When I was a kid in the 1970s, I learned a lot from car magazines like everybody else. The Fitzgeralds weren’t the Rockefellers, though, and we didn’t have fancy things like “magazine subscriptions” like the one-percenters. Occasionally, fortune would shine upon me and I’d find a couple of Hot Rods or Car Crafts on the free pile at the Wilmington Public Library, but mostly, I quenched my automotive desires with the Sears catalog.
I grew up in a network of Sears stores in Massachusetts and New Hampshire. My dad was a display manager, first at the store in Natick in 1965, then in Lowell, and then for most of my childhood in a massive store in that opened in Burlington in the early 1970s. Thirty-five years later, he’d retire from the company, back when people used to do things like that.
Growing up, everything — from the fridge, to the vacuum cleaner, to the tires rolling under our cars, to the paint on the walls– came from Sears. In my house, at all times, we had at least four Sears catalogs, and in the big books — not the Wish Books that would come out around Halloween — the center of the catalog right near the index was loaded full of automotive stuff. It was like a miniature JC Whitney catalog, with every kind of accoutrement you could buy to outfit your hot rod, Jeep or pickup, from hubcaps to sidepipes.
Sears, of course, also sold cars, as early as anyone in America sold cars. The catalog in 1909 featured a gas-powered buggy, and Sears branded its own line of Henry Js under the Allstate banner until deep in the 1950s.
Minibikes, mopeds and scooters were also part of the Sears catalog. Allstate Cruiseaires started out as American-made Cushmans in the 1950s, and quickly moved to rebadged Vespa 125s in 1952. I have a 1965 Allstate scooter in my garage now.
Motorcycles and motorcycle accessories were also part of the Sears catalog. The Allstate brand carried over to a badge engineered version of a Gilera from Italy, or later a Puch motorcycle from Austria.
You could also pick up some stylish motorcycle outfits, if you were ever planning on riding your Allstate across country to a Village People reunion.
Sears wasn’t a manufacturer of anything. It paid other manufacturers to build them, and put its name on them. With a bit of research, you can figure out who built what on just about any Sears product. By finding the prefix in the Sears model number, you can figure out who built your ratchet or your floor jack. Code 312 stood for Milwaukee Tools. 306 was Foley/Belsaw. 317 was Makita. 665, a company called Supreme Chucks of Chicago (which would be a great name for a steak joint.)
You can research your own codes at www.owwm.com/Craftsman/manufacturers.aspx?sort=1.
All of these things make me think of those days, long before the Internet, when my dad would walk through the door with a fresh copy of the catalog tucked under his arm, and I’d spend the next three months dreaming about the Pro-Trac ’60s and Cragar S/S knockoffs I’d put on the car I didn’t have yet.
Sears is where I got my construction worker outfit that I wore to last years reunion.
Heck ! Right up till the early 60’s you could purchase from the Sears Catalog 1) a House in kit form 2) Garage add on kit as well as several additions for the house 3) a Car /Motorcycle/Scooter/GoKart/Bicycle to out in the garage 4) Everything needed to enjoy/maintain all the previous 5) As well as a kit airplane or two 6) And a boat or three .. sailing , motor or row/paddle/peddle 7) All the furniture , appliances and accessories to kit out one’s home 8) A complete wardrobe for you , the wife and the kids 9) a storage shed to accommodate the overflow 10) Every lawn and garden implement/tractor known to man … powered or not 11) Not to mention almost every tool imaginable 12) Along with every plumbing/electrical /woodworking etc bits and bobs you could ever desire ….13) Any musical instrument you could think of 14) As well as a complete range of Stereo , TVs etc etc etc
And on and on and on … e.g. If you wanted or needed it . All bets are it was available thru the Sears catalog and just a phone call and delivery truck away . Not to mention available Credit to make the purchase less painful should you need it .
