One Man's Trash - a note about the upcoming
reference book on McLaughlin's paper dolls...
In late 1967 "McLaughlin's Manor House Coffee" was sold to National Dairy Products (Kraft Foods). Being a close family-held company, a half dozen relatives gathered in its headquarters to collect their possessions and retain souvenirs of a company that had had its start in 1852 - a grocery store on a dirt and gravel State Street in "downtown" Chicago. I travelled from Oklahoma to recover an antique library table and searched for any other momento of note. Abndoned by others was a dusty old scrapbook - to become this man's treasure. I, in turn, coveted it for more than 30 years, not daring to demolish it, as would be necessary, to "mine" its contents - page after page of literally all the premiums inserted into packages of "XXXX Coffee" the company leader until at least 1910. Each page, completed in chronological order presented trade cards - later paper dolls - pasted by individual series and complete with side notations that included their specific dates of distribution. Nothing approaching such data was available aywhere in public record!
Additionally, the scrapbook contained ephemera ranging from small children's booklets and foldouts to lithographs "suitable for framing," store broadsides and 20th Century postcards. This book was "the Holy Grail" for collectors of the company cards and dolls, the most sought after of company collectibles. With complete series laid out in front of me, and given the side notes to guide me, definitive organization has been easy and accurate. My presentations offer a number of surprises and relationships previously overlooked. I trust you will enjoy them.
In the matter of paper doll ensembles, some questions may remain. I cannot attest to the accuracy of original matchups. A clerk could easily have selected a wrong hat or umbrella to go with a particular image. Further mismatch is possible if the original child of ownership switched to a different combination. Do not be alarmed should your collectible not match a picture in our upcoming book of paper dolls. The greatest problem is with hats, so often discarded entirely. Every effort is being made to fill gaps and correct errors, but the information offered represents a best-effort, and any collector lucky enough to own a complete series can be proud of that accomplishment.
Bill McLaughlin
About the company....
The history of the “McLaughlin’s Coffee Company” is more instructive for the era it represents than for the fortunes of an individual company, or even for the small trading village in which it started. Rather, it represents the culmination of many progressive forces as well as the maturing of a giant nation. A village of just 350 “inhabited by a miserable race of men” grew to become the City of Chicago, eastern end of a transcontinental railroad and gateway to the “bread basket” of the United States of America. A great American West developed during an unparalleled 100 years of inventiveness and manufacturing stretching from 1850 to 1950 that attracted the most industrious people around the globe.
The in-migration drew entrepreneurs, necessity was truly the “mother of invention” and the multiculturalism was compressed into a remakably “United” States. Even as a vast Civil War challenged the nation’s endurance, astute businessmen were planning the route of a railroad that would unite the east and the west, reducing three months of wagon travel to a single week of bouncing on rough rails. Electricity would, quite literally, turn night into day as the Columbian Exposition of 1893 turned Chicago into “The Great White City” and firmly established its place in world commerce. Telegraph and telephone turned America into one great neighborhood; automobile and paved roads provided access to our national wonders. And Chicago watched it all grow.
During this same era coffee evolved from an exotic foreign beverage limited to the upper classes to the daily stimulant of the working man - and most recently to a form of entertainment (let’s have a cup of coffee). Once established as a basic grocery product, it took its place right up there with sugar and salt and flour as a “necessity.” Over the same years, grocery distribution transformed from bulk - a side of beef, a keg of flour, etc. - to unit sizes conveniently replenished. More importantly, the “grocery store” changed from a provider of camping needs (with trips to town as infrequent as once a month) to a provider of household items demanded by the housewife. Marketing “push” by the supplier became marketing “pull” recognizing the housewife’s demand for particular items and brands. This push-pull transformation was greatly facilitated by the advent of postal home delivery, weekly magazines, store charge accounts, and - hold on to your hats! - the advent of radio. All of which spawned a whole new industry called “advertising,” first at the point of purchase, followed by outdoor notices, and finally cards, newspapers, and magazines right into the home. The housewife could plan a well-informed list without even leaving home.
Knowing the mixed reception of Wal-Mart amongst present-day merchandising, one can only wonder at the advent of “SuperMarkets” and grocery store chains. Specialization and corporate structures, mergers and acquisitions, “market share,” and stock market values to determine the fitness of a company. Through out it all, “coffee” was a silent participant. It survived (flourished) during the Great Depression, two World Wars, a flurry of corporate takeovers, and competition. By 1970 it was counted out as the “Baby Boomers” chose to drink Coke or Pepsi instead. In the early years of broad acceptance, the housewife resisted efforts to pre-roast the green coffee beans; later she would resist commercial grinding, both of which she considered part of her expertise in preparing the cup she served. The vanities of production were followed by experiments in storing for shelf life - bins, tins, and vacuum sealing. At each stage of development a few (more) coffee “mills” were eliminated. In 1900 Arbuckle’s (Ariosa to Yuban) and McLaughlin’s (XXXX to Manor House) were rated number one and number two in the nation in sales, respectively, both family-owned companies. John Arbuckle was a native American from the East Coast, William McLaughlin was an immigrant from Ireland. Neither are remembered today. But coffee was to grow from a seaport specialty to a household necessity during the life of each man. Each played a major role in bringing it to industry status. The momentoes and relics left behind provide an interesting trail to follow.
We hope you enjoy the tasty sampling of McLaughlin’s Coffee Company’s memorabila you will find on this web site. And be sure to look for the highly detailed series of books coming soon that are written by the company’s founders grandson William F. McLaughlin. If you have any interesting information about the company or anecdotes you would like included in the books please contact Bill at:
wfmcl@embarqmail.com
The Statue of Labor by Proctor at the Chicago World's Fair. In the back is the golden Liberty Statue which still stands today. Below is a silver dollar minted expressly for the Columbia Exposition of 1893 and was the first commemorative silver dollar ever struck.
W.F.McLaughlin, founder of the company.
IT'S HERE!!!
THE NEW TRADE CARD BOOK IS AVAILABLE!
The NEW Trade Card Book is Beautiful! Full-color and complete, featuring every trade card produced by the McLauglin Coffee Company! This 8.5x11" soft-cover book is available for only $24.99 plus $3.95 shipping and handling. If you are ordering for a library or other institution the isbn is: 978-0-578-06790-2. Order your copy today by sending cash, check, or money order to the address listed below.
In order to keep the price down to a reasonable level this beautiful 110 page full-color book is also available in a pdf version on a compact disc. The price is $10 plus $3.50 shipping and handling. Click here to see a few sample pages of this unique collector's reference. To purchase the cd just send cash, check, or money order for $13.50 to:
W.F.McLaughlin
216 Gracemont Drive
Greenwood, SC 29649
If you have any questions you can email us at:
