Croft & Wilbur 1876 Centennial Liberty Bell
Recently picked up the following piece which I was pretty happy to acquire.
From my research, it is one of the first documented candy containers having been distributed at the first Worlds Fair (Centennial Exposition) in Philadelphia in 1876. The container held candy produced by Croft & Wilbur which was the predecessor to Croft & Allen of E92 fame.
Samuel Croft eventually split up with H.O. Wilbur in the 1880s. Wilbur went on to concentrate on producing Chocolate candy and his company became famous for producing "Wilburs Buds" candies similar to Hersheys kisses.
After the split with H.O. Wilbur, Samuel Croft formed a partnership with George Allen in the 1880s to manufacture candy and cocoa related products that included Croft's Cocoa and Croft's Candy which we are familiar with from the backs of E92 cards.
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