General Information

The following information has been collected from original newspapers, catalogs, and magazines, some of which are freely available for reference below. The rest can be found in the site’s gallery. No aggregate catalogs (BrickLink, Brickset, etc.) were used.

Advertised Part Count(s): 371 pieces, 387 pieces

1969 Dayton's Christmas Catalog, Set Box

First Year Confirmed Available: 1969(USA)

1969 Dayton's Christmas Catalog

USA Only.

Most Likely Retirement Date: 1971(USA)

Makes its final appearance in 1971 catalogs, and would not have continued production beyond the 1971 loss of license.

Last Year Seen Available: 1972

The Los Angeles Times, October 16th, 1972

Aliases: Governor Set, 371-Piece Lego Set

Retail Price(s): $10.00-$12.95(USA)

Discounted Example(s): $4.99(1972)

Rarity Score(Index): 6/7

Known Box/Packing Variants

There are two versions of the set. One from 1969:

And the next for ~1970-71 updated with the "Some parts...manufactured in Denmark" printed directly on the box:

Box/Overview

The 066 Governor Set was a basic assortment and similar to the 223 Adventure Set, it is also commonly cited to be an FAO exclusive. While it does appear at FAO from 1969-71, it also appears at (and was not limited to) Dayton's, Jordan Marsh, M&F, May Co, Montgomery Ward, and Polsky's.

Beyond that, the 066 is an odd set in that it is one of the only basic assortment sets from Europe to have released in the US, the only exception was the 223 Adventure Set.

While not weird on its own to rerelease a European set, it is quite odd to do so with a basic set. All other international sets Samsonite added to their line had some sort of intended model to construct, while the 066 & 223 were just basic assortments.

Regardless of motivation, the 066 number corresponds with the European version, but the "Governor Set" title is Samsonite's own.

Interestingly, the name "Governor" may have come from Samsonite's luggage style names, from "Statesman" first used in 1964. That may seem like a stretch until you see that Signat (as well as Samsonite's other attache cases) also carried names like "Diplomat" (used in 1970 for the 630 Diplomat Set), "Suburban" (used for the 326 Suburban Set), or and "Envoy" (used for the 080 Ambassador Set). Absolutely fascinating.

box top image

Contents

The 066(along with the 080 Ambassador Set, also an international import released in 1969) was one of the first sets in the states to get a grey single piece tray, which probably saved immensely on manufacturing. Hence why almost all of Samsonite's line switched over by 1970. It's not Samsonite's own idea—once again its a European thing.

The set contained basic elements: