De Kuyper’s Orange Bitters

Posted on 12 February 2014 by Ferdinand Meyer V

DuKuyperBottles

Six De Kuyper Gin Bottles, 19th and early 20th centuries, May 4, 2013 Maryland Auction – Crocker Farm

OrangeBittersSeriesArtDe Kuyper’s Orange Bitters

PART OF THE ORANGE BITTERS SERIES

12 February 2014

Apple-Touch-IconADe Kuyper originated in 1695 in Holland when Petrus De Kuyper started manufacturing barrels and casks used in the transportation of spirits and beer. By 1752, the family owned a distillery in Schiedam which was then the leading center for the production of Dutch gin or genever.

Now we will jump forward to the early 1920’s in the United States when De Kuyper started their liqueur production. Over the course of the 1920’s and 1930’s, De Kuyper produced nearly twenty varieties of liqueur, including apricot brandy, cherry brandy, triple sec and crème de menthe.

From 1920-1934, the United States Prohibition was the legal act of prohibiting the manufacture, transportation and sale of alcohol and alcoholic beverages. This ban led some enterprising folks to start distilling their own alcohol at home. There was also a massive rise in organized crime relating to the production of illegal booze. At the height of his power, the gangster Al Capone employed more than 1,000 people!

De Kuyper then wisely entered into an agreement with National Distillers Products Corporation in New York regarding the sale of De Kuyper products and the joint establishment of a production unit in New Jersey. Permission to import and sell these orange bitters had also been obtained from the U.S. Bureau of Prohibition, Washington, D.C., per a letter of 30 July, 1927.

DeKuypersOrangeBittersTCoval

De Kuypers Orange Bitters die cut trade card – Joe Gourd Collection

De Kuyper USA was born along with the De Kuyper’s Orange Bitters (see trade card above) made from rinds, such as lemon peels, sweet or bitter orange peels and Curaçao orange peels. To ensure that the De Kuyper brand retained a foothold in the United States, De Kuyper supplied alcohol-free gin and these orange bitters in a labeled green bottle. You can also recognize their anchor within a heart logo which is pretty darn cool.

DEKLogo

What a strong brand with a lot of history and good fortune that carries them to our store shelves today.

DKRLR

The Carlyn Ring and W.C. Ham listing in Bitters Bottles is as follows:

D 40 L … DeKuyper’s Orange Bitters
Manufactured by John DeKuyper & Son   Rotterdam, Holland
Sole Agents for the U.S.A.  B. B. Dorf. and Co., Inc., 247 Park Ave., New York
Green, Tooled lip
Neck label: Permission to import and sell these orange bitters has been obtained from the U.S. Bureau of Prohibition, Washington, D.C., as per their letter of 30 July, 1927
Newspaper advertisement

De Kuyper FC + wit

DeKuyper Royal Distillers is a privately held Dutch company in the business of manufacturing and marketing distilled spirits and liqueurs.

The company was begun in 1695 by Petrus De Kuyper as a manufacturer of barrels and casks used in the transportation of spirits and beer. By 1752, the family owned a distillery in Schiedam which was then the leading center for the production of Dutch gin or genever. In the 19th century, the company expanded its export business throughout Europe, Great Britain and Canada. In 1911, a new distillery was built in Schiedam and thereafter the production of liqueur began. The roster of flavors slowly expanded, and partnerships were formed with distillers in Canada (1932) and the United States (1934, strategically at the end of Prohibition). By the 1960s the production of liqueurs had overtaken the production of genever as drinks tastes changed and the promotion of liqueurs for use in cocktails induced a surge in sales.

In 1966, De Kuyper sold the right to manufacture and market their brands in the United States to Jim Beam Brands under a perpetual agreement. American consumers know the brand as John DeKuyper & Son, which makes generally inexpensive liqueurs such as Triple Sec and various flavors of Schnapps such as Pucker, generally for consumption in sweet cocktails or shots.

In 1995, on the occasion of its 300th anniversary, the company received the title “Royal” from Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands. This led to the company changing its name from Johannes de Kuyper & Zoon to De Kuyper Royal Distillers. In the same year, Erven Warnink – the leading producer of advocaat and cream liqueurs – was taken over by De Kuyper Royal Distillers. [Wikipedia]

OrangeBittersSeriesArt

Mack’s Orange Tonic Bitters – a sweet bitters from Orlando

California Aromatic Orange Bitters – San Francisco

Fine Aromatic Orange Stomach Bitters – Berry, Demoville & Co. – Nashville

Roped Squares – Baker’s Orange Grove Bitters

The Color Orange in Antique Bottles & Glass

More on the Color Orange in Antique Glass

Posted in Advertising, Bitters, Gin, History, Liqueurs, Liquor Merchant, Spirits | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Mack’s Orange Tonic Bitters – a sweet bitters from Orlando

Posted on 11 February 2014 by Ferdinand Meyer V

MacksOrangeBitters

OrangeBittersSeriesArtMack’s Orange Tonic Bitters • A sweet bitters from Orlando

11 February 2014 (R•021314 with 1875 & 1887 advertisements) (R•021414 with Isaac Irvine Hite)

FlGrtgs

Apple-Touch-IconAWhere else can you find a gorgeous form for a bitters bottles, a magnificent ‘fruit crate style’ label and a no-nonsense name like Mack’s Orange Tonic Bitters? Of course, sunny, Orange County, Orlando. This sounds like a Florida tourism commercial. About the only thing that this bottle does not have going for it is Mickey Mouse ears!

mmearsorange

The Carlyn Ring and W. C. Ham listing in Bitters Bottles is as follows:

M 3  MACK’S ORANGE TONIC BITTERS

MACK’S ORANGE TONIC / BITTERS // c // // b // CITRUS / EXTRACT / CO (  )
8 3/4 x 2 3/4 (5)
Round, Amber, NSC, Tooled lip, Rare
Prepared only by The Citrus Extract Co.   Orlando, Orange County, Florida

Label: For dyspepsia or weak digestion, biliousness, general debility, weakness, nervous prostration and all conditions of the system requiring the aid of a tonic. It is also recommended for contracting the effects of alcoholism – Dose: A small wineglassful one half hour before meals. This effective tonic is prepared purely vegetable remedies, combined with the valuable properties of the orange according to a regular prescription, and is endorsed by physicians.

A small wineglassful one half hour before meals. This effective tonic is prepared purely vegetable remedies, combined with the valuable properties of the orange according to a regular prescription, and is endorsed by physicians.

We are not going to get much further than here on this post as I can not find any information on the brand including advertising, Mr. Mack and The Citrus Extract Company. Oh, its hiding somewhere …but where?

[13 February 2014] New information coming in from Corey Stock in the form of two advertisements that are posted below. It looks like this brand dates back to at least 1874 and Issac Irvine Hite who was a druggist in Mellonville, Orange County, Florida. He is listed as O 71 in Bitters Bottles with Trade Mark No. 1765, dated April, 1874. I would presume that P. Mack took over the brand. More to come, I am sure.

OrangeBittersTall

It looks like Orange Bitters dates back to at least 1875 and Isaac Irvine Hite who was a druggist in Mellonville, Orange County, Florida – Florida Agriculturist, Jacksonville, Florida, September 25, 1875.

Wine for Sale at my Bowling Alley on Church St., near the Depot

MACK AD 1887

P. Mack, Orange Wine Manufacturer advertisement (submitted by Corey Stock) – 1887 Orlando Florida city directory

Mosquito County was renamed Orange County in 1845 when Florida became a state.

Orange County is a county located in Florida. It is the center of the Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford Metropolitan Statistical Area. The county seat is Orlando. The land that is Orange County was part of the first land to emerge from below the Early Oligocene sea 33.9–28.4 million years ago and is known as Orange Island. Orange County’s Rock Spring location is a Pleistocene fossil bearing area and has yielded a vast variety of birds and mammals including giant sloth; mammoth; camel; and the Dire Wolf dating around 1.1 million years ago.

HisFlorMp

In 1821, there were two counties that formed Florida: Escambia to the west and St. Johns to the east. In 1824, the area to the south of St. Johns County became Mosquito County, and Enterprise was named the county seat. This massive county took up much of central Florida. Mosquito County was renamed Orange County in 1845 when Florida became a state. Several counties, such as Osceola, Seminole, Lake, and Volusia were carved out of Orange County. Orange County was renamed from Mosquito County for the fruit that constituted the county’s main product. [Wikipedia]

OrangeBittersSeriesArt

De Kuyper’s Orange Bitters

California Aromatic Orange Bitters – San Francisco

Fine Aromatic Orange Stomach Bitters – Berry, Demoville & Co. – Nashville

Roped Squares – Baker’s Orange Grove Bitters

The Color Orange in Antique Bottles & Glass

More on the Color Orange in Antique Glass

Posted in Bitters, Druggist & Drugstore, History, Tonics, Wine & Champagne | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

California Aromatic Orange Bitters – San Francisco

Posted on 11 February 2014 by Ferdinand Meyer V

OrangeBittersSeriesArt

California Aromatic Orange Bitters – San Francisco

PART OF THE ORANGE BITTERS SERIES

11 February 2014 (R•052119)

Apple-Touch-IconAHere is another, what appears to be, unlisted “Orange” bitters from San Francisco, California. The California Aromatic Orange Bitters was put out by Irishman, John Mulhern, who had a long and storied business career. As a young man in 1880, Mulhern took his life savings of $500 and purchased the complete assets of a soda pop and soda fountain business from Martin Z. Watson. This move would shape his career.

Initially in the 1880s, Mulhern was listed as selling flavoring extracts. He does this while maintaining the Watson & Company name at 122 & 124 Market until he changes the name of the business to John Mulhern in 1898 or 1899. The word “Company’ is missing from directory listings and advertising.

From 1899, until 1902 or so, Mulhern put his knowledge with flavoring extracts and oranges to use and he produced his California Orange Bitters. I can only find advertising for these three years. He said the bitters was for “Dyspepsia, Loss of Appetite and Stomach Troubles”. At that time, there were other ‘imported’ orange bitters being sold in San Francisco by William Wolff & Co. and others, so Mulhern most likely added “California” to the name to distinguish his product.

The California Aromatic Orange Bitters was probably a labeled bitters and to my knowledge, no examples exist in collections. This bitters may have remained forgotten, and unlisted in Ring & Ham, had it not been for the submission of the advertising envelope below by bitters trade card authority Joe Gourd.

Envelope
C 11.5 CALIFORNIA AROMATIC ORANGE BITTERS, For Dyspepsia, Loss of Appetite and all Stomach Troubles. John Mulhern, Proprietor, 122 & 124 Market St., San Francisco, Cal., Envelope has a Washington 1890 issue, 2-cent, magenta stamp with a ‘football 13’ hand cancel in cork. John Mulhern advertised his bitters from 1899 to 1902.

Special Note: The envelope above has a Washington 1890 issue, 2-cent, magenta stamp with a ‘football 13’ hand cancel in cork (see detail below). It looks likes the circular cancel reads, “SAN FRANCISCO, SEP 23, 2 PM 92.”. If this 1892 date is correct, this puts the bitters product much earlier from 1890 to 1902. What is odd, is that John Mulhern was using the Watson & Co. name during this period. Watson is not used on the envelope.

2CentWashingtonCaliforniaOrange

Mulhern also advertised that he was an agent for Dr. Abernathy’s Green Ginger Brandy. In those days, one of the popular hardy beverages enjoyed by all two-fisted drinkers was “Dr. Abernathy’s” and John Mulhern continued its manufacture right up until the days of prohibition. During prohibition it appeared as a medicinal beverage.

Mulhern next expands from flavoring extracts and bitters into the soda supply and machinery business in 1902 and runs this until 1925 becoming a noted and pioneer dealer and representative in this business field. You see him quoted at many product shows and within trade magazines in historical documents. Mulhern was also one of the first to introduce to California, Coca-Cola fountain syrup from Atlanta, along with Claridge flavors from Boston and a complete line of soda fountains.

What is really cool is that Mulhern had Patent No: 149,711 for the design and the words “Orange-Kist Soda” which was a non-alcolohic, malt less beverage sold as a soft drink. It looks like the flavor orange was a theme in Johns life.

Representative John Mulhern Timeline:

JohnMulhern

John Mulhern

1880: A young John Mulhern took his life savings of $500 and purchased the “complete assets” of a soda pop and soda fountain business from Martin Z. Watson.
1890: John Mulhern, manufacturer and dealer flavoring extracts, 124 Market – San Francisco City Directory
1893: John Mulhern, mnfr flavoring extracts, 122-124 Market –  San Francisco City Directory
1896: John Mulhern, manufacturing agent, mfr flavoring extracts, 124 Market – San Francisco City Directory
1897: Manufacturing Agent, John Mulhern, 124 Market – San Francisco City Directory
1898: John Mulhern, manufacturer of flavoring extracts and manager Watson & Co., 124 Market, San Francisco City Directory
1899: John Mulhern, bitters, 124 Market, San Francisco City Directory
1900: John Mulhern (successor to Watson & Co.), soda water supplies and machinery and aft. Dr. Abernathy’s Green Ginger Brandy and California Orange Bitters, 124 Market – San Francisco City Directory
1900-1901: Bitters: California Orange Bitters (John Mulhern), 124 Market Street, 1901 Crocker-Langley San Francisco Directory
MulhernListing1902

John Mulhern and California Orange Bitters listing – 1902 San Francisco City Directory

1902: John Mulhern (see above), soda water supplies and machinery and aft. Dr. Abernathy’s Green Ginger Brandy and California Orange Bitters, 124 Market – 1902 San Francisco City Directory
1902: Wm. Wolff & Co. , 216 Mission, agents Orange Bitters, San Francisco Blue Book * This is an import product most likely and not the same brand.
1905: John Mulhern, flavoring extracts, 124 Market – San Francisco City Directory | Also Soda Water Machinery and Supplies Advertisement (see below)
Mulhern1905Ad

Soda Water and Machinery advertisement, John Mulhern – American Bottler, 1905

1907: Soda Water Manufacturing Supplies: John Mulhern, 2827, 25th, 1907 San Francisco Directory
JohnMulhern1911Ad

John Mulhern Soda Water Machinery and Supplies – The San Francisco Call, February 21, 1911

1911: John Mulhern Soda Water Machinery and Supplies advertisement (see above) – The San Francisco Call, February 21, 1911
1915: Soda Water Apparatus: John Mulhern, 180 2nd, San Francisco City Directory
1922: Patent No: 149,711 – John Mulhern Co. San Francisco, Calif. Design and the words “Orange-Kist Soda” Non-alcolohic, malt less beverage sold as a soft drink. – The Soda Fountain, 1922
1925: John Mulhern Company SODA WATER BOTTLING MACHINERY – FLAVORING EXTRACTS AND SUPPLIES * 182 SECOND STREET SAN FRANCISCO – University of California Berkeley – Blue and Gold Yearbook (Berkeley, CA) – Class of 1925

OrangeBittersSeriesArt

De Kuyper’s Orange Bitters

Mack’s Orange Tonic Bitters – a sweet bitters from Orlando

Fine Aromatic Orange Stomach Bitters – Berry, Demoville & Co. – Nashville

Roped Squares – Baker’s Orange Grove Bitters

The Color Orange in Antique Bottles & Glass

More on the Color Orange in Antique Glass

Posted in Advertising, Bitters, Ephemera, History, Medicines & Cures, Mineral Water, Postage, Questions, Soda Bottles, Soda Water, Soft Drinks, Syrup | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Genuine Franciscan Cordial Bitters

Posted on 10 February 2014 by Ferdinand Meyer V

Group_of_Franciscan_Friars

The Genuine Franciscan Cordial Bitters

by James Viguerie

10 February 2014

The other day, when I found the New Mexico bitters, (read: Hungarian Blackberry Juice and Wild Cherry Bitters – Tucumcari or Six-Shooter Siding) I came across a Santa Barbara, California bitters too, and it looks to be unlisted! The advertisement (see below) is for “The Genuine Franciscan Cordial Bitters“. It is “A palatable alterative tonic recommended by the most eminent physicians against disorders of the stomach kidneys and bladder.” It was made by the Franciscan Company of Santa Barbara, California.

Albuquerque evening citizen December 30 1905 - Albuquerque evening citizen December 30 1905

The “Franciscan” Cordial Bitters advertisement – Albuquerque Evening Citizen, December 30, 1905

In New Mexico, the bitters was distributed by Melini & Eakin of Albuquerque (see below). James D. Eakin and his wife Mattie were in business with Charles Melini. They had been in an earlier liquor distribution businesses, Eakin & Brady, that went bankrupt. Their partner the first time was John Bandy. (Read: Strong v. Eakin)

Melini and Eakin

Melini & Eakin, Albuquerque, NM advertisement post card

A recent eBay auction had a post card from the firm (see above).

Looking at various online sources, I found the following additional advertisements for Franciscan Cordial Bitters. The December 22, 1905 San Francisco Call had a listing for the bitters (see below). They wrote it was “a palatable, health-giving, scientific combination, from herbs gathered from California and other lands”.

San Francisco Call 22 December 1905

The Genuine Franciscan Cordial Bitters advertisement – San Francisco Call, 22 December 1905

The San Francisco Call of January 7, 1906 (see below) heralds it as “a wonderful tonic from wonderful California” and “The greatest boon to mankind that ever came from California”. Sounds like it must have been pretty good stuff!

San Francisco Call 7 January 1906

The Genuine Franciscan Cordial Bitters advertisement – San Francisco Call, 7 January 1906

In the February 26, 1906 San Francisco Call, there was an advertisement (see below) for Bibo, Newman Co., sellers of groceries and liquors that lists the bitters.

Bibo - Newman Co - San Francisco Call Feb 26 1906

Bibo, Newman Co. advertisement noting Franciscan Cordial Bitters – San Francisco Call February 26, 1906

The March 17, 1906 issue of the Lodi California Sentinel (see below) also had an advertisement for the Genuine Franciscan Cordial Bitters. Not only does it mention it being made from “rare herbs grown in California and foreign lands” but that the secret recipe was “zealously guarded by Padre Gonzales” of the Franciscan Monks. The manufacturer is now shown as The Lodi Wine Company, with a W. T. Harris as the manager.

The Lodi Sentinel - Mar 17 1906

Genuine Franciscan Cordial Bitters advertisement – The Lodi Sentinel – March 17, 1906

I searched for information about a “Padre Gonzales” connected with the Franciscans of Santa Barbara. There was a Padre Gonzales Rubio who was high up in the church in the 1850s. He was connected with the creation of a Franciscan College in Santa Barbara. It is too hard to tell at this point if he was the keeper of the recipe. There are documents that refer to the church having vineyards. What better way to use some extras grapes than to make a wine based bitters.

The inventoried valuation was $20,843, and it comprised over 3,000 head of stock, the San Jose vineyard north of Goleta (what is now known as the “Sisters Ranch”), the San Marcos Ranch in the Santa Ynez Valley, and all the store houses, their contents, the shops, vineyards, orchards, and the tannery in the vicinity of the Mission. Read: Santa Barbara And Montecito Past And Present – PART II – History of The Santa Barbara Mission – Spanish Supremacy – Mexican Occupation – American Acquisition – Early Days in Santa Barbara.

I could not find anything about W. T. Harris or the Lodi Wine Company. However, the Lodi area was booming with wine production at the turn of the century – “in 1901 the local newspaper declared that wine production was ‘the coming industry for this part of the state.’ ” Read: The Wines of Lodi, California – History

FranciscanCordialBittersLogo

On June 12, 1906, patent 53,850 was registered by the Franciscan Company of Santa Barbara, California (see below). It describes the image that had appeared in their advertising as “a representation of Santa Barbara Mission, with a bell above suspended from a beam, and a palm-tree at each end of the picture.” The design (see above) was originally applied for January 19, 1906 (see image top of post).

1906 Patent 53850

June 12, 1906, patent 53,850 was registered by the Franciscan Company of Santa Barbara, California

The last listing I found was in the 1909 Pacific Wine and Spirit Review. In it, William Wolff & Co. show a number of products they are distributors for, including The Genuine Franciscan Cordial Bitters.

1909 William Wolff and Co

The Genuine Franciscan Cordial Bitters advertisement noting William Wolff & Co. – 1909 Pacific Wine and Spirit Review

The Pacific Wine and Spirit Review is a good source of advertisements for bitters, beers, wines and whiskeys of the early 1900s. There were statistics from several importers on how many cases of bitters were shipped to different places. The Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906 clearly had not dented sales too much yet. Some of the bitters I saw listed were:

California Fig and Herb Bitters on page 62. On page 270, they are mentioned as one of the businesses set up at the San Francisco Pure Food Exposition. This is C 15 in Bitters Bottles. Then there is Chief Bitters on page 61. Could this be C 143 in Bitters Bottles? They were out of Los Angeles? Fernet-Branca Bitters is noted on page 13. It references that it won grand prize at the 1904 St. Louis World’s Fair. This is F 16 in Bitters Bottles. There is also a Hiawatha Bitters on page 61. This is H 108 in Bitters Bottles. Lash Bitters (I assume it meant Lash’s) is on page 715. This is H 108 in Bitters Bottles.

And of course….Orange Bitters sold by Simon Levy & Co. on page 8 (see below). Could this be O 70 or O 75? Both of those are shown to be from San Francisco, as was Simon Levy & C.. or could it be connected with O 67, O 69 or O72? Those were all listed at being from London. Perhaps Hills and Underwood of London had yet another unlisted Orange Bitters?

Note: Peachridge Glass is writing a series on Orange bitters.

Simon Levy and Co

Top Image: Group of Franciscan Friars, Mission, Santa Barbara from Robert N. Dennis collection of stereoscopic views

Posted in Advertising, Bitters, Cordial, History, Liquor Merchant, Medicines & Cures, Wine & Champagne | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

I took a few photos this morning of my Union Clasping Hands flasks

Posted on 9 February 2014 by Ferdinand Meyer V

UnionLine

I took a few photos this morning of my Union Clasping Hands flasks

09 February 2014

JimBenderStainedGlass

"I took a few photos this morning of some of my Union Clasping Hands flasks and thought I would pass a few on.

Jim Bender

(FOHBC Membership Director)

These type of flasks were made in quart, pint, and half-pint sizes. As these flasks date from the later end of the figured flask era (primarily 1860s), they are infrequently pontil scarred, and when pontiled they are usually an iron pontil. Finishes on these bottles vary substantially from sheared and/or cracked-off and fire polished, to champagne style, to an oil type finish like the pictured bottle. Most of the shield & clasped hands flasks are included within Group XII in McKearin & Wilson (1978), though a few are in Group IV.

Sha.org

Union Bottles FEB 2014 004

Union Bottles FEB 2014 006

Union Bottles FEB 2014 002

Read More: Union Clasped Hands Flasks

Posted in Collectors & Collections, Display, Flasks, Historical Flasks, Photography | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

More on the Color Orange in Antique Glass

Posted on 9 February 2014 by Ferdinand Meyer V

CanadaDrySparklingOrange

More on the Color Orange in Antique Glass

by Ken Previtali

09 February 2014

"By the way, the word orange is one of the few words in the English language for which there is no effective rhyme.

What is interesting about the Canada Dry Sparkling Orangeade bottle (pictured above) is that the color is not in the glass. When you look up through the bottom of the bottle it is clear. The color and iridescence are on the surface. That makes me think of stained glass. When it comes to stained glass, orange is more of a modern color. There is not much use of it in very early windows, where color glazes were painted on the glass and re-fired. It’s possible that the color was not easily made until the 19th century. Some Victorian windows used orange, but not many (see below).

VicStainGlas

Richly colored Sun motif made of a variety of cathedral glass. – Age of Elogance

Tiffany created his range of orange colors by adding silver nitrate and other metal salts to a batch of red glass (see below).

louis-comfort-stained-glass-window-metropolitan-museum-of-art

Louis Comfort Tiffany stained glass window – Metropolitan Museum of Art

What was the fascination with oranges (and perhaps the color)? According to John McPhee, in his marvelous book Oranges, the fruit made its way from southern China to India, where the word orange evolved from the Sanskrit language some 2,000 years ago. McPhee says:

“The modern use of lemon and orange peels in alcoholic drinks has ample precedents in many places and centuries, but the custom perhaps reached its highest point in Holland three hundred years ago. The drinking Dutch, in the 17th century, would peel a helical ribbon of skin from an orange, continuing round and round until the knife reached the fruit’s equator. Then, with the ribbon still attached, they would place the entire orange, like a huge Martini olive, in the bottom of what might have been described as an elegant bucket. Dutch fondness for the combination of oranges and wine eventually led to the invention of bitters– or at least the commercialization of bitters, for even the ancient Chinese had known the special excellence of Bitter Oranges with wine. Dutch bitters were a concentrated essence usually made by marinating dried Bitter Orange peels in gin. The still-lifes of Dutch and Flemish masters often show oranges beside bottles of wine.”

Oranges by John McPhee, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1966.
jan_velde1

Chinese Dish Roemer Knife Loaf Of Bread And Fruit On A Table – Jan Jansz van de Velde III

Here’s an example of a Dutch painting (see above) by Jan Jansz van de Velde III (c. 1620-1662). I’m not sure what “elegant bucket” McPhee means, but in this painting the glass is a roemer. The British Museum describes a roemer as “a type of drinking glass used for wine, made from green waldglas (forest glass). This stem is decorated with raspberry prunts, applied blobs of glass stamped with fireproof clay or metal to form a pattern. The prunts served a functional use as well as a decorative purpose: during a meal they provided a grip for greasy hands, important at a time when forks were not commonly used. The foot is made from a single thread of glass spun around a wooden conical form. Roemers were made in quantity in the many German forest glasshouses during the seventeenth century, and were exported throughout Europe. Roemers were also made in quantity in the Low Countries. Many can be seen in Dutch seventeenth-century still-life paintings.”

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Engraved glass (roemer) – The British Museum

Maxfield Parrish (1870-1966) also appeared to love orange. Many of his paintings fairly dripped with glowing orange. Parrish is one of the most widely reproduced American artists. Could it be the “orange attraction”? By the way, the word orange is one of the few words in the English language for which there is no effective rhyme.

MP2

The Lantern Bearers, 1908, oil on canvas on board, created for Collier’s magazine, the painting shows Parrish’s use of glazes and saturated color in an evocative night scene – Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art

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Sunlight – Maxfield Parrish

Read More: The Color Orange in Antique Bottles & Glass

Posted in Art & Architecture, Color, Dinnerware, History, Museums, Soda Bottles, Stained Glass | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Fine Aromatic Orange Stomach Bitters – Berry, Demoville & Co. – Nashville

Posted on 9 February 2014 by Ferdinand Meyer V

OrangeBittersSeriesArtFine Aromatic Orange Stomach Bitters – Berry, Demoville & Co. – Nashville

09 February 2014 (R•021014) (R•051614)

BerryDemovilleMasthead

Apple-Touch-IconAAs I wrote the other day, I was going to start a series on the word “Orange” in bitters brands. This was inspired by a new Baker’s Orange Grove Bitters addition to my collection. I started the series by looking at The Color Orange in Antique Bottles and Glass. Today we will look at Fine Aromatic Orange Stomach Bitters from Nashville, Tennessee by Berry, Demoville & Co. You can best get a grip on this brand by reading this semi advertisement within the Bitters section of the Nashville and Her Trade for 1870 book:

AromaticOrange_Shultis

A 90: Aromatic Orange Bitters in tobacco amber, Berry, Demoville & Co., Nashville – Shultis Collection

The Wholesale Drug firm of Berry, Demoville & Co., Nos 5 and 6 Public Square, are also engaged in the manufacture of a line of specialties that are rapidly coming into favor wherever they are known and used. Their “Fine Aromatic Orange Stomach Bitters,” although but recently introduced, yet, by their delightful aroma and agreeable flavor, are destined to have a successful and popular run. During 1869, as their books show, they sold upwards of 7,500 dozen of their Bitters.

In this connection, we would take occasion to remark that this firm also manufactures quite a number of other Pharmaceutical preparations, which are made under their own supervision, a fact which stamps their reliability at once, and which, as they advertise, are not “patent nostrums,” but whose component parts are known to many leading physicians both in the city and country, most of whom have evinced their appreciation of the merits by prescribing them in their daily practice.

The most prominent of these preparations are Demoville’s anti-Chill and Fever Pills, Demoville’s Compound of Prickly Ash, Demoville’s Jaundice and anti-Dyspeptic Tobic, Demoville’s Vegetable Cough Mixture, Demoville’s Compound Chloroform Liniment, Demovile’s Compound Dysentery Cordial, and Demoville’s All Healing Ointment.

