Victorian Advertising - Stouter

Vintage Advertising "trade" card for a department store
Circa 1880s
Newcomb & Co., publishers

Frear’s Troy Cash Bazaar, Troy N.Y.  

                

While New York City and Brooklyn had some of the largest and finest department stores, other cities across the country were not slow to follow. Up the Hudson River in prosperous Troy, NY, an enterprising dry goods merchant named William Henry Frear was making a name for himself with the largest and most fantastic department store upstate. Shoppers came from miles around to shop at Frear’s Troy Cash Emporium. He had customers from as far away as Utica and central New York, the Adirondacks, as well as much of Vermont and western Massachusetts.

By 1894, his store had grown from one section of downtown Troy’s Cannon Building to the entire block long structure, and had then spread into annexes as well. In 1897, he had a magnificent new building built a few blocks away, a large gleaming marble temple devoted to shopping, and Frear’s was once again the talk of the town.

The Frear’s building is one of Troy’s downtown treasures. It stands on the corner of Fulton Street and Third Street, and at its opening, and for many years afterwards were four large stories of shopping wonder. Frear’s bragged that it had over 53 different departments, selling everything from clothing to silver to candy.

Trade cards typically have a picture on one side and an ad on the other. There were custom cards printed for specific products, and stock cards which could be used for any product. Trade cards were popular for medicines, sewing, and farm equipment, and a range of other products. 

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