{"id":895,"date":"2015-04-04T04:03:25","date_gmt":"2015-04-04T04:03:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.archivingwheeling.org\/blog\/?p=895"},"modified":"2015-06-09T15:13:30","modified_gmt":"2015-06-09T15:13:30","slug":"buckle-of-the-stogie-belt","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.archivingwheeling.org\/blog\/buckle-of-the-stogie-belt","title":{"rendered":"Buckle of the Stogie Belt"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Wheeling\u2019s Stogie History in Cigar Box Art<\/h3>\n
\"Thad<\/a>
Thad Podratsky builds his collection. Photo by Susan Haddad.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Thanks to legendary Wheeling collector and history enthusiast, Thad Podratsky, with some additional help from our friend Peg Brennan, the Ohio County Public Library has been able to assemble a\u00a0fascinating and visually stunning array of Wheeling themed cigar boxes and tobacciana for its April archives display.\u00a0<\/p>\n

A Bad Product Made by Good Men<\/h3>\n

Though it is now well known that tobacco use is detrimental to one\u2019s health, there is no denying stogie manufacturing was an integral and important part of Wheeling\u2019s industrial history. The tobacco industry not only helped grow Wheeling\u2019s early economy, spreading the Wheeling name far and wide, but it also affected the way labor relations positively developed here in Wheeling.<\/p>\n

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\"Pollack<\/a>
The Augustus Pollack Monument at the old City-County Building.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A Friend to Labor: Augustus Pollack<\/h3>\n

Augustus Pollack set the example as a stogie factory owner. He maintained an open-door policy with his workers, who were always welcome to come to him with complaints or concerns. Employees were paid well, enjoyed good working conditions, and fair hours. Pollack was unusually progressive by late 19th century standards and his attitude influenced other cigar manufacturers (see, for example, the Bashar\u2019s box in the photo gallery below).<\/p>\n

When Pollack died on April 23rd, 1906, the Ohio Valley Trades and Labor Assembly called a special meeting encouraging local members of all trade unions to attend the funeral. The Garfield Assembly of International Stogie Makers organized a collection of donations to erect a monument in Pollack\u2019s honor.<\/p>\n

The monument, depicting an employer and employee shaking hands, was placed in a prominent location in front of Wheeling\u2019s old City Building. An inscription reads \u201cErected by Trade Union Members of United States in Memory of Augustus Pollack Whose Business Life and Actions Were Always in Sympathy with Organized Labor.\u201d It is thought to be the only monument built by labor to honor a business owner.<\/p>\n

When the old city building was razed in 1956, the monument was moved Main Street near the Fort Henry Bridge. In 2013, it was once again moved and now stands at Heritage Port.<\/p>\n

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The Famous One<\/h3>\n

Of course, one of the oldest and most recognizable stogies manufacturers was Marsh Wheeling Stogies.<\/p>\n

Founded in Wheeling in 1840,\u00a0Marsh sold hand-rolled stogies out of market baskets to crews and captains on Ohio River steamboats. Founder Mifflin Marsh walked up and down the bank of the Ohio River selling his stogies to every crew member, captain, and passenger.<\/p>\n

\"Mark<\/a>
Mark Twain was a fan of the Marsh Toby.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Presidents including James Monroe, John Adams, and Abraham Lincoln smoked Marsh Stogies, as well as General Lafayette and General Sam Houston. Other famous fans of Marsh Stogies were P. T. Barnum, Black Hawk, John Wayne, Andrew Mellon, Annie Oakley, and Mark Twain, who said,\u00a0\u201cThen once more, changed off so that I might acquire the subtler flavor of the [Marsh] Wheeling Toby \u2026 I discovered the worst cigars, so called, are the best for me, after all.\u201d<\/p>\n

Marsh Stogies appeared in movies like Jaws<\/em>, Missing<\/em>, Fool\u2019s Parade<\/em> and How the West Was Won<\/em>.<\/p>\n

\"In<\/a>
In addition to the cigar boxes in the main display case, Mr. Podratsky graciously loaned some of the tobacco tools he acquired from Marsh Wheeling Stogies. They are on display near the side entrance to the library.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

According to legend, Marsh also sold his stogies on the side of National Road, and made sure every Conestoga wagon driver had one going in and out of Wheeling. [see\u00a0Wheeling<\/em><\/a> by William A. Carney & Brent Carney and Legendary Locals of Wheeling<\/em><\/a>, various authors].<\/p>\n

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Treat Yourself to the Best<\/h3>\n

The third of the \u201cBig Three\u201d of Wheeling\u2019s most notable tobacco concerns, was, of course, Bloch Brothers of South Wheeling, founded by Andrew and Samuel Bloch in 1879. In those days, the Blochs were making hand-rolled stogies, but soon noticed that their employees enjoyed chewing the leftover tobacco bits that fell out as the stogies were rolled. Seeing an opportunity, the Blochs packaged up those bits and sold them as West Virginia \u201cMail Pouch\u201d tobacco \u00a0[Carney].<\/p>\n

Mail Pouch Barns were among the very first early examples of outdoor advertising. The Bloch brothers wanted to advertise in rural areas where the majority of their customers lived, and so selected barns on the side of highly traveled roads to display their brand.<\/p>\n

\u201cSpace men\u201d sought out barns fitting the criteria and negotiated deals with the barn owners. The side of the barn would then be painted by contracted workers with the trademark yellow and white letters on a black background. Mail Pouch barns could be found in West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, New York, the western coasts of California, Oregon, & Washington, as well as southern Michigan & western Maryland.<\/p>\n

As many as 4,000 barns were painted, all with a lifespan of 30-40 years. In the 1960s, as rural population declined and radio and television were taking over advertisement, barn painting tapered. Around this same time, Federal highway legislation passed that banned outdoor advertising within 660 feet of a federally funded road. By 1969, barn painting \u201cofficially\u201d ceased. However, the law did not stop a few more barns from being painted in subsequent years.<\/p>\n

Recognized for their iconic status, in 1974, the Mail Pouch barns were designated as National Historic Landmarks. In 1992, Swisher International obtained Bloch Brothers and officially stopped barn painting [see The West Virginia Encyclopedia<\/em><\/a>].<\/p>\n

\"Samuel<\/a>
\u201cElmhurst.\u201d From Art Work of Wheeling, West Virginia, 1904. Ohio County Public Library Archives.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Samuel Bloch built his family mansion on National Road in 1902. He named it \u201cElmhurst\u201d in honor of the numerous elm trees growing around it. Not to be outdone by Pollack in terms of community outreach for a tobacco baron, after his death, in keeping with Bloch\u2019s philanthropic ideals, the mansion was converted into a retirement community called \u201cElmhurst, The House of Friendship.\u201d<\/p>\n

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The Tobacco Hub<\/h3>\n
\"The<\/a>
The Wheeling Stogie display now in the main display case at the Ohio County Public Library.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In addition to the \u201cBig Three,\u201d Wheeling boasted numerous other stogie makers in its heyday. In fact, lying as it did, in the middle of the \u201cStogie Belt,\u201d Wheeling was once considered the hub of the American tobacco industry. During William McKinley\u2019s presidency, the city boasted nearly 100 stogie factories, with more than 6 million cigars produced annually. Many of the cigar boxes from those companies can\u00a0be seen in the photo gallery below. The originals are now on display (courtesy Mr. Podratsky) through the end of April in the main display area at the Ohio County Public Library.<\/p>\n

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