Campbell Soup Company - Famous Can Vignette - Specimen Stock Certificate
Inv# SE3446 Specimen Stock
Specimen Stock Certificate printed by American Bank Note Company with the very recognizable Campbells Soup Can vignette!
The Campbell Soup Company, commonly referred to as Campbell's, is an American enterprise primarily recognized for its signature canned soup offerings. Through a series of mergers and acquisitions, it has expanded to become one of the largest processed food corporations in the United States, offering a diverse range of products under the Campbell's brand as well as other labels such as Pepperidge Farm, Snyder's of Hanover, V8, and Swanson. The Campbell's brand is known for producing soups, canned goods, baked items, beverages, and snacks. The company is headquartered in Camden, New Jersey. The iconic red-and-white can design associated with many Campbell's products has achieved status as an American symbol, notably featured in pop art, exemplified by Andy Warhol's series of Campbell's Soup Cans prints. Founded in 1869 by Joseph A. Campbell, a fruit merchant from Bridgeton, New Jersey, and Abraham Anderson, an icebox manufacturer from South Jersey, the company initially produced canned tomatoes, vegetables, jellies, soups, condiments, and minced meats. In 1876, Anderson departed from the partnership, leading to the rebranding of the company as the "Joseph A. Campbell Preserve Company." Anderson's son, Campbell Speelman, diverged from his father and took on the role of creative director at Campbell's, where he was responsible for designing the Campbell's Soup Cans.
In 1894, Campbell retired, and Arthur Dorrance assumed the presidency of the company. The company was reorganized as "Joseph Campbell & Co." in 1896. In 1897, John T. Dorrance, a nephew of the company president, joined the firm, earning a weekly salary of $7.50 (equivalent to $253 in 2022). Dorrance, a chemist educated at MIT and Göttingen University in Germany, innovated a commercially viable method for condensing soup by reducing the amount of its primary ingredient: water. He later served as president from 1914 to 1930 and ultimately acquired the Campbell family’s shares. In 1898, Herberton Williams, an executive at Campbell's, persuaded the company to adopt a striking carnelian red and bright white color scheme.
Stock and Bond Specimens are made and usually retained by a printer as a record of the contract with a client, generally with manuscript contract notes such as the quantity printed. Specimens are sometimes produced for use by the printing company's sales team as examples of the firm’s products. These are usually marked "Specimen" and have no serial numbers.
Ebay ID: labarre_galleries