A short tribute to George L. Herter

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The Herters had a lot of good advice, too.

On safety. Herter's No 1 Rule of Firearms Safety: Never go hunting or shooting with someone who stands to gain by your accidental death.

On health. Pack your food and drink in metal containers or glass reinforced with tape. The Mayo Clinic says you cannot sterilize plastic. (They had a lot of advice from the Mayo Clinic, being a good Wisconsin organization.)

On hospitality. If hunting in rural Mexico, it is all right to take a drink of tequila if offered; it is about like Southern Moonshine. Do not accept a drink of mescal. It is made with funny herbs and mushrooms and you will wake up three days later missing all your valuables.

On hunting. It is about as easy to shoot a gorilla as it would be to shoot your neighbor in his back yard. And it should be punished the same way.
 
I think Richard Lee studied descriptive advertising writing at the feet of George Leonard and Jacques Pierre Herter. He just doesn't have Cree Guide Association approvals and uses plastic instead of "farbenglas". I keep my last Herters catalog in a safe place along with "Bull Cook Recipies", "How to live with a Bitch", and the sourdough book.
 
I have a 1968 +- Herters catalog...the ultimate wish book for a budding outdoorsman. It is as good reading as any fast paced novel, in my opinion! I have a modest collection of Herters brand knives...skinners, butchers, bowie, etc. Not worth much, but great serviceble knives that help with butchering every year.
 
I've got a couple things, including a couple .300 Sav die sets that work very will on my RCBS Rockchucker press.

Father in law had a 401 Power Mag, never fired it. Seems as though ammo was discontinued shortly after he bought it. Brother in law has it now, but no telling what he did with it. He insisted it was worth thousands, but all of his stuff is.... Gunbroker disagrees.....
 
George was born this week in 1911. He was a Captain in the Army, but much more famous for starting Herter's sporting goods store in Waseca , MN. He had a retail outlet store as well as a catalog mail order business. He pioneered the business's that are now like Cabela's , and similar type sporting goods outlets. I visited the Herter's stores a few times as it was abought 65 miles or so from where I live. He was the inventor of the pistol cartridge called the .401 Power Mag as I recall.
He sold two basic rifles in various chamberings, and imported them from Europe . One was made with the Mauser action, the other from the BSA action. Also sold were barreled actions, and so called 90% finished stocks in various grades of wood. I enjoyed mostly going through a separate small building, but next to the main store where they sold their close out or flawed items. On one visit there was a paper 55 gal drum stuffed with barreled actions. $25 for the Mauser, and $35 for the BSA barreled action. I chose a Mauser action made by FN in 7mm Magnum. On further search I found a cherry wood stock for $10 with nice grain. A lot of stock work later I had a nice 7mm mag firearm for $35.
George was also an author writing colorful cook books and a survival type book How to get out of the rate race and live on $10 a month. I could go on and on, but better stop here. If anyone has comment on their experience with Herter sporting Goods feel free to comment. Particularly abought the .401 Power mag if you have one, or any other guns bought from them. All were imported I believe. (U9 and J9 ?)
When I was a teenager I ordered a lot of archery supplies from them. I used to make my own arrows and bought a fletching tool,nocks, points, feathers, etc from Herters. This was in the late 50s and 60s.
 
Wish I had a nickel for every round turned out on this Herter's #3 press I bought in 1954 or 5. ETA: If I did, and could find any, I'd even be able to afford to buy primers today!!:rofl:
View attachment 1001577
It was my first, and only press until 1983 when the Dillon progressives were added for competition ammo requirements. It is still serving me well for all my single stage hunting ammo and when mated with the Primal Rites CPS priming tool handles precision priming duties nicely.
That looks exactly like my press. I inhereted it and for what I do it is all I've needed. There's a Herter's branded scale and trimmer, from the same era, late 60s early 70s I imagine. I have a Lyman press I've never mounted, cuase the single stage does fine and I'm still a noob as they say.
 
I have a U9 Deluxe 30-06, the U9 is a BSA action, the J9 was a Zestava, Yugoslav action, not FN.