Nashville and Her Trade for 1870 – by Charles Edwin Robert
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Berry, Demoville & Co. Building on the Public Square, which served as Hospital No. 3 during the Civil War, ca. 1861-1865? – Tennessee State Library

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Berry, Demoville & Co. Druggists advertisement noting Fine Aromatic Orange Stomach Bitters – Nashville and Her Trade for 1870

There are two sizes of the semi-cabin Aromatic Orange Bitters bottles. They are both hard to come by and make a great ‘Nashville’ statement in any bitters collection. The brand tells a story of two well know men, William Wells Berry and John Felix Demoville, who formed a wholesale druggist partnership in early Nashville. Both bottles are pictured below with the Carlyn Ring and Bill Ham listings from Bitters Bottles.

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A 90: Aromatic Orange Bitters in tobacco amber, Berry, Demoville & Co., Nashville – Glass Works Auction (Auction 84)

A 90  AROMATIC ORANGE STOMACH BITTERS

AROMATIC ORANGE // STOMACH BITTERS // BERRY, DEMOVILLE & CO. / NASHVILLE // sp //
10 x 2 3/4 (7)
Square, LTC, 4 sp, Panel shoulders, Tooled lip and Applied mouth, Amber – Scarce; Green – Extremely rare
Nashville Union & American March 19, 1872
This company also produced Compound Jaundice Tonic & Anti-dyspeptic Bitters

A90_5_AromaticOrange_FM5

A 90.5: Aromatic Orange Bitters in tobacco amber, Berry, Demoville & Co., Nashville – Meyer Collection

A 90.5  AROMATIC ORANGE STOMACH BITTERS

AROMATIC ORANGE // STOMACH BITTERS // BERRY, DEMOVILLE & CO. / NASHVILLE // sp //
9 x 2 3/8 (6)
Square – semi cabin, Amber, LTC, 4 sp, Panel shoulders, Applied mouth, Rare

William Wells Berry (1812-1876)

WilliamWellsBerry

William Wells Berry, son of Horatio and Sarah Godman Berry, was born in Baltimore, June 8, 1812. He attended a private school until he was 16 years of age and then entered a wholesale drug store, where “under a kind and upright employer he gained a knowledge of commercial matters, which made him at the age of 21 an independent and self-reliant merchant.”

This beginning of business for himself, it appears by inference, was in Nashville in or about 1824. Here he established a wholesale drug firm which for more than a generation has been known as Berry, Demoville & Co. The firm was located on the Public Square until a few years ago, when they removed to Market street.

Besides the drug business which he founded and managed with such ability and success, Mr. Berry was identified with other enterprises. He was a member of the board of directors of the Planters’ Bank of Tennessee during its most prosperous period, from 1854 to 1862. He was president of the Third National bank of Nashville from its organization in 1865 until 1876, when he was prostrated by disease which caused his death that year. At the time of his death he was president of the Equitable Insurance Co., a position he had helf from the organization of the company.

He was at one time owner of large planting interests on the Arkansas river. His success in all his undertakings would be sufficient evidence, if this were all; that he possessed in a remarkable degree two essentials to success in any line of endeavor, viz. the confidence of the public and skill in management. Neither is worth much, in a business way, without the other. Character begets confidence, but along with character there must be a knack for management, and back of this must not only a knowledge of one’s business from the ground up, but a knowledge of men and disposition to get along with them.

In 1840, Mr. Berry married Jane E. White, daughter of Gen. William White of the Nashville bar; a gallant officer under Gen. Jackson in the War of 1812, and subsequent campaigns against the Indians; and the fighter of a duel with Hon. Sam Houston.

[from the Men Who Helped To Make Nashville by Douglas Anderson]

AromaticOrange_ShultisGroup

[Pictured above: Small and large examples of the Aromatic Orange Stomach Bitters and the Berry, Demoville & Co. jug – Shultis Collection]

Select Berry Timeline Events

1813: Born to Horatio and Sarah (Godman) Berry, both of Anne Arundel County, Maryland, in Baltimore, Maryland, on June 8, 1813.

1829: Completes private school education; begins five years of employment with Keerle and Company, a wholesale drug house of Baltimore, Maryland.

1834: Berry moves to Nashville where he uses his prior training in the commercial drug business to establish his own firm, which became Berry, DeMoville and Company.

1840: Married to Jane E. White, March 10, 1840, daughter of General William White, a member of the Davidson County bar, and an officer under Andrew Jackson in the War of 1812.

1854-1862: Member of the Board of Directors of the Planters’ Bank of Tennessee.

1865-1876: President of the Third National Bank of Nashville

1876: Died, June 15, 1876.

William Wells Berry also served as President of the Equitable Insurance Company of Nashville from its inception until his death, and was director of several other insurance and manufacturing interests. He had extensive landholdings along the Arkansas River.

John Felix DeMoville (1823-1884)

JohnFelixDemovillePortrait

John Felix DeMoville was born in 1823 in Richmond, Virginia and died in 1884 in Davidson, Tennessee. From The Huntsville Weekly Democrat, December 3, 1884:

Mr. John Felix Demoville, for many years a member of the drug firm of Berry,
Demoville & Co., in Nashville, Tenn., after several months illness, died
there on Thursday last. His business integrity and sound judgment, and his
social virtues were proverbial. About 40 years ago, he was a popular druggist
in Huntsville, and left here for Nashville in 1847 or 1848.

Support Imagery

BerryDemovilleReceipt

Berry, Demoville & Co. Receipt, December 5, 1879 – ebay

BerryDemovilleJug

Berry, Demoville & Co., Wholesale Druggists, Nashville, Tenn. Jug – Old Vanleer Store & Auction

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Davidson County courthouse, 1830-1856, showing people and horses in front of the building. Some businesses are visible on the square, including W. W. Berry and Demoville, an early apothecary.

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Berry Demoville & Co’s Nashville Centennial Liniment, Nashville, Tenn. Bottle – Tennrebgirl.com

Posted in Advertising, Apothecary, Bitters, Collectors & Collections, Druggist & Drugstore, eBay, History, Medicines & Cures | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Color Orange in Antique Bottles & Glass

Posted on 8 February 2014 by Ferdinand Meyer V

Orange Insulators

The Color Orange in Antique Bottles & Glass

08 February 2014

4 R

Apple-Touch-IconAWe sometimes, unfortunately, classify orange-tone bottles as amber. In the bitters world, we have orange amber but never pure orange. With fruit, the orange is as honest as you get. We do not eat a red, yellow or purple though we try to eat some ‘greens’ each day. My logo for Peachridge Glass is orange with red tones. This image and coloration was selected for a reason.

OrangeSpectrum

Orange is a color located between red and yellow on the spectrum of light, and in the traditional color wheel used by painters. Its name is derived from the orange fruit. In Europe and America, orange is commonly associated with amusement, the unconventional, extroverts, fire, activity, danger, taste and aroma, the autumn season, and Protestantism. In Asia, it is an important symbolic color of Buddhism and Hinduism [Wikipedia].

OrangeWaves

Orange is so optimistic and uplifting that we should all find ways to use it in our everyday life, even if it is just an orange colored pen that we use.

