Our Local Whiskeys

by Erin Doane, Curator

InternationalWhisk(e)y Day is coming up on March 27 and World Whisky Day is on May 16 (it takes place on the third Saturday of May each year). This is a great time to learn about whiskey in Chemung County. We have three local whiskey bottles here in the museum’s collection – Land Lord Whiskey, Old Lowman Whiskey, and Macmore Whiskey.

Whiskey bottles in the collection of the Chemung County Historical Society

Old Lowman Whiskey

In 1792, Jacob Lowman set up a distillery on a parcel of land on the Chemung River in what is now Lowman. It was the first commercial distillery in the county, producing whiskey from mixed mash of rye and corn. Some years later, George Lowman operated a distillery on Baldwin Creek producing Old Lowman Whiskey using the same recipe Jacob used. The distillery operated until the Civil War when high taxes forced the business to close.

In 1902, Edward Lowman, Fred Ferris, Fred L. Thomas, and Nathan Blostein incorporated the Old Lowman Distilling Company to manufacture, supply, and deal in whiskey and other alcoholic liquors. The company’s headquarters were in Elmira, and the distillery was in a converted creamery in Lowman near the Delaware and Lackawanna Railroad tracks. Jacob Lowman’s original recipe was used to make the whiskey.

Old Lowman Distillery and Warehouse

Image from “Hardwood Bark,” the magazine of Cotton-Hnlon and Ireland Mill, May-June 1973

I read somewhere that Klapproth’s Saloon in Elmira was said to have exclusive sale of Old Lowman Whiskey, but it was also available from Fred Ferris’s store at 201 Railroad Avenue in Elmira. Ferris was a partner in the distilling company, and he was also a wholesale dealer in wines, liquors, tobacco, and cigars. He had started his business in 1897. Additionally, he sold the “finest food for medicinal purposes,” and ran a saloon. 

Ferris’s store with Fred himself standing at the corner, early 1900s

On October 1, 1918, the city of Elmira officially went “dry,” making the sale of alcoholic beverages illegal. This effectively killed the Old Lowman Distilling Company’s business, and the distillery closed for good.

Macmore Whiskey

In 1907, after 18 years working for J.J. O’Connor wholesale liquor, Michael E. McElligott opened his own wholesale liquor business at 111 Railroad Avenue in Elmira. One of his products was Macmore Whiskey.

Macmore Whiskey promotional tray

In 1911, there were two versions of the whiskey available: Macmore Blend and Macmore Bottled in Bond. I don’t know precisely the difference between the two, but the blend bottle was labeled with McElligott’s name while the other had R.W. Wathen & Company of Kentucky as the distiller.

Advertisement from the Star-Gazette, December 18, 1911

By early 1918, talk of local prohibition was in the air, and it seemed to be a perfect time for McElligott to diversify his business. He purchased what was known at the Richardson building at the corner of Railroad Avenue and Market Street. He set up his shop on the first floor, and rented out the upper floor.

Land Lord Whiskey

Around 1914, James G. McLaughlin and John R. Flynn opened their wholesale liquor business at the corner of Fox and Carroll Streets in Elmira. There they sold Land Lord Whiskey, among other things.

Land Lord Whiskey bottle

When the city went dry, McLaughlin & Flynn Co. suffered. In October 1920, the company sold off 1,000 empty barrels that were “first class for cider or grape juice.” Less than three years later, the company officially dissolved. McLaughlin went on to run the Carey Medicine Company, and Flynn worked in real estate.

Whiskey and Churches??

Finally, in my research, I found two interesting connections between these liquor companies and local churches that I just had to share. First connection: After the Old Lowman Distilling Company closed in 1918, Edward Lowman had the warehouse torn down. He then donated the lumber to the Lowman M.E. Church, and it was used to build a community hall. And the second connection: When renovations were being done on the Park Church in 1958, a bottle of Macmore Whiskey was found inside one of the walls there.

