I think that was mostly an east coast or "mid west" way of cutting. Or that part of the country continued cutting it the old way longer than we did out here in Ca. I've only been cutting since 1978 and have never seen that cut except in books and once back east.
I can't see from the pic very well, but it looks like it probably has some of what we call short ribs still on the bottom.
Actually, I don't know if I've ever seen that roast cut exactly that way. The closest thing I've seen is the O-bone roast. Cut larger around but thinner and would include  the shoulder bone too. It's a huge roast. Not good for today's smaller families.
That roast doesn't look like something the average customer would want to mess with it's long bones underneath.
On the shoulder, I prefer the current way. A boneless roast and then short ribs sold separate. I guess the old way is easier if you're strong enough to handle it safely all in one piece. Plus you get a better yield from the carcass.
We still get ONE side of beef each week and could make this for someone. However, it would be from the grass fed beef and it tastes different. No problem making this cut because everything from the front 1/4 except the rib gets (or would have been) ground up. Our grass fed ground beef sells pretty well.