The color orange radiates warmth and happiness, combining the physical energy and stimulation of red with the cheerfulness of yellow. Orange relates to ‘gut reaction’ or our gut instincts, as opposed to the physical reaction of red or the mental reaction of yellow. Orange offers emotional strength in difficult times. It helps us to bounce back from disappointments and despair, assisting in recovery from grief. The color psychology of orange is optimistic and uplifting, rejuvenating our spirit. In fact orange is so optimistic and uplifting that we should all find ways to use it in our everyday life, even if it is just an orange colored pen that we use.

Bakers_RunAs with anything I write, some spark came before to make me think in a new direction. In this case, it was adding a new “Bakers Orange Grove Bitters” to my collection (see above). No, it was not an orange bottle, but the Baker’s in Boston obviously wanted to capitalize on the orange fruit to sell their product.

MacksOrangeBitters

OrangeBittersSeriesArtThis new series will deal with bitters with ‘Orange‘ in the name just like the Bakers. We are going to look at the Fine Aromatic Orange Stomach Bitters, Rose’s Orange Bitters, Mack’s Orange Tonic Bitters (pictured above) and some rare examples from the Joe Gourd Collection such as Bernard’s Orange Bitters, California Aromatic Orange Bitters, De Kuyper’s Orange Bitters, Grandfather’s Perfect Orange Bitters, Herdrich’s Orange Tonic Bitters, Pale Orange Bitters, Ree’s Orange Tonica (pictured below) etc. Many of these are unlisted in Ring & Ham.

(other: Julius Marcus Orange Bitters, Orange Bitters, Orange Blossom Bitters, Orange Wine Stomach Bitters, Orange Bitters Tonic, Palais Royal Orange Bitters)

Note: If you have any material to suit this or future orange posts please send to my attention)

Ree's front

O R A N G E   G A L L E R Y

OrangeIndianQueenTop

Orange amber Brown’s Celebrated Indian Herb Bitters

DrakesOrangeDetail

Detail of orange amber 6-log Drakes Plantation Bitters – Meyer Collection

PlainRound4.5Orange

Plain Round orange Lightning Rod Ball – Meyer Collection

DiddleBlitzenOMG

Orange milk glass Diddle Blitzen Lightning Rod Ball – Meyer Collection

Pyrex233carnival

Pyrex 233 in Carnival – Meyer Collection

5

Orange marble – Morphy Auctions

Sandwich Amber Lily Stopper

Six-sided. Orange-Amber Blown Molded Cologne Bottle with Oval Paneled Frames and Lily Stopper. The Boston and Sandwich Glass Company began making this model cologne circa 1840. – American Perfume Bottle Collectors Association

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Orange Carnival Glass Bowl

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Three what I would call orange-amber Kreinbrook Bitters – Meyer Collection

kickapoosagwa

Kickapoo Sagwa Indian Medicine

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Canada Dry Sparkling Orangeade with Label – ebay

OrangeCrushWhite

Contemporary Orange Crush Soda

Read More about Colors on PRG:

The Color Yellow – A wide range of shades

The Color Purple or Amethyst in Antique Glass

What is Puce or ‘Pooce’ as some call it?

Not Brown – A “chocolate” Brown’s Celebrated Indian Herb Bitters

More on the Color Orange in Antique Glass

Note: The incredible, top insulator image needs tag identification as I have misplaced.

Posted in Bitters, Carnival Glass, Collectors & Collections, Color, News | Tagged , | Leave a comment

The Honorable Stephen Buhrer and his Gentian Bitters

Posted on 7 February 2014 by Ferdinand Meyer V
BuhrersGentianBittersTC_JG

Buhrer’s Gentian Bitters trade card from the extraordinary collection of John Kemler – image Joe Gourd. The man in the chair is most likely the Honorable Stephen Buhrer.

The Honorable Stephen Buhrer and his Gentian Bitters

07 February 2014

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As the trade card above and his advertising depicts, Stephen Buhrer was truly and honorable man, he worked hard and was blessed from above. He also put out Buhrer’s Gentian Bitters. I have three of his bottles in my collection that tell a story.

Stephen Buhrer was born on Christmas day, December 25th, 1825 on the Zoar farm in Tuscarawas County, Ohio to Johann Casper Buhrer who was from a province of Baden, Germany and Anna Maria Miller from Stockach, Germany. Johann and Anna Maria arrived in Philadelphia, with many other Germans, in 1817, and settled in Greensburg, Pennsylvania. They were married in short order and had one daughter, Catherine. Knowing of many other Germans and Anna Maria having friends in Ohio, the Buhrer’s moved to the rich farmlands of Zoar, Ohio.

Zoar was formed by a group of German Separatists who left southeastern Germany to escape persecution for their religious beliefs. The Separatists thought that the church should be simple and bereft of all ceremony and they emphasized a mystical and direct relationship with God. Zoar was one of the most notable experiments in communal living in our nation’s history.

ZoarFarming

Farming in Zoar, Ohio

Unfortunately, Buhrer’s father died in 1829 and Buhrer was entrusted to this strict German society of separatists. At a very early age, and without a wage, Buhrer was put to work on the communal farm and at the age of nine was given the task to manage the sheep in the vast pasture ranges of Zoar where he labored for three years. When he was twelve years old, he was placed in a cooper shop in the society. A cooper was someone who made wooden staved vessels, bound together with hoops and possessing flat ends or heads.

Buhrer did not attend traditional school and was educated mainly in Sunday school and by any education he could pick up after a long days work. Buhrer not only learned the trade of coopering, but at different times did almost any kind of work including brewing and slaughtering. He also was a hostler at the Zoar Tavern and drove horses on the Ohio canal. Buhrer finally left the society and farm life and traveled to Cleveland in 1842 and continued work as a cooper. He accepted a position as a traveling salesman in 1846 with his territory at first covering Ohio and later Indiana and Michigan.

With ill health and the prevailing malarial fevers of this era, he cut short his work as a traveling salesman and returned by rail to Detroit. With his funds exhausted, he sold much of his valuables including clothes and purchased deck passage on a steamboat bound for Cleveland, which he regarded his new home. Continued ill health then sent him almost to the poorhouse until a friend revived his spirits and supported him financially until he recovered. With a renewed vigor, Buhrer then returned to coopering and briefly worked at a shipyard in 1847.

In 1848, Buhrer married Eva Maria Schneider and had three children: John, Mary Jane, and Lois Catherine. Eva died in 1889 and after her death, Buhrer married Marguerite Paterson. With a family and responsibilities, Buhrer put his strong work ethic to task and went into the coopering business for three years. He then sold his interest to his partner in 1853, at which time he turned his attention to the business of rectifying and purifying spirits. During this period, he was associated with the Masons and Cleveland City Lodge No. 15. He was also First Junior Deacon of Bigelow Lodge No. 243.

Buhrer eventually became a well-known wholesale distributor of alcoholic beverages and ran Eagle Distilleries. He had only been a resident of Cleveland for eleven years, and was only 29 years old when he was elected a member of the City Council in 1855. He also ran and served on the City Council in 1863 and 1865. He served on the council during the Civil War, as he could not be drafted because of his health, and was a stalwart champion of the Union and Federal government. After his three-terms with the city council, Buhrer was elected mayor of Cleveland in 1867. He served as the Democratic Mayor until 1870.