Macmore bottle found inside a wall at the Park Church

Potato Fight: New York vs. Maine, An Early “Buy Local” Movement

By Kelli Huggins, Education Coordinator

When I ask you to think of a state known for potatoes, you probably think of Idaho, right? Well, in the 19^th and early-to-mid-20^th century, you probably would have said New York or Maine. New York was the United States’ early potato producing leader, but by the 20^th century, Maine farmers were starting to outpace New Yorkers. Chemung County, and the Southern Tier and central New York in general, was a significant potato producing region. When Maine potatoes began flooding both national and local markets, farmers from this region felt the pinch (importantly, some of this competition also happened during the Great Depression, increasing financial strains). One local grocery store chain, however, made it a key piece of their advertising to take on the Maine farmers and promote buying local potatoes.

By 1906, the local news was reporting on increased competition on the potato market from Maine growers, particularly from Aroostook County in the far northern part of the state. New rail lines made it possible to ship the potatoes down to the New York City markets, which until then were dominated by New York farmers. Maine potatoes weren’t the only competition; in 1912, potatoes were imported from Scotland and sold in this region, despite a bumper crop locally. Still, Maine emerged as the largest competition. This was troubling, because as one local report called them, potatoes were “a mortgage lifter for southern tier farmers.”  

On October 24, 1927, the A&P grocery store ran an advertisement in the Star-Gazette continuing their annual potato sale. The ad emphasized that they were selling “fancy Maine potatoes,” not to be confused with “local Potatoes which are being offered at a lower price. Remember A&P always sticks to quality.” The ad also noted that their sale had been such a giant success that they had to turn hundreds of potato customers away the week before, but that there would be plenty more “speeding” there from Maine.

This didn’t go over well with the local Serv-U Save-U grocery stores, owned by individual local businessmen. A couple days later, on Thursday, October 27, the full-page Serv-U Save-U advertisement in the Star-Gazette was headed by the following:

“Mr. Farmer:-
          Do you raise State of Maine Potatoes? That’s what is being handled by the Chain Stores. Is this doing you or the community any good?
          Think it over!”

An Elmira Serv-U Save-U store, with presumably local potatoes out front

Now, the A&P did sometimes sell local potatoes, and the Serv-U Save-U stores occasionally advertised southern or Jersey potatoes, but by the late 1920s, the local potato battle lines were drawn for Serv-U Save-U. Over the next few years, their ads featured more and more prominent pleas for people to shop locally. “Help the local farmer” became an advertising rallying cry. (Interestingly, though they carried other local produce, as well as imported, potatoes were the only ones that were the focus of their campaign, probably due to high local, state, and national tensions and pride about that particular crop.)

October 25, 1928

October 12, 1933

October 15, 1936

By the late 1930s and 1940s, Serv-U Save-U seemingly gave up their vocal fight. In 1939, they even advertised Maine potatoes. 

Serv-U Save-U ad for Maine potatoes, March 9, 1939.

Ironically, this might have been because Maine potatoes were suddenly being grown much closer to home. By the late 1930s, Maine potato farmers began buying up land in Steuben County to create large potato farms. They cited taxes as the primary reason (tax rates weren’t necessarily lower, but the land value here was, leading to tax savings for those who relocated). Proximity to large cities in which to sell the potatoes was another key factor. From 1938 to 1940, 32 farms, or 3,000 acres, were purchased by Maine potato farmers.

The potato feud wasn’t totally over, but by the 1940s, Maine emerged the winner, and the state was the top potato producer in the country. Local farms didn’t disappear, however, and there was still a lot of pride in the local yield. In 1943, in the midst of World War II, the War Food Administration proposed creating a storehouse for surplus Maine potatoes somewhere in central New York. The Star-Gazette mocked this plan, stating, “the idea of storing Maine potatoes in a potato section of New York seems illogical, if not impolite. It is bad enough to sell them here…New York State potato growers will have to see what they can do hereafter to overcome these Maine pressures on the home crop.” 

Maine’s potato dominance waned over the rest of the 20^th century, opening the vacuum that Idaho would eventually come to occupy. Still, this early example of fighting back against imported crops is a nice example of an organized movement to buy locally, something we associate more with today than the mid-20^th century.

Is Your Pantry Ready?

By Megan Barney, Elmira College Intern

During the 1950s and 1960s, there was a widespread fear of nuclear war. In response, the government advocated for the creation of fallout shelters, both in personal homes and in community places.  In Elmira, families built their own fallout shelters and organizations created community ones.  Among others, one was located in the since demolished Robinson Building on Lake Street.  Each location provided a central place for people to escape to in the event of a nuclear attack.

