Finding Aids

Avon Products, Inc. is a manufacturer and direct selling company of beauty products. It is one of the oldest direct selling companies in America. The company was founded in 1886 by David H. McConnell (1856-1937) as the California Perfume Company (CPC). McConnell established a manufacturing headquarters and research laboratory in Suffern, New York, in the 1890s. During the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, CPC expanded its line of products to include cosmetics, household cleaners, food flavorings, and toiletries. The collection consists of photographs, negatives, slides, films, videos and sound recordings date from 1856 to 2000. The materials depict Avon products, their manufacture, packaging and sale, Avon employees and representatives and the offices, laboratories, factories and other structures owned by Avon Products, Inc. The collection is organized into ten series: Administration, Conferences, Non-sales employees, Domestic locations, International locations, Public relations, Sales managers and representatives, Selling methods and sales aids, Company history and philosophy, and Library, music, and museum.

Beech-Nut Packing Company produced foods such as smoked ham and bacon. The company was founded in 1891 in Canajohaire, New York, as the Imperial Packing Co. This is a small collection of photographs that depict employees at work, many of whom are women. The images date from 1905 through the 1910s.

Canada Dry is a brand of soft drinks best known for its ginger ale. Canada Dry had its beginning when John McLaughlin (1865-1914) opened a small carbonated water plant in Toronto, Canada, in 1890 to manufacture soda water. In the 1930s the company introduced other Canada Dry mixers. Canada Dry expanded worldwide during this period. The album was created as a salesman's flip chart for Canada Dry distributors to show retailers. There are images of Canada Dry products, views of bottling plants and the manufacturing process, as well as advertisements and merchant testimonials.

Dan Dee Pretzel and Potato Chip Company was an American snack food manufacturer based in Cleveland, Ohio. This collection consists of nine short, silent film reels depicting select manufacturing and packaging processes at the company's factory and warehouse.

Donald Robert Hull (1911-1995) was a longtime employee at the DuPont Company mainly working with nylon and textile fibers. The collection consists of four scrapbook albums of material from Donald Hull's career with the Du Pont Company.

DuPont Motors, Inc. was a manufacturing company of luxury automobiles, founded by E. Paul du Pont (1887-1950) in 1919 in Wilmington, Delaware. These photographs show exterior views of the vacant DuPont Motors factory in Moore, Pennsylvania, where briefly (1922-1925) DuPont automobiles were assembled.

DuPont Motors, Inc. was a manufacturing company of luxury automobiles, founded by E. Paul du Pont (1887-1950) in 1919 in Wilmington, Delaware. This collection consists of thirty-eight photographs primarily showing the exteriors of DuPont Motor’s Models A, B, D, and G.

The E.I. du Pont de Nemours is a chemical company commonly known as the DuPont Company was established in 1802, and began by manufacturing gunpowder and later chemical compounds. The foundations for the Engineering Department were laid in 1902. The department’s purpose was to design and construct high explosives plants, design powder machinery and create extensions to existing plants. The DuPont Engineering Department collection consists of photographic material documenting Twentieth century construction projects throughout the many different E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Company work sites, including some outside construction projects within the explosives and chemical industry. There are 209 work sites which are arranged in alphabetical order.

E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company is a chemical company more commonly referred to as the DuPont Company. This collection consists of six safety calendars issued by the DuPont Company. The illustrators who created these calendars--Stanley Massey Arthurs (1877-1950), Clyde Osmer DeLand (1872-1947), Gayle Porter Hoskins (1887-1962), and Frank Earle Schoonover (1877-1972)--were all artists who studied under Howard Pyle (1853-1911) at the turn of the twentieth century.

E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company is a chemical company. The Moberly Plant was an automotive finishes plant in Moberly Missouri from 1968 through 1990. The plant manufactured topcoat paints used to repair or refurinsh vehicles. This collection consists of materials related to the former DuPont Company site in Moberly, Missouri, 1968-1990. Materials include newsletters, guides to the plant, a magazine, a yearbook, certificates, photographs, slides, and negatives.

E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company is a chemical company, which began as a manufacturer of gunpowder in 1802. The collection consists of photographs and prints that document the early history of the DuPont Company’s involvement in the gunpowder and explosives industries from the 1860s through the 1920s. The bulk of the collection are photographs of employees, executives, and plant views, including aftermaths of explosions and construction. This collection also includes a variety of advertisements for the DuPont Company as well as other non-DuPont related trades. A large portion of this collection are oversize materials (panoramic photographs and advertising posters).