Buhrer’s Gentian Bitters first appeared around 1865 and remained one of his strongest brands well into the 1880’s. Along with foreign and domestic liquors, he also sold and bottled mineral and other natural table waters. Buhrer was one of the prominent business men of his day and as Mayor, brought forth the project of building a viaduct to connect the east and west sides of Cleveland. The Cleveland House of Correction & Workhouse was also built under his term. After serving two terms, he returned to serve another term on the city council before he died in Cleveland on December 8, 1907.

DevineBuhrerART

To me, it is truly amazing that this self made man, with no father or older brothers, no money to borrow from relatives, became so successful in America as such a young age. He truly must have had some type of divine intervention as his trade mark depicts.

BuhrerReceiptR&H10

S. Buhrer receipt for Buhrer’s Gentian Bitters – Bitters Bottles Supplement

The Carloyn Ring and W.C. Ham listings in Bitters Bottles is noted below and may want to be updated in the forthcoming Bitters Bottles Supplement 2.

B 252  BUHRER’S GENTIAN BITTERS
BUHRER’S / GENTIAN BITTERS // f // S. BUHRER / PROPRIETOR // f //
L…Buhrer’s Gentian (picture of a man in an easy chair by a table) Bitters,
64 and 66 Merwin Street, Cleveland, O.
8 9/16 x 3 (6 3/8) 3/8
Square, Amber, LTC, Applied mouth, 2 sp, Rare
Cleveland Directory 1870 – 1909: Stephen Buhrer was a dealer in mineral waters, wines and liquors and sewer gas traps.
B252_Buhrers

B 252: Two different examples in amber of the Buhrer’s Gentian Bitters – Meyer Collection

B 251  BUHRER’S GENTIAN BITTERS
BUHRER’S. GENTIAN BITTERS // f // S. BUHRER. PROPRIETOR // f //
8  3/4 x 2 3/4 x 1 3/4 (6 1/8) 1/4
Rectangular, Amber, LTC, Applied mouth, 2 sp, Extremely rare
S. Buhrer Eagle Distillery Cleveland
Cleveland Directory, 1864-5
BuhrersGWA_Amber

B 251: “S. BUHRER. PROPRIETOR – BUHRER’S. GENTIAN. BITTERS”, (B-251), Ohio, ca. 1865 – 1875, golden yellow amber, 8 3/8”h, “C&I” on smooth base, applied tapered collar mouth. Ex Carlyn Ring Collection. – Glass Works Auctions

B 252.5  BUHRER’S GENTIAN BITTERS
BUHRER’S / GENTIAN BITTERS // sp // sp // sp
9 3/8 x 3 3/4 x 2 3/8 (6 1/4) 1/4
Rectangular, Aqua and Amber, LTC, 4 sp, Applied mouth, Smooth base and Pontil mark, Extremely rare
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B 252.5: Extremely rare and unlisted dark amber Buhrer’s Gentian Bitters – Wicker Collection

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B 252.5: Extremely rare aqua Buhrer’s Gentian Bitters – Meyer Collection

B 252.3  BUHRER’S GENTIAN BITTERS
BUHRER’S / GENTIAN BITTERS // f // S BUHRER / PROPRIETOR // f //
64 and 66 Merwin Street, Cleveland
8 1 5/16 x 3 (6 3/4) 3/8
Square, Amber, LTC, Applied mouth, 2 sp, Rare
BAR P25, UMB 395, WAT 402
Cleveland Directory 1870-1909. Stephen Buhrer was a dealer in mineral waters, wines and liquors. He also was a dealer in sewer gas traps.
Note: There are no periods after S and Buhrer.
B 252.5  BUHRER’S GENTIAN BITTERS
BUHRER’S / GENTIAN BITTERS
9 3/8 x 3 ¾ x 2 3/8 (6 ¼) 1/4
Rectangular, Aqua and Amber, LTC, Applied mouth, 2sp, Extremely rare
S. Buhler, Eagle Distillery, Cleveland.
Cleveland Directories 1864-5
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Buhrer’s Gentian Bitters trade card backs from the extraordinary collection of John Kemler – image Joe Gourd. See trade card front at top of post.

Select Buhrer Timeline Listings:

StephenBuhrerPhoto

Stephen Buhrer – A History of Cleveland, Ohio – 
By Samuel Peter Orth

1825: born, Zoar, Ohio, father and mother born in Germany. United States Federal Censuses.

1855-1856: Stephen Buhrer, Representative 11th Ward, City Council, Cleveland, Ohio – History of Cuyahoga County, Ohio

1858-1859: Stephen Buhrer listed as Worshipful Master of Bigelow Lodge – History of Cuyahoga County, Ohio

1863-1865: Stephen Buhrer, Representative 11th Ward, City Council, Cleveland, Ohio – History of Cuyahoga County, Ohio

1865BuhreradCleveland

Eagle Distillery, S. Buhrer lists Buhrer’s Gentian Bitters – 1865 Cleveland City Directory

1865-1868: Stephen Buhrer, distillers and rectifiers (see 1865 advertisement above), 64 and 66 Merwin – Cleveland City Directory

1867-1870: Stephen Buhrer, City Mayor, wife Eva Mary, son John S. Buhrer, daughters Mary J. and Elizabeth I. Buhrer – 1870 United States Federal Census and – History of Cuyahoga County, Cleveland, Ohio

1873: Stephen Buhrer, wines and liquors, 64 and 66 Merwin Street – Cleveland City Directory

1874-1875: Stephen Buhrer, Representative 10th and 11th Wards Clevelend – History of Cuyahoga County, Ohio

BuhrersAd1876Clev

Stephen Buhrer, distiller and rectifier, Manufacturer of Buhrer’s Gentian Bitters, 64 and 66 Merwin Street (see ad above) – 1876 Cleveland City Directory

1876: Stephen Buhrer, distiller and rectifier, Manufacturer of Buhrer’s Gentian Bitters, 64 and 66 Merwin Street (see ad above) – Cleveland City Directory

1876: Stephen Buhrer, distiller, 64 and 66 Merwin Street – Cleveland City Directory

1880: Stephen Buhrer, Rectifier of Spirits, wife Eva Mary, son John S. Buhrer, daughters Mary J. and Elizabeth I. Buhrer – 1880 United States Federal Census

Buhrers_1894ClevDir

A later Buhrer’s Gentian Bitters advertisement. See telephone listing – 1894 Cleveland City Directory

1894: Buhrer’s Gentian Bitters advertisement – Cleveland City Directory

1900: Stephen Buhrer, Proprietor of Mineral Waters, wife now Margueretta – 1900 United States Federal Census

1902-1907: Stephen Buhrer, wholesale liquors, bitters, Manufacturer of Buhrer’s Gentian Bitters, 64 and 66 Merwin Street, 1907 only residence listed – Cleveland City Directory

Resources: A History of Cleveland, Ohio: By Samuel Peter Orth, Wikipedia and other online sources.
Posted in Advertising, Bitters, Collectors & Collections, Ephemera, History, Liquor Merchant, Medicines & Cures, Mineral Water, Spirits, Trade Cards | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Hungarian Blackberry Juice and Wild Cherry Bitters – Tucumcari or Six-Shooter Siding

Posted on 6 February 2014 by Ferdinand Meyer V

TucumcariPC

Hungarian Blackberry Juice and Wild Cherry Bitters

Tucumcari or Six-Shooter Siding

by James Viguerie

06 February 2014
Tucumcari, New Mexico

Tucumcari or or Six-Shooter Siding, New Mexico – P. Clinton Bortell, 1913

I thought I would try to find some unlisted western bitters today.

but wow, what a great name, ‘Hungarian Blackberry Juice and Wild Cherry Bitters!’

