Sandusky’s 14th Semi-Annual Hancock Street Sale in 1925

From February 3 to February 14, 1925, a sale was held by several merchants whose businesses were located on Hancock Street in Sandusky.  A large advertisement which appeared in the February 1, 1925 issue of the Sandusky Register stated, “The Whole Street Ablaze with Bargains – Come, Get your Share.” In the 1920s, the H and S Modern Baking Company (maker of Betsy Ross Bread) had their main bakery at 625 Hancock Street, with another retail store located on Columbus Avenue. At that time, baked goods from the bakery were still transported by horse and wagon.

L.A. Biehl, who had a drug store at the northwest corner of Monroe and Hancock Streets, sold valentines for one cent, and advertised Crane’s candies during the February sale. Shoppers could get to Hancock Street easily via the streetcar, which ran down Hancock Street.

Image circa 1900

The many ads in the Sandusky Register for the Hancock Street Sale were indicative of a different era. Lange’s Grocery still made home deliveries, and the Hoffman Coal Company served the many Sandusky residents who heated their homes and businesses with coal. Al O. Pietschman sold button hooks and shoe horns for one cent each. Pusch’s and the Parrot Art Shoppe both sold ladies’ bloomers, along with many other products at their stores.

Browsing through historical newspapers can provide hours of learning and entertainment, as one notices how some things change over time, yet some things remain the same. Visit the Sandusky Library Archives Research Center to view local newspapers dating back to 1822, available on microfilm and online.

When Sandusky Businesses Made Home Deliveries

Before the advent of automobiles and supermarkets, several businesses in Sandusky delivered their products to the homes of area residents. The E.C. Sprau grocery store had a horse and wagon that made deliveries, seen in the picture above, taken about 1908. A young man and child, with a horse and wagon from the Lewis Neill, Jr. Dairy were parked at the rear of St. Mary’s Church in Sandusky in 1910.

               

Employees of several local bakeries made deliveries to both homes and businesses throughout the years. Mrs. C. Frank’s bakery was first located on Tiffin Avenue, and moved to Columbus Avenue near Neil Street by 1902.

               

Below is the wagon fleet of the H and S Modern Bakery on Hancock Street in 1920.

            

Esmond Dairy started making dairy deliveries by horse drawn vehicles, but eventually the company switched to refrigerated trucks. The Esmond Dairy began in 1907, and ceased operations in the late 1970s or early 1980s.

        

In the 1930s and 1940s, both ice and coal were delivered by the City Ice & Fuel Company.

Before there were electric refrigerators, Sandusky residents ordered ice from the ice man. Customers put a card in their window, indicating how many pounds of ice they needed for the ice box. This ice card from the City Ice & Fuel Company, now in the Industry Room at the Follett House Museum, allowed customers to indicate whether they wanted 25, 50, 75, or 100 pounds of ice.

The popularity of online shopping has actually increased home delivery of consumer goods in recent years, but of course, it is a very different method of sales and delivery. Now, you don't see your sales person, and the money you spent leaves your community. Amazon, Ebay, and many other online retail sites display their products on a computer or mobile device, and with a credit card, ordering is quick and easy. 

Vintage Views of Bakeries in Sandusky

Before Amandus Smith, Sr. co-founded the H and S Modern Baking Company with Edward Hartzel in 1918, he operated a bakery at Tiffin and Pearl Streets in Sandusky.  Pictured below is a photograph of the H and S Modern Bakery on Hancock Street which was taken in 1920. Eventually the H and S Modern Baking Company had facilities at 625 Hancock Street, 221 East Monroe Street, and 244 Columbus Avenue. The company also had facilities at other locations in Sandusky through the years. The H and S Modern Baking Company continued in business in Sandusky into the early 1950s.

Conrad Frank founded a bakery business in Sandusky about 1882. After his death, Mrs. Conrad Frank continued to operate the bakery for thirty-four years, until shortly before she passed away in 1926.

Check out the loaf of bread from the Armbruster Bakery, which was in business in Sandusky in the 1920s.

John Armbruster and Sons Bakery was located at 1614 West Jefferson Street for most of the 1920s in Sandusky.

These are not the only bakeries that have existed in Sandusky through the years, but unfortunately we do not have photographs of every historic business in the area.  Visit the Sandusky Library to find listings of bakeries and many other businesses in the Sandusky City Directories, which date back to 1855.

Betsy Ross Bread and the H & S Modern Baking Co.

A truck with loudspeakers can be seen above promoting Betsy Ross jumbo bread about 1936. Betsy Ross Bread was a favorite product of Sandusky’s H and S Modern Bakery. Newspaper ads stated that Betsy Ross Bread was made with creamery butter and rich cream milk. In 1926 Miss May Neville chose Betsy Ross Bread for the recipes she used in the Sandusky Star Journal cooking school. The advertisement below, which appeared in the March 29, 1929 issue of the Sandusky Star Journal, suggests that mothers of Sandusky preferred Betsy Ross Bread because of its wholesome ingredients.

Betsy Ross bread could be purchased at local grocers or from retail wagons that made deliveries in Sandusky. In 1951 a loaf of Betsy Ross bread sold for 18 cents.

The H and S Modern Baking Company was founded in Sandusky about 1918 by Amandus Smith, Sr. and Edward Hartzel, and continued in operation until the early 1950’s. Eventually the H and S Modern Baking Company had facilities at 625 Hancock Street, 221 E. Monroe Street, and 244 Columbus Avenue. The company also had facilities at other locations through the years.