Muir's 1-Cent Sale Ad – October 1, 1953

Drug stores – including the ones that are no longer around – have been a recurring topic on this blog.

In our area, there seems to be one located at every major intersection, whether it's Drug Mart, Rite Aid, Walgreens or CVS. I'm still partial to Drug Mart; that's where I get my prescriptions, and I shop there practically every day. The others? I've never warmed up to them, even though they've been around a long time.

But we all remember the stores that are no longer around, including the big chains like Revco, Cunningham's, and Gray Drug, as well as the little ones like Boston Drug Store in Downtown Lorain. And of course, the independent pharmacies such as Whalen Drug and National Pharmacy kindle the fondest memories of all.

One of the regional chains that I've written about several times is Muir's. It started out as a drug store but eventually evolved into more of a discount store.

The branch in Lorain on Broadway was actually the 'original parent unit' of the 30-store, which was based in Grand Rapids, Michigan. And here is an almost full-page ad for the store that ran in the Lorain Journal back on October 1, 1953.

Front and center is the store's mascot, the Thrifty Scot. (Back then it wasn't politically incorrect yet to depict Scotsmen as notorious cheapskates.)

It's an odd ad. If you look closely at the products on sale, you'll have a hard time finding any recognizable brands. Instead, you find weird ones like Dewey Nose Drops, Lady Fair Cleansing Cream, Q-Wick Room Deodorant, Spotoff Cleaner and Baby Bunting Baby Powder.

Speaking of Baby Bunting, it's one of the few items that I was able to find an image of. Here's a container of it.

A look at the back of the can possibly reveals how it came to be included in the Muirs portfolio of products: the company that manufactured it – Dewey Products Co. – was located in Grand Rapids. 

I guess they produced the Dewey Nose Drops in the ad as well. (Somehow that name make me think of a drippy nose.)

I was also able to find a package of Smiles Blades that somehow survived. That illustration of the beaming, clean-shaven guy is great.

But seeing how the hirsute look is in, and facial fuzz is the norm, I imagine that razor blade sales are fairly dull these days.

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You can see a 1949 Muirs ad here (the post also mentions Jungle Larry, who was the manager of the store), and read about the 1964 closing of the Lorain store back here;