sears, Roebuck & Co. Catalog through Lake Ontario, many in view along Olcott’s The idea that a sales catalog was as a global-altering and diamonds. Sears’ methods proved successful, shoreline. Some stopped achievement may seem like an unusual perspective. allowing them to sell the business in 1889 for for overnight or lengthier Many simply see the Sears, Roebuck & Co. catalog $100,000 ($2.8 million today). visits, allowing locals to find as an effective sales tool, or an early form of modern income from boat building, retail. Even more today aren’t aware it ever existed. Yet Sears and Roebuck remained friends, and in 1892 repairs, and boarding everyone’s lives, even now, have been affected by the they returned to the mail order business, forming passengers. catalog, which began thanks in part to a wholesale Sears, Roebuck & Company. They created catalogs scam forcing retailers to pay for unordered which offered a wide assortment of products, and A number of schooners were merchandise. focused sales on rural areas without easy access to built in Olcott, and the supplies. By 1894 the catalog grew to 322 pages, and following is a partial list of A condensed history kept expanding as new products were added every their names and year year. Among them were...(continued on page 3) contruction completed: In 1886 a jeweler in Minnesota, wise to the scam, Monterey 1847 denied a shipment of watches he did not order. Gem 1849 While awaiting return at the nearby telegraph office, Conquest 1853 22-year-old station agent Richard Warren Sears saw Governor Hunt 1853 the watches as an opportunity to make a good profit, Ruby 1854 so he purchased them. His charm and sales instincts Joseph Grant 1855 helped him sell out quickly, allowing him to start Corsican 1862 his own business, R. W. Sears Watch Company. To further boost profits he began direct-to-mail orders using flyers and printed advertisements. Thanks to his innovative writing style of friendly sales pitches, his business was a great success. In 1887, Sears relocated to Chicago and hired his first employee, 23-year-old watch repairman Alvah Curtis Roebuck. Together they created their first catalog to sell watches, jewelry Apple Blossom Times Page 2 Save the Date! 43rd Apple This section is an ongoing record of our amazing members. Blossom Festival Special thanks to the following for Sunday, May 19th at 10am their continued support: at our Country Village Marvin Croop 2685 West Creek Road Bruce & Rosemary Garber Newfane, NY 14108 R. Jeanette Hamminga Mickie Kramp Free Admission! Joanne Popp Lindemann Susan Mandaville Check out our summer (May) newsletter Joseph & Nancy Miller Mary Ann Miller for details, or visit our website now: Rosemary Miller NewfaneHistoricalSociety.com Welcome to our newest members! Susan Pilon Beth Wood & Kris Sniffen Historical Fun Fact R.W. Sears famously wrote Find Us At Newfane 365! every line of copy in the early catalogs, March 21, 6-9pm but after he retired at the Olcott Fire Hall the task fell to a series of writers. The Newfane Tourism Board’s annual showcase of the town is nearly here. See Among them was displays from local businesses, organizations Edgar Rice and events. The evening is free and open to Burroughs, who the public. The Newfane Historical Society went on to later will be there, so visit our display and pick up fame as the creator our 2019 event calendar listing our yearly events. of Tarzan. Van Horn Mansion public tours return April 7th Stop in for a complete guided tour of our living museum, which lasts about 90 minutes. It includes a journey from cellar to attic, covering everything from local history to architecture, along with our resident ghosts! The mansion is open for tours from 1-4pm on Sunday afternoons from April 7th through November 17th (excluding holidays). The cost is $5.00 per person, or free for society members. We also offer special tours, private rentals and more. Learn more at NewfaneHistoricalSociety.com. Apple Blossom Times Page 3 (continued from page 1)...toys, food, building supplies, appliances, along with occasional special live animals, furniture, saddles, musical instruments, weapons, books, editions for holidays or new carriages and bicycles. products. The books were so popular they began charging Roebuck sold his part of the business in 1895 to Chicago businessmen 25 cents per issue, and for a Aaron Nusbaum and Julius Rosenwald (Sears and Rosenwald time waived the cost on any bought Nusbaum out in 1903). The company then expanded the orders over $10. Despite the product line to sell nearly anything a customer could desire. The new fee, the books continued business maintained great success for nearly a century, to expand readership, which included popular allowing Sears and his department stores and design staff to greatly going public on the stock improve the publication. market. Other business They added color ink in 1897 to sections. Among the benefits of color ventures included a bank, was the specialty catalog featuring paint options in true shades. In 1905 travel agency, photography they introduced specialty books that included full color and texture studios, TV and radio wallpaper samples, and swatches of clothing. stations, and Chicago’s tallest building, the Sears Both Sears and Rosenwald also felt it was important to offer strong Tower. They also created customer service, quality products and simple ordering, no matter who Discover credit cards, the purchaser was. Their simple, warm and customer-first approach Craftsmen tools, Kenmore helped it stand out among their competitors. appliances, Allstate insurance, and co-created They employed translators who could read and write in many languages one of the first home to assist with the incoming orders. The mail staff were also required internet services, called to accept payment and orders no matter whether they were proper Prodigy. The company forms or written on a scrap of paper (something their competitors did officially became Sears in now allow). This was an enormous benefit for the millions of illiterate 2004, due to its colloquially Americans who could finally make purchases, regardless of their shortened name already understanding of ordering protocol. Rules such as these helped further used by many. the catalog’s appeal to the masses while also bettering American lives. Unfortunately the business could not compete with changing The Sears, Roebuck & Co. catalog was so successful because it sold an markets in the 21st century, due to the endangered catalog business, ideal of middle-class life to generations of Americans. It also featured growing internet sales, and an inability to keep up with changing low cost but necessary items such as underwear, towels and bedding, retail (which they had achieved successfully for decades prior). Sears products that continued to sell and keep the company growing through stopped their legendary catalog sales in the 1990’s and eventually the Depression. declared bankruptcy. The retail empire survives in minimal form, yet its future remains uncertain. Boosting equality Bringing the store to you It is the Sears, Roebuck & Co. catalog that, without a doubt, had altering effects the world over. They purposefully targeted rural areas in In an era when print media reigned supreme, Sears dominated the early years, seeing the large, underserved market. Living far from cities, rural retail market through its huge catalog, an amazing work of product farmers and small communities could only get supplies from nearby advertising, consumer education, and general stores that often charged high corporate branding. R.W. Sears was prices and high-interest credit. Sears a master in sales, slogans and catchy and Roebuck offered an extensive line phrases. He was also very aware of of products at clearly stated prices, his various consumer bases, allowing most with photos or images to show him to appeal to a broad audience.
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