E107 Breisch-Williams Question

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Posted By: ErikV

Anyone on the board know anything about who "Breisch" or "Williams" were that the E107 set was named after?

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Posted By: scott brockelman

The American Caramel Company was created in March 28, 1889 when the Breisch-Hine Co. of Philadelphia and the P. C. Wiest Co. of York, Pa. merged together. After acquiring the Lancaster Caramel Company in 1900, the American Caramel Company became famous by including baseball and other cards in with their candies. With the addition of Lancaster Caramel Company, the American Caramel Company grew to control 90% of the caramel in the country. Later Breisch-Williams became Williams Caramel and even later York Caramel.

The Breisch of Breisch-Williams was George Breisch.
He is listed as a Confectioner as early as 1890 in Philadelphia, his father Frederick Breisch, from Germany, was also a Confectioner in Philadelphia in the 1890's. His brother Frederick Breisch was also involved in Candy making in Philadelphia in 1890 and may also have been a partner or employee of the company. In 1900 his brother Frederick, Jr. was a candy maker in Philadelphia, by 1910 Frederick was no longer with the company he is in Iowa working for a milk company in the candy department.
The Hine was Walter S. Hine.

The Williams of the company, MAY have been Gottlieb Williams, OR Henry Williams who also appears as a confectioner in Philadelphia in 1890 OR Josiah B. Williams OR Thomas Williams, All of which are confectioners in Philadelphia in 1890.

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Posted By: Frank Wakefield

The American Caramel Company was incorporated in Pennsylvania on March 28, 1898, as a consolidation of the Breish-Hine Co., of Philadelphia, and the P C Wiest Company of York Pennsylvania. In 1900 the Lancaster Caramel Company was acquired.

Lancaster had been founded by Milton S. Hershey in 1886. It was Hershey's first successful company. The Hershey Chocolate Company became a subsidiary of Lancaster in 1894. Milton Hershey sold the company for $1,000,000 to American Caramel, but he kept Hershey Chocolate. He used the proceeds to build his designed community of Hershey.

When American Caramel made this acquisition, it gave them about 90% of the caramel and caramel specialty business in the US, and a large export trade, they had several trademarks and brands.

Williams Caramel of Oxford, PA distributed the cards we know as E103s.


Realistically, American Caramel had a trust / monopoly similar to the Duke's American Tobacco... and American Caramel had most of the caramel companies all held by one corporation. Breisch and Williams would have been late 19th century candy companies that had already been absorbed by 1903/4ish, I would think.

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Posted By: leon

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Posted By: BcD

amazing 20-40 Canal. Must have on big factory for sure!

cool item leon

BcD

[CobbSpikedMe]

So sorry to bump such an old thread, but I was trying to find out who the Breisch and Williams were from the Breisch-Williams candy company that created the E107 set and found this old thread with some good info in it.

Scott names George Briesch as the name for that part of the company and his father as Frederick Breisch. And he mentions several possible names for the Williams part.

It appears that George's father has signed the attached American Caramel Co. stock certificate which I find very cool.

My question is, could the Williams have been George Williams, as he was apparently the Secretary of American Caramel Co. of Philadelphia at some point based on the stock certificate that I have (attached below). If George Williams was the actual Williams of the Breisch-Williams company, then my stock certificate is signed by both the father of the Breisch part of the company and the Williams of the same.

When I noticed the last names of the two signatures I immediately thought maybe, just maybe, I had the signatures of these two men because it would be a strange coincidence that both signatures just happened to be those two last names on an American Caramel Co. stock certificate.

Does anyone know for sure if the Williams part of the name could have been George Williams?

Thanks,

Andy



.

[phlflyer1]

Andy,

I would say that it is a very good chance its the same Williams.

Found the following that shows George Breisch, George Williams and W.I. Hine all listed as directors of American Caramel

https://www.google.com/books/edition...sec=frontcover

Here is another interesting link which shows a picture of the Caramel factory in Oxford, PA

https://www.google.com/books/edition...sec=frontcover

Regards,

Scott

[CobbSpikedMe]

Thanks for the links Scott.

I find it interesting that the second link with the pictures says, "In 1898, the operations passed to the (Frederick) Breisch-Williams Company". That would indicate the Frederick Breisch signature on my stock certificate was the Breisch part of the company and not his son George Briesch.

Now I need to find out if the George Williams was the Williams part or not.

[esd10]

I would really like to know how the e107 had been packaged

[phlflyer1]

Here is an interesting Breisch Hine related item that I picked up recently.

Its part of a letter on company letterhead in which the Breisch-Hine Co. is complaining to the Hammerschlag Mfg Co. about the poor quality of its wax paper.

Breisch-Hine suggests that the paraffin used is of an inferior cheap grade.

Sadly, its only the top half of the letter but an interesting item just the same.