George Leonard Herter lived on the southwest corner of Clear Lake here in Waseca. Very few photographs have ever been published of him, in fact the only two
I have ever seen are in his Find A Grave entry in the link below.
George L. Herter Find a grave entry.The author of the New York Times article linked below is an obvious fan of George's writing style and perhaps a collection of well read and worn Herter's Catalogs reside in his library or on a night stand near his bed to provide comforting thoughts before dozing off or perhaps hoping for it to fertilize the subconscious mind in hopes of having an adventure during those moments when sleepy dreams take over for an alert state of mind. George may be gone, but, is there any doubt that his wordsmithing skills are unsurpassed?
The Oddball Know-It-AllHaving run a barber shop in Waseca for many years and having observed the goings on within the area there is one thing that George accomplished that few people can lay claim to in their own lives. Like Ted Hustead of Wall Drug Store fame in Wall, South Dakota, George Leonard Herter made Waseca a destination for tourists from all over the world. It never fails to amaze me the number of out of town people that would stop at my barber shop and ask for directions to Herter's even though it had been bought out by a Chicago liquidator in the latter part of the 1980s. Most were middle aged men and older, some with children or grandchildren in tow wanting to be living those simpler times in life that has escaped almost all of us now, but, the longing still exists. Before they left to search out their boyish Valhalla I would dig out the Herter's catalog I kept at the shop and let them relive those days of their youth when everything was new and we were all inquisitive and wanting to learn about everything in the out-of-doors world we wanted to trek in our spare time. Many a young lads' dreams of their future were enriched by George's prose. Virtually everyone that I let peruse the shop's copy of the Herter's catalog wanted to buy it. Some of them even offering fifty dollars for it! It may have been lost on some, but, George's catalog is undoubtedly the standard that New York City advertising agencies strive for, although Times Square is woefully underpowered and undoubtedly much more expensive to maintain over time. George's catalogs are over fifty years old now as well as out-of-print and are still selling product. If you don't believe me just go to eBAY and type HERTER'S into the search bar.
As for the Herter's rifle in question, I have lived in or within 10miles of Waseca for all of my near 70 years and have never heard of a A()NT Hubert Co in Waseca, MN. I still have the J-9 barreled action that I purchased in 1969 that I put into a Herter's Walnut semi-inletted stock that I worked on in shop class at the public school that I attended. Try that today and see if you get arrested! It is in .270 Winchester and as others have mentioned the bolt stop is not the best design.
Now, before I sign off, I find myself compelled to mention one other thing: It has been said by others that there is a fine line between advertising and B.S., I prefer to think of the Herter's Catalog as a tool for educating oneself.
