This particular country general store counter java coffee bin from the Boyd, Leeds & Co. in Boston, MA creatively used an iconic symbol of their area to sell it’s products. When one thinks of lighthouses oftentimes more than not the historical areas of the Northeast come to mind, and the Beacon of a lighthouse is a symbol which is synonymous with the state of Massachusetts and the surrounding areas. I love this bin due to the incorporation of both yellow and red coloring, making the bin stand out compared to other more duller colors which were often used like greens and blues. I always felt the lower colors on the color wheel like yellow, orange and red were more noticeable than other darker colors oftentimes used too. I have also wondered why many coffee brands have different colors being used for one specific brand name? I know these differentiating colors were not put out at different times over the years as a few photographs I have clearly show different shading with the cans in the same display in the early 1900’s. The colors are so different that the shading is obvious even in black and white photos. The most of any color schemes I have seen with larger store bins to date is five, however, I suspect up to six or seven colors were used by some can companies for their coffee product display bins.
The Boyd, Leeds & Company Coffee Manufacturers were located in Boston, MA were located at 216 N. State Street and 61 – 65 Commerce Streets. This wholesale grocer was one of Boston’s leading grocery suppliers and the Beacon brand of coffee was a large seller for them. The Company was in business as early as 1882 and were still in business in 1896 as evident by store receipts I was able to find. I suspect they lasted into the early 1900’s based on the approximate age of this particular tin bin.