E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company is a chemical company more commonly referred to as the DuPont Company. During World War I, the DuPont Company entered the dye industry. This small collection of photographs is primarily of DuPont Company plant sites of dye works and explosives. There are numerous views of the Carrollville, Wisconsin, plant and the Terre, Indiana, plant.

E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company is a chemical company more commonly referred to as the DuPont Company, established in 1802. In 1902 the DuPont Company acquired the Smith Electric Fuze Company and some other properties in the Pompton Lakes, New Jersey area. This collection consists of one color photograph showing three DuPont Company explosives delivery trucks, 1966 and two aerial photographs of the DuPont Company's Pompton Lakes, New Jersey, plant.

In 1952, the DuPont Company created the Product Information section within the Public Relations department. Its function was to produce news releases with photographs about DuPont and its products for indirect publicity and advertising purposes. This collection contains photographs of DuPont Company corporate events and proceedings, product trade shows and fairs, development and manufacturing processes, and the employees and facilities where the products were created. Most of the photographs were taken from the 1930s through the 1950s.

The Textile Fibers Department of the DuPont Company, established in 1936 as the Rayon Department, specialized in researching and developing synthetic fibers for fabrics such as Rayon, Nylon, Teflon, Corian, and Kevlar. This collection primarily contains video tapes (VHS and U-Matic). Most of the content on the VHS videotapes are different than that on the U-Matic videotapes, there are a few duplicate videos that are in both formats. The videotapes content are employee training videos related to management, customer service and safety, as well as, informational videos about product and services, company history and events. Additionally the collection contains photographs, slides, advertising and promotional materials.

Corfam® was a synthetic substitute for leather. Collection consists of photographs related to the development and manufacture of DuPont's Corfam® synthetic leather at the Newburgh, New York Corfam® pilot plant and research facility.

Du Pont Motors, Inc. was a manufacturing company of luxury automobiles, founded by E. Paul du Pont (1887-1950) in 1919 in Wilmington, Delaware. The company originally produced marine engines during World War I. These photographs show exterior views of the vacant Du Pont Motors factory in Moore, Pennsylvania, where briefly (1922-1925) Du Pont automobiles were assembled.

Edward M. Harrington (1866-1933) was a chemist and expert on blasting cap design. He held several positions at the Aetna Powder Company, eventually becoming superintendent of the dynamite works at Aetna, Indiana. Harrington then went on to work for the DuPont Company at various plants in the Operating Department until his retirement in 1921. Images in this collection are of dynamite and other explosive plants, including Aetna Powder Company plants in Newport, Rhode Island (electric blasting caps) and Aetna, Indiana, and DuPont Company plants in Repauno, New Jersey; Hopwell, Virginia, and many other locations. Photographs show buildings, office and plant interiors, many with workers, employee groups, housing, and recreation.

The Louviers dynamite works began production in 1908 and provided explosives primarily for mines in the region. The panoramic photograph shows a view of the DuPont Company dynamite works at Louviers, Colorado, including the magazine area, powder line, and overall view.

The Neoprene B plant was located at DuPont's Deepwater Point, New Jersey site, which was later named the Chambers Works. This collection consists of three panoramic photographs showing the construction of the Neoprene B plant.

The War Department of the United States Government contracted with the DuPont Company to build and run a smokeless powder plant called the Old Hickory plant on the Cumberland River near Nashville, Tennessee during World War I. These panoramic photographs show overall views of DuPont Company's Old Hickory smokeless powder plant, also views of exterior and interior details.

The DuPont Company acquired a site on the York River in Virginia on which they planned to build a dynamite plant. The U.S. Government took over the property in 1918 and got the DuPont Company to build a shell loading plant instead. These three panoramic photographs show overall views of the shell loading plant at Penniman, Virginia during World War I.

In 1902 the DuPont Company acquired the Smith Electric Fuze Company and some other properties in the Pompton Lakes, New Jersey area. DuPont continued the manufacture of fuses, blasting caps, and other blasting supplies at the plant, adding a shell plant and other facilities. One panoramic photograph shows an overview of the DuPont Company plant at Pompton Lakes, New Jersey, 1918, and the other is a group portrait of staff, August 25, 1943.

