The University of Chicago Library > The Hanna Holborn Gray Special Collections Research Center > Finding Aids > Guide to the B. Heller & Co. Collection 1896-2003
© 2010 University of Chicago Library
| Title: | B. Heller & Co. Collection |
|---|---|
| Dates: | 1896-2003 |
| Size: | 7.75 linear feet (8 boxes) |
| Repository: |
Hanna Holborn Gray Special Collections Research Center |
| Abstract: | Founded by Benjamin Heller, whose family practiced sausage-making for generations, Chicago-based B. Heller & Co. began in 1893 as a wholesale manufacturer of dry powders used in the preparation of meat products. Over the years, the company expanded into the manufacture of a variety of food ingredients, as well as insecticides, cleaning agents, and a broad range of kitchen and office supplies. The B. Heller & Co. Collection spans 1896-2003 and documents advances in food technology, marketing, and product design during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The collection includes samples of products and packaging, ephemera, publications, business records and photographs. |
The collection is open for research.
When quoting material from this collection, the preferred citation is: B. Heller & Co. Collection, [Box #, Folder #], Hanna Holborn Gray Special Collections Research Center, University of Chicago Library
Founded by Benjamin Heller, whose family practiced sausage-making for generations, Chicago-based B. Heller & Co. began in 1893 as a wholesale manufacturer of dry powders used in the preparation of meat products.
Benjamin Heller named his first major brand "Zanzibar," attracted by the exotic sound of the word. He first applied it to the meat additive "Zanzibar Carbon." The brand was later extended to a diverse range of products, from spices to ink thinner. Over the years, the company expanded into the manufacture of a variety of food ingredients, as well as insecticides, cleaning agents, and a broad range of kitchen and office supplies. Sanitary products such as insecticides were an important secondary line of B. Heller & Co. offerings; many of these were marketed under the "$1,000.00 Guaranteed" brand.
The company continues today as Heller Seasonings & Ingredients, a wholesale supplier based in Chicago.
The B. Heller & Co. Collection was assembled by Americana collectors Sally and Herb Loeb; Benjamin Heller was Sally Loeb's grandfather. The B. Heller & Co. Collection includes packaging samples, publicity material, business records and photographs spanning 1896-2003, with the bulk of materials concentrated in the 1890-1930s. The collection is divided into five series:
Series I: Products and Packaging, consists of artifacts and ephemera that were used to package or promote B. Heller & Co. products, as well as a small number of product samples. Items in this series include containers, boxes, product samples, container labels, pamphlets, circulars, and catalogs. Well-represented are the Heller brands "$1000.00 Guaranteed" and "Zanzibar."
Series II: Company Publications, contains books and guides published by B. Heller & Co. Most are recipe books and other instructional guides. There are copies of several editions of Secrets of Meat Curing and Sausage Making.
Series III: Business Records, contains material related to product development, customer relations, and employees. This series includes correspondence, notes, corrected proofs of container labels and pamphlets, banquet programs, and payment slips. Of particular interest is a sample mailing for a "$1000.00 Guaranteed" advertising campaign; the mailing shows how promotional items were marketed to Heller's target customers. There are also notebooks that contain chemical formulas and other product development documentation. This series also contains promotional material produced by two other Chicago companies, Seymour & Peck co., and Sidney Wanzer and Sons.
Series IV: Photographs, contains one photograph of an African woman and girl in traditional dress. The photograph may be related to the design of graphics for the "Zanzibar" brand, which used exoticized and sensationalized images of Africans. It also includes an album of photographs of B. Heller & Co. facilities; the album was originally intended to promote "Bull Meat Brand" products. Additional photographs of B. Heller & Co. facilities and personnel are found in the company's publications and pamphlets, and in secondary research material in Series V.
Series V: Historical Publications, contains secondary material on B. Heller & Co. There are multiple copies of a 2001 issue of Past Times: A Newsletter for Collectors of Popular and Antique Advertising, which focused on B. Heller & Co. Also included are copies of Well Seasoned: A Centennial History of Heller Seasonings & Ingredients, Inc., published in 1993. A copy of Auction News documenting the Wanzer Dairy is also included in this series.
