1930 Smoking Tobacco Cardboard Stand
Tobacciana is anything related to tobacco companies and their products. Tobacco advertising and memorabilia has been one of the most desirable collector categories for many years.
Tobacco cigarette smoking started in the 1850’s when people rolled their pipe tobacco in newsprint, then it evolved into the commercialization of smoking tobacco brands. Popular advertising memorabilia for tobacco cigarettes includes tobacco tins, matchbooks, tobacco cards, lunch box tin, cardboard stands and advertising signs. Offset lithography was an efficient way to print on tin in the 1870’s. Printing on tin was vital to tobacco companies because it sealed the tobacco from the air to prevent drying it out and safeguarded it from getting lost or destroyed.
1910-1920 Union Leader Cut Plug Tobacco Tins
Tobacco tins were made in only a few types of shapes and styles. Boxes and cylinders were utilized for bulk tobacco and smaller pocket tins were flat or concave to fit in a pocket. Lunch box tins had wire handles on the box for smokers and their kids to carry their lunches to work or school. The tobacco tins were decorated with the company’s logo and artwork that stated slogans such as ”Sensation Smoking Tobacco” and “ Cut Plug Smoking or Chew” and “Sweet Mist Taste Great”.
Tobacco Pocket Tin Yankee Boy
The lithographed artwork on tobacco tins was the best way for the product to stand out on the shelves of a general store or a tobacco shop. Popular designs on the tins were birds, animals, street scenes and sailors in the Navy. Players is a well-known tobacco-tin brand and their Navy Cut cigarettes depicted a sailor with a life-preserver. Another tobacco-tin brand Hignett had Pilot Flake cigarettes featured a sea-captain holding a ship’s wheel.
Other tobacco companies used persuasive branding names such as Winner and Fashion on the tobacco tins. By the 1920’s, tobacco tins also featured early celebrities and sports figures such as Babe Ruth and Ty Cobb. Those are some of the most valuable Tobacciana collectibles today.
1910′s F. R. Rice Co. Mercantile Cigars Tin Sign
Other popular Tobacciana keepsakes include pipes and cigar memorabilia. Pipes were the first form of smoking in the 1600’s and historic pipes were made from clay, bone, wood and metal.
Cigars have their own set of collectibles including cigar boxes, lighters, humidors, cigar cutters and signs.
Featured is a beautiful old lithograph poster advertising the well known Old Judge cigarette brand, a big seller from the Goodwin & Company, cigarette manufacturers in New York City in the 1900 era. This lithograph is stunning in that it is simple, and by simple, doesn’t need a lot of advertising verbiage other than the…
Here is a beautiful tobacco general store era counter bin made of tin from the Scotten, Dillon and Company, producers of fine tobacco smoking products, formerly based in Detroit, Michigan. This tin showcases an awesome looking native American Indian character, tied to the name Ojibwa indigenous tribe located around the Great Lakes region of the…
Here is a beautiful metal curved corner sign from the D. Emil Klein Cigar Company, for their flagship brand of cigars, Lawrence Barrett. Considered a mild havana style cigar, this was a huge regional seller in the 1900 timeframe. Lawrence Barrett was a well known 1800’s era American stage actor in the theater.
Featured is a beautifully illustrated cigar box full of cigars from the Goldsmith, Silver and Company for their M.C.A. brand of 10 cent cigars. This Boston, MA based company produced this small serving tray around 1900. I love the coloring, and the image of a ready to serve appeal full of very well defined cigars…
Here is a great lithograph from the Temple Plug Chewing Tobacco for their cut plug brand of tobacco. An interesting type of black americana which was common for tobacco in this era. This fancy chew is advertised on this one, the man looks like he is sheepishly enjoying the product.
Here is a beautiful tin chewing tobacco tin from the Sunset Trail brand of smoking tobacco. The image features a man and woman riding their horses into the sunset. The clearly detailed cost of just 5 cents either expensive at the time this was made, indicating a quality brand, whereas most tobacco products of that…
Here is a beautiful condition tin general store counter display point of sale bin from the Beech-Nut Tobacco Company. This particular bin comes in several different colors, with the yellow version being the most common, and prettiest with the color scheme.
Here is a neat old tobacco tin from a long defunct tobacco cigar manufacturing company which was based in Saint Louis, Missouri in the early 1900’s. Due to the long length of names from the three owners, the brand was simply shortened to B.M.R. Obviously it was easier to ask for an abbreviated name cigar,…
Featured here is a beautiful lithographic print framed for the La Preferencia brand of cigars. This particular lithograph has a great slogan which says “30 minutes in Havana”. Clearly this refers to a great 30 minute smoke in Havana with a Cuban cigar!! This sign was made back before there was a moratorium for Cuban…
Featured is a brilliantly colored lithographic print advertising the Liggett and Myers Company flagship brand, Velvet Tobacco. The upper corner shows the small tin Velvet Tobacco pocket tin can, and this is the only thing on the lithograph featuring any form of advertising whatsoever. Liggett and Myers could do this as the brand was so…
