I thought it would be interesting to show two billheads for A. Booth Packing Company packers of oysters, fish and canned goods. I have handled a lot of Booth billheads for Chicago. Booth billheads are always pre-printed with the goods it sells. All of the Chicago billheads focus on the company's oysters brands.
This Chicago billhead has mainly pre-printed oyster products: oval, A. Booth, extra select, celery and fish. Nice decorative billhead with medals and factory scenes. The Chicago billheads also never indicated who printed it.
Along comes another Booth billhead, this one for the Duluth fisheries.
What I liked about this billhead was that it was pre-printed with the firm's fish offerings: whitefish, small trout, large trout, pike, pickerel and herring. This billhead also indicated in the upper left corner who printed it - Shober & Carqueville Litho Co. of Chicago.
For the history buffs, a little bit about Alfred Booth.
Alfred Booth was born in Glastonbury England, he emigrated to the US in 1848 at the age of 20. He lived in Kenosha WI but moved to Chicago in 1850. He opened a small fish and vegetable store. Margaret Beattie Bogue, in her book Fishing the Great Lakes indicates that lore has it he bought fish directly from Lake Michigan fisherman and sold it through Chicago's streets via a cart. Booth was able to capitalize on the Civil War economy and by 1870s, Booth sons, Alfred B. and William had joined the firm, A. Booth & Sons. Before 1871, Booth had acquired a salmon-canning operation in California and the properties of DD Mallory oysters on the East Coast. Booth expanded its operations into Lake Superior and established a house in Duluth MN in 1886 where it shipped fish west by rail. Canadian expansion was next for the company in search of more whitefish. The firm would incorporate as A. Booth & Co. which took over the business of the A. Booth Packing Co. By 1908, the firm would fall into receivership with liabilities of $5.5 million. The firm would come out of bankruptcy in 1909 as the Booth Fisheries Co. and would eventually be purchased by the Sara Lee Corp. in the 1960s.
This Chicago billhead has mainly pre-printed oyster products: oval, A. Booth, extra select, celery and fish. Nice decorative billhead with medals and factory scenes. The Chicago billheads also never indicated who printed it.
Along comes another Booth billhead, this one for the Duluth fisheries.
What I liked about this billhead was that it was pre-printed with the firm's fish offerings: whitefish, small trout, large trout, pike, pickerel and herring. This billhead also indicated in the upper left corner who printed it - Shober & Carqueville Litho Co. of Chicago.For the history buffs, a little bit about Alfred Booth.
Alfred Booth was born in Glastonbury England, he emigrated to the US in 1848 at the age of 20. He lived in Kenosha WI but moved to Chicago in 1850. He opened a small fish and vegetable store. Margaret Beattie Bogue, in her book Fishing the Great Lakes indicates that lore has it he bought fish directly from Lake Michigan fisherman and sold it through Chicago's streets via a cart. Booth was able to capitalize on the Civil War economy and by 1870s, Booth sons, Alfred B. and William had joined the firm, A. Booth & Sons. Before 1871, Booth had acquired a salmon-canning operation in California and the properties of DD Mallory oysters on the East Coast. Booth expanded its operations into Lake Superior and established a house in Duluth MN in 1886 where it shipped fish west by rail. Canadian expansion was next for the company in search of more whitefish. The firm would incorporate as A. Booth & Co. which took over the business of the A. Booth Packing Co. By 1908, the firm would fall into receivership with liabilities of $5.5 million. The firm would come out of bankruptcy in 1909 as the Booth Fisheries Co. and would eventually be purchased by the Sara Lee Corp. in the 1960s.
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