Aunt Sally’s Boutique (Salvation Army nickname)
The Salvation Army was founded in 1865; its thrift stores raise money on donations of gentlely used items. The nickname “Aunt Sally” for the Salvation Army’s thrift store in New York City was used by 1976, and “Sally’s Boutique” has been cited in print since at least 1979. “(Aunt) Sal’s Boutique” has also been used.
Wikipedia: Salvation Army
The Salvation Army is an evangelical Christian church known for charitable work. It is an international movement that currently works in over a hundred countries.
It was founded in 1865 in the United Kingdom by William and Catherine Booth as the East London Christian Mission with a quasi-military structure.
30 January 1976, New York (NY) Times, “Salvation Army’s Favorite Customer” by Angela Taylor, pg. 49:
When it came time for Pablo Manzoni to furnish his house in the country, he decided to add thriftiness to his reputation for being amusing and chic. He succeeded—with $5 lamps, $20 tables, a $200 sofa. Most of it is from Aunt Sally’s, as bargain hunters call the Salvation Army’s thrift shop.
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Pablo had an even smarter idea—he went to Aunt Sally’s, which is what some bargain hunters call the Salvation Army’s thrift shop in the unfashionable purlieus of 46th Street between 10th and 11th Avenues.
Google Books
Charity U.S.A.
An investigation into the hidden world of the multi-billion dollar charity industry
By Karl Bakal
New York, NY: Times Books
1979
Pg. 325:
Countless budget-conscious New Yorkers have furnished their apartments, entirely or in part, at Aunt Sally’s — their affectionate name for the Salvation Army’s three-story block-long emporium in midtown Manhattan, the largest of its 147 stores in the Greater New York area — where they can pick up everything from $5 lamps, $20 tables, and $200 down-cushioned brocade sofas to bric-a-brac, glassware, crockery, cooking utensils, appliances, and books for 10 cents apiece, regardless of title.
14 January 1979, Aberdeen (SD) Daily News, pg. A12, col. 5 ad:
Come See The Savings At
“SALLY’S BOUTIQUE”
THE SALVATION ARMY
THRIFT STORE
Google Books
Fairfield, a History of the District
By Vance George and Brenda Pittard
Fairfield, N.S.W.: Council of the City of Fairfield, New South Wales
1982
Pg. 212:
Near the original Citadel is Sally’s Boutique, a fund-raising activity of the Salvation Army.
Google News Archive
17 August 1989, Ludington (MI) Daily News, pg. 3, col. 1:
Salvation Army sets “free day”
The Salvation Army has announced its annual free day will be held Friday at the Salvation Army Store (Sally’s Boutique), 513 S. James St.
30 December 2000, Providence (RI) Journal, “Salvation Army puts a premium on thrift” by Richard Salit, pg. B1:
TO ITS adoring fans it’s not the Salvation Army. It’s Sal’s or Aunt Sally’s or Sal’s Boutique.
Google Books
The Starving Artist’s Survival Guide
By Marianne Taylor and Laurie Lindop
New York, NY: Simon & Schuster
2005
Pg. 92:
Sal’s Boutique
At the Salvation Army you can often find a velvet couch better than the one on Friends for well under $100.
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Nickname that store
November 30, 2010 8:53 AM
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Similarly, I knew a guy who referred to the Salvation Army as “Aunt Sally’s Boutique.”
posted by dlugoczaj at 10:37 AM on November 30, 2010