I was pretty sure my Mauser barreled action was marked FN, but then I also was aware they bought from different European suppliers. As to the U9 and J9 perhaps we can talk hps1 into looking into that in the 1975 catalog he pictured . Herter's made some bad business moves. They were caught selling protected bird feathers and fined. Then caught again as I understand it, and really got nailed for doing so . They closed the Waseca store and built a nice modern store in South Dakota. I visited it once and I don't remember another customer being in the place. The location just was not near enough population to be viable. I had a few catalogs, a couple cook books, and the "How to get out of the rat race and live on $10 a month" book. I sold them all over the years. I still remember in his one cookbook he sported a story of how I believe it was Bill Hickock liked his steak fried in a cast iron pan (with butter as I recall), and adding a shot of of whiskey. I tried it, and it was horrible. Better in his other book was a medium can with a few hot charcoal briquets in it, and then a smaller can suspended at the top with honey in it. Used to draw in bears. That trick works fine.
 
George in later years was something of an eccentric, rarely seen in the office and communicating by memos left on desks. He built quite an empire, but much of it was based on being the Harbor Freight of outdoor companies and a line of BS that first brought grins but then grew tiresome. A unique, colorful and successful entrepreneur, all the same.
 
but much more famous for starting Herter's sporting goods store in Waseca , MN. He had a retail outlet store as well as a catalog mail order business. He pioneered the business's that are now like Cabela's , and similar type sporting goods outlets. I visited the Herter's stores a few times as it was abought 65 miles or so from where I live.
Used to have a barbershop-gun shop in our town growing up well north of *The Cities* that would order-in from many places acting somewhat like a Sears Catalog Store for sporting goods.

The shop would be littered with everything from Shotgun News to actual Holland & Holland catalogs and order blanks.

Mel - the owner & head barber - liked to have fellas pick items up in such a way as to be shown off to other town sportsmen in his shop.

Herter's, Kittery and others were common sources. I think Abercrombie & Fitch out of N.Y. and some outfitter operation in Washington State were big as well.

It was an interesting small town situation in that an item would come in and Mel would try to call (remember - no cell nor even answering machines) and then commence to engage the net comprised of barber shop loafers, passing-by drop-ins and such.

Eventually, *everyone* knew a package was in for Shmedley and where it was from and would find themselves conveniently present when Shmedley rolled 'round to pick it up.

It should be noted that Mel could be as sly and discreet as a proctologist when you made it clear up front that that was what you wanted.

One example of that was my uncle who ordered-in or pilgrimaged down to the store for duck decoys. There were some incredible examples available from Herter's in the day. My uncle was throughout his life ADAMANT that his decoys were vintage family heirlooms and wouldn't be caught dead buying new. They'd come in on the Q.T. to Mel's and then get ghosted out to his farm for a bit of patinafying before ever being used.

Another memory of Herter's was that was where the *serious* guys got their moose&bear guns. Regular folk went to "Jack's Sporting Goods" on the river or the Coast to Coast Hardware.

Every couple-three years someone would make the drive down to corn-country to the store to see what was up down there. I don't think I ever went. That'd have been a bit too close to the Iowegains and that country down there bored me to death.

Todd.
 
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I remember JC Higgins and Ted Williams but Hillary is a new one to me, any idea when his name was on sporting goods?
Sir Edmund Hillary is recognized as the first (recorded, Western, known, etc...) man to climb Mt. Everest to the summit. He was accompanied by Sherpa mountaineer Tenzing Norgay who was also noted at the time.

So any use of his name for 'outdoor' stuff was after that, probably soon after that. As you indicate, Sir Edmund is not that famous after 68 years or so. Sic transit gloria mundi.

I have to explain Elmer Keith to some.
 
We bought some guns from Herters. No dealer price list. You sent a check and your ffl, they sent the gun an hour "commission" check. Their five shot auto shotgun was a dead ringer for the Browning. Dad's A5 barrel slipped right in but we didn't shoot it.
 
