Category: Mineral Water and Soda

Creedmoor Beer, 321-323 Rutledge St., Brooklyn

Always located in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. the Creedmoor Beer Company began operations sometime in the late 1870’s at 369 S 2nd Street before moving to 321-323 Rutledge Street, the address embossed on the subject bottle, in 1883.

The company was not a small brewery as you might expect from their name but in fact, a manufacturer of carbonated beverages whose menu of products was described in the August 15, 1885 edition of the “Brooklyn Daily Times.”

The Creedmore Beer Company’s list of carbonated beverages includes root beer, pop beer, raspberry beer, birch beer, ginger ale, mead and lemon cream soda. Only the choicest of extracts, made from roots, barks, herbs, etc., are employed in the manufacture of these beverages, which are absolutely free from any deleterious ingredients. Havemeyer & Elders’ Moller, Sierck & Co.’s and North River Refining Company’s confectioner’s “A” sugar only is used in making the syrups, which are carefully strained and purified.

Their plant location, generally  described in advertisements as Rutledge Street, near Broadway is depicted on this this Sanborn Fire Insurance Map, dated 1887 (just to the right and below the “R” in Rutledge).

Who exactly owned the business is not clear, however, according to another “Brooklyn Daily Times” item, this one published in their July 31, 1886 edition, it was managed by a man named David U. Quick.

Mr. D. U. Quick, the Manager of the Creedmoor Beer Company, whose well-appointed establishment is located at 321 and 323 Rutledge Street, near Broadway, Brooklyn, E. D. has had a long experience in the manufacture of carbonated water and fully understands the requirements of the trade, which he conscientiously endeavors at all times to meet, therefore the character of their goods for reliability and purity can always be depended upon. Hence the company’s well-merited success.

The above description was included in what was certainly a newspaper advertisement presented to look like a news item, a tactic the company employed on more than one occasion in the “Brooklyn Daily Times” during 1885 and 1886.

One such item, published on  June 6, 1885, appealed to the temperance movement, stressing the non-alcoholic nature of their products.

One of the surest indications of the advancement of a true spirit of temperance is to be found in the rapidly increasing consumption of what are known as carbonated beverages. Although non alcoholic and therefore non intoxicating in their nature, they possess certain qualities that make them especially desirable as quenchers of thirst, and being composed chiefly of the extracts of roots and barks noted for their tonic and exhilarating effects, the use of these beverages if pure can be indulged to any rational extent, without the least injury to the most delicate and sensitive physical organizations. In fact, pure carbonated waters are highly recommended by medical men generally, on account of their healthful and refreshing effects on the human system.

Still another, published in the “Brooklyn Daily Times’s on July 10,1886, associated those “healthful and refreshing effects ” with the digestive system.

The inestimable value of pure carbonated beverages in all cases of feeble digestion and lack of tone in the stomach is universally acknowledged. All of the ailments prevalent in warm weather, Dyspepsia, Diarrhea, Acidity of the Stomach and kindred affections are due to but one source, namely , lack of vigor and vitality in the digestive organs. Every person who has given the subject any study is fully aware that nothing equals in efficacy in all such troubles a beverage impregnated with a pure carbonic acid gas. Between the debilitating and enervating effects of alcoholic and ice cold drinks and the invigorating and healthful carbonated beverage there should be no hesitation in choosing. Absolute purity is of vital importance, and this can only be assured where a firm has the greatest facilities and a determination that their goods shalll be the finest that skill and cleanliness can make them. All this can be said of the Creedmoor Beer Company, of 321 and 323 Rutledge Street, near Broadway, Brooklyn.

Creedmoor classified advertisements that ran in several 1886 and 1887 editions of the “Brooklyn Daily Times” made the case much more succinctly.

Carbonated waters impart vigor and tone to the stomach and exhilarate the system.

Sometime in 1889 the company moved to 67 Kent Avenue (sometimes listed as 42 N. 10th St.). By then their business card, found in the 1890 edition of Brooklyn’s “Lains” Business Directory,” identified  the company as dealers in cider and vinegar in addition to carbonated water manufacturers.

The company apparently had a short stay on Kent Avenue, disappearing from the directories by 1892.

One Final Note: The “Historical Guide to Long Island Soda, Beer & Mineral Water Bottles & Bottling Companies – 1840-1970” by George Fisher, indentified a “Creedmoor Beer”  bottle embossed with an address of 369 South 2nd St. in Brooklyn. The description of the bottle as presented in the guide is shown below.

While I cannot find a directory listing that associates the Creedmoor company with that address, I did find their manager, David Quick, listed with the occupation “root beer” at 369 S 2nd Street in the 1879/1880 Brooklyn city directory. This all but confirms that the company got its start in the late 1870’s at that location..

The subject bottle was blown in a mold with what looks like a tooled blob finish. It’s 10-1/4 inches tall and 3-1/2 inches in diameter. The embossed address of 321 – 323 Rutledge Street dates it between 1883 and 1889 when the company was located at that address.

 

 

 

 

Conrad Witzel, 558 & 560 St. Ann’s Ave., New York

Conrad Witzel, and later his Son, William C. Witzel, operated a mineral water manufacturing and bottling business in the Bronx, New York from the mid-1890’s up through sometime in the mid-20th Century.

Located at a single location, 558-560 St. Ann’s Avenue, for approximately 50 years, a feature on the Witzel’s, found in the August, 1921 edition of a publication called the “Edison Monthly” suggested that the company had been there so long that the Bronx literally grew up around their bottling plant.

The bottling plant has been occupied by the Witzel organization for more than a quarter of a century. In the early days it was embowered in an apple orchard, and fields stretched wide on either side. Now it has in the tall buildings which line the thoroughfare dignified architectural neighbors; for the growth of the Bronx has been phenomenal.

The founder, Conrad Witzel, according to census records (1910) was born in Germany in 1860 and arrived in the United States in 1882. Prior to settling in the Bronx, Witzel lived on East 25th Street in Manhattan where several New York City directories between 1887 and 1893 listed his occupation as a “driver.” During this time he apparently worked for a brewer named Andrew Koch & Sons, as evidenced by this story that appeared in the December 23, 1888 edition of the “New York Tribune.”

A WOMAN KNOCKED DOWN BY A WAGON

Mrs. Sarah B. Harring, age fifty, who lives at No. 87 Madison Ave., in attempting to cross Broadway in the neighborhood of Hudnut’s pharmacy, yesterday noon was struck by the front wheel of a two-horse wagon, owned by Andrew Koch & Son, at No. 455 First Ave., and driven by Conrad Witzel. a German whose home is at No. 322 East Twenty-fifth St. She was taken into the pharmacy and an ambulance from Chambers Street Hospital telegraphed for. On the arrival of the ambulance-surgeon it was found that Mrs. Harring’s injury consisted of a slight contusion of the left leg. Witzel had been taken to the Church St. station, but as Mrs. Harding had said that she had tripped and stumbled and that the driver was in no way to be blamed for the accident, he was discharged. With the assistance of a friend, the injured woman went to her home.

Sometime in 1893 or 1894 Witzel moved to the Bronx where he was first listed as a mineral water manufacturer at 558 St. Ann’s Avenue in the 1894-1895 New York City directory. A small operation, according to New York State’s Factory Inspection Report for the fiscal year ending November 30, 1900 the company employed a total of three people. One, categorized as “Male – Under the Age of 16,” was likely his son, William, who was born in 1889.

By 1910 William was certainly involved in the business, listing his occupation as a “driver” in 1910 census records.  Like his father he was almost certainly a wagon driver, that is until 1915 when the business transitioned to using the “Autocar.” This October 15, 1915 “advertisement, found in the “American Bottler,” pictured what was likely  both father and son in their recently purchased “Autocar.”

By then, William was apparently in partnership with his father, as evidenced by directory listings as early as 1912 that named the company as C. Witzel & Son. The listing as it appears in New York City’s 1915 Copartnership and Corporation directory is shown below.

The company operated under this name until May, 1919 when, with Conrad Witzel likely retired, William C. Witzel, along with an employee named Oscar Hoenig  formed a co-partnership, continuing the business under the name of C. Witzel & Co.

Not  long afterwards, according to the “Edison Monthly” feature, the partnership committed to modernizing their bottling plant.

…a partnership conference was held at which the various elements in the manufacturing and marketing phases of the business were considered. With respect to the manufacturing end, there was unanimity of opinion that the beverages which bear the firm’s name should be permanently standardized for purity.

The feature went on to describe their modernized plant and how it worked.

First a system, modern in every detail, was installed for cleansing bottles. To operate this a ten horsepower motor was provided and connection was made to the service of the New York Edison Company. Progressive simplicity characterizes the working of this department.

The bottles are placed in double rows. like two files of soldiers, on a circular platform. The switch is thrown in and the platform begins to move, carrying the companies of bottles into the drenching shower of a rinsing bath. From this they pass along to receive an internal douche of hot water which is directed into the neck of each bottle with force enough to reach every part. Passing on they enter a tunnel charged with live steam, an accepted method of germ destruction. Emerging with the glisten and polish which is proof to the eye of cleanliness, they finally appear at the end of the journey in position to receive their thirst-relieving charge at the filler machines….

Such is the efficiency and economy of this part of the plant that it is possible to handle ten thousand bottles in an ordinary work day.

The feature went on to say:

The 100-gallon filters are in another part of the building. The water is piped into them from the bottom, passes upward and through the filter bed and, seeking its level, finds an outlet again at the bottom. To supplement the filter and make sure that every bottle of beverage is strictly pure the modern electric sterilizer was added to the plant.

