Help identifying this label?

[schnoepoe]

Hi,Can anyone help identify this Label? "Jefferson pure rye whiskey. 1870 . It was attached to this old frame on a board with the oil painting behind it.

I have no idea so any help would be appreciated.

Thank you,

Deano

[cowdery]

I don't recognize it but you might try pre-pro.com. It's a good source for information about pre-Prohibition products and producers.

[schnoepoe]

Thank you. I will try that website

[schnoepoe]

Thanks again for the help Col. Charles. I found help on pre-pro.com. It was made from a company called - Shields, May & Co.

[schnoepoe]

More on the Whiskey label .

I n 1870, one d i s t i l l e r began p r o m o t i n g h i s whiskey by u s i n g

t h e name o f one o f t h e n a t i o n ' s i l l u s t r i o u s Founding F a t h e r s .

J e f f e r s o n P u r e Rye Whiskey was s o l d i n b a r r e l s t h a t c a r r i e d a n

a d v e r t i s e m e n t showing

a d i s t i l l e r y l o c a t e d j u s t b e h i n d t h e f o r m e r

P r e s i d e n t ' s ~ mo n t i c e l i o h ome .

here wa s , o f c o u r s e , n o s u c h d i s -

t i l l e r y

a t M o n t i c e l l o and c e r t a i n l y no i n d i c a t i o n t h a t J e f f e r s o n

was e v e r a s s o c i a t e d w i t h any s u c h e n t e r p r i s e . H i s name and h i s

home were s i m p l y a p p r o p r i a t e d by t h e d i s t i l l e r t o l e n d p r e s t i g e

and d i s t i n c t i o n t o t h e w h i s k e y .

It is a good i n d i c a t i o n , n o t j u s t

o f t h e f r e e - s p i r i t e d m a r k e t i n g o f t h e d a y , b u t a l s o o f the growing

i m p o r t a n c e o f t h e "brand" i n a d v e r t i s i n g .

Edited September 15, 2012 by schnoepoe

[cowdery]

Here's what the poster above was trying to say:

More on the Whiskey label.

In 1870, one distiller began promoting his whiskey by using the name of one of the nation’s illustrious Founding Fathers .

Jefferson Pure Rye Whiskey was sold in barrels that carried an advertisement showing a distillery located just behind the former President's Monticello home . There was, of course, no such distillery at Monticello and certainly no indication that Jefferson was ever associated with any such enterprise. His name and his home were simply appropriated by the distiller to lend prestige and distinction to the whiskey.

It is a good indication, not just of the free-spirited marketing of the day, but also of the growing importance of the "brand" in advertising.

________________________

Such a thing as pictured above would be unlikely to adorn a barrel. More like a case shipper. Also, then as now, the appearance of the year 1870 means as little as the 1870 on the Larceny label does today. It's likely a founding date, as the text indicates, perhpas a fanciful one. Founding of what is never clear. The whiskey and its graphics likely came much later, in the 1890s or 1900s.

Edited September 18, 2012 by cowdery

[cowdery]

Thinking about this, I am reminded that the office building at Stitzel-Weller in Louisville is modeled after Monticello and the distillery building is behind the offices. Perhaps this label was the inspiration for Stitzel-Weller's architecture and layout.