In 1918, the company opened an additional plant in Racine, Wisconsin to increase the production of smokeless powder to meet the growing demand in order to support the war effort. This panoramic photograph shows a group of engineers outside of the plant.

In 1927 the DuPont Company constructed a plant to manufacture viscose rayon. This panoramic photograph depicts an overview of the DuPont Company's Spruance Plant in Richmond, Virginia.

The DuPont Company purchased a site near City Point, Virginia on the James River in 1912 in order to build a dynamite plant located closer to the southern market. The panoramic photographs show exteriors of the plant, views of the workers' housing, the town (including the African American section), and a photograph of the Hopewell China Corporation, a post-war reuse of one of the facilities.

E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company is a chemical company more commonly referred to as the DuPont Company. The Fabrics and Finishes Department produced DuPont's consumer lines of paints and finishes. Duco was a durable, quick-drying lacquer used for appliances. It was the standard finish for GM vehicles. Dulux was glossier, which made it more popular than Duco. Lucite paint was introduced in the 1950s and was less expensive and more durable than its predecessors. This small collection consists of one album of photographs of finishes facilities (i.e., Refinish Service Warehouses/wholesale) and retail paint stores.

E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company is a chemical company that began manufacturing gunpowder in 1802, and is commonly known as the DuPont Company. In 1941, the Martinsville Plant opened in Martinsville, Virginia, as DuPont's second nylon hosiery manufacturing plant. This small collection consists primarily of aerial and exterior photographs of the Martinsville Plant from the factory's construction in 1940 to 1996, two years before its closing.

The Hay’s Fruit Juice Company produced “Hay’s Five Fruit,” fruit juice syrup used to make and flavor beverages and desserts. The company was founded in 1900 in Portland, Maine. The Hay’s Fruit Juice Company album contains photographs and advertisements. The photographs are primarily of the factory’s interiors.

The Indiana Ordnance Works was built by the DuPont Company for the U.S. Government beginning in 1940. It manufactured military explosives, propellants, and smokeless powder. The panoramic photographs show overviews of the Indiana Ordnance Works facilities, Charlestown, Indiana.

Jacquelin Lee McConaughey (1920-2001) was an artist and longtime employee of the DuPont Company. This collection consists of three photographic prints of her paintings that she created for the DuPont Company's Environmental Color System.

The Joy Manufacturing Company was a major manufacturer of underground mining and materials handling machinery. The photographs were collected by retired corporate secretary James Packer (1920-2008) in 1985 for the purpose of writing a company history. This small collection consists of photographs, mostly group portraits of staff. The collection dates range from the 1921 to 1988. The materials are so sporadic that there is no bulk date.

James R. Thomen (1926-) was manager of the Experimental Station from 1975 to 1985 when he retired. The DuPont Company's Experimental initially, was to be a small laboratory to screen inventions which were coming into the company from outside independent inventors specifically for research on black powder, smokeless powder, and dynamite, but soon its mission was altered and it became a large industrial research facility focused on innovative advancements in chemistry. This collection consists primarily of photographs of buildings at the Experimental Station in Wilmington, Delaware taken between 1910 and 1950.

The John B. Stetson Company was a manufacturer of hats. The company was founded in 1865 by John B. Stetson (1830-1906) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The company's Kensington plant consisted of twenty-five buildings covering nine acres at Germantown and Montgomery Avenues. During its heyday in the 1920s it employed over 5,000 people to make its hats. This is a small collection of photographs and other material relating to the company. The photographs focus on the workers in and around the factory and its amenities.

Joseph Bancroft (1803-1874), an Englishman trained in textile weaving in Lancashire, established his own cotton mill on the Brandywine near Wilmington in 1831. The operation became the Joseph Bancroft & Sons Company in 1889. The photographs consist of images related to the Joseph Bancroft & Sons textile mills in the Rockford and, later, Kentmere areas on the banks of the Brandywine River. These images include plant exteriors and interiors, officials and employees, aerials, workers' housing, machinery, floods, and dams and races on Brandywine Creek.

Joseph Bancroft & Sons Company manufactured, bleached, dyed, and finished a variety cotton-made goods. A panoramic view of Bancroft Mills in Wilmington, Delaware.

The Laflin & Rand Powder Company was one of the largest gunpowder manufacturers during the nineteenth century. Frederick W. Beers (1839-1933) was a New York map publisher. This item is a lithograph depicting the powder mills and surrounding landscape, and it is pages 16 and 17 of "County Atlas of Ulster, New York: From Recent and Actual Surveys and Records," by author F.W. Beers.

