I’m so excited two weekends ago I went vintage shopping with my vintage shopping BFF in crime and stumbled upon this amazing find in the bottom of a glass case (yay for having eagle eyes). A very good condition 1942-1943 Fall and Winter Montgomery Ward Catalogue (note: please see a better written PART TWO post HERE).

Montgomery Ward Catalogue 1942 1943 Vintage WW2 Homefront front cover 1940s fashion

1942-1943 Fall and Winter Montgomery Ward Catalogue

Some of you might be asking…..

“What is Montgomery Ward“?

Montgomery Ward was created by “Aaron Montgomery Ward” in 1872 as the first every dry goods mail-order catalog business in Chicago Illinois. After several years of working as a traveling salesman among rural customers. He observed that rural customers often wanted “city” goods but their only access to them was through rural retailers who had little competition and offered no guarantee of quality. Ward also believed that by eliminating intermediaries, he could cut costs and make a wide variety of goods available to rural customers, who could purchase goods by mail and pick them up at the nearest train station (Wikipedia-Montgomery Ward).

Montgomery Ward Firsts and Highlights

The Slogan “satisfaction guaranteed or your money back”, Ward began using in 1875 (he created it)

In 1883, the company’s catalog, which became popularly known as the “Wish Book”, had grown to 240 pages and 10,000 items

By 1904, the company had grown such that three million catalogs, weighing 4 pounds each, were mailed to customers

1926 the first Retail store is opened

1929 saw Montgomery Ward Double its stores to 531 across the United States

In 1939, as part of a Christmas promotional campaign, staff copywriter Robert L. May created the character and illustrated poem of “Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer.” Six million copies of the storybook were distributed in 1946. The song was popularized nationally by the actor and singer Gene Autry

1950’s saw the store fall into its eventual downfall as the company was slow to respond to the general movement of the American middle class to suburbia. It’s competitors (like Sears) built stores where the customers where, Montgomery Ward chose to stay in City Centers and Main streets where the customers no longer shopped like they used too

1985 the catalog portion of the business closes

December 28th, 2000 Montgomery Ward makes the announcement that it will shut its doors for good (Wikipedia-Montgomery Ward).

Wow that is some history, terribly sad that the business ended up closing its doors in the end though 🙁

All that sad part aside, lets take a look at some of the pictures from the Catalogue shall we? (Note: You will be seeing more of this book in future posts as I plan to use it as reference for blog posts to come).

Brief Look Inside a Vintage Montgomery Ward Catalog

Look at those Victory Suits…beautiful!

FURTHER READING: The Skirt Suit: A Fall Fashion Trend. The 1940s Edition

1940s Fashion: 1940s Womens Skirt Suit as seen in a 1940s Montgomery Ward Catalog

Yes please I will take all the velvet dresses and hats and jackets..how perfect would these be for the holiday season??

1940s Womens Fashion - Women's fred & green dresses, jackets, hats, purses and more as seen in a 1940s Fall and Winter Montgomery Ward Catalog.

Look how handsome these boys are?? I wish my nephews dressed like this.

1940s boys fashion (Sweaters & cardigans) as seen in a Montgomery Ward 1942 & 1943 Fall and Winter Catalog.

Look at the ruffles and the pinks and the flowers? WOW! my husband would kill me if I brought any of that into my home (and to be honest, I think it’s a bit too much for me too lol)

1940's bedspreads as seen in Montgomery Ward 1942 & 1943 Fall and Winter Catalog.

So there you have a sneak peek into my recent vintage purchase. Hope you enjoyed learning a bit about Montgomery Wards and browsing the pages of the catalog just like so many people did back in 1942-43.

Until next time!

REMINDER: Montgomery Ward Catalog Fall Winter 1942-1943. Part 2 & Vintage Wallpaper Ideas from a 1940 Montgomery Ward Catalog

Liz

I love saddle shoes, I always have and for a vintage loving gal of the 1940s and 1950s I think it’s important to have a pair in your closet. I do…of course (see below all dressed up for a Halloween Party, but I really dress like this all the time lol!)

The Vintage Inn Blog & Toronto Vintage Society Halloween 2017

Disclosure: Some of the links on my blog from Etsy , eBay, Unique Vintage, RocknRomance Vintage & Collectif are Affiliate Links, meaning, at no additional cost to you, I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase.

Many people when they think of saddle shoes they think of 1950s poodle skirts and Elvis and that is partially true but did you know that the shoes were originally created for athletic use? When? 1906! Yes the saddle shoe was around almost 50 years earlier than many people think.

What does a saddle shoe look like?

Saddle shoes originated from an Oxford shoe (flat heel, lace up leather shoe). The black distinguishing middle piece, the “saddle” was originally created to help support the instep during sports…Surprise surprise! The rest of the shoe is white which was the traditional look but the shoe can also be found in other colours too. Note: Young college aged men and women wore this shoe.

1940s Vintage Ad for Saddle Shoes for Edgewood Shoes featuring Saddle Shoes for Women and Men.

1940s vintage ad for Saddle shoes as seen in a vintage catalog featuring shoes in different price ranges.

Saddle shoes for everyday wear for women

The shoes could be worn with swing skirts or dresses and bobby socks for a night of jitterbug/Lindy hop or match them with a blouse and pants (rolled up or normal). Here are some great examples of how you could wear your saddle shoes.

Saddle shoes moved from an athletic shoe only seen during sports to everyday during the late 1930s, early 40s as young women looked for shoes that were more functional and represented their more active lifestyle. Plus there was a ration on the size of a shoe heel during the war and the low heeled saddle shoe fit the bill.

1940s Vintage Photo of three girls in plaid dresses wearing saddle shoes.

1950s vintage photo of a woman holding a small purse and wearing saddle shoes.

1940s vintage photo of a woman wearing pants, swimsuit top and saddle shoes sitting next to a man in uniform and another woman in 1940s dress.

As the war ended and 1950s hit almost every young women/college girl had saddle shoes in her closet. The below picture is pretty standard when one thinks of the 1950’s teenager (even though below is more costume then what was typically worn).

So there you have it the brief history of saddle shoes. Now go out and put some in your closet today! I recommend Etsy , eBay (you can buy new ones on there), Unique Vintage (brand new & seen below),

Happy Shopping!

Liz

Further Reading:

For more vintage images of men and women in saddles shoes, please check out my dedicated Pinterest Board “Saddle Shoes“.

Vintage Photos from 1940s and 1950s of people wearing Saddle Shoes

Category: Vintage Fashion