I dunno' about everywhere but the great unwaswhed heartland was nuts for stamps. In Columbus the stamps were in competition with each other and I tell you true, people's buying habits had a LOT to do with which stamps a business gave out.   My family, like many others, saved them all. Our favorite was "Top Value" which were yellow and S&H Green stamps.....I don't recall their color. There were also Buckeye stamps and Plaid stamps. All had stores/redemption centersns in Columbus.

They all had catalogs too and granted, much of the stuff was crap but some was decent quality, brand name stuff. We got a number of things that were popular with the post-war, suburban generation of the 50's and early 60's. We got TV trays.....remember those? EVERYONE had TV trays and it seemed a contest to see which had the best. We got a Sunbeam electric skillet which got used and a deep fryer that didn't (after the first few times). I don't recall what all we did get but pasting the stamps in the books and keeping track of them fell to me and I felt privileged that I should be given this important task.

Later I spent quite a few years as a gas jockey before we opened the shop. You felt different about the stamps if you had to give them out. It was one thing for a grocery or other business to give them at the register but in those days you sat in your car and the a gas jockey came out and pumped your gas, cleaned your windows, checked the oil, washer solvent, battery level, etc. When he finished he collected your money at the car window and gave you your change right there. There was a credit card imprinter out there too but on rainy days it was inside. Stamps were given back with the change from a pad you carried in a stamp wallet. It was an incredible pain in the ass, especially in the rain. Gawd forbid you didn't round to the higher dollar and preferably 10 bucks of stamps for an $8 purchase. At a station across the highway form us, a guy was really mad about his bill which originally had been priced at 200 bucks but ended up costing more. The owner calmed him and kept him as a customer by giving him stamps for TWICE the final amount of the bill.

BTW, if you saved up enough Raleigh coupons yo could get a freee chest x-ray! (old joke)


Spaw