Leonard W. Walton (1911-2005) was a printing industry executive with Milprint, Inc., which specialized in printing packaging materials, between 1936 and 1976. This collection of photographs related to Milprint, Inc was collected by Leonard W. Walton. A majority of the photographs show Milprint employees attending events, banquets, and dinners, including Quarter Century Club celebrations.

Lepley & Joswick Photographers was a commercial photographic studio in Chicago, Illinois, between 1946 and 1952. The firm was a partnership between Alden D. Lepley (1911-2003) and Gerald "Jerry" J. Joswick (1923-1990). In 1946, Lepley and Joswick opened a photography studio at 5121 W. Devon Ave. in Chicago. Their clients were mainly industrial ones. Both partners continued to pursue side projects and give lectures separately. This small collection of photographs features a range of commercial images depicting different areas of industry in Chicago between 1940 and 1952. It includes food factory assembly line workers, canned and boxed food products, home appliances and electronics, and interior home designs.

The Detroit Mohawk Liqueur Corporation formed in 1933 at the end of Prohibition and operated through 1966. This album consists of three groups of images. The first group of photographs show a working American liquor company in Detroit, Michigan. The second group consists of different Mohawk bottled liquor products. The third part is eighteen pages of original Mohawk Liqueur labels attached to scrapbook pages.

The lithographs include the following Philadelphia printers' names: E. Beaulieu; Herline & Co.; King & Baird; Wagner & McGuigan; and W. H. Rease. This is a group of nine mid-nineteenth century lithographs showing illustrations of Philadelphia factories.

During World War II, the DuPont Company was contracted to produce smokeless powder, TNT and DNT explosives for the military. This panoramic photograph is a group portrait of uniformed guards at a military explosives plant in Memphis, Tennessee, 1941.

The Plymouth Cordage Company of North Plymouth, Massachusetts, was founded in 1824 and was involved, as their name implies, in the rope-making industry, particularly for use by the shipping and fishing industries. This album contains sixteen photographs of plant interiors showing machinery and manufacturing processes, and two exterior views of the building.

The Remington Arms-Union Metallic Cartridge Company was a manufacturer of cartridge ammunition for fire arms. This collection consists of copy photographs of Remington Arms-Union Metallic Cartridge Company facilities in Bridgeport, Connecticut, including interiors of a laboratory and exteriors of various buildings.

DuPont Company Repauno Works manufactured high explosive dynamite. The company began as the Repauno Chemical Company on June 7, 1880, by Lammot du Pont (1831-1884), a chemist working for the family business, E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company, a chemical company which originally produced gunpowder. This collection of photographs includes numerous views of the buildings, facilities, employees, and plant operations and activities.

This print is an aerial photograph showing the full expanse of the Rudolph Wurlitzer Manufacturing Company factory in North Tonawanda, New York. The company initially imported musical instruments from Europe, but moved into manufacturing instruments by 1880. Shortly after the turn of the century, Wurlitzer moved to North Tonawanda, New York. By 1934 it had produced the first jukebox. In 1973, Wurlitzer sold its jukebox brand to a German company and closed the North Tonawanda factory.

The Allentown Non-Freezing Powder Co. built this plant in 1903 to manufacture commercial explosives using its proprietary ingredient, nitrostarch. The panoramic photograph shows employees of the Trojan Chemical Company explosives plant in Seiple, Pennsylvania.

The Warren-Ehret Company was a Philadelphia roofing company founded in 1883. This collection consists of 259 images from three unbound albums which were used as sales portfolios to show the variety and extent of Warren-Ehret's roofing jobs on a variety of buildings.

The Whitaker family of Philadelphia founded and operated William Whitaker & Sons, Inc., one of the oldest Philadelphia textile mills. The collection consists of photographs related to the family of William Whitaker. A number of the photographs feature buildings and bridges in and around Cedar Grove, Pennsylvania, now a part of Philadelphia. William Whitaker's mansion is featured in several of these images, with family gathered on the porch.

William H. Horstmann & Sons was a manufacturer and retailer of silk products for civilian and military clothing between 1815 and 1940. This item is a steel engraving by Samuel Sartain of the William H. Horstmann & Sons manufactory and sales room building in Philadelphia.