A compact three-party tandem mechanism it is and in position it looks as if it were on a mantel piece. At one end stands a one-horsepower alternating current motor not much larger than some mantel ornaments. Alongside of it is a direct current generator, almost a twin in size of the motor. At the other end stands the ultra-violet ray device.

The motor is started and immediately the bulb which is directed against a water tight glass receptacle inside the sterilizer, bursts into light. The finger on the ammeter dial moves slowly toward the figure 5, the light growing brighter each instant. As the 5 is passed the circuit is automatically closed and the water valve connected with the sterilizer opened. The ultra-violet rays by this time have reached the required intensity. The water rushes in, the flowing stream passing under the direct rays. Such bacteria that may exist in the water are destroyed. The sterilized water passes under pressure to the tanks which are directly connected to the filling machines

The upper floor of the establishment is devoted to offices, storerooms, sugar boiling and syrup blending departments. Cane sugar alone is used for sweetening. One room is piled high with it. The syrups are made from the juices of fully ripened fruits and the greatest care is taken to make contamination impossible. Syrups are stored in covered crocks and are piped direct to the tanks where the beverages are made. The idea of cleanliness one obtains throughout…

The business  continued to operate under the partnership until the early 1930’s when disagreements between the partners resulted in a court ordered dissolution of the partnership on March 17, 1931. Subsequently, according to New York State Supreme Court records, (Hoenig v. Witzer), the business was put up for sale at  public auction on July 18, 1931 and all indications are that Witzer was able to buy it back.

Shortly afterwards he incorporated the business under the name Wm. C. Witzel, Inc., as evidenced by this August 15, 1931 item found in the “Beverage News.”

The 1939-1940 Bronx Telephone Book (one of the few I have access to) continued to list Wm .C.  Witzel, Inc. at the 558 St. Ann’s Avenue address.

Ten years later, William Witzel, still in the beverage business, listed his occupation in 1950 census records as “Proprietor, Mineral Water Distributor.” By then the business had apparently moved to East 161st Street, as evidenced by this item that appeared in the May 12, 1950 edition of New York’s “Daily News.”

Having moved out of his long time factory sometime in the 1940’s suggests that by then he was no longer manufacturing mineral/soda water and was simply serving as a distributor. How long he remained in business on 161st Street is not clear.

William Witzel ultimately passed away on March 27, 1971, with his death notice appearing the next day in New York’s “Daily News.”

The subject bottle was blown in a mold and contains roughly 8 ounces. It exhibits a blob finish suggesting that it was in use during the early years of the Witzel operation.

 

 

 

J. F. Hughes, 233 West 33rd St., New York

John F. Hughes was a mineral water manufacturer whose business operated on the west side of Manhattan from the late 1880’s up until 1914 when it was one of six companies that joined together and established the New York Bottling Company, Inc.

Born in Ireland in 1862 or 1863, Hughes arrived in the United States in 1869 at the age of six and by 1880, according to census records was living with his parents on Rutgers Street in Manhattan.

When exactly he started in the mineral water business is not exactly clear. According to an advertisement Hughes ran in the “Purchaser’s Guide and Commercial Register” included in the 1896/1897 New York City directory, his business was established in 1887 (lower left hand corner of the ad).

That said, I can’t find him listed in the New York City directories until 1890 when he was included under the heading ” Mineral Waters” with an address of 233 West 33rd Street in Trow’s 1890 Business Directory . He was certainly in business by the spring of that year as evidenced by this classified advertisement he ran in the May 6, 1890 edition of the “New York Herald.”

Located between 7th and 8th Avenues, the business remained at that location until sometime in 1894 when it relocated to 146 – 148 West 31st Street, between 6th and 7th Avenues. Hughes remained in business there up until 1914, during which time he ran annual advertisements in Trow’s New York City Directory. The advertisements all suggest that he limited his inventory to non-alcoholic beverages. One of the earliest I can find appeared in Trow’s 1895/1896 edition.

Later directories exhibited this updated advertisement which replaced the earlier one sometime around  1910.

On April 1, 1914 John F. Hughes combined his business with five other bottling concerns and the consolidated business was incorporated under the name “New York Bottling Company, Inc.” The announcement appeared in the January 15, 1915 edition of the “American Bottler.”

A consolidation of the following prominent New York City bottling concerns took place on April 1: A. Ludorff, S. A. Ludin & Co., (New York Bottling Company Co.), W. E. Seitz & Co., John F. Hughes, Henry Kracke (Globe Mineral Water Co.) and the A. Liebler bottling Co., Albert Ludoff is president and J. E. Ludin is Tres.

The 1915 NYC Copartnership and Corporation Directory listed the consolidated company as a New York corporation with Albert Ludorff, president, John E. Ludin, treasurer and R. E Schoder, secretary. Capital $750,000.  It went on to list three addresses: 532 W 20th, 417 E 90th, and 402 w 126th, suggesting that Hughes’ 31st Street location was not utilized by the new corporation. Hughes continued to be associated with the corporation in some capacity, actually serving as president for several years in the early 1920’s.

According to an April 6, 1929 story in the “Brooklyn Daily Eagle,” The New York Bottling Corporation was acquired by the Carl H. Schultz Corporation in November, 1928 and soon after both were folded into the American Beverage Corp.

More information on the New York Bottling Company , along with information on several of the firms that made up the 1914 consolidation can be found by visiting another post on this site.  New York Bottling Co.

The subject bottle was blown in a mold and exhibits a blob finish. The bottle’s embossing includes the 233 West 33rd Street address dating it between the late 1880’s and 1894 when the company was at that address.

Another  bottle, recently offered for sale on the Internet, exhibits the company’s 146 – 148 West 31st Street address used from 1894 to 1914.

Wheeler & Co., Belfast

The embossed insignia on the face of the subject bottle (or what’s left of it) consisting of a wagon wheel with the embossed letters “E R’ at the top and “& Co.” below, served as the clever trademark for a mineral water manufacturer and bottler that operated in Belfast, Northern Ireland under the  name of Wheeler & Co. from the early 1860’s up through 1947. This advertisement exhibiting their “wheel” trademark appeared in the advertising section of the “Belfast and Province of Ulster Directory” in 1884

In addition to bottling their own manufactured waters, the company also served as a bottler for other manufacturers, “Guiness Stout” and “Bass Ale” to name a few, all of which were bottled under what they called their “Wheel Brand.”

The company got its start, not as a mineral water manufacturer or bottler but as an apothecary business whose roots were established in April, 1852 with the opening of the Belfast Apothecaries’ Hall at 33 High Street. An item announcing the opening appeared in several editions of the “Belfast News-Letter.”

Five years later, in 1857, another advertisement for the Apothecaries’ Hall associated it with W. J. Wheeler & Company, short for Walter James Wheeler. The ad published in several October, 1857 editions of the “Belfast News-Letter” named the company as agents for a wide range of proprietary medicines and medical products.

The advertisement went on to say:

THE DEPARTMENT FOR THE COMPOUNDING of Physicians’ and Surgeons’ Prescriptions is under the charge of Mr. HENRY WHITAKER, Licentiate Apothecary, formerly of Butler’s Medical Hall, Dublin.

At this point while Wheeler and Whitaker were both involved in the business, they were apparently not in total control. That would change less than a year later when this announcement, dated May 1, 1858, appeared in several May editions of the “Belfast News-Letter”under the heading:

The announcement read:

WALTER J.WHEELER & HENRY WHITAKER respectfully intimate to the Medical Profession and the Public that they have assumed the entire control and management of the above Establishment, and that, it will be conducted by them. Their devoting themselves exclusively to the business of the Apothecary and Pharmaceutical Chemist, and living on the Premises (thereby insuring their constant superintendence), are the surest guarantees that the interests of the public will be properly attended to.

The announcement went on to describe the fledgling operation.

THE RETAIL DEPARTMENT will be always well supplied with the purest Drugs and Chemicals, Patent Medicines, Perfumery, Toilet Requisites, and all other articles usually kept in first-class Medical Establishments.

THE COMPOUNDING DEPARTMENT will be under the management of Henry Whitaker, Surgeon and Licentiate Apothecary, formerly of Dr. Butler’s Medical Hall, Dublin, who confines himself exclusively to the business of the Apothecary, abstaining altogether from Medical practice, in order that he may be enabled to devote his entire time to this Department, which will be constantly supplied, not only with all Medicines in general use, but also with all the new preparations, as they are brought under the notice of the Profession; so that Medical Gentlemen may rely upon having their prescriptions properly compounded and their views fully carried out.

1st May, 1858

Several years later, the partnership of Wheeler & Whitaker, trading under the Wheeler & Co. name, introduced their “Aerated Waters” to the public. This April 29, 1862 advertisement published in the “Belfast News-Letter” suggested they were first put on the market in the Fall of 1861.

As early as 1864, this June 30th advertisement published in the “Glasgow Herald” stated that the water used in the manufacture of their aerated waters was obtained from a series of wells located in the vicinity of Cromac Street in Belfast, later referred to as the Coromac Springs. The advertisement read, in part:

Wheeler & Co.’s Aerated Waters prepared with Water from the celebrated Cromac Springs at Belfast, the great purity of which peculiarly adapts it to this purpose, and are of uniform strength and peculiarly fine flavor. Every bottle of the genuine article bears the name “Wheeler & Co.” on the label.

In 1865, according to a summary of court proceedings, “Wheeler Co. v. James Johnston,” published in the November 13, 1877 edition of the “Belfast Evening Telegraph,” the company established a manufacturing facility at one of the Cromac well sites.