I’m not quite sure what I found in a New Mexican newspaper. The December 15, 1906 Tucumcari News (Tucumcari, New Mexico) had an advertisement (see below) for a bitters on page 11. There is no evidence they bottled it, but wow, what a great name, ‘Hungarian Blackberry Juice and Wild Cherry Bitters!’

OK, maybe they were selling a juice and a bitters. Not really sure. If this was someone else’s bitters, I would think they would state the brand. They often referred to brands of whiskey or beer in other advertisements.

KC_Saloon_HungarianBlackberyBittersAd

Hungarian Blackberry Juice and Wild Cherry Bitters advertisement – Tucumcari News, December 15, 1906

I believe this is a picture of the K.C. Saloon with the Legal Tender Saloon next door (see below). The web site I found the picture on thought it was a different town in New Mexico.

An early nickname for the town was “Six Shooter Siding” due to it being next to a railroad and having numerous gunfights.

KC Saloon

Possibly La Luz, New Mexico: Photograph of men out front of the Legal Tender and K.C. Saloon. Most are in hats and jackets. – Vinegar Collection

However, I found both saloons listed as Tucumcari businesses in the June 23, 1906 Tucumcari News. Interestingly, there was both a Legal Tender Saloon and a Legal Tender Barbershop. Tucumcari was founded in 1901 and is in Quay County, New Mexico. An early nickname for the town was “Six Shooter Siding” due to it being next to a railroad and having numerous gunfights.

The December 28, 1907 issue of Tucumcari News had advertisements for both saloons on page six (see below).

KC Saloon AD 12-28-1907

The K.C. Saloon advertisement – Tucumcari News, December 28, 1907

Legal Tender Bar 12-28-1907

The Legal Tender Bar advertisement – Tucumcari News, December 28, 1907

There were many advertisements for, and references to, the K.C. Saloon over the years. The bitters was listed for about a year. They seemed to have had to make a lot of improvements. Perhaps they had rowdy clientele. The first newspaper that I saw the K.C. Saloon in was from April 14, 1906. It was announced they were ‘open for business’ (see below).

First mention 4-14-06

K.C. Saloon ‘Open for Business’ – Tucumcari News, April 14, 1906

In the June 30, 1906 issue, I saw where someone lost their gold ring at the saloon (see below). I wonder what Ruby was up to? I suspect too much Hungarian Blackberry Juice and Wild Cherry Bitters were had the night it was lost!

LostRing

Lost gold ring “From Curt to Ruby” at the K.C. Saloon, Tucumcari News, June 30, 1906

Around that time there was a prostitute named Ruby that killed another prostitute with scissors.

I did try to look for a “Curt and Ruby” but found nothing definitive. Around that time there was a prostitute named Ruby that killed another prostitute with scissors. This all happened a week after the ring was reported missing. It happened over at the Red Light Saloon where the girls worked (read below). However, the murdering Ruby, was married to someone named Joe Estes. I suppose the missing ring may not have been a wedding ring as I first assumed.

A_BloodyTragedyKCSaloon

“A Bloody Tragedy at the Red Light” – Tucumcari News, July 7, 1906

Despite eye-witnesses to the murder, Ruby admitting to stabbing the woman, and her own testimony “Well I was intoxicated; I was dazed and crazy and everything”. She somehow was acquitted (read below).

RubyEstesAcq

Ruby Estes Acquitted – Tucumcari News, November 2, 1907

“Well boys, we’re thinking of adding us some walls real soon.”

Anyway, back to the K.C. Saloon. The December 29, 1906 newspaper indicated that a T. A. Wayne bought both the K.C. and Legal Tender Saloon buildings (read below). He had plans for a future building on the spot. It said he intends to erect a “good building”. So that brings to question… what type of building was there when he bought it? These often mentioned improvements make more sense. I can see him saying “Well boys, we’re thinking of adding us some walls real soon.”

T A Wayne 12-29-06

T. A. Wayne bought both the K.C. and Legal Tender Saloon buildings – Tucumcari News, December 29, 1906

I could not find out a lot on Mr. Wayne. He had moved to New Mexico from Crosby County Texas in 1903. He was quoted as saying when he moved from Texas that there were “very few inhabitants and no towns of any size”.

I guess the big city of ‘Six Shooter Siding’ was a step up. I did see where T. A. Wayne served on the board of county commissioners. He had the job of making sure saloons were closed on the day of voting for ratification of the state constitution in 1911. Seems a conflict of interest to me.

The January 19, 1907 Tucumcari News (read below) showed Patty and May as new proprietors.

Patty and May 1-19-07

Patty and May as new proprietors – Tucumcari News, January 19, 1907

Did Mr. Wayne give up on his plans after only one month? They actually refer to a Wm. Patty being proprietor before. Perhaps Mr. Wayne owned the building and they ran the business? The first “May” appears to have been a William May and the second was Silas Richman May Sr. The “Patty” might be William Patty. Is the man in this advertisement one of them? (see below) Or maybe it is Curt still looking for that ring?

KC Saloon 5-25-1907

KC Saloon, The Best of Everything, Patty & May, Proprietors – Tucumcari News, May 25, 1907

A year later Patty and May had a run in with the law. They decided to test a new gambling law by having slot machines. It looks like Patty and May were both arrested (read below).

Gambling 1-18-08

Patty and May Arrested for use of Slot Machines – Tucumcari News, January 18, 1908

Allen Highfil bought an interest in the K.C. Saloon around February 1, 1908. (read below) It was claimed he “is now measuring the goods to the boys who occasionally are affected with a dryness”.

Allen Highfil 2-1-08

Allen Highfil bought an interest in the K. C. Saloon – Tucumcari News, February 1, 1908

The March 14, 1908 Tucumcari News advertisement below listed May and Highfil as proprietors. Perhaps it was Patty’s bright idea earlier on the slot machines, and he was ousted.

KC Saloon May Highfil 3-14-08

May and Highfil as proprietors – Tucumcari News, March 14, 1908

Silas May had a lengthy article + (rest of article) “Anti-Prohibition League Makes an Appeal to Citizens” October 7, 2010.

Criminals seem to have a good track record in this town from the articles I have read.

Silas sold the saloon to Billie Loman on April 1, 1911. In 1919, Silas was found guilty of letting a game of chance on his premises. He must have had a new place. In November 12, 1920, prohibition officers raided Silas May’s house and 9 cases of whiskey were seized. He took them to court and was able to get his whiskey back. Criminals seem to have a good track record in this town from the articles I have read.

Last mention 12-24-14

K.C. Saloon Robbed – December 24, 1914

The last reference I have to the K.C. Saloon (see above) was that it was robbed on December 24, 1914. I just hope the burglars took some back bar bottles labeled “Hungarian Blackberry Juice and Wild Cherry Bitters – Tucumcari, New Mexico Territory” and buried them somewhere safe for future diggers.

Posted in Advertising, Bitters, History, Liquor Merchant, Questions, Spirits, Whiskey | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment