Few Canadians have seen a Hudson’s Bay Company catalogue and understandably so. The Company’s Department Store mail–order business was operated only from 1881 to 1913; today copies of the original catalogue are extremely rare. The Company opened Western Canada’s first department store in Winnipeg in 1881, a stone’s throw from walled Fort Garry. The treasures of the first store are all here in the Autumn and Winter 1910-11 catalogue. The choicest of prime furs, the best diagonal tweed, and the finest quality beaver are used in the manufacture of ladies’ coats. Men’s ‘Renown’ suits of pure worsteds in fashionable shades can be purchased for only $15.00; the finest 9 x 12 Wilton, Axminster, and Brussels rugs from European looms are priced from $24.50 to $36.50. The famous Point blankets, guns, camping equipment, and wines and spirits are prominently displayed. The catalogue is a visual delight—a welcome addition to libraries, a superb teaching aid for schools, and an exciting gift for all those interested in another era.

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