… Messrs. Wheeler & Whitaker traded at Belfast under the style of Wheeler & Co., and had an extensive business as manufacturers of aerated and mineral waters. The affidavit of Messrs Wheeler & Whitaker stated that in May, 1865, they took a lease of certain premises in Murphy Street, Belfast. A valuable well existing on the premises afforded a large supply of water of a very pure quality, and formed one of a number of wells in the neighborhood of Cromac Street, used formerly for the water supply to Belfast for domestic purposes. Wheeler & Whitaker erected machinery and works and commenced their business operations, which they had since carried on using exclusively the water of the well in question. Soon afterwards Wheeler & Whitaker adopted for their works the name of “Cromac Springs…”

In addition to their Belfast facilities, by 1868 the company had also established a presence in Dublin and Glasgow. Both are mentioned in this advertisement that appeared in the March 3, 1869 edition of the “Belfast News-Letter.”

By 1870, in addition to bottling their own beverages, Wheeler & Co. was also bottling those of other manufacturers under their “Wheel” trademark. This brief item touting Guinness Porter began appearing in the “Belfast News-Letter” as early as March 3, 1870.

If you want Guinness’s XX Porter, in Bottle, unmixed, ask for it labeled with the “Wheel” Trade Mark.

The following year the trademark itself began appearing in their Guinness advertisements as evidenced by a series of  March, 1871 advertisements found in both the “Belfast Evening Telegraph” and “Belfast Evening News.”

Other brands were added over the next couple of years including HENLEY & SONS’ CIDER, touted in this April 26, 1871  “Belfast Evening Telegraph” advertisement…

… and Bass, Allsopp, Ind and Cooper’s mentioned in another “Belfast Evening Telegraph” advertisement, this one in their January 7, 1873 edition.

At the same time, the apothecary and chemist portion of the business continued to operate out of 33 High Street before moving to 37 High Street in 1881.

During this time they were associated with a number of patent medicines some of which they also manufactured  including “Wheeler & Whitaker’s Balm of Licorice.”

Things changed in 1882, when two separate dissolution notices effectively transitioned the business into separately owned entities. The first, executed on April 13, 1882, dissolved the partnership associated with the Apothecary/Chemist portion of the business, leaving it in Whittaker’s hands.

A little over a month later this advertisement published in the May 24, 1882 edition of the “Belfast News-Letter” named Henry Whitaker, proprietor of The Belfast Apothecaries’ Hall, “Late Wheeler & Whitaker.”

As far as I can tell, not long after he gained control, Whitaker turned the  Apothecary business over to William Hanbury who in 1890 declared bankruptcy. This notice dated January 24, 1890  announcing the bankruptcy sale appeared in the February 13, 1890 edition of the “Belfast News-Letter.

Three months later, a May 17, 1890 item in the “Belfast Evening Telegraph” announced that the

THE PRESCRIPTION BOOKS, PROPRIETARY RIGHTS and the VARIOUS FORMULAE of the SPECIAL PREPARATIONS of MESSRS. WHEELER & WHITAKER (Belfast Apothecaries’ Hall) HAVE BEEN PURCHASED by their late Senior Assistant, MR. T. N. MOFFIT…

Meanwhile, back  in 1882, a second dissolution notice, this one dated October 16, 1882, put the manufacturing of aerated waters and bottling operation solely in the hands of Walter J. Wheeler. That notice appeared in the October 20, 1882 edition of the “Belfast News-Letter.”

A year later, according to a May 16 1883 story in the “Belfast Evening Telegraph” some of their bottled porter and ale was making its way across the Atlantic.

LARGE SHIPMENT OF BOTTLED BEER TO AMERICA. – At present Messrs. Wheeler & Co. are delivering at Prince’s Dock, Belfast, 400 barrels of porter and ale in bottles, for transshipment into lighters for conveyance alongside the Dominion Line steamer Toronto, which vessel will arrive in Belfast Lough on Friday morning for Quebec and Montreal. By the steamer Montreal, on Friday last, Messrs. Wheeler & Co. shipped a similar quantity, and on following weeks like shipments will be made by this firm.

In April, 1890 Walter James Wheeler passed away with the business continuing under the management of his son Frederick. After Walter’s death it appears that the company remained closely held by the Wheeler family until 1895 when they offered a portion of his stock for sale in an effort to realize his estate. The offer appeared in the May 3, 1895 edition of the “Belfast News-Letter.”

That said, during the late 1890’s, this item that appeared in the September 20, 1898 edition of the “Glasgow Herald” suggested that the company continued to be quite successful.

MESSRS WHEELER & CO., LTD., BELFAST have secured the honor of having their famed “WHEEL BRAND” AERATED MINERAL WATERS chosen as being most suitable for the use of the British Troops in Egypt; also the British expeditions from Lagos and Sierra Leone to Central Africa were supplied entirely with the Waters manufactured from the famous Cromac Springs of which WHEELER & CO., LTD., BELFAST are the Sole Proprietors.

In fact, in 1899 an August 28th advertisement in the “Belfast News-Letter” indicated they were planning an expansion of their Belfast facilities at the time.

As far as I can tell, the Wheeler family continued their involvement with the business until 1923 when a February 23rd notice announced the stockholders had decided to liquidate.

At this point it was acquired by a man named George A. Davidson who several years later was adjudged bankrupt on December  16, 1927.

Later, according to a July 19, 1947 item in the “Belfast Telegraph”

An offer of composition was made and accepted by his creditors and the money had been lodged with the official assignee for the payment of the composition.

As a result Davidson was apparently able to continue operations in Belfast. Though likely not a large operation and certainly not a heavy advertiser there are signs that the company remained active into the 1940’s. Both their Belfast Ginger Ale and “Anti Laria” Tonic Water were listed in the “Grocery and Provision Merchant Directory of Brands, Trademarks and Trade Names” in 1930 and, as late as 1939 the company was included on this list of Belfast and Ulster mineral water manufacturers published in the October 3, 1939 edition of the “Belfast Telegraph.”

Ultimately Davison, trading as Wheeler & Co., declared bankruptcy again, this time  in 1947 with the notice appearing in the May 14th edition of the “Belfast Telegraph.”

This time, according to the July 19, 1947 “Belfast Telegraph” story the bankruptcy was annulled by the Lord Chief Justice in the Ulster High Court due to the actions taken in the 1927 bankruptcy case. That said, as far as I can tell, this marked the end of Wheeler & Co. as a mineral water manufacturer and bottler.

The bottle I found was blown in a mold and likely had a blob finish at one time. In addition to the “Wheel” trademark embossed on the face of the bottle, embossing  on the shoulder includes the representation of  four gold medals (two on each side) and reads: ” Belfast 1895 Gold Medals.”

The base is embossed with a large capital “W’ which I assume stands for “Wheeler.”

Th bottle most closely resembles the Belfast Ginger Ale bottle pictured on the far left in the following January 1, 1890 advertisement published in the “British Trade Journal,” though it does have a flat bottom as opposed to the rounded one pictured.

While not heavily advertised in the United States, references to Wheeler’s Belfast Ginger Ale sporadically appear in U.S. newspaper advertisements between 1884 and the mid-teens. This likely dates the bottle between 1895 (the date embossed on the bottle) and the mid-teens.

Will J. Fox, Oyster Bay, N.Y.

William J. Fox was the proprietor of an Oyster Bay, Long Island hotel and saloon called the Trout Pond Inn during much of the early 1900’s. Originally called the Franklin House or sometimes Franklin’s Hotel it was named after a man named John A. Franklin who was typically referred to as “Capt.” in the local newspapers. The reasoning for this was explained in his July 12, 1907 obituary published in a newspaper called the “Long Islander.”

He was a veteran of the Civil War, having fought in the Third Missouri Cavalry and was honorably discharged.

After the war, 1880 census records listed his occupation as “oysterman” so it’s likely he started his hotel  sometime after 1880. That said, it was certainly up and running in the summer of 1895 when a June 15th “Long Islander” story announced:

John A. Franklin, a hotel keeper, had wells driven 54 and 156 feet deep. He conducts a part of the water into his cellar for refrigeration purposes.

Another story, this one in the October 25, 1895 edition of the “Long Islander” made it clear that his submerged beer kegs shared the space with a large number of speckled trout.

John A. Franklin of Oyster Bay, has a tank in his cellar in which he cools his beer kegs. In the tank are about 100 speckled trout. It is said the largest weighs over six pounds.

The May 1902 Sanborn Map located what I suspect was Franklin’s hotel “D” and Saloon “Sal” near the Oyster Bay waterfront at the corner of Bay Street and what would later become Bayles Place.

As far as I can tell, Franklin continued to serve as proprietor of the hotel and saloon until his death in 1907. At this point, William Fox, who census records suggest had married Franklin’s daughter Mary Anna in 1898, assumed the proprietorship. As early as 1908 Fox was listed as the hotel’s liquor tax certificate holder in the New York State Department of Excise Directory.

By that time, the February 1909 Sanborn Map officially referenced the saloon as the Trout Pond Cafe. The map also indicated that a mineral water works under  the management of a man named Geo. Caspari had been established adjacent to the cafe.

This close-up view of the hotel, cafe and mineral water works suggests they all shared a common driveway and backyard.

 

Sometime in the early teens Fox also became proprietor of the bottling business which, by 1915  was labeled as the Oyster Bay Bottling Works on the Sanborn Map.

Fox’s business card reflecting the change appeared as part of a June 17, 1916 feature on Oyster Bay published in the “Brooklyn Daily Times.”

Fox continued to be listed as the hotel’s liquor tax certificate holder up through the start of prohibition and a May 2, 1920 story in the “Brooklyn Daily Times” suggests he wasn’t adverse to selling liquor  even after the 18th Amendment was enacted.

