J.H. Herman Carried the Columbia Grafonola for Christmas, 1919

In December, 1919, the J.H. Herman store sold the Columbia Grafonola. The grafonola was a type of phonograph which was used to play recorded music. In the 1920s, the grafonola was popular with music teachers all across the U.S. In the book The Grafonola in the Class Room, the Columbia Graphophone Company pointed out that music helped to cultivate contentment, faith, hope and love, and brought people together from all walks of life.

In the December 12, 1920 issue of the Sandusky Register, an advertisement from the J.H. Herman Company showed several models of Grafonolas. A special Grafonola Christmas Club offered customers a plan in which payments could be made over time.

The J.H. Herman Company was Sandusky’s “largest furniture store” for many years. It was at the southeast corner of Market and Wayne Streets in Sandusky from about 1906 until the late 1940s, when Mr. Herman moved his furniture store out to Cleveland Road. By 1948 Bing’s Furniture was at the site of the former J.H. Herman furniture store. Since the late 1980s, Value City Furniture has been in business at this location.