Before 1930, urban Americans lived within walking distance of grocery stores.
Home delivery was available for big orders, so in-store customers bought just a few items
and carried their selections to
the checkout in hand baskets. The Great
Depression inspired discount
supermarkets with large stock lists,
no frills and no home delivery. Customers
with cars could bring lots of items home,
but hand baskets limited what they could
carry to the checkout counter. In 1937, to
help people buy more per visit, Oklahoma
grocer Sylvan Goldman designed a four
wheeled folding frame with two hand
baskets. His folding basket carrier was
the first shopping cart. It soon caught
on and the carts were used in stores all
over the country including Commissaries.
Grocery cart, shopping basket, buggy, lorry,
push cart, trolley, whatever you call them,
we've now had them for 80 years. With a
minute of history I'm Tamara Eastman.
