Dr. Jaffe’s Celebrated Cinchona Bitters Trademark Letter
12 October 2017
Dr. Jaffe’s Celebrated Cinchona Bitters advertisement – The Record Union (Sacramento), Saturday, April 3, 1880
I came across this 1880 Dr. Jaffe’s Celebrated Cinchona Bitters advertisement above while searching for support material for another post. The brand was advertised, using pretty much the same small advertisement up until 1883 in Sacramento, California.
A quick search led me to this letter from Wm. Price & Co. from the California Secretary of State’s Office, “Old Series Trademark No. 0234. Just so cool. William Price and Co. were the sole manufacturers and proprietors. They filed for the Cinchona Bitters trademark in Sacramento, California on 12 September 1872. I am not aware of any bottles.
I have no idea who Dr. Jaffe is as he does not show up in any searches during that time period. William Price & Co. was listed in Sacramento directories from 1869 to 1874. Dr Jaffe’s was later represented by E.L. Billings & Co. up until about 1880.
The listing in Bitters Bottles is as follows:
J 15 L … Dr. Jaffe’s Celebrated Cinchona Bitters
Wm. Price & Co. Sole Mfrs. and Proprietors, Sacramento, California
Cinchona is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae containing at least 23 species of trees and shrubs. They are native to the tropical Andean forests of western South America. A few species are reportedly naturalized in Central America, Jamaica, French Polynesia, Sulawesi, Saint Helena in the South Atlantic, and São Tomé and Príncipe off the coast of tropical Africa. A few species are used as medicinal plants, known as sources for quinine and other compounds.
Ferd,
You have discovered the California State Trademark Archives website. The trademark files have been somewhat pilfered by unscrupulous people over the years but it is one of the best bottle related archives in the West. Thanks to the State it has put this valuable record group on line. But, one important item of note. I am fairly certain that each state has a similar archive which is a true gold mine of information. I have visited the archives in Oregon, Nevada, California and New York. For the earlier states the information is priceless, and each registration entry is usually accompanied by a label for the product.
Of course, no other state that I know of has posted their trademarks on the Internet, which requires a visit to the individual state offices.