In the absence of eBay, the internet, and SRP...where did men get their razors a hundred years ago? Especially when you remember this country was still more rural than urban then. We can guess, but I'm wondering if anyone has some evidence of where men typically got their razors, strops, etc. For instance, here's a link to some of the contents of a 1902 Sears Roebuck catalogue listing razors, hones, strops, even safety razors. Another clue I have is an old Keen Kutter str8 from Simmons Hardware in St. Loius...leads me to speculate that they could buy razors where they bought hardware.

Even further back (I should check some of the razor history timelines to see when str8s first were widely used) when long distance commerce was even more restricted and manufacturing less mechanized...before the likes of Sears Catalogues...where'd they come from?

I know getting shaved at a barber was more common then, but what about in between? I'm guessing most men still had a razor at home for daily maintenance.

What do you historians know about the pre-RAD methods of acquisition?

- Dale