Difference between revisions of "ManufacturerMacdonald Tobacco Company"
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Macdonalds began to manufacture cigarettes in 1922; among the brands introduced in the 1920s were British Consols, Scotch Blends, and Macdonald's Menthol. Their most famous brand was introduced in 1928 under the name of Macdonald's Gold Standard. The packages of this brand were marked "Export", by which the brand would later become exclusively known. Also, in keeping with the philantrophic spirit of their founder, Macdonald also produced cigarette brands named after private institutions and service organizations, who would receive a portion of the profits of their brands' sales. Two examples of this include McGill cigarettes, created as a fundraiser for the university, and Canadian Legion cigarettes, which helped to support the Royal Canadian Legion, an organization helping men who served their country in war. | Macdonalds began to manufacture cigarettes in 1922; among the brands introduced in the 1920s were British Consols, Scotch Blends, and Macdonald's Menthol. Their most famous brand was introduced in 1928 under the name of Macdonald's Gold Standard. The packages of this brand were marked "Export", by which the brand would later become exclusively known. Also, in keeping with the philantrophic spirit of their founder, Macdonald also produced cigarette brands named after private institutions and service organizations, who would receive a portion of the profits of their brands' sales. Two examples of this include McGill cigarettes, created as a fundraiser for the university, and Canadian Legion cigarettes, which helped to support the Royal Canadian Legion, an organization helping men who served their country in war. | ||
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| + | Beginning in the mid-1930's, Macdonald's cigarette brands were adorned by the portrait of a Scottish woman dressed in traditional garb and wearing the Macdonald of Sleat tartan. The model for this trademark was Betty Annan Grant (1914 - 2004), who posed for a portrait painted by famous Canadian artist Rex Woods. The "Scottish Lassie", as she is affectionately known, was featured on nearly all of Macdonald's cigarette brands up until the 1970s, and remains on packages of Export "A" cigarettes to this very day. | ||
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| + | During the Second World War, Macdonald Tobacco suffered from shortages of glycerine and cellophane for cigarette production. The company made it their policy to make certain that soldiers serving at the front received the best quality cigarettes, leaving the home front to experience the war shortages. This policy paid off well, as 50 per cent. of returning Canadian servicemen maintained a fierce loyalty for Export "A" cigarettes. | ||
Revision as of 03:20, 4 April 2011
Macdonald Tobacco Company
The Macdonald Tobacco Company (originally called "McDonald") was founded in 1858 in Montréal, Canada East (now Québec), Canada, by brothers William Christopher and Augustine McDonald. Their fledgling company achieved major success during the American Civil War, when the Union states were unable to directly receive tobacco from the secessionist Conferderate states. Tobacco from the Southern states was shipped by boat to McDonald's factory in Montréal, where they processed it into plug and chewing tobaccos, and shipped them to the tobacco-starved Northern states.
In 1866, Augustine McDonald was bought out by his brother, and the name of the company was changed to W. C. McDonald, Tobacco Merchants and Manufacturers. The company adopted a heart-shaped logo which appeared on their products, along with their slogan, "The Tobacco with a Heart". In 1876, McDonald moved into a newer factory in downtown Montréal. In 1898, W. C. McDonald was knighted by Queen Victoria; at that time, he changed the spelling of his name to 'Macdonald'. W. C. Macdonald was a major philantrophist, in part because he felt ashamed at having made his fortune through tobacco, and wished to put his money to uses which would benefit his fellow man. To this end, he contributed a lot of money to McGill University in Montréal, giving $13 million to endow a chair that would later contribute to funding the research by nuclear physicist Ernest Rutherford. Macdonald would go on to have no less than four buildings on the McGill campus named after him, as well as Macdonald Park, on which Molson Stadium, McConnell Arena, and several other buildings were built. He also contributed to the building of educational institutions in Ontario and the Maritime provinces.
Macdonald died a bachelor in 1917, and bequeathed his company to Walter and Howard Stewart, who worked for him as clerks and were the sons of his trusted manager David Stewart. Walter would become president of the company after Macdonald's death, and he would begin to branch the company out into the manufacture of fine-cut tobacco and cigarettes, which Macdonald had eschewed. Among the fine-cut tobacco brands produced by the company were Daily Mail and Brier. In 1927, Macdonald Tobacco started an annual national curling championship, and used it as a means to sponsor their Brier brand; to this effect, it was called the Macdonald Brier, and it was sponsored by them until 1979. (It still runs today as the Tim Hortons Brier.)
Macdonalds began to manufacture cigarettes in 1922; among the brands introduced in the 1920s were British Consols, Scotch Blends, and Macdonald's Menthol. Their most famous brand was introduced in 1928 under the name of Macdonald's Gold Standard. The packages of this brand were marked "Export", by which the brand would later become exclusively known. Also, in keeping with the philantrophic spirit of their founder, Macdonald also produced cigarette brands named after private institutions and service organizations, who would receive a portion of the profits of their brands' sales. Two examples of this include McGill cigarettes, created as a fundraiser for the university, and Canadian Legion cigarettes, which helped to support the Royal Canadian Legion, an organization helping men who served their country in war.
Beginning in the mid-1930's, Macdonald's cigarette brands were adorned by the portrait of a Scottish woman dressed in traditional garb and wearing the Macdonald of Sleat tartan. The model for this trademark was Betty Annan Grant (1914 - 2004), who posed for a portrait painted by famous Canadian artist Rex Woods. The "Scottish Lassie", as she is affectionately known, was featured on nearly all of Macdonald's cigarette brands up until the 1970s, and remains on packages of Export "A" cigarettes to this very day.
During the Second World War, Macdonald Tobacco suffered from shortages of glycerine and cellophane for cigarette production. The company made it their policy to make certain that soldiers serving at the front received the best quality cigarettes, leaving the home front to experience the war shortages. This policy paid off well, as 50 per cent. of returning Canadian servicemen maintained a fierce loyalty for Export "A" cigarettes.
