Promotional Items from Pusch, Martin and Company

Promotional items which were once given away to customers of the Pusch, Martin and Company in downtown Sandusky were donated by the Steinert family to the Follett House Museum. Pictured above is a print that shows a smartly dressed young woman walking her dog near Niagara Falls. Another print features a lovely lady who appears to be emerging from a waterfall, with a rainbow overhead.

The company’s stamp appears on the back of each item.

The Pusch, Martin and Company store was at the northeast corner of West Market and Jackson Streets from about 1910 to 1913. In the 1920s, E.B. Ackley had his billiard parlor at this location. Edwin D. Martin and Edward W. Pusch were the proprietors of the store, which sold ready to wear clothing for women. 

This 1913 advertisement from Pusch, Martin and Company, states that the “North Shore” ready-made dresses sold there were “good enough for anybody and cheap enough for everybody.” Dresses for women ranged in price from $1.40 to $2.98. Children’s dresses sold for ninety-five cents. Aprons and rompers cost less than a dollar each.

The partnership between Mr. Pusch and Mr. Martin was dissolved in August of 1913. Soon after, Edward W. Pusch opened a dry goods store in the 600 block on Hancock Street. Edwin Martin went on to work as a salesman for the Globe Paper Company.