Ha ! And all these young punks thing the’ve got something new with their pretentious Internet bs . Heck … Sears was taking care of all your needs back before electricity was barely the norm and the telephone had just been invented 😉
Sears, J.C. Whitney and Mechanix Illustrated . . . the “gateway” places where a whole lot of kids from “square,” non-Hot Rodding families got their pre-teen gearhead fixes in the ’60s and early ’70s.
(Remember, Hot Rod magazine was still too closely associated in the minds of some parents and educators back in the day with Hollywood’s rebellious youth stereotypes . . . .smoking, drinking, carousing, “hippies,” and scofflaw “J.D.” behavior . . . .
And that was long before controversial stuff like swimsuit issues (notwithstanding the long -running “Parts with Appeal”) and slouchy-looking, potty-mouthed editors became regular content in HRM)
Hey Craig, that’s the Sears in Santa Monica, CA. It has not changed at all,……except for the loads of hybrids in the lot.
guitar slinger is right. The “Craftsman” style house you here about from realitors is an actual house built in kit form ordered from the Sears Craftsman part of the catalog.
Not to errr … be pedantic or anything ….. yes Sears sold many a fine house [ of all sizes and styles ] but in fact ‘ Craftsman ‘ is a style of house which has nothing at all to do with Sears or its Craftsman Tools subsidiary .
If its a genuine ‘ Sears ‘ house these days realtors will advertise it as such . 20 years ago Sears Kit Homes were all but impossible to sell … with many a homeowner/realtor going out their way to hide the fact . Today like so many other things … that which was ‘ Affordable ‘ is now a ‘ Collectable ‘ and therefore quite pricey .
Crazy a**sed world we live in …. but there you have it .
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@ John – +1
The Sears Christmas catalog was the highlight of the season in the sixties for me. A dream book for sure. Wish I had kept at least one. Thanks for refreshing those memories .
In the booming early 70s Sears and JCPenney dabbled in “Speed Equipment”. Mainly Air Shocks, Glasspacks and Mag Wheels. Not to mention the ever-popular three guage under dash panel found all the way down to K-Mart. Everything you need to make your ride obnoxious. Oh, yeah, pinstripe tape and tire crayons too!
Too easy? http://www.cartype.com/pages/3681/sears_allstate__1953
Sears is a shadow of what it was thanks to shitty Kmart. Those were the good old days.
Man sure miss the good old sears, and the quality products. when the wish book showed up we would all fight for first look.
Yeah I have 1970 Sears Runabout mini bike. 2 1/2 HP! Even JCPenney sold hi po stuff. They even sponsored a SS CAR. If I remember, it was a Plymouth, and used to promote their ” AFX” shifter. Remember it well. Good old days. Lived near Berger Chevrolet. Always cool stuff happening there.
Remember Sears also sold the Allstate car, which was a Henry J with
some trim, paint, interior and some other minor changes. All the
sheet metal was the same as the Henry J.
I think you hit a nerve with this one, I know you did w/ me. Nice.
I got my 1st. set of mag wheels from sears for my 62 vette when the chrome would rust on the outer rim (they had alum. centers and a chrome rim) they would give me a new one.
The opening photo is at Ala Moana Center in Honolulu, Hawaii.Ala Moana Center was the largest shopping center in the world until recently. The section at housed Sears is no longer there. all 3 floors were torn down to the ground last year. In Hawaii, Sears was THE store. We always had a Sears card for our car emergencies: batteries and tires, Tools, too!
Aloha!!!!!!!!!
My grandfather had the foresight to save both a JC Penny’s cna Sears catalog for me from 1974- the year I was born, with the intention for me to be able to see how life was as I came into this world. They both have a chapter full of automotive parts and accessories which is pretty cool to see. I sure wish they had them today.
Great article! I grew up in Portsmouth NH. We used to drive down to a big mall in Peabody, MA. My dad was gone in the military, I just remember the lead foot my mom had..lol. I remember drooling over those Sears go karts with my imagination running wild of the adventures I would have. I was a kid during the muscle car era, but I remember the cool Mustangs, GTO’s and ‘cud’s of the time. Great memories, thanks!