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Category: Halloween

Vintage Chocolate Advertising from 1920s-1950s | A Look Back

Halloween is almost here and that means that bucket loads of candy and chocolate bars will be handed out to eager tricker or treaters. Cue the sugar high!

On a personal level, I love a good chocolate bar, especially anything with nuts. Yum!

So for oday’s blog post we are going to look back at vintage chocolate advertising from the 1920s-1950s, to get you in the Halloween spirit or maybe trigger that sweet tooth. Enjoy!

Further Reading: Vintage Halloween Candy Ads-1940s and 1950s

Vintage Milky Way Chocolate bar hallween advertisement. The vintage ad features a pumpkin "Smart pumpkin" eating a chocolate bar.

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1950s vintage ad for Hollywood chocolate bars featuring an illustration of a 1950s woman.

Vintage Chocolate Advertising 1920s-1950s

Before we begin I wanted to share some cool Toronto, Canada chocolate industry history I recently stumbled upon. This is courtesy of the ‘City of Toronto (because this is the city where I live).

Did you know that in the early decades of the 20th century, Toronto’s chocolate industry was characterized by the rise of three big players on the national stage: Neilson’s, Laura Secord, and Willards? Cool right?!

Let’s take a quick deep dive into their history.

Neilson:

William Neilson (1844-1915), who rose to prominence as an ice cream manufacturer, began producing bulk and boxed chocolate at his Gladstone Avenue plant in 1906 as a way of keeping his skilled ice cream makers employed during the slow winter months. By 1914, Neilson’s was manufacturing over 500,000 lbs of chocolate per year. When Neilson died in 1915, his son Morden took over the family business.

Under Morden’s tenure, Neilson’s would become Canada’s largest chocolate maker, famous for its Crispy Crunch (1923) and Jersey Milk (1924) chocolate bars, products that are still enjoyed today.

TTC transit advertising car card for Neilson’s 6 Centres chocolate bar. 1955 ad.

1950s Vintage Advertisement: TTC transit advertising car card for Neilson’s 6 Centres chocolate bar
ca. 1955
City of Toronto Archives
Series 244, Item 131

Source: City of Toronto

Laura Secord:

In 1913, Frank O’Connor (1885-1939) and his wife Mary (1878-1931) opened their first Laura Secord store at 354 Yonge Street, just north of Elm Street. Selling products manufactured in the kitchen of their upstairs apartment, O’Connor emphasized the quality, purity, and dignity of his chocolates – values that were embodied by the well-known historical figure chosen to be the name and face of the company.

By 1926, Laura Secord had grown into an international chain with 57 stores in Canada and another 19 in the U.S. under the Fanny Farmer brand.

1940s ad (candies was used for chocolate).

1940s vintage ad for Thanksgiving Laura Secord Chocolates (Candies) featuring a woman in a 1940s hairstyles and 1940s dress.

Source: City of Toronto

Willards:

Willards was founded ca. 1914 by E.G. Robinson, a former Neilson’s employee who has been described by one historian as having “a reputation in the candy industry for price cutting and the use of sharp practices to avoid paying his bills.” Willards, which became famous for its Sweet Marie chocolate bar, was also notorious for its role in a 1920s labour dispute known as the Chocolate Case. The company was accused of multiple violations of Ontario’s Minimum Wage Act for falsifying payroll records and underpaying its female employees.

1954 Willards Sweet Marie chocolate bar advertisement.

1950s Vintage Advertisement: 1954 Sweet Marie Chocolate Bar from Willards a Toronto, Canada Company.

More Vintage Chocolate Advertising…..

“Serve the Sampler after Sports”. 1920s Whitman’s Chocolates ad.

Further Reading: Vintage Tennis Outfits from the 1920s-1950s

1920s vintage ad for Whitman's Chocolates featuring an illustration of a woman in a tennis outfit

Source: Pinterest

1923 Rowntree’s Chocolates.

Rowntree: is a British confectionery brand and a former business based in York, England. Rowntree developed the Kit Kat (introduced in 1935), Aero (introduced in 1935), Fruit Pastilles (introduced in 1881), Smarties (introduced in 1937) brands, and the Rolo and Quality Street brands when it merged with Mackintosh’s in 1969 to form Rowntree Mackintosh Confectionery. Rowntree’s also launched After Eight thin mint chocolates in 1962 (Source).

1920s vintage advertisement: Rowntree's Chocolates advert, 1923 featuring an illustration of a couple holding a box of chocolates.

Source: Pinterest

A very stylish 1920s advertisement for Milky Way Chocolate bars featuring two students in 1920s fashions enjoying a treat after class.

1920s vintage advertisement for Milky Way Chocolate bar featuring two stylish 1920s man and woman in 1920s fashions for this back to school ad.

Source: Dying for Chocolate

“Just out! LOWNEY’S “LONGFELLO” is Canada’s Latest and Finest $0.05 Chocolate Bar.”

Lowney’s was an American company who in the 1890s opened a branch of the company and by 1905, they had a factory operating out of Montreal (Source).

1930s vintage ad for Lowney's Longfello Chocolate Bar a Montreal Canada Company (Branch).

Source: eBay

1930s vintage ad for Nestle’s Puffed Milk Chocolate bar.

1930s vintage ad for Nestle's Puffed Milk Chocolate bar featuring a woman with a 1930s hairstyle enjoying the chocolate bar.

Source: eBay

“Have you tried FRY’s Chocolate Sandwich? A 1930s vintage ad.

1930s vintage ad for Fry's Chocolate Sandwich Bar featuring an illustration of three men looking at the chocolate.

Source: Alamy

I had to share another Whitman’s Chocolates ad because the Easter Bonnet featured in this 1940s advertisement is just incredible (hat by John Fredericsblog post to come on this talented man).

1940s vintage advertisement for Whiteman's Chocolates featuring a woman with a 1940s hairstyle and wearing an Easter bonnet made of flowers.

Source Etsy – Plentifulpages

1940s Nestle’s Chocolate Bar ad talking about the energy values that eating chocolate provides a soldier in the battlefield.

1940s Advertisement: Vintage 1940s nestle’s chocolate ww2 print ad featuring a soldier eating a chocolate bar.

Source: Etsy – AmericanCenturyShop

1940s vintage ad for BRACH’S Chocolate Mint bars. Also featured ‘Coconut Twins’ and ‘Swing Twins’ chocolate bars.

I do not like chocolate mint. Do you?

1940s vintage ad for BRACH'S Chocolate Mint bars. Also featured Coconut and Swing Twins chocolate bars.

Source: Pinterest

“Share your Caley Chocolates this Christmas”.

1941 vintage ad for ‘Caley Chocolates’ featuring a very fashionable woman with an incredible 1940s hairstyle.

1940s vintage advertiing for Caley chocolates featuring a woman with a 1940s hairstyles and 1940s makeup and jewelry holding a box of chocolates

Source: Pinterest

“Ahhhhh, la cart!” 1955 Mars Bar “Toasted Almond” vintage advertisement featuring a maid pushing a bar cart (chocolate bar cart to be exact).

1950s vintage ad:  "Ahhhhh, la cart!" 1955 Mars Bar "Toasted Almond" vintage advertisement featuring a maid pushing a bar car (chocolate bar cart to be exact).

Source: eBay

One more Mars Bar ad from 1951 because this is so fun. I love the typography.

1950s Vintage Advertising for Mars Bar chocolate bar featuring a man in a plaid shirt. The ad is from 1951.

Source: eBay

I loved our models sundress, so this why I shared another ‘Chocolates by Caley of Norwich’ ad, this time from 1952.

1950s vintage advertisement for Caley Chocolates featuring a man and woman on the beach the woman is wearing a 1950s sundress

Source: Etsy – YesteryearimagesCo

1956 ‘White Heather Chocolate Ad’. Which ones would you chose from the box?

1950s vintage ad for White Heather Chocolates (1956) featuring an illustration of a woman painter with different chocolates you can eat

Source: Pinterest

Question Time: What is your favourite chocolate bar? Or share any thoughts about you have about this topic in the comment section below.

Further Reading:

Thank you for dropping by!

Liz

Vintage Photos of Art Students Painting Halloween Windows in 1949

As we near Halloween, I thought it would be fun for ‘Vintage Photo Tuesday‘ to showcase a collection of vintage images I recently found from ‘Archive.org. They feature art students in 1949 in the Newark, New Jersey school district painting store windows with Halloween scenes. How fun!

Let’s take a look at what I found….

Vintage Photos of Art Students Painting Halloween Windows in 1949

Students paint a window on a store selling radios, ranges and other appliances inside. Gravestone in painting reads, “”Died on Halloween Night”.

Side Note: The girl with her back to us, is wearing a sweater with Lindy Hoppers on it (swing dancers) and musicians playing big band music for them to dance too! As a Lindy Hopper myself, I am madly in love with this sweater and would give anything to own it in real life!

1940s vintage image of art students in 1948 painting a Halloween scene on a store front window selling radios, ranges and other items. The teenagers are wearing 1940s fashions for Teens / Juniors. One woman is wearing a swing dance / Lindy Hop sweater.

Three girls painting on the storefront window of Dr. Moses B. Gross Optometrist, on South Orange Avenue.

1940s vintage image of three young black teenage girls painting a halloween scene on a business window in Newark, NJ in 1948

Two young kids paint their Halloween mural on a grocery store window.

1940s vintage image of two young kids in Newark, NJ painting a Halloween mural on a grocery store window in 1948.

A boy paints a graveyard scene on an Auto Supplies store.

1940s vintage image of a boy in Newark, NJ painting a Halloween mural on a auto supplies store of a graveyard scene.

Witches, black cats and haunted houses being painted on a Ladies and Gent furniture store.

1940s vintage image of teenagers in Newark, NJ painting a Halloween mural on a furniture store. The mural is of a witch with a black cat and a haunted house.

A teenage girl paints a window with a black cat and scarecrow.

1940s vintage image of a teenage art student in 1948 painting a Halloween scene on a store front window featuring a black cat and a scarecrow.

A haunted forest scares a couple going for a walk, as seen on the window of Marquier’s Pharmacy on South Orange Avenue.

1940s vintage image of a teenage art student in 1948 painting a Halloween scene on a store for Marquier's Pharmacy featuring a Haunted forest.

Schick’s Bakery, gets a mural featuring skeletons riding horses in the sky.

1940s vintage image of a teenage art student in 1948 painting a Halloween scene on a store for a bakery in Newark, NJ. The Halloween mural features skeletons riding horses in the sky.

Thanks for dropping by and taking a look at these cool Halloween vintage photos. If your interested in more spooky fun, then take a look at my other Halloween themed blog posts below.

Further Reading:

Thanks for dropping by!

Liz