William J. Fox, a saloon owner, and Stanley Kessler, a bartender, of Oyster Bay, were charged with violation of the prohibition law and held by Commissioner McGoldrick for examination. Fox’s bail was fixed at $1,000 and Kessler’s at $500.

How long Fox remained proprietor of the Trout Pond Hotel is not clear. According to 1930 census records he was still living on Bay Street in Oyster Bay but at that point listed his occupation as none. This March 1, 1926 item published in the “Brooklyn Eagle” suggests he may have given up proprietorship of the business by that time.

The caption below the photo reads:

Mr. and Mrs. William J. Fox of Oyster Bay, stopping for a brief rest beside the great pyramid at Cairo, Egypt. The couple are enjoying a tour of the world on the Canadian Pacific S. S. Empress of Scotland.

In 1940, still living on Bay Street he was working on account as a barkeeper (just staying busy?)

The “Brooklyn Eagle” reported that Fox passed away in May, 1940, leaving his entire estate to his wife Mary. The story appeared that year in their June 29th edition.

William J Fox owner of the Trout Pond Inn at Oyster Bay for many years, who died in that village May 24, left an estate of more that $11,000, according to his will dated Nov. 19, 1925 and filed here for probate yesterday with Surrogate Leon D. Howell. The entire estate was left to the widow, Mary Anna Fox. She is the executrix.

This undated photograph appeared in a feature on Oyster Bay found in the October 13, 1994 edition of a newspaper called the “Glen Cove Record Pilot.” As far as I can tell right to left are the hotel, cafe, driveway and former bottling works.

Today’s view, courtesy of Google Maps, is not all that different.

The bottle I found is a 7-ounce tooled crown. It likely dates to around the time when Fox became proprietor of the mineral water works, sometime in the early teens.

On a final note, this story appeared in the January 13, 1919 edition of the “Evening World.” While it exaggerates the age of the Trout Pond Hotel it’s certainly not the only exaggeration the story contains. That said, it’s certainly worth a read!

Out at Oyster Bay, set among a cluster of antique dwellings on the sands of the beach itself, is one of the oldest inns on Long Island. It is also one of the most remarkable.

Over the door swings a sign which tells the close observer that the place is the Trout Pond Inn. The sign starts to tell you when the inn was established, but it gets no further than “18” – the century is distinguishable but the year has long faded into a weather beaten blurr.

William Fox, the present proprietor has been there for more than 30 years and his predecessor was there longer than that.

If you happen to be the kind of a person he likes he’ll tell you who put the trout pond in the Trout Pond Inn..

Bill consented to show the writer the trout pond, although he said he didn’t like to at that particular time, because there had been an accident a few days ago from which the fish had not yet recovered. However he led the way to a dark cavern underneath the bar, where the sound of running water could be heard.

Suddenly Bill flashed on a string of electric lights and revealed a concrete lined, circular cave, at the bottom of which was a glistening pool of clear sparkling artesian well water.

Submerged in the pool were several beer and ale kegs attached to the spigots on the bar by long metal tubes.

Around the kegs cavorted a dozen huge trout. The smallest Bill said, weighed considerably more than six pounds and several tipped the scales at better than eight. “Tipping the scales”is one of Bill’s standard jokes.

Just then Bill dropped down among the group and brought up a glass of water that was clear as crystal. As he held it up against one of the electric light bulbs the water shone like liquid diamonds.

“See them trout?” he added. “Well there ain’t one that has been in that pool for less than ten years. Now, there’s Jesse, for instance. She’s hidin’ behind the beer barrel ’cause she’s sort of shy with strangers.”

“Jessie ain’t as spry as once she was,” declared Bill. “She is close onto eleven years old now, and I guess she’ll be passin’ out soon. Her father, a trout called Old Bill, whose remains are stuffed and hanging up behind the bar, lived in this pool for twelve years and three months. At that age he died a natural death. This part of Oyster Bay went into mourning when old Bill died. He was the most gentle souled, affectionate trout I ever see. He’d come when I called him and eat out of my hand.”

“All the fish you see here are Old Bill’s children. When Old Bill died he was twenty-five inches long and weighed just a trifle over nine pounds, which is some proportions for a trout.”

“Now you see them small kegs under the water, right next to the ale kegs? Well, they got sherry in ’em.

You wouldn’t believe it, but when I opened up here the other morning I heard a great splashing down in this pool and I hustled right down to see what the matter was. The trout were racing around, chasing each other in all directions and making general fools of themselves.

One of them was lying on the surface upside down and I thought at first he was dead. I couldn’t understand what had happened until I noticed a queer odor of sherry in the pool. Then I noticed that one of the sherry casks had sprung a leak and I knew in a minute that all those fish were plum intoxicated.

The one lying on the surface was sleeping his jag off. The rest were simply having a wild cabaret. I let a lot of fresh well water into the pool and after a while they began to sober up. Most of ’em had had headaches for a long while after.

 

Geo. Grau, 734 Sixth St., New York

George Grau was a native New Yorker who over the course of a 35 plus year period from 1881 to 1917 counted New York City mineral water manufacturer and saloon keeper and later, Huntington, Long Island hotel proprietor among his several occupations.

Grau’s early life was described in his March 16, 1917  obituary published in a Huntington, Long Island newspaper called “The Long Islander.”

Mr. Grau was born in Manhattan December 23, 1858, the son of Mr. and Mrs. Christopher Julius Grau. He was educated in the city schools afterward completing his education at the St. Mark’s German School. When a young man he engaged in the mineral water business with success.

His start in the mineral water  business came in 1881 when he was listed with that occupation and an address of 125 Central Avenue in Brooklyn. A bottle exhibiting that initial address is pictured in a publication entitled “A Historical Guide to Long Island Soda, Beer and Mineral Water Bottles and Bottling Companies, 1840 – 1870,” by George Fisher.

Grau’s stay in Brooklyn was short-lived and by 1882 his mineral water business had moved across the East River to Manhattan where it was located on the lower east side at 734 Sixth Street, the address embossed on the subject bottle.

Grau remained on Sixth Street until 1893 when he sold the business to a man named Leo Friedman. An item announcing the sale was included under the heading “Conveyances” in the May 6, 1893 edition of New York’s “Real Estate Record and Builder’s Guide.” It described Grau’s facility as:

…a five-story brick mineral water factory with one-story frame and two-story brick buildings in the rear.

By 1895 Grau was serving as the proprietor of a hostelry and barroom at 395 Bowery called the Eagle Hotel.  A hearing held in regard to Grau’s application for a liquor license was described in a May 18, 1895 story published in the “New York Herald.”

Capt. Louis Wendel of the First Battery, appeared yesterday before the Excise Board to support the application for a license for the Eagle Hotel at Sixth Street and Bowery, of which George Grau is proprietor. The application was opposed by agents of the Parkhurst society on the ground that the house is a disorderly house…

Grau must have ultimately gotten his liquor license because up through 1897 the New York City directories listed is occupation as “Liquors,” at the 395 Bowery address.

Then in February, 1898 he partnered with Aaron Hanover as proprietors of a saloon at 12 Center Street in lower Manhattan. Located near New York’s City Hall the saloon, called the Tiger Cafe, was apparently quite successful until subway construction put them out of business in 1905. The June 20th edition of the “New York Herald” told the story.

TIGER CAFE CLOSED

Subway Building Obstructed Access to it for a Year.

The Tiger Cafe, at 12 Centre Street, patronized by politicians, did not open for business yesterday. A sign on the door said, “Closed for Repairs.” Late in the afternoon Hanover & Grau, the proprietors, filed a petition for bankruptcy.

Aaron Hanover is known as the “Mayor of Avenue D.” George Grau resides at Amityville, Long Island. The firm liabilities are $28,341 and the nominal assets $42,303, including a claim for $25,000 damages against the Rapid Transit Commission for taking certain parts of their premises for the subway and general interference with the business. Loss of business on account of building the subway is said to be the principal cause of their bankruptcy. The obstructions were in front of the saloon for more than a year. Before the subway operations the firm, it is said, refused an offer of $50,000 for the place. They took it in February, 1898, and spent much money refitting it. They leased the premises for ten years at $7,000 a year, and at the start gave a chattel mortgage to George Ehret for $10,000. The place is said to have been very profitable up to the time of the subway building…

Later that month, another”New York Herald” story, this one published in their June 29th edition,  announced that the Tiger Cafe had been sold at auction.

Hanover & Grau’s saloon at 12 Centre Street, known as the Tiger Cafe, was sold at auction yesterday by Charles Shongood, auctioneer, under the direction of Henry W. Sykes, receiver in bankruptcy. It was sold as a going concern in one lot, subject to two mortgages, aggregating $10,700 and $1,166 back rent. There was a large crowd present, including many politicians and friends of the bankrupt firm. The sale opened at a bid of $100  over the charges, which was gradually raised to $1,075 at which price the place was knocked down to a representative of George Ehret, the brewer, who holds a $10,000 mortgage on the fixtures. The big stuffed tiger in the window was included in the Ehret mortgage, and the crowd was disappointed because it was not sold separately.

Less than two years later, Grau was retired and still living in Amityville, Long Island when he leased the Suffolk Hotel in Huntington, Long Island. The announcement appeared in the February 1, 1907 edition of  “The Long Islander.”

George Grau who has been living a retired life in Amityville for some time past, has leased the Suffolk Hotel for ten years beginning April 1, from Landlord Carll. We are informed that Mr. Grau is a man of means and will make several notable improvements to the hostelry at his own expense…  Mr. Grau formerly conducted the Tiger Saloon, on Chambers Street, Manhattan, which was made prominent by having a stuffed tiger in the window.