http://www.lib.uchicago.edu/e/webexhibits/BHeller/
Series I: Products and Packaging |
| Box 1 | "Freeze-Em," wooden box, undated |
| Box 1 | "Zanzibar Brand Bitter Almond Flavor," glass bottle in cardboard box, 1924 |
| Box 2 | "$1000.00 Guaranteed Moth Powder," metal can in cardboard box, two items, 1924 |
| Box 2 | "$1000.00 Guaranteed Silver and Chromium Polish," product in glass jar, undated |
| Box 2 | "Bull-Meat-Brand Flour," cardboard box, 1923 |
| Box 2 | "Ozo Dry Cleaner," metal can, 1929 |
| Box 2 | "Ozo Dry Cleaner," cloth in paper envelope, undated |
| Box 3 | "Extra-Strength Savory Jell-Jell," metal can, 1922 |
| Box 3 | "Zanzibar-Carbon Non-Sour Blue," wooden box, undated |
| Box 3 | "Zanzibar-Carbon Laundry Blue," metal box, undated |
| Box 3 | "Zanzibar Brand Ground Allspice," metal drum, 1927 |
| Box 4 | "$1000.00 Guaranteed Ant Syrup and Ant Traps," cardboard box containing glass ant traps and jar of ant poison, undated |
| Box 4 | "$1000.00 Guaranteed Bed Bug Killer," metal can, 1938 |
| Box 4 | "$1000.00 Guaranteed Ant-Bane Poison," metal can, 1948 |
| Box 4 | "$1000.00 Guaranteed Ozo Waste Pipe Opener," metal can, 1930 |
| Box 4 | "$1000.00 Guaranteed Contento," cardboard box containing glass bottle, undated |
| Box 4 | "$1000.00 Guaranteed Enamel Cleaner," metal can, 1936 |
| Box 4 | "C.I.L. Bed-Bug Powder," metal can, undated |
| Box 4 | "Frapine," metal can, 1924 |
| Box 4 | "Heller's Deodorine," metal can, 1921 |
| Box 4 | "Heller's New Boiling Thermometer," glass thermometer in wooden case, undated |
| Box 4 | "Heller’s Royal Zest Poultry Seasoning," metal can, 1927 |
| Box 4 | "Vanheller Imitation Raspberry Flavor," cardboard box, 1920 |
| Box 4 | "Zanzibar Brand Pure Ground Nutmeg," metal can, undated |
| Box 4 | "Zanzibar-Carbon Indelible Ink Eradicator and Thinner," glass bottle, undated |
| Box 5 Folder 1 | "$1000.00 Guaranteed," container labels and price list, 1932-1947 |
| Box 5 Folder 2 | "$1000.00 Guaranteed Roach Killer," container label and pamphlet, 1931 |
| Box 5 Folder 3 | $1000.00 Guaranteed Roach Killer," newspaper advertisement, 1915 |
| Box 5 Folder 4 | Container labels, undated
|
| Box 5 Folder 5 | "Benalia: A Positive Headache Cure," circular, undated |
| Box 5 Folder 6 | "Bull-Meat-Flour," pamphlets and circulars, undated |
| Box 5 Folder 7 | Container labels and use directions, undated
|
| Box 5 Folder 8 | "Cold-Storine," container label and pamphlet, undated |
| Box 5 Folder 9 | "Colors, Extracts and Bakers' Specialties," price lists, 1910-1917 |
| Box 5 Folder 10 | "Cream Thickener," pamphlets, circulars and product sample in paper envelope, undated |
| Box 5 Folder 11 | Container labels and pamphlets, undated
|
| Box 5 Folder 12 | "Fancy Pastry," container labels, 1923-1936 |
| Box 5 Folder 13 | "Formaldehyde," container label, undated |
| Box 5 Folder 14 | "Freeze-Em," container labels and pamphlets, 1901-1927 |
| Box 5 Folder 15 | "Freezine," pamphlets and circulars, circa 1899 |
| Box 5 Folder 16 | "French-Pastry Flavoring," container label, undated |
| Box 5 Folder 17 | "Grocers Sundries," price list, undated |
| Box 5 Folder 18 | Pamphlet, postcards and circulars, undated
|
| Box 5 Folder 19 | "Ice-Berg," pamphlets and container labels, circa 1937 |
| Box 5 Folder 20 | "I.C.M. Special Pure Vanilla Extract," pamphlet and container label, undated |
| Box 5 Folder 21 | Container labels and pamphlets, circa 1890s-1936
|
| Box 5 Folder 22 | "Malaboza Brand," container labels, 1922 |
| Box 5 Folder 23 | "Malaboza Brand," container labels, 1922 |
| Box 5 Folder 24 | "Meloine: The Wonderful Ice Cream Improver," pamphlets and price list, 1921 |
