Inventory of the Arlie R. Slabaugh Collection of Direct Mail Literature, 1921-1953 and undated

Abstract

Arlie R. Slabaugh was a publisher, hobby shop dealer and mail order promoter, and collector of periodicals related to the mail order business.

The collection offers an overview of the mail order industry during pre-war and World War II-era in the United States. It is believed to have been created by Arlie R. Slabaugh, who was primarily a collector of coins and paper money, as well as a mail order promoter. The collection contains periodicals, amateur newspapers, hobby catalogs and printed ephemera, primarily from the 1930s-1940s, but also including examples from the 1920s and 1950s. Most are monthly periodicals, published as staple-bound or self-folding newsprint or glossy pamphlets, with some illustrations. Many of the items are regional in scope, possibly originating from major printing centers and distributed to local markets, particularly in the U.S. South, the Midwest and California.

Descriptive Summary

Repository: David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University
Creator: Slabaugh, Arlie R.
Title: Arlie R. Slabaugh Collection of Direct Mail Literature, 1921-1953 and undated
Language of Material: English
Extent: 3 Linear Feet, 450 Items
Location: For current information on the location of these materials, please consult the Library's online catalog.

Series Quick Links

Pamphlets and Catalogs, 1921-1953 and undated
Oversize Originals, 1934-1942 [Restricted]

Collection Overview

Restrictions on Access: Original newsprint items in oversize box are closed to researchers. Use copies are available in the collection.

Administrative Information

Collections are on the move for the renovation of the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library. Contact Rubenstein Library staff before visiting. Read More »

Access Restrictions

Collection is open for research.

However, access to some materials is limited to preservation use copies available in the collection.

Collection may contain materials to which the Acknowledgment of Legal Responsibilities and Privacy Rights form applies. Patrons must sign this form before using this collection.

Also, all or portions of this collection may be housed off-site in Duke University's Library Service Center. Consequently, there may be a 24-hour delay in obtaining these materials.

Please contact Research Services staff before visiting the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library to use this collection.

Use Restrictions

The copyright interests in this collection have not been transferred to Duke University. For more information, consult the copyright section of the Regulations and Procedures of the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library.

Contents of the Collection

Browse List of Series

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Pamphlets and Catalogs, 1921-1953 and undated

5 Boxes

Contains periodicals, amateur newspapers, catalogs, handbills, coupons and other printed ephemera, primarily from the 1930s-40s, but also including examples from the 1920s and 1950s. Most are monthly periodicals, published as staple-bound or self-folding newsprint or glossy pamphlets, with some illustrations. Pencil notations appear in some items. Arranged alphabetically by title.

ACME: Information Budget and Business Aid. Gordonsville, Va.: Square Deal Press, undated

Box 1

Ad-Guide. Chicago, Ill.: Chicago Union Advertising Agency, 1941

Box 1

Ad-Lines. Indianapolis, Ind.: Ad-Man Press, Jan.-Feb. 1932

Box 1

Advertiser 8, no. 3 (1938)

Box 1

Advertisers' Mail Order Bulletin 1, nos. 9, 10 (undated)

Box 1

Advertisers' Press 2, no. 37 (1941) (Preservation use copy)

Box 1

Arrival 3, no. 8 (undated). Pasadena, Calif.: Association of American Writers

Box 1

Austin Advertiser. Cambridge, Mass.: Henry Stone, Aug. 1941

Box 1

Associated Syndicate Newspapers. Detroit, Mich.: Midwest Publications, 1941-1942 (Preservation use copy)

[Includes vol. 1, no. 12; vol. 2, no. 4]

Box 1

Bell's Gold Nuggets. Marysville, Calif.: Luther C. Bell, undated

Box 1

Blake's Advertiser. Burlington, Iowa: G. Blake Company, Sept. 1941

Box 1

Burdge Press 5, no. 5 (1954). Camden, N.J.: J. Milton Burdge

Box 1

California Advertiser. San Francisco, Calif.: California Advertiser, Apr. 1930

Box 1

Central Mail Advertiser. Oakland, Md.: Arlie Slabaugh, Aug. 1941-Mar. 1945

Box 1

Clarion. St. Louis, Mo.: Standard Press, Sept. 1937

Box 1

Consolidated Money Making Opportunities 2, no. 9 (1932). Mobile, Ala.: Elyod Publishing Company

Box 1

Co-operative Ad-Circulator 163 (1942)(Preservation use copy)

Box 1

Co-operative Market, Aug. 1941

Box 1

Daily Dollar. Chicago, Ill.: Arthur Sizemore, undated

Box 1

Direct Mail Success. Dallas, Tex., 1941-1945.

[Includes vol. 2, no. 8; vol. 3, nos. 9-10, 12; vol. 4, no. 5]

Box 1

Dollar Fax 3, no. 1 (1940)

Box 1

Emergency Money Collector 2, nos. 2-3 (1953)

Box 1

Empire Mail Trade News 2-7 (undated). Gloucester City, N.J.: Mail Mart

Box 1

Evers Earner 10, nos. 1-2 (1938). Elmhurst, N.Y., Harry Evers

Box 1

Exchange 8, no. 1 (1942)

Box 1

Good News 1, no. 7 (1941)

Box 1

Guide to Good Reading, 1941-1952

Box 1

Hobby Humor 1, nos. 1-4 (1943-1944). New York, N.Y.: American Publishers

Box 1

Hobby Spotlite 2-3 (1942-1943). Oakland, Md.: Spotlite Publications

Box 1

Home Industries. Omaha, Neb.: C. C. Melota, 1934-1938

[Includes vol. 2, no. 7; vol. 6, no. 1]

Box 1

Home Worker 9-40. Chicago, Ill.: Arthur Sizemore, undated

Box 1

Home Worker 41-67. Chicago, Ill.: Arthur Sizemore, undated

Box 2

Hutter's Advertiser. New York, N.Y.: William Hutter, 1942-1943

[Includes vol. 1, nos. 9-10; vol. 2, no. 2]

Box 2

I Want to Buy. River Forest, Ill.: Forest Print Shop, 1940-1941

[Includes vol. 1, nos. 9-10; vol. 2, no. 2]

Box 2

Income Increaser. Boston, Mass.: George W. Bucknam, 1936

Box 2

Increasing Sales by Mail. Edited by William C. Summers. Progressive Publications, undated

Box 2

Independent Salesman 16, no. 8 (1939). Cincinnati, Ohio: Independent Salesman

Box 2

Inner Circle: Behind the Scenes in the Mail Order Field. Atchison, Kan.: Mark Warden, undated

Box 2

Keystone Mail Service 2, no. 1 (1934)

Box 2

Lady Guide 1, nos. 3, 8 (1941)

Box 2

Latest Moneymakers 2, nos. 10-11 (undated). Seattle, Wash.: C. A. Bryant

Box 2

Liberty Mail Order Digest 3, no. 5 (1932)

Box 2

Mail Order Advertiser 4, no. 11 (1934)

Box 2

Mail Order Business 5 (1935) (Preservation use copy)

Box 2

Mail Order Chat, 1931-1932

[Includes vol. 1, no. 7; vol. 2, no. 7]

Box 2

Mail Order Digest Syndicate 59-73 (undated)

Box 2

Mail Order Iconoclast 12-22 (undated). Little Rock, Ark.: Associated Commission Mailers

Box 2

Mail Order Ideas 1, no. 1 (1932)

Box 2

Mail Order Journal, Sep. 1942-Dec. 1943. Edited by Nicholas De Vore

Box 2

Mail Order Man 1-6 (1941-1942). Chicago, Ill.: Illinois Association of Mail Order Men

Box 2

Mail Order Man's Timely Tips 3-14 (1931-1942). Paulding, Ohio: O.E. Brune

Box 2

Mail Order Men's News 8, no. 3 (1937). Oyster Bay, N.Y.: Mail Order Men's Service

Box 3

Mail Order News, undated

Box 3

Mail Order Opportunities Magazine. Parkersburg, W. Va.: Herbert R. Gant, 1942

[Includes vol. 2, nos. 3-4]

Box 3

Mail Order Salesman 1, no. 3 (1937)

Box 3

Mail Order Selling: Trade Journal of the Mail Order Business. Chicago, Ill.: Lind Publishing Company, 1939

Box 3

Mail Order Selling: The Modern American Salesman, 1928-1933

[Includes vol. 7, no. 6; vol. 12, no. 3; vol. 13, nos. 1-2]

Box 3

Mail Order Speculator 5, no. 6 (1935). Chicago, Ill.: Sliss Speculations

Box 3

Mail Order Success: A Magazine for the Circular Mailer 8, nos. 6, 8, 10, 11 (1934)

Box 3

Mail Order Success: A Monthly Publication for the Mail Order Trade 5, no. 8 (1934). Pirates Cove, Fla.: Thomas MacPherson

Box 3

Mail Order World, 1944, 1947

Box 3

Mail Sale Advertiser 7-23 (1941-1953). Jefferson City, Mo.: Dixon Advertising Agency

Box 3

Mail Trade 2 (1941). Waterbury, Conn.: James Ives

Box 3

Mail Trade Mimeos, Aug. 1941

Box 3

Mailindustries 1 (1941). Vicksburg, Miss.: Mailtrade Company

Box 3

Marketing by Mail 10, no. 3 (1939). Jackson Heights, N.Y.: Darion System

Box 3

Midget Collector 1, no. 2 (1921). Swayzee, Ind.: Gale Zirkle

Box 3

Miscellaneous circulars, 1934 and undated

Box 3

Miscellaneous leaflets, handbills and coupons, ca. 1940s-1950s

Box 3

Money-Making Ideas 4 (1934) (Preservation use copy)

Box 3

Money by Mail 19 (undated). Vancouver, B.C.: Pacific Advertising Service

Box 3

Money by Mail 21-30 (undated). Somerville, N.J.: Blackstone Press

Box 3

Monthly Confidential Bulletin 3 (undated). Little Rock, Ark.: Associated Commision Mailers

Box 3

National Mail Order Advertising and Selling, 1941-1943

Box 3

National Opportunity 110-111 (undated)