Shortly afterwards the March 22, 1907 edition of “The Long Islander”  described some of the improvements Grau was implementing..

Charles A. Hallock has begun the task of moving his furniture and other effects to his Centreport hotel. George Grau of Amityville, the new proprietor of the Suffolk, has been in town several days this week seeing about the extensive improvements that will be made this spring to the well-known hostelry. John Hurd is the architect who has drawn the plans, and the work will be done under his supervision. A fine plate glass front will be put in with double doors, and the bar moved back and a small auditorium fitted up in front so that one can enter the hotel without having to go through the barroom. New black walnut fixtures will be installed. The barroom and vestibule will have a fine white hexagon tile floor, and a handsome steel ceiling will be another attraction. Sanitary plumbing will be put in and steam heat will be installed throughout. Every room in the house will be repapered and repainted, and up to date furniture will be used. Mr. Grau says he will run the house in first class shape, and have a dining room and table over which there will be no room for complaint…

“The Long Islander” announced the hotel’s reopening in their May 17, 1907 edition.

The rejuvenated Suffolk Hotel will open up tomorrow (Saturday) under the new management of Proprietor George Grau. Mr. Grau has made many marked improvements in the old hostelry, and promises to give the public a superior service.

As early as June 11th Grau’s business card advertisements were appearing in the “Brooklyn Eagle.”

Not a small operation, a September 8, 1910 feature on Huntington published in the “Brooklyn Eagle” described Grau’s hotel like this:

The Suffolk Hotel, one of the oldest and best-known hostelries in the country, has 25 sleeping apartments and the dining room will seat 60 persons at one time. The house is eighty years old, and has been entirely renovated and supplied with new furniture recently at a cost of several thousand dollars. The building is steam heated and has hot and cold baths. George Grau, the proprietor, is a well known hotel man.

This photograph of Main Street in front of the hotel appeared in the “Official Membership Book of  the New York State Hotel Association,” published in 1916.

Grau served as the hotel’s proprietor until his death in March, 1917. Subsequently his wife Minnie’s name was on the hotel’s liquor tax certificate up through September 30, 1918.

So it appears she continued to manage the hotel for a while after George Grau’s death.

Ultimately, the hotel property was sold in 1921 with the sale reported in “The Long Islander” on November 4th.

The Suffolk Hotel property at Main Street, and New York Avenue, which has been a hotel since 1848, has been sold by the Edward Carill estate to Paul Schwenn, of Manhattan. The purchase price is somewhere around $120,000. The hotel and four stores front on Main Street and eight stores on New York Avenue. No one knows what is to be done with the property…

Demolished several years later, a story found in the April 8, 1927 edition of “The Long Islander” best serves as the hotel’s final chapter.

Main Street, Huntington, looks as if a cyclone has struck it.

Two outstanding objects that have served the people well for years are being relegated to that heap where all things are sent when their usefulness is over.

One is the wood-blocks which has made Huntington’s wide thoroughfare through the heart of the business section a marked spot throughout all the north shore of Nassau and Suffolk Counties.

The other is the old Suffolk Hotel which has stood at Main Street and New York Avenue long before there was any thought of a paved street.

With the tearing up of one and the tearing down of another, it is about all your life is worth to attempt to travel along the Main Street, but as “Every cloud has a silver lining,” the business people and the motorists are looking forward to a new and better Main Street and the new business building that will replace the old Suffolk Hotel will be such an improvement, that from a civic standpoint the village will be well repaid in losing the old landmark.

The bottle I found was blown in a Hutchinson mold. Its embossing includes the New York City address of 734 Sixth Street dating it between 1882 and 1893 when Grau manufactured mineral water at that address. Embossing on the back side includes a monogram of Grau’s initials along with the year 1881, his first year in business.

L. Samilson, 49 E B’way., N.Y.

Louis Samilson was the sole proprietor of a small New York City based mineral water manufacturing and bottling company during the early to mid-1890’s. The company served as the predecessor for the Royal Bottling Company of Brooklyn, a business in operation up through the mid-1930’s.

Between 1891 and 1896, Samilson’s business was listed in the New York City directories with an address of 49 East Broadway in what is now known as the Chinatown section of Manhattan. During this time, according to New York State “Factory Inspection Reports” dated January 28, 1895 and January 27, 1896, his business employed five full time workers, all working a 60 hour week.

Sometime in late 1896 it appears that Samilson formed a partnership with Israel Levinson (sometimes Levison) and the business moved to 113 Sheriff Street where the mineral water business of Samilson & Levinson was listed in New York City’s 1897 Trow Business Directory. Not long afterwards Samilson disappeared from the New York City directories suggesting he left the business at around that time. What actually facilitated his departure is not clear and there’s no further mention of him that I can find.

Around the time Samilson disappeared it appears Levinson moved the bottling business to Brooklyn and began operating it under the Royal Bottling Company name. As early as 1898/1899 the Brooklyn Directory listed both Levinson (spelled Levison) and the Royal Bottling Company in Brooklyn at 470 Lafayette Avenue. That said, as early as October, 1897 a classified advertisement found in the October 31st edition of a New York City newspaper called “The World” puts the Royal Bottling Company at that address.

Still a small operation, the New York State “Factory Inspection Report,” dated January 28, 1901 identified only three full time workers at the Lafayette Avenue facility, all working a 60 hour week.

Sometime in 1901 or 1902 the business moved to 531 Waverly Avenue and in November, 1902 it incorporated under the “Royal Bottling Company,” name. The incorporation notice appeared in the November 7th edition of Brooklyn’s “Daily Times.”

Shortly afterwards, the company’s “bottling notice” was published in the November/December, 1902 editions of several Brooklyn newspapers. Now using bottles embossed with the “Royal Bottling Company,”name, the notice indicates that at the time they were also still using some older bottles embossed with the Samilson name.

The company remained at their Waverly Avenue location until sometime in the early teens when they moved to what would become their long-time home at 863 Pacific Street. The 1913/1914 Copartnership and Corporation Directory of Brooklyn and Queens listed the company at that address, naming Israel Levinson as the company’s only principal.

Apparently a family affair, by 1922 sons Arthur and Harry had joined the business as well.

As far as I can tell the specialty of the business was their Royal Ginger Ale that according to a series of 1911 advertisements was:

The leading capped Ginger Ale, used in all fancy clubs and hotels.

The advertisements, found in several July editions of a Brooklyn newspaper called “The Weekly Chat.” were run by a large New York City grocery business called H. C. Bohack & Co. so the ginger ale was certainly being marketed for home use as well.

Later, the company apparently changed the brand name to the “Manhattan Dry Pale Ginger Ale.” Their June 11, 1925 patent application stated that the name change occurred in March of that year.

Over the next few years, taking full advantage of National Prohibition, their “Manhattan Dry Pale Ginger Ale” continued to be associated with hotels, nightclubs and restaurants. One such hotel was the Beau Rivage in Sheepshead Bay.

According to the fine print at the bottom of the August 10, 1928 “Brooklyn Daily Eagle” advertisement pictured above, the ginger ale  was one of several products that contributed to the hotel’s success.

Not just a summer drink, a night club called the “Open Fireplace” on Brooklyn’s Joralemon Street, included it as part of their Christmas and New Year’s Day dinners as well as their New Year’s Eve Party.

Likely not a coincidence, several years after the repeal of National Prohibition the Royal Bottling Company came to an official end when on September 11, 1936 the “Brooklyn Citizen” announced that the company’s assets were being auctioned off for the benefit of their creditors.

ASSIGNEE SALES

SUPREME COURT, KINGS COUNTY

In the matter of the general assignment for the benefit of creditors of Royal Bottling Co., Inc. assignor, to Maurice S. Levy, assignee.

Please take notice that the undersigned will sell at public auction through SHIELDS & GUTTERMAN, auctioneers, on Wednesday, September 16, 1936 at 10:20 a.m., at 285 Jay Street, in the Borough of Brooklyn, City and State of New York, the assets of the above named assignor consisting of bottles, merchandise, machinery, office furnishings, etc.

MAURICE LEVY, Assignee.

Six months earlier, the March 31, 1936 edition of the “Brooklyn Daily Eagle” announced that their long-time home at 863 Pacific Street was being renovated and leased to another business.

Bulkley & Horton Company, through A. Cardinale, of its Lafayette Ave. office, leased the two-story and basement brick garage and loft building at 863 Pacific St., on a lot 25×100 for a term of three years to the Safe Breath products Company, which will occupy it after extensive alterations are completed.

According to streeteasy.com the building located at 863 Pacific Street today was built in 1930, however, recognizing that the Royal Bottling Company listed 863 Pacific Street as their address before, during and after 1930 suggests it was built earlier. This photo of the building, courtesy  of Google Maps, certainly fits the above description of the building the company occupied.

The bottle I found is in bad shape, lacking its base. That said it was certainly pony shaped and exhibits a tooled blob finish. Embossed with the L. Samilson name and 49 East Broadway address it dates to the roughly five year period from 1891 to 1896 when Louis Samilson served as the proprietor at that address. Recognizing Levinson continued to use the Samilson embossed bottles for several years after establishing the Royal Bottling Company the bottle may not have made its way to the Long Island bays until the early 1900’s.

O. K. Bottling Co., 528 W. 38th St., New York

The history associated with this bottle begins with an Irish immigrant named Francis (sometimes Frank) McDermott who, according to 1900 census records, arrived in the United States in 1868, at the age of 16. Sometime in the mid-1880’s  he partnered with New York born William H. Callanan  and they established a bottling business that operated under the registered trade name of the O.K. Bottling Company.

