Long Island New York’s Hicksville Bottling Company had its roots with the mineral water business of a man named Edgar Davis whose brief biographical sketch appeared in the July 23, 1890 edition of the “Brooklyn Times Union.”
Edgar Davis, proprietor of the Davis Bottling Works which was established in 1873, is a jolly fellow and believes in having the people drink nothing but temperance drinks. He has a large demand for his excellent soda water, ginger ale, sarsaparilla, vichy, seltzer, wine punch soda and golden seal. Mr. Davis has served the people of Oyster Bay town in various official capacities. He was a Justice of the Peace for eleven years, Commissioner of Highways for two terms, Assessor and Excise Commissioner and was Postmaster of Jericho under Jackson’s Administration. He is also a member of the firm of Davis & Kieonne, auctioneers.
Bottles produced for the Hicksville Bottling Company in the 1940’s and 1950’s include the phrase “Since 1873,” supporting the start date referenced in the above biography.
Davis ran the business until 1894,when it was acquired by brothers-in-law William F. Staude and Charles Fassbender. The transaction was announced in the May 12, 1894 edition of a Huntington, New York newspaper called “The Long-Islander.”
William F. Staude of the Roadside Hotel and Charles Fassbender, collector for the Ulmer Brewing Company have bought out the mineral water business of Edgar Davis and have leased the old Pahde property where they will carry on a bottling business on a large scale. Both young men are sons in law of August Fleischbein, proprietor of the Grand Central Hotel and are well-known. We wish them success.
As far as I can tell their initial location was near the Hicksville train depot on the northeast corner of East Marie Street and Railroad Avenue. A map, circa 1914, confirmed their plant was located there by that time.
This advertisement, published in the September 21, 1907 edition of the Brooklyn Times Union, made it clear that by then, in addition to manufacturing temperance drinks the company also billed themselves as beer bottlers and wine and liquor dealers.
The advertisement specifically mentioned Ulmer Cabinet Beer. According to Fassbender’s April 12, 1922 obituary published in the Brooklyn Standard Union he worked for Brooklyn’s Ulmer Brewery from 1880 to 1920.
During his forty years connected with the Ulmer Brewing Company, Mr. Fassbender advanced himself from clerk to personal collector for Brooklyn and Long Island. He also handled a considerable portion of its real estate dealings with its various agencies.
So, it’s no surprise that the company not only bottled Ulmer beer, but almost certainly bottled it from the start in 1894. Recognizing that their father-in-law, August Fleischbein, owned Hicksville’s Grand Central Hotel including its 600 person capacity hall, it’s also likely they had an immediate market for their products.
Staude passed away in 1917 and Fassbender ultimately sold the business in 1921. The sale was reported in the August edition of the American Bottler.
HICKSVILLE BOTTLING PLANT CHANGES HANDS
The Hicksville Bottling Co., at Hicksville, Long Island, has been purchased by Jac. Friedman, who was formerly connected with the Christ Wagner Bottling Co., of Java Street, Brooklyn. Charles S. Fassbender was the former owner of the plant, which he had successfully conducted for a number of years.
Polish immigrants, the Friedman’s apparently operated the business as a family affair. In addition to Jac (Jak), 1930 census records indicate that Eli Friedman, likely his brother, as well as Jak’s two sons, Louis and William, were all involved in the business. Census records in 1940 continued to associate the Friedman’s with the business.
It was the Friedman’s who, during Prohibition, began utilizing the name “Roxy.” They trademarked the name in 1930, but their application indicated that it had been in use since July 1, 1926.
The “Roxy ” brand came in a wide variety of flavors including cola, orange, cream, sarsaparilla, ginger ale and root beer. A crown bottle cap featuring their ginger ale is presented below courtesy of http://www.crowncaps.info
After Prohibition they were back in the beer business as evidenced by this May 26, 1937 advertisement in the New York Daily News listing them as a Brooklyn and Long Island distributor for the Fidelio Brewery. By then the company had apparently moved, listing their address as 10-2 Lenox Avenue in Hicksville.
Another advertisement, this one published in the March 17, 1939 edition of the Nassau Daily Review named them as a distributor for New York City’s John Eichler Brewing Company as well.
The company, as well as the Roxy brand, endured well into the 1950’s and possibly longer. As late as 1957, this July 21 New York Daily News advertisement listed “Roxy – dietetic” (halfway down the second column) as a beverage made with Sucaryl.
Recently I heard from a grand daughter of the Friedman’s who read the initial version of this post. Her father drove a truck for the business while home from college and he provided some additional history.
The article is accurate to my knowledge but it doesn’t mention that Eli eventually bought out his brother who started Glen Cove Bottling. I believe we sold the business in late 1966 or early 1967.
The bottle I found is machine made with the Hicksville Bottling Co. name embossed on the bottom. The name “Roxy” is embossed on both sides in a style matching the patented trademark.
The bottle was likely made in the late 1920’s or 1930’s, and certainly no earlier than July, 1926 when the trademark application declared it was first used.
The company also used the Roxy name on siphon bottles as evidenced by this item recently offered for sale on the internet.
