The demise of the surplus store

[sunflo9968]

Remember back in the "day" you could go to the surplus store and get real surplus. Well, mine was "Linden War Surplus" in Linden Nj. Opened in 1946 closed 2001. Walk in see giant brass shell by the desk, then that smell... I think it came from the Ike jackets. The smell of wool and leather, piles of shoes in the back next to all the combat boots. Jackets, gas masks, alicepacks, wool socks, gloves etc. for me
If anybody has any similar experience let us know. That's where it started for me.

 

[Pa12]

We had a war surplus store downtown Toronto when I was a kid. My dad took us once or twice a month. Everything from clothing to jeeps and motorcycles. Long long gone now.

 

[Smithy]

Remember back in the "day" you could go to the surplus store and get real surplus. Well, mine was "Linden War Surplus" in Linden Nj. Opened in 1946 closed 2001. Walk in see giant brass shell by the desk, then that smell... I think it came from the Ike jackets. The smell of wool and leather, piles of shoes in the back next to all the combat boots. Jackets, gas masks, alicepacks, wool socks, gloves etc. for me
If anybody has any similar experience let us know. That's where it started for me.

Excellent post!

Going to the army surplus store was what we did back in the day. If you were going camping you'd go there with Dad to pick up some stuff for the trip be it stuff to cook with, make a fire, mess tins, etc, etc. When I reached my teenage years and up to uni age we used to go there to pick up West German parkas and combat boots and jumpers. Stuff was cheap which was great for penniless students but it worked and didn't fall apart.

I think the army surplus store thing is the original reason I prefer WWII field equipment and clothing if I can for doing stuff up in the mountains or in the woods here rather than modern brand name, over-priced crap which usually isn't made to the same level of durability.

 

[Silver Surfer]

dont get me started.

 

[B-Man2]

In Philadelphia Pa the store was the I. Goldberg and Sons Army Navy Surplus Store located at 4th and Market Sts. From the minute I first walked into the store I was in awe. Literally two long hanging racks of B-3s , A2’s, B-15a’s B-10s , tanker jackets and on and on, and every military jacket or uniform piece you could think of. Barrels of bayonets , m-3 knives , machetes , 60mm practice motar rounds , practice grenades, and on and on and on. From the time I was old enough to get on the subway and then a bus by myself I would make a trip to
I. Goldberg and Sons about once every couple of months . As the years went by and the military surplus dried out or was legislated out, Goldbergs started to replace vintage surplus stuff with camping gear , but they couldn’t make the same money and eventually they just disappeared. I haven’t been right since !!!

 

[Chandler]

There's one over the line from me in Kenosha, WI that I haven't been able to make time to investigate. I hope it doesn't close before I can get there.

But yeah, I mentioned that I purchased my first flight jacket at our local Army Surplus joint (they had more than surplus). Where I also bought a few hats, cartridge belts, and a full Vietnam era Alice system of the belt, suspenders, ammo packs, canteens and fanny pack. Yep. Needed that at 17!

 

[JonnyCrow]

Remember back in the "day" you could go to the surplus store and get real surplus. Well, mine was "Linden War Surplus" in Linden Nj. Opened in 1946 closed 2001. Walk in see giant brass shell by the desk, then that smell... I think it came from the Ike jackets. The smell of wool and leather, piles of shoes in the back next to all the combat boots. Jackets, gas masks, alicepacks, wool socks, gloves etc. for me
If anybody has any similar experience let us know. That's where it started for me.

The one we had in the UK near me was that full there was things hanging from the ceiling, boxes of stuff everywhere, M1 helmets and m43 jackets were cheap as chips back then

 

[JonnyCrow]

In Philadelphia Pa the store was the I. Goldberg and Sons Army Navy Surplus Store located at 4th and Market Sts. From the minute I first walked into the store I was in awe. Literally two long hanging racks of B-3s , A2’s, B-15a’s B-10s , tanker jackets and on and on, and every military jacket or uniform piece you could think of. Barrels of bayonets , m-3 knives , machetes , 60mm practice motar rounds , practice grenades, and on and on and on. From the time I was old enough to get on the subway and then a bus by myself I would make a trip to
I. Goldberg and Sons about once every couple of months . As the years went by and the military surplus dried out or was legislated out, Goldbergs started to replace vintage surplus stuff with camping gear , but they couldn’t make the same money and eventually they just disappeared. I haven’t been right since !!!View attachment 85097

Awesome eh Burt, a lot of stuff apparently got bought up wholesale for movie production, talking of that, here in Madrid the movie, the battle of the bulge was filmed, imagine how much surplus was left over after that production

 

[B-Man2]

JC
Not too many months after Saving Private Ryan was filmed, there was a load of surplus items from the movie on EBay . I’m hoping that after Masters of the Air comes out a lot of the surplus gear will be offered on the open market. I was reading another thread here that sort of hints around that Eastman Leather Company might soon be selling some goodies on the open market left over from that film series .

 

[JonnyCrow]

JC
Not too many months after Saving Private Ryan was filmed, there was a load of surplus items from the movie on EBay . I’m hoping that after Masters of the Air comes out a lot of the surplus gear will be offered on the open market. I was reading another thread here that sort of hints around that Eastman Leather Company might soon be selling some goodies on the open market left over from that film series .

Fingers crossed, years ago I bought some stuff from angel's of London, a helmet from a bridge too far and a smock from the eagle has landed

 

[ausreenactor]

Excellent post!

Going to the army surplus store was what we did back in the day. If you were going camping you'd go there with Dad to pick up some stuff for the trip be it stuff to cook with, make a fire, mess tins, etc, etc. When I reached my teenage years and up to uni age we used to go there to pick up West German parkas and combat boots and jumpers. Stuff was cheap which was great for penniless students but it worked and didn't fall apart.

I think the army surplus store thing is the original reason I prefer WWII field equipment and clothing if I can for doing stuff up in the mountains or in the woods here rather than modern brand name, over-priced crap which usually isn't made to the same level of durability.

I wish I had all the old WWII kit I switched for 'modern' stuff at Disposals stores in the 90s... Liners, helmet shells.... field gear.

 

[JonnyCrow]

I wish I had all the old WWII kit I switched for 'modern' stuff at Disposals stores in the 90s... Liners, helmet shells.... field gear.

Ooof me also, it was so available back then, and for collectors, German helmets, now you need a mortgage for one, that's if it's even genuine

 

[bn1966]

Picked up a scarf from ‘Band of Brothers’…

 

[petermack09]

Forces uniform and kit,, in the UK, the best surplus store I've found anywhere. The grade 1 stuff I've purchased from them has been fantastic.

 

[johnwayne]

Angels in London was/is of course a theatrical costumiers rather than an military surplus store of which as a kid there was a few here in SE London. I saw my first original painted A2 when very young in a military antique shop and that is I’m sure when the bug set in but back then and even later when I saw two guys in a pub wearing A2’s, the ability to research such stuff was limited. Ken Calder’s (Aeroleather) Thrift Shop in London’s Battersea area was what originally set me on a mission for an A2!!

 

[MauldinFan]

I have you all beat for my childhood.
Paramore's surplus in Mt Pleasant FL (near Quincy, closest real town is Tallahassee) was DA SHIZNIT.
They had Stuart Tanks out front, an early twin-rotor 1960s helo in front of the gate, twin pack howitzers at the main door, a Mercury pressure suit on a dummy in the office, WW2 drop containers hanging from the rafters, and dozens of buildings out back with all manners of surplus.
So many military vehicles, i couldn't even name them all (the two LARCs were cool to look at).
Oh, he had several WW2 halftracks out back, many of them converted to logging trucks. The only problem was old man Paramore didn't wanna sell the really gee-whiz stuff unless you showed up with an insane amount of money. As I understand it, one of the Stuart tanks was later restored and is in a museum in the Midwest now. God know where the rest of it was. It became a Superfund cleanup site in recent years...
Those photos almost brought a tear to my eye:

https://kentputnamphotography.files.wordpress.com/2011/07/dsc_0185.jpg

https://kentputnamphotography.files.wordpress.com/2011/07/dsc_0156.jpg

See the old store in the background? We'd usually get a Coke and a candy bar there either before or after a visit there. I hadn't thought of that in decades.
Growing up, we never had much money, but my brother and I would often beg Dad to take us out there to drool over all that stuff. Old Man Paramore let us inside the helo and to play inside it for a while. We couldn't get into the Stuart tank at the entrance because it was filled with bees.
My cousin came down from TN once and we all went there, and he bought a Vietnam era tank crew helmet in great shape.
Man, what I'd give to go back there in the 70s and a big wad of cash...