As a young boy my uncle had Herter's catalogs, I too drooled immensely on this catalog. I did order a Model Perfect Widgeon call, and when i was about 25(70 now) I order 357 and 44mag reloading dies that I use to this day. Herters had good stuff Too bad they went out of business. My uncle ordered a "Hydro FiN" from Herters which was a device that you attached to the transom of a skiff with a clamp like an outboard motor, the tiller arm was pushed side to side propelling the skiff with out having to paddle. As I recall it worked as advertised!!

Herter always had lots of stories and information about how good his model perfect gear was! It was fun to read all his info even though it was somewhat embellished. I still have a few catalogs that I cherish.

I agree old George Herter should be memorialized. thanks for posting about his birthday!!

Boy those were the days!!!

Bull
 
Sir Edmund Hillary is recognized as the first (recorded, Western, known, etc...) man to climb Mt. Everest to the summit. He was accompanied by Sherpa mountaineer Tenzing Norgay who was also noted at the time.

So any use of his name for 'outdoor' stuff was after that, probably soon after that. As you indicate, Sir Edmund is not that famous after 68 years or so. Sic transit gloria mundi.

I have to explain Elmer Keith to some.

You didn't post anything that I didn't already know and failed to answer the question!
 
I still have a few of Pappy's glass rods built with stuff from the Catalog along with the Jig for wrapping the guides and several of the long wire leaders he made for Canada along with the spoons where he up-sized the hooks and soldered the split rings shut. I remember being around 11 and seeing all this stuff on our first trip with him to Ontario. He was a big Herter's customer
 
I do not recall Dad ordering any thing gun related.. (He probably did) .but I do remember a math lesson before I knew multiplication tables.
A gross is 144. 12 X12. That was how fishing hooks were ordered.
 
I was pretty sure my Mauser barreled action was marked FN, but then I also was aware they bought from different European suppliers. As to the U9 and J9 perhaps we can talk hps1 into looking into that in the 1975 catalog he pictured . Herter's made some bad business moves. They were caught selling protected bird feathers and fined. Then caught again as I understand it, and really got nailed for doing so . They closed the Waseca store and built a nice modern store in South Dakota. I visited it once and I don't remember another customer being in the place. The location just was not near enough population to be viable. I had a few catalogs, a couple cook books, and the "How to get out of the rat race and live on $10 a month" book. I sold them all over the years. I still remember in his one cookbook he sported a story of how I believe it was Bill Hickock liked his steak fried in a cast iron pan (with butter as I recall), and adding a shot of of whiskey. I tried it, and it was horrible. Better in his other book was a medium can with a few hot charcoal briquets in it, and then a smaller can suspended at the top with honey in it. Used to draw in bears. That trick works fine.
I have a reprinted 1965 edition I think it is of the big Herter’s catalog. It goes into great detail about the BSA made U9 action and the J9 had been replaced with a different designation being a German built Mauser 98 pattern action, maybe Mauser, but not a Belgian FN. If you check Wicopedia you’ll see they got it wrong too. They do describe the BSA actions as well as the Zestava but they call the BSA action the J9 and Zestava a U9 which is incorrect. Imagine that, Wicopedia being wrong.
 
Not the best copies, but the 46 YO catalog binding is getting a bit weary.

Regards,
hps
Thanks hps1 for taking the time to clear that in my mind. Having a couple strokes can mess up a persons memory at times. A poor excuse, but it is all I got besides old age. 1971 was the year I built that rifle. I know that as it was the year of my 5 year class reunion. 50 years has passed - where did my life go ?
 
I remember my Dad taking us to a Herters store in Olympia, WA, which was the big city to me when I was a kid in the 70's. Way more stuff than the little store in our small town; however, it was way smaller and more intimate than the Sportsman Warehouse and Cabelas we have today.
 
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I remember JC Higgins and Ted Williams but Hillary is a new one to me, any idea when his name was on sporting goods?

At least into the 80s.. maybe even the 90s. I had some of the Hillary camping gear. Notably a tent, a sleeping bag and I think even a coat. I don't remember much else. I do remember not knowing who Edmund Hillary was until after buying the tent.
 
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