| Box 5 Folder 25 | Circulars, pamphlet, container labels and postcard, circa 1903-1937
|
| Box 5 Folder 26 | "Pure Food Products for Packers, Butchers and Sausage Makers," price list, undated |
| Box 5 Folder 27 | "Royal Extract," container labels, undated |
| Box 5 Folder 28 | "Royal Zest," container labels, undated |
| Box 5 Folder 29 | "Royal Zest Cocoa," metal label, undated |
| Box 5 Folder 30 | "Rudolf-Gebhard's Berliner Konservirungs Salze," pamphlets, undated |
| Box 5 Folder 31 | "Salesmen's Confidential Pricelists," 1899-1917 |
| Box 5 Folder 32 | Sanitary supplies catalog and price list, undated |
| Box 5 Folder 33 | Pamphlets and container labels, undated
|
| Box 5 Folder 34 | "Supplies for Confectioners, Bakers, Butchers, Laundries and Ice Cream Makers," price list, 1921 |
| Box 5 Folder 35 | "Thermometers for Packing-House Use," price list, 1896 |
| Box 5 Folder 36 | Container labels, circulars and pamphlets, circa 1902
|
| Box 5 Folder 37 | "Vanheller Flavoring," container labels and advertising cuts, undated |
| Box 5 Folder 38 | "Zanzibar-Brand," container labels, 1924 |
| Box 5 Folder 39 | "Zanzibar-Brand," container labels, 1924 |
| Box 5 Folder 40 | "Zanzibar-Brand," container labels, 1924 |
| Box 5 Folder 41 | "Zanzibar-Brand," container labels, 1924 |
| Box 5 Folder 42 | "Zanzibar-Brand Crushed Fruits and Syrups," pamphlet, undated |
| Box 5 Folder 43 | "Zanzibar-Carbon," container labels, pamphlets and circulars, undated |
| Box 5 Folder 44 | "Zanzibar Fly Chaser," circular, undated |
Series II: Company Publications |
| Box 5 Folder 45 | Bottler's Guide, 1908 |
| Box 5 Folder 46 | Heller's Guide for Ice Cream Makers, 1918 |
| Box 6 Folder 1 | The History of Ice Cream, 1921 |
| Box 6 Folder 2 | Ice Cream Makers Guide, 1909 |
| Box 6 Folder 3 | Our Family Medical Adviser, undated |
| Box 6 Folder 4 | Recipes for Preparing Meat Loaves, 1925 |
| Box 6 Folder 5 | The Scientific Meat Industry, 1904-1905 |
| Box 6 Folder 6 | Secrets of Meat Curing and Sausage Making, 1904 |
| Box 6 Folder 7 | Secrets of Meat Curing and Sausage Making, 3rd edition, 1916 |
| Box 6 Folder 8 | Secrets of Meat Curing and Sausage Making, 4th edition, 1918 |
| Box 6 Folder 9 | Secrets of Meat Curing and Sausage Making, 7th edition, 1928 |
| Box 6 Folder 10 | Secrets of Meat Curing and Sausage Making, 8th edition, 1929 |
| Box 6 Folder 11 | Success with Meat, 1915, 1928 |
Series III: Business Records |
| Box 6 Folder 12 | "$1000.00 Guaranteed" advertising campaign mailing sample, 1915 |
| Box 6 Folder 13 | "$1000.00 Guaranteed," correspondence with Yopp Seed Company, 1928 |
| Box 6 Folder 14 | "Zanzibar Carbon Laundry Blue," correspondence with American Laundry, 1909 |
| Box 6 Folder 15 | Pamphlet and container sample proofs, circa 1920s
|
| Box 7 Folder 1 | Product development, notebook, circa 1919 |
| Box 7 Folder 2 | Product development, notebook, undated |
| Box 7 Folder 3 | Customer contact information, notebook, undated |
| Box 7 Folder 4 | Salesmen's banquets, programs, 1914, 1916 |
| Box 7 Folder 5 | Payments slips, undated |
| Box 7 Folder 6 | Seymour & Peck Co., price list, and Sidney Wanzer and Sons, pamphlet, undated |
Series IV: Photographs |
| Box 8 Folder 1 | African woman and girl, undated |
| Box 8 Folder 2 | "Bull Meat Brand Binder," album, undated |
Series V: Historical Publications |
| Box 8 Folder 3 | Past Times: A Newsletter for Collectors of Popular and Antique Advertising, 2001 |
| Box 8 Folder 4 | Well Seasoned: A Centennial History of Heller Seasonings & Ingredients, Inc., 1993 |
| Box 8 Folder 5 | Auction News, 1983 |