"A dazzling trove for students of Americana." Time...

Take a trip "south of the border" with this arrangement of a classic Mexican folk song. Schaum keeps the piece at the late elementary level, even though it sounds quite a bit harder. This piece is a crowd-pleaser, effective for festivals and competitions.

Faithful reprint of the retailer's Christmas catalog offers a nostalgia-inducing look at consumer goods of the 1940s, from toys to housewares, clothing, furniture, candy, and a selection of gifts for servicemen.

Located on the site of the original Sears Tower, the historic Sears, Roebuck and Company catalog plant is one of the nation’s most unique landmarks. Representing American ingenuity at its best, Richard Sears and Julius Rosenwald combined technology, commerce, and social science with bricks and mortar to build “the World’s Largest Store” on Chicago’s West Side. Completed in 1906, the plant housed nearly every conceivable product of the time: clothing, jewelry, furniture, appliances, tools, and more. The complex employed 20,000 people, and merchandise orders were processed and delivered by rail—within the same day. During the first two decades of the 20th century, almost half of America’s families shopped the over 300 million catalogs published in that era. WLS (World’s Largest Store) Radio broadcasted the Gene Autrey show from the top of the tower, and the first Sears retail store opened here on Homan Avenue and Arthington Street. In 1974, Sears moved to the current Sears Tower. Thanks to many individuals who fought to save these architecturally and historically important treasures, the administration building, the original Sears Tower, the catalog press-laboratory building, and the powerhouse remain today. There are currently plans for redeveloping these buildings into housing, office, and retail space. A new Homan Square Community Center stands on the site of the merchandise building.

Reprint of rare original catalog includes huge illustrated selection of building materials, fixtures and trimmings, complete with descriptions, specifications, and prices. Hundreds of black-and-white illustrations.

A fascinating piece of history and a window to turn-of-the-century America. The Sears, Roebuck & Co. catalog was the Amazon.com of its day, giving American families across the country access to thousands of items from clothing and furniture to buggies and hair tonic. Whether they could buy it or not, people would pour over the massive volume that represented an icon in American retail. The 1908 Sears, Roebuck & Co. Catalogue offers an amazing look at life in early twentieth-century America. Sears, Roebuck & Co. have defined and innovated American retail for years, As the company grew from humble beginnings, it’s catalog selection exploded to include all sorts of categories and encompassed almost everything imaginable. With merchandise ranging from ordinary to fantastical (and almost all of it priced at the pennies-on-the-dollar rate of the time), browsing through this vintage collection is sure to be an enjoyable experience.