 

[JonnyCrow]

Angels in London was/is of course a theatrical costumiers rather than an military surplus store of which as a kid there was a few here in SE London. I saw my first original painted A2 when very young in a military antique shop and that is I’m sure when the bug set in but back then and even later when I saw two guys in a pub wearing A2’s, the ability to research such stuff was limited. Ken Calder’s (Aeroleather) Thrift Shop in London’s Battersea area was what originally set me on a mission for an A2!!

Exactly John but early days they did apparently grab original items through their suppliers and resources for movie use, I heard a lot of good stuff was trashed that way through film usage, extras etc but your correct initially a costumers, that para lid I grabbed though turned it to be a real BMB , it went to one reenactor after me, nice story of yours.

 

[Micawber]

I remember when 'Angels' was known as Bermans and Nathans was it not? Over here the Exchange & Mart was packed with tiny classified adverts for surplus and militaria and Millets used to flog proper surplus gear. Back in the olden days when everything was in black and white and my collecting bug was sustained by pocket and odd job money most Saturday markets included one or two stalls flogging surplus military clothing and gear the majority of which was from WW2. We all know the vast majority of stuff that could be bought for very, very little back then fetches good money now, but that is the same for very many things. The passing and ravages of time usually adds value. I have posted here and elsewhere that back then family and family friends would give me 'war stuff' that they considered virtually worthless in monetary terms as there was just so much of it about. Of course that is not the case now. Wardrobes, chest of drawers, garden sheds [including old Anderson air raid shelters and the like], private garages etc all provided rich pickings for brats like me who were fascinated by 'war stuff' that hailed from just a few years before.

The photo below was taken at a surplus dealers that was based in an old station yard in my home town. All those crates contained 'surplus and military vehicle stuff'. The mechanical and engineering material was still safely wrapped and sealed in its wartime Cosmoline. Yards such as this were not uncommon.

Coming back to a more domestic level things such as school, church and village hall jumble sales would often turn up gems for strange lads like me who were always looking to add to our collections. Here's a little illustrative story, just one of many...
I remember during a Saturday morning wander around town I spied a 'jumble sale' sign and an arrow pointing toward the top of the town centre. Several similar signs led me to a church hall opposite the bus garage. Venturing inside the hall revealed the usual scrum of old ladies of all shapes and sizes, almost all of them wearing those old lady hats or scarves they all wore back then. These old dears counted among their number some real demons who were not averse to using their elbows in your ribs or sensible leather sole shoes to crush your toes if you got between them and the Marks and Spencer or British Home Stores cardigan that they fancied. There was row upon row of tables piled high with old clothing, paperbacks, ornaments, the odd medal, photo albums, prints, amateur paintings, costume jewellery, the odd nice piece of old gold jewellery ... you name it. While you could sometimes stumble across the odd Irvin jacket or trousers, B or C Type helmets, British uniform and battledress jackets, WW1 'Brodie' and WW2 'tin hats', a few medals, 'death penny' plaques, webbing, civvy gas masks [now known to contain asbestos] etc. Given the closeness to the end of the war it is hardly surprising that Axis gear was not so common and was indeed still frowned on in certain venues and or their clientele. All this stuff could be has for pennies or maybe a few bob. Imagine my delight when among the M&S & BHS woolies and the like I saw a cracking WW1 German M-16 helmet complete with supple liner pads and chinstrap resplendent in classic field applied and virtually scratch free tan, green and brown cammo. I paid very little for that helmet and I don't think I have ever seen a better example, decades later I still miss it!

Living where I do plenty of current surplus gear turns up on the likes of FB Marketplace but I don't think I am of the right generation to find the vast majority of it of interest. There is actually a modern surplus store housed in an old WW1 building within five miles of here but I'm afraid that I've never been drawn by any of the synthetic, hi-tech gear I've seen hanging outside.

Enough inane waffle and rambling from me for one night!

 

[B-Man2]

Any flight jackets in there?

 

[billwong]

We had a war surplus store downtown Toronto when I was a kid. My dad took us once or twice a month. Everything from clothing to jeeps and motorcycles. Long long gone now.

Are you refering to King Sol or Hercules. I worked at both through high school.