Box 3

New Times 1, no. 2 (1937). New York, N.Y.: New Times Company

Box 3

Opportunity Dollars Work Book 8, no. 1 (1940). Burlington, Kan.: James R. Varvel

Box 3

Opportunity Seekers Manual: Big Profit Moneymakers. Portland, Or.: Bagley Publications, 1941-1942

Box 3

Palmer's Magazinette. Chicago, Ill.: Palmer's Publications, 1939, 1942

Box 4

Partners, 1941-1942

[Includes vol. 5, no. 7; vol. 7, no. 11]

Box 4

Philatelic Mail. Chicago, Ill.: Charles Palmer & Son, 1941, 1942

Box 4

Popular Advertiser. Buffalo, Minn.: Bison Research Service, 1941, 1942

Box 4

Productive Postage. Gettysburg, Pa.: Battlefield Press, 1933-1937

Box 4

Profitable News 2, no. 11 (1938)

Box 4

Profits 2, no. 3 (1934). Laurel, Md.: Patuxent Press

Box 4

Profits from Classified Advertising, undated

Box 4

Progressive Mail Trade, 1941-1946

Box 4

Prosperity Magazine 10, nos. 7-10 (1939). Chicago, Ill.: Arthur Sizemore

Box 4

Publicity. New York, N.Y.: Samuel K. Gibbs, Nov. 1937

Box 4

Reliable Circular Mailer's Bulletin, 1933-1934

Box 4

Relics: The Magazine for Hobbyists. Sacramento, Calif.: P. Smith, Sr., May-Dec. 1945

Box 4

Roadman's Guide. J. C. Burrow, undated

Box 4

Rural Printer. Hampton, Va.: Rural Print Shop, 1938-1942

[Includes vol. 15, 19-20]

Box 4

Sales Opportunities 1, no. 5 (1935). Albert Lea, Minn.: George Hopkins

Box 5

Schemer. Alliance, Ohio: Lewis Patterson, 1932-1951

Box 5

Shop Bulletin 1, nos. 1-6 (1946). Romney, W. Va.: Printing Shop

Box 5

Spare Time Industries, Feb. 1938

Box 5

Spare Time Selling Magazine, Sept.-Oct. 1932

Box 5

Spring Magazine Bargains, 1951-1952

Box 5

Something Different 33, no. 5 (1937). South Whitley, Ind.: Stump Printing Company

Box 5

Southwestern Mail Order Journal 2, no. 1 (1942). Denton, Tex.: Southwestern Publishing Agency

Box 5

Success Advertiser. Cleveland, Ohio: Art Publishing Company, 1934 and undated

Box 5

Swapper's Friend 9-10 (1938-1939)

Box 5

Three M Service. Argyle, Wis.: undated

Box 5

Tidewater Advertiser. Hampton, Va.: E. C. Wood, 1942-1943

[Includes June, July 1942; Jan. 1943]

Box 5

Tip Top Salesman 25-27 (1951-1952)

Box 5

Universal Times 4, no. 11 (1942). Chelsea, Mass.: Royal Advertising Service

Box 5

Western Advertiser. San Francisco, Calif.: Mail Order Studio, 1943

Box 5

Winner Mail Order Digest 4, no. 3 (1933). New York, N.Y.: John H. Winn

Box 5

Oversize Originals, 1934-1942 [Restricted]

1 Box

This series contains original amateur newspapers removed from previous boxes. Accewss is restricted to Use Copies available in previous series.

Advertisers' Press 2, no. 37 (1941)

Box 6

Associated Syndicate Newspapers. Detroit, Mich.: Midwest Publications, 1941-1942

[Includes vol. 1, no. 12; vol. 2, no. 4]

Box 6

Co-operative Ad-Circulator 163 (1942)

Box 6

Mail Order Business 5 (1935)

Box 6

Money-Making Ideas 4 (1934)

Box 6

Historical Note

Arlie R. Slabaugh of Oakland, Maryland, and Virginia, was born in 1925. He worked as a publisher, hobby shop dealer and mail order promoter. He was also a numismatic historian, an expert on Confederate States paper money, monies and medals from prisoners of war, and Japanese invasion money and wrote a book entitled Confederate States Paper Money, first published in 1961 by Whitman Publishing Company. During the 1930s and 1940s, he also published his own collector magazine, Hobby Spotlite.

Date	Event(s)
1925	Born
1941	Joined the American Numismatic Association (ANA)
1954	Appointed the Associate Editor of Numismatic Scrapbook Magazine
1967	Began work for Franklin Mint
1981	Won the Numismatic Literary Guild Clemy Award
1989	Won the Krause Publications Ambassador Award
1991	Won the ANA's Medal of Merit
1997	Won the ANA's President's Award
2004	Won the ANA's Lifetime Achievement Award
2007	Died in Springfield, Pa.

Subject Headings

Related Material

Related materials can be found in the J. Walter Thompson Companycollections of: Marketing Vertical Files; and the Ted Wilson Papers. Other materials can be found in the American Association of Advertising Agencies Records the Abercrombie & Fitch Quarterly Catalog Collection; and the Sears, Roebuck and Company Catalog Collection.