Located on Manhattan’s west side at 528 West 38th Street, most directory listings included the company’s line of business as “mineral waters.”  That being said, a bottle pictured on http://historicbeerbottlesnyc.com that is embossed with the O.K. Bottling Company name and address along with the words “Weiss Beer,” confirms that the company bottled beer at some point as well.

According to Callanan’s April 29, 1912 affidavit in a court case, “Thomas Donohue v. William H. Callanan and Frank McDermott” the company began operation 27 years prior, in 1885. That being said, I can’t find it listed in the directories until 1887/1888 so its safe to say the business opened for business sometime between 1885 and 1887.

New York State’s Factory Inspection Report, dated January 27, 1896, indicated that in 1895 the company employed an-all male staff of 14, each working a 60 hour week. So, while not an overly large operation, it wasn’t all that small either.

In 1898, while continuing to serve as proprietors of the bottling business both McDermott and Callanan were involved in the incorporation of a second business, the McDermott Bunger Dairy Company of New York. The incorporation notice was published in the March 29, 1898 edition of the “New York Tribune.”

New York City’s 1901 Copartnership and Corporation Directory listed the dairy’s headquarters directly across the street from the bottling business at 527 West 38th Street and went on to name McDermott as president and Callanan as a director.

McDermott continued as both a proprietor of the bottling business and president of the dairy until 1912 when his partnership in the bottling business was dissolved. Callanan continued to serve as a director in the dairy so I suspect the dissolution of the partnership was amicable and had more to do with the needs of the dairy business than any disagreement between the two.

By this time, the 1914 New York State Factory Inspection Report indicated the bottling business had almost doubled in size, listing a total of 26 employees, 24 in the shop and two in the office.

It was around this time that the company made national headlines when a bomb exploded in the company office, killing a 20 year-old stenographer.

The caption below the photo reads:

Wreckage in office of the O.K. Bottling Company and shattered top of desk at which Miss Ida Anusewitz was sitting when she opened bomb.

According to a December 13, 1913 “Associated Press” account:

A young foreigner, swarthy and clean shaven, was sought today by detectives as the sender of the infernal machine which killed Ida Anusewitz yesterday as she opened it at her desk in the office of the O.K. Bottling Company.

From a patchwork of clues the police wove overnight a theory of motive for the crime. The slain girl they believe was not the victim for whom the bomb was intended; William H. Callanan, the proprietor was. Business rivalry, the police believe, prompted the attack.

Following still further this theory detectives believe the young man they seek acted as agent for someone else when he took the package containing the bomb to the office of an express company for delivery…

A year later, a December 10, 1914 “Brooklyn Daily Eagle” story stated that the explosion remained a mystery and as far as I can tell the crime was never solved.

Callanan was still serving as head of the O.K. Bottling Company when, according to an item found in the May, 1928 edition of the “American Perfumer & Essential Oil Review,” he passed away on May 9th of that year. Subsequently, it appears control of the business remained in the family with New York City’s 1933/1934 Directory naming his sons Lawrence and William H. Jr. as president and secretary/treasurer of the business respectively.

At some point in the late 1930’s the company moved to a new location at 520 West 44th Street where it was listed in the Manhattan Telephone Book during the early 1940’s.   The move was likely required to facilitate construction of the Lincoln Tunnel ramp that now crosses below 38th Street in the vicinity of their former building’s footprint.

The O.K.Bottling Co. was no longer listed in  the 1945 Manhattan Telephone Book, likely signaling the end of the business.

Seven years later another O.K. Bottling Company was incorporated in the State of New Jersey. The incorporation notice appeared in the May 27, 1952 edition of the “Trenton Times.”

Located on Barnt Avenue in Trenton, there’s no indication that it was in any way connected with the previous New York business.

The bottle I found is in pretty bad shape, missing both a part of its blob finish and its entire base, but it’s still undeniably a Hutchinson design. A complete version of the same bottle was pictured recently on e-bay.

On a final note: Over the years William H. Callanan’s name appears with several different spellings in census records, directory listings and newspaper stories. Other versions I’ve seen are Calanan and Callahan. For consistency’s sake I’ve chosen to use Callanan throughout this post.

L & Co., Centennial Root Beer, 1876, No. 7 Charles St., Brooklyn

The words “Centennial Root Beer” along with the year “1876” embossed on the subject bottle make it clear that it was meant to commemorate our nation’s 100th birthday. In fact, it’s at least possible that the bottle’s contents may have even been enjoyed during New York’s Fourth of July celebrations that year. So with that in mind, I thought it appropriate to start this post with a recounting of those celebrations as they appeared in the July 5, 1876 edition of the “New York Tribune.”

THE CITY’S REJOICING

THE GREAT HOLIDAY KEPT WITH SPIRIT.

PATRIOTIC AND POLITICAL SPEACHES BEFORE VARIOUS ORGANIZATIONS – MERRYMAKING IN PARKS AND GROVES – ILLIUMINATIONS AND FIREWORKS AT NIGHT –  FEATURES OF THE HOLIDAY OBSERVANCES IN NEIGHBORING TOWNS

The Centennial celebration begun in this city on Monday was continued throughout the night. The services at Union Square did not conclude until 2 o’clock Tuesday morning, and the vast crowd of nearly 40,000 persons which concentrated there on the previous evening did not disperse before the early dawn yesterday. The cars and cabs were loaded down with human freight as late as 1 o’clock, and the ferries on the North and East Rivers were crowded at 2 in the morning as they usually are each afternoon at 6 o’clock. The later railway trains to the suburban cities carried immense numbers up to 1 o’clock yesterday morning.

The demonstrations of enjoyment and patriotism were renewed with apparently new energy at daybreak on Tuesday, Independence Day proper. They were of a different character, however, from the display of Monday, consisting chiefly of noisy demonstrations out of doors and music and oratory within. At sunrise the forts in the bay, the battery at the Navy-Yard, and the men-of-war in the harbor joined in a national salute, during which the American flag was hoisted at the Battery. Trinity chimes were rung shortly afterward. There were a few social celebrations at the up-town parks, and a sham battle was fought at Lion Park, but there was no public celebration in the nature of a procession. At the Academy of Music, Tammany Hall, Irving Hall, and other minor political halls, programs of music and oratory interested large numbers; while at various churches, and at Association Hall, semi-religious, semi-patriotic services were  held. The principal civic celebration was at the Academy of Music, where the Rev. Dr. Richard S. Storrs delivered the oration, and William Cullen Bryant’s Centennial ode was sung. The meetings at Tammany Hall and Irving Hall were very poorly attended, and degenerated into mere political gatherings of unimportant persons, whose speeches were not worth repeating.

The display of fireworks in the evening was the principal attraction, and drew great crowds to the central points especially to the City Hall Park. The extent and brilliancy of the exhibitions of fireworks made by private persons in this and neighboring cities were much greater than in former years…

The name L & Co., embossed on the bottle, was short for Litchfield & Co., a business founded by a Connecticut native named Henry C. Litchfield who manufactured and bottled root beer and mineral water in Brooklyn from 1864 to  1878. That being said, Litchfield is remembered more as an educator and New York City school principal than as a bottler. In fact, his April 11, 1900 obituary found in the “New York Tribune,” stressed his 25 year career as the principal of Manhattan’s Public School No. 79 without any mention of his bottling career.

Henry C. Litchfield who was principal of Public School No. 79, Manhattan, for more than twenty-five years, died on Monday night at his home, No. 62 South Portland Ave., Brooklyn. His connection with New York City schools covered a much longer period than his service as principal of No. 79. He has been identified with a large number of the educational societies and with the organizations and associations among the members of his profession. Notwithstanding his success in the school methods followed at the time when he fitted himself for his profession, he had always been keenly appreciative of the value of new methods, and his large school has been one of the most progressive in the city. In character and temperament he was admirably suited to his profession, as is evidenced by the loyalty, affection and esteem of the hundreds of boys who came under his influence, and of the teachers who served under him…

Back in the late 1860’s, it appears that Litchfield was managing his Brooklyn bottling business when he began teaching school in Manhattan. As early as 1864/1865 Brooklyn directories listed Lichhfield & Co. as a “root beer manufacturer with a business address of 31 Charles Street in Brooklyn. Later, sometime around 1871, the business moved to 7 Charles Street, the address embossed on the subject bottle. (Located near the Williamsburg, Brooklyn waterfront, Charles Street was later renamed Kent Avenue.)

At the same time, New York city directories in 1866 and 1867 listed Litchfield’s occupation as a teacher. According to a story in the May 18, 1895 edition of the “New York Tribune,” by the early 1870’s he had advanced to vice-principal of Grammar School No. 19 before becoming the principal of Grammar School No. 13 (later renamed No.79) in 1874.

Around the time Litchfield became principal it appears he began taking a step back from the root beer business. Sometime around 1874 or 1875, the Brooklyn directories indicate Litchfield took on a partner named Henry S. Ford and by 1877/1878 the Litchfield & Co. listing included three principals; Litchfield and Ford, along with John Kerr. Two years later Litchfield, along with Ford, had terminated their involvement in the root beer business, with the company listing in 1879/1880 only naming  Kerr at the 7 Charles Street address.

A year later, Kerr moved the business to 71 N. Oxford Street in Brooklyn. His bottling notice exhibiting that address, was published in the February 7, 1880 edition of the “Brooklyn Daily Eagle.” The notice suggested that at that point Kerr was still using bottles embossed with the “L & Co.” trademark.

The business was short-lived under Kerr’s management, and as far as I can tell never did produce any bottles embossed with the Kerr name.  On March 18, 1881, a “Brooklyn Daily Eagle” classified advertisement announced that the business, which at the time included 8 wagons, 4 horses, bottling machines, bottles and boxes was for up sale, apparently by the building owner.

It’s not clear if anyone bought the business but a month later an April 14th “Brooklyn Daily Eagle” classified advertisement announced that the entire property on North Oxford Street was vacant and up for sale, certainly signaling the end of the business.

Ultumately, Henry C. Litchfield would go on to serve as the principal of Public School No. 79 for over 25 years, from 1874 up until his death in 1900.

According to a story in the March 25, 1886 edition of the “New York Tribune.”

No. 79 is one of the oldest schools in the city. It was reorganized in 1832 by the Public School Society in North St., now Houston St., near Norfolk Street. In 1853 it went under the control of the Board of Education. Two years ago when it had become overcrowded, the Board purchased several lots in First St., next to a primary school and on these the present building was erected. It is 80 x 100 feet, of brick, five stories high and has cost $76,000.

The school moved to its new location on First Street on March 24, 1886. This late 19th century rendering of the school appeared in the “New York Tribune,” on May 18, 1895.

At the time of his death Litchfield was one of only three educators to have served as the school’s principal over it’s entire 68 year history. They were Anson Willis (1832 – 1835), Leonard Hazeltine 1835 – 1874) and Henry C. Litchfield (1874 – 1900).

The school building that opened in 1886 remains to this day and now serves primarily as an apartment building.

More informaation on the building itself can be found on the following web site.

http://daytoninmanhattan.blogspot.com/2015/10/grammar-school-no-79-nos-36-42-east-1st.html

The subject bottle is blown in a mold and exhibits an applied blob finish. It’s 10-inches tall, three-inches in diameter and contains about 27 ounces. The address of “7 Charles St., Brooklyn” is embossed on the back, but the embossing is so light it wouldn’t photograph, so you’ll have to take my word for it.

Unlike most of  the bottles presented on this site,  this one was not found in the Long Island bays, but in a different kind of bay…e-bay. That being said with  America’s Semiquincentennial coming up I thought it certainly deserved some attention.

Happy 250th America!!!!

 

Hunyadi Janos, Saxlehners Bitterquelle

A product of Budapest, Hungary, Hunyadi Janos, was not a bitters, as you might guess, but a mineral water imported into the United States from the mid 1870’s up through the late 1920’s. Considered a natural mineral water, this excerpt from a February 4, 1913 memo from the Andreas Saxlehner company to the House Ways and Means committee tried to make the case that it wasn’t simply a sparkling or effervescent table water but belonged to a class of natural waters that exhibited medicinal qualities. It was written in an effort to reduce the cost of a recently imposed tariff.

…The firm of Andreas Saxlehner, of Budapest, Hungary, owners of the Hunyadi Janos springs and bottlers of the well known Hunyadi Janos medicinal water, desires to present to your honorable committee some further arguments applicable particularly to the class of natural medicinal waters to which the same belongs.

Natural mineral waters may be divided into two classes. To the one class belong those sparkling or effervescent table waters, the therapeutic value of which is negligible, and which are merely agreeable beverages. These are fairly to be regarded as luxuries. To the other class belong the natural waters which display important medicinal properties. The waters of this latter class are largely prescribed by physicians and should be regarded as necessities, rather than luxuries, and should be so treated in determining the duty to be imposed upon them…

According to a January 1, 1881 advertisement found in the “British Journal Medical Advertiser” those medicinal properties included its use as a laxative as well as a treatment for a wide range of ailments including hemorrhoids, headaches, obesity and gouty attacks, female disorders and even the evil consequences of indiscretion in diet.

So, with that as background, the story of Hunyadi Janos mineral water, or bitter water as it was sometimes referred to, begins with a man named Andreas Saxlehner.

According to his obituary, found in the June 10, 1889 edition of England’s “Sheffield and Rotherham Independent:”

He was the son a poor weaver, and half a century ago went to Vienna in the hope of increasing his worldly store. There he met Louis Kossuth, who helped to establish him as a cloth dealer, and he toiled slowly on until one memorable day in 1863, when a fellow cloth dealer from the country, chatting in his shop, told Saxlehner that on his land, is not less than 10 places, there bubbled up a strange kind of water with a peculiar odor and still more peculiar taste, which neither four-footed animals nor those with two feet would drink. Andreas had the spirit of adventure stirred within him, but acted with the wisdom of a serpent. Over to the cloth dealer’s farm he went with an analytical chemist, and after careful examination the farm was bought.

Saxlehner named the water produced by the farm, “Hunyadi Janos,” a name that was in no way descriptive of the nature or quality of the water but, according to his obituary, simply

because John Hunyadi, the victor over the Turks, was one of the men included in Saxlehner’s “Hero Worship.”

Shortly after acquiring the farm, Saxlehner got permission from the Municipal Council of Buda to sell the water locally, and as time went on and business increased, he acquired additional territory and opened new wells such that by the turn of the century a feature found in the December 5, 1896 edition of “The Lancet”  described the overall facility as comprising:

some two hundred and eighty acres of which one hundred and twenty are employed for obtaining Hunyadi Janos water.

An 1896 booklet published by the Saxlehner company included this turn of the century depiction of the springs along with a description of the operation.

The view from Dobogo Hill of the Saxlehner bottling establishment, with its numerous and extensive buildings, is one of the sites of Hungary. The foreground of the picture is occupied by the filling house, into which by means of underground pipes the water is conveyed from the wells which are over 100 in number.

According to the “The Lancet” feature, each of the wells was enclosed in its own separate wooden structure. They can be seen dotted along the landscape in the above depiction.

The Saxlehner publication went on to say:

The filling apparatus can turn out more than 100,000 bottles a day ready for delivery. The greatest care is taken in collecting and bottling the water, the whole process being carried out entirely by machinery, and every possible source of contamination is most scrupulously guarded against. The bottles after being filled, corked, capsuled and labeled are stored in a large warehouse.

“The Lancet” feature also included this interior view of the bottling house picturing the “filling, capsuling and labeling” operations

Finally, the Saxlehner publication went on to describe the ancillary facilities of the Springs.

In convenient proximity are the various workshops for the manufacture of the packing cases, etc. and the engine room for the production of electric light, by which the whole establishment is illuminated, and for the supply of all other motive power that is required. A permanent staff of some 250 workpeople is employed all the year round.

Another ring of laborers’ cottages, the fire brigade station, and various storehouses, all forming part of the establishment, complete the picture.

A junction railway two miles in length, constructed by the firm, branches off from the mainline of the State railways to the filling house and storeroom, and brings the establishment into communication with the general stream of commercial circulation.

The demand necessary to require over 100 wells began to make itself known by the early to mid- 1870’s when the mineral water’s presence began spreading beyond the Hungarian borders.

In the U.S, this started happening in 1876. Prior to that point newspaper references to “Hunyadi Janos” were almost non-existent. In fact, the only pre-1876  mention of it that I can find was its inclusion on a menu of “Fresh Mineral Waters” being offered for sale by a Richmond, Virginia druggist named Meade & Baker in April/May of 1875.

The catalyst for change came in March, 1876 when according to court records in the case of “Saxlehner v. Eisner & Mendelson Co.”

Saxlehner made a contract with the Apollinaris Company whereby he gave to it the exclusive sale of his Hunyadi Janos bitter water in the United States; that is he sold to it all it required and agreed to not sell for export there.

It was through the subsequent advertising efforts of the Apollinaris Company, in concert with their agent, the New York City firm of  Frderick DeBary & Co., that the mineral water gained its reputation in the United States.

As early as 1877 advertisements for the “NEW APERIENT WATER” were appearing in medical journals and national magazines, and by 1878 those advertisements were also appearing in local newspapers found in every state east of the Mississippi, as well as in Texas and California. One of several introductory advertisements employed during this time is shown below.

Over the next decade, as “Hunyadi Janos” gained popularity imitations began appearing on the market. Bearing similar labels and  tagged with the “Hunyadi” name they included names like “Hunyadi Matayas,” “Hunyadi Lajos,” Hunyadi Vilmos,” “Uj Hunyadi,” and “Hunyadi Laszlo,” among others.

In spite of the fact that the company didn’t significantly address this issue in the courts until the 1890’s, sales apparently continued to grow such that by 1895, according to a story in the March, 1896 edition of  “The Druggist and Practical Gazette:” the Apollinaris Company had worked the trade up to 1-1/2 million bottles a year, which was the upper limit contemplated when their contract with Saxlehner was executed.

That being said, the relationship between the Saxlehner’s and the Apollinaris company wasn’t all that harmonious, and in 1896 the contract between the two firms was in the process of being terminated early. An interview with an Apollinaris executive named Steinkopff, included in the March, 1896 “Druggist and Chemical Gazette” story provided some details.

“Yes it is a fact that we are giving up our concession for the supply of the Hunyadi Janos water next March,” said Mr. Steinkopff. Our contract was made in 1875, and would expire at the end of the century. But we have exercised our option to determine it earlier. Our relations with Mr. Saxlehner have been strained almost from the first. We spent £54,000 in introducing the Hunyadi Janos water and in extending its sale. That expense fell on us exclusively, and we have considered that we were entitled to more support from the Saxlehners. We do not think that they have protected us so well as they might have done from the importations of the water from the  Continent by other firms; we believe the water supplied has not always been, as it should have been, from the richest springs; we worked up the trade to 1-1/2 million bottles a year, which was the extreme limit contemplated when the contract was made, and then Mr. Saxlehner wanted to make new conditions if we went beyond that quantity. So we have been in continual disputes with him and his successors…

Steinkopff went on to say that the Apollinaris company. was planning on going into competition with the Saxlehners.

“Some five or six years ago I bought an estate near Budapest, in the bitter-water district, with springs on it which yield a very rich bitter water, and it is this water which we propose to sell in the future…”

“And the name?”

“It will bear the trade mark ‘Apenta,’ which has been registered. But it is drawn from the Hunyadi springs.”

After their contract with the Appolinaris company was terminated the Saxlehner’s went on to establish their own U. S. import office. Not wasting any time, the opening was announced in the “New York Tribune,” on March 12, 1896.

Andreas Saxlehner, of Budapest Hungary, will on March 26, 1896, open an office in the Bennett Building, New York City, for supplying direct to the trade the world’s well-known genuine natural Hunyadi Janos aperient water.

This will enable all purchasers to secure the genuine Hunyadi Janos aperient water direct from the proprietor. As this water has been recommended by over one thousand of the highest medical authorities as being the best of any aperient water in the world, its success has caused many imitations to be put on the market. Purchasers should therefore see that the name of Andreas Saxlehner is on each label.

The Bennett Building was located on the corner of Nassau Street and Fulton Street in lower Manhattan. As early as 1896/1897 the firm of Andreas Saxlehner was listed there with an address of 93 Nassau Street (later 130 Fulton Street) where, according to this February 13, 1902 price list found in the “Pharmaceutical Era,” you could order a case of fifty bottles of Hunyadi Janos for $11.

By 1898, the NYC directories named Albin Trojan as the company’s New York manager and both Trojan and the company were listed in this manner up through 1917.

Throughout this time period the company continued to advertise their mineral water on a national scale, as evidenced by this advertisement that appeared in major city newspapers across the country (New York, Chicago, Minneapolis and San Francisco, to name a few) in March and April of 1914.

It was also during this time, 1912 to be exact, that the company introduced a new product to the U. S. market, “Hunyadi Janos Pills.” Advertisements, disguised as newspaper stories, introduced them in October, 1912. One such ad appeared in the October 31st edition of the “Brooklyn Daily Times.”

A New Remedy for An Old Complaint

A Scientific and Important Discovery for the Treatment of Constipation, Liver and Stomach Disorders

The careless selection of widely advertised and ineffective remedies is the cause of a good deal of misery. Be careful of taking without your doctor’s orders, drugs like Calomel and Cascara in any form, and other drastic stuff. Besides their harshness, they act only on a single organ and cannot stimulate all the different structures which are diseased.

These facts lead to a great deal of experimentation and finally to the discovery of Hunyadi Janos Pills, a scientific and perfect combination which does work – gently – on all the proper organs. Hunyadi Janos Pills are compounded with only one end in view and that is to relieve you of your troubles. You need not experiment on yourself – you need not take anywhere from 1, 6 or 10 pills – one or two pils at night are enough and sure. They work where and when work is required – without griping. Buy a box and try them tonight. You’ll see the reason why – the next morning.

For sale by all up-to-date druggists.

Later newspaper advertisements like this one followed, though they were pretty much confined to just several states in the northeast.

On a side note: Although the pills were marketed under the Hunyadi Janos name, according to court records, “Hunyadi Janos Corporation v. Stoeger,” they were actually manufactured in the U.S. and were made of chemicals, none of which was derived from the Hunyadi Janos water.

Ultimately the U. S. operation fell victim to World War I when, in October 1918, it was announced that Saxlehner’s U. S. business was being put up for sale by the Alien Property Custodian. The announcement appeared in the October 18th edition of the “Daily News” in Springfield, Massachusetts.

The state department has received through the Swiss Legation a protest from the German government which declared that the sale of German-owned property in this country was “consciously aimed to do lasting injury to German economic existence. The protest was received on September 16, and was made public yesterday by A. Mitchell Palmer, alien property custodian…

The only answer to the protest was made by Manager of Sales Joseph P. Guffey, of the alien property custodian’s office, who announced that the following concerns valued at more than $100,000,000 would be sold on the following days:..

The firm of Andreas Saxlehner was included on the list and scheduled for November 4th.

Ultimately, according to court records, “Hunyadi Janos Corporation v. Stoeger,” the sale actually took place a month later, in December, 1918.

On December 21, 1918, the Alien Property Custodian of the United States, acting under the provisions of the Trading with the Enemy Act, demanded and seized the business of the firm of Andreas Saxlehner, all its tangible and intangible assets, trademarks, trade-names, and good will as the property of an alien enemy resident in Budapest, Hungary.

On December 24, 1918, the Alien Property Custodian filed a copy of the demand and notice of the seizure of the property in the office of the Commissioner of Patents, and sold as a going concern the business heretofore conducted under the trade-name Andreas Saxlehner, at 130 Fulton Street, New York, and elsewhere in the United States, including its office furniture, fixtures, pills, labels, good will, trade-names and trademarks to the Partola Manufacturing Company, which on May 19, 1919, transferred the same to the Hunyadi Janos Corporation,

Apparently, the new corporation got the American made Hunyadi Janos Pills back on the market rather quickly and by July they were running newspaper advertisements, with one July 11th Minneapolis “Star Tribune” ad bragging:

Peace is here again. So are Again! Hunyadi Janos Pills…

…Bring peace to your system. Don’t wait.

This more traditional advertisement appeared in the July 31, 1919 edition of the “Pittsburg Press.”

In 1920 they began advertising the Hunyadi Janos water, though just sporadically.  The earliest post-war mention I can find appeared in the July 8, 1920 edition of Jersey City, New Jersey’s “Jersey Journal.”

As far as I can tell, over the next year they were preparing to hit the market on a larger scale such that in early 1922, according  the August 3, 1922 edition of an advertising publication called  “Printers Ink,” they had on hand 40,000 bottles and had invested $100,000 in the business. Unfortunately for them, it was around this time that another importer, Alexander F. Stoeger, entered the picture.  According to a May 20, 1922 “New York Times” story:

Mr.  Stoeger had set up an agency for the sale of the (Hunyadi Janos) water for which he paid 281,000 marks, or $333 in our money. Mr, Stoeger, it was stated, has described himself as the sole source of the water in this country

So, as the dust settled in mid-1922, the Hunyadi Janos Corporation was importing the water from Hungary and selling the water under the trademarks acquired when they purchased the business from the Alien Property Custodian, while Stoeger was importing it from the same place and selling it under the old pre-war trademark.

The “New York Times” story reported that on May 20, 1922 the federal courts in support of the Hunyadi Janos Corporation issued an injunction restraining Stoeger from selling or dealing in Hunyadi Janos water. Two days later however, the injunction was vacated by a district court.

Stoeger quickly put out an announcement to the trade announcing the decision. The announcement, found in the June, 1922 edition of a publication called “The  Retail Druggist,” went on to say:

Mr. Stoeger has just returned from Budapest. Hungary, where he has purchased a large quantity of GENUINE HUNYADI JANOS from the firm of Andreas Saxlehner (Budapest), who have authorized Mr. Stoeger to act as sole authorized importer for the United States, Philippines, Cuba and Canada.

The case would play out in the courts over the next several years with Stoeger ultimately succeeding on appeal in 1925.

As far as I can tell, Stoeger continued to market the Hunyadi Janos mineral water throughout much of the 1920’s. As late as July 26, 1927, Hunyadi Janos was included in a  table of “Price List Changes” found in a publication called “Drug Markets” (highlighted in yellow)…

That being said, there’s no evidence I can find that indicates Stoeger was still importing Hunyadi Janos mineral water in the 1930’s. In fact, by 1933, Stoeger had dropped the term “importer” from his New York City directory listing.

It appears that the  Hunyadi Janos Corporation had also run its course prior to 1930. In 1922, they had apparently moved out of the Bennett building, then listing 100 West 21st Street as their address. That year, the directory also included a listing for their “water sales company” at 25 West 43rd Street. Two years later, the corporation listing remained but the listing for “water sales” had vanished. Advertisements for their Hunyadi Janos Pills had also disappeared by the early 1920’s.

Ultimately, in 1936 the corporation was non-responsive to an effort by the U. S. Patent Office to effect the cancellation of their Saxlehner patents.

The last U. S. advertisement I can find for Hunyadi Janos appeared in the March 13, 1929 edition of New York’s “Daily News,” further suggesting circa 1930 as a likely end date for Hunyadi Janos in the U. S.

The bottle I found is dark olive green in color and matches exactly this description of Saxlehner’s bottle found in court records.

At or about the time when Andreas Saxlehner adopted the name of “Hunyadi Janos” he also adopted a characteristic and novel style of bottles in which said water was sold by him in the market, the same being of a straight shape with a short neck, to the top of which was attached a metal capsule bearing the inscription “Hunyadi Janos Budai Keseruviz” (meaning the Hunyadi Janos Bitter Water of Buda)

This pictorial representation of the bottle appeared in the “1904 London Medical Directory.”

The same style bottle is pictured in the 1881 advertisement found in the beginning of this post as well as the 1929 advertisement (pictured just above) so the bottle design apparently went unchanged during the 50+ years it was imported into the United States.

All embossing is found on the base; “SAXLEHNER’S BITTRRQUELLE” along the circular edge, and ‘HNNYADI JANOS” in the center.

On a final note: the Bennett Building, home of the U. S. business in 1896, remains to this day. Opened in 1873, it occupies the entire block on the west side of Nassau Street between Fulton and Ann Streets.