Advertisement, 1950

Robinson Building, c. 1960s

The Office of Civil Defense on the local, state, and federal levels also released comprehensive documents on how to survive a nuclear attack. Such publications included what goods and necessities should be stocked in the fallout shelter.  When it came to food, the New York State Civil Defense Commission and the United States Department of Defense suggested that food should be stockpiled in the shelter.  Each family member was supposed to have enough food for 14 days in order to let the nuclear fallout settle.

The suggested foods included milk, juice, fruits, vegetables, soups, one-dish meals, sweet spreads, crackers, cereals, beverages, sugar, hard candy, and salt, all of which equated to 2000 calories per day for an adult.  Most Civil Defense Offices argued that non-perishable food such as the ones listed above could last for up to three years if stored correctly.  In the case of emergency, however, moldy bread was edible, sour milk was drinkable, and fruits and vegetables with rotten spots were acceptable to eat.  Even foods that were exposed to nuclear fallout could be washed, peeled, and enjoyed.

C. 1950-60

1960

In the case of a nuclear attack, water was more important for the survival of people than food.  Under extreme circumstances, people can survive three weeks without food, but only three days without water.  The Civil Defense Offices advocated that each family member should have seven gallons of drinking water stored in air tight containers.  In most cases, water could also be found in hot water heaters that often stored anywhere from 30 to 60 gallons of water. However, if push came to shove, water was readily available in different pipes in the home, including the toilet bowl.

In the end, the most important part of surviving an atomic bombing was not only finding immediate shelter and having a stockpile of food for two weeks, but also selecting familiar foods.  The New York State Civil Defense Commission suggested that families should select familiar foods because “they are more heartening and acceptable during times of stress” and could be a potential morale lifter in times of tragedy.  So if tragedy strikes, is your pantry and family ready?

Competitive Eating: A Local History

By Kelli Huggins, Education Coordinator

In recent years, competitive eating has become a popular and widely-recognized activity (some would say sport) with professional organizations and contests with major prize money. The 4^th of July hot dog eating contest sponsored by Nathan’s Famous on Coney Island is a televised annual spectacle that features contestants downing inhuman amounts of processed meats. But, while taken to extremes now, competitive eating is nothing new. For example, in Elmira over the past 100+ years, there have been eating contests featuring raisins, crackers, corn, bread, cake, fried cake, pancakes, ice cream, clams, hot dogs, doughnuts, eggs, lollipops, apples, candy, milk, sandwiches, and peanuts, just to name a few.

Local corn eating contest, 1921

American eating contests got their start at county fairs and community gatherings. For most, pie was the food of choice. Pie eating contests were popular in Elmira from as early as the 1890s. Sometimes the contests would be only for youths or they would be separated by gender (yes, ladies-only pie contests were popular). In other contests, everyone participated together.

Pie contest, Elmira Heights, 1955

 Pie contests were a centerpiece of local company outings and were the source of the most anticipation and drama. For example, at a September 1920 American-LaFrance annual gathering: “In the tug-of-war contest the most disastrous event of the afternoon occurred. P.D. Zeippto, a man upon whom friends relied to carry away the laurels in the pie eating contest, lost a tooth. Zeippto, while resting upon the ground, placed the end of the tug-of-war rope in his mouth. Someone pulled the rope and with it came one of Zeippto’s teeth.” The contest continued, minus Zeippto, and “All four contestants during the contest suffered from acute attacks of lockjaw” from the quantity of huckleberry pie.

Advertisement, 1926

That same month, at the American Sales Book Company picnic, “the most disastrous event of the afternoon came in the pie eating contest. Murphy was far in the lead in this game and was nearing the center of his third cocoanut pie when someone pushed his head. Flanden then took the lead in the race and easily won by eating four pies- an apple, one custard, and two rhubarbs in less than three minutes.”

The other most popular food for eating contests was watermelon. Watermelon contests, while frequently open to all competitors, did often have racist connotations and built upon the post-Emancipation stereotypical racial symbolism of the fruit. As late as the 1930s, these contests were advertised as only open to African American boys or they pitted black children against white children.

Contest recruitment, 1901.

Most contests were more light-hearted, however. When the Hoyt’s Musical Revue was at the Lyceum Theatre in 1918, they arranged special events, including a spaghetti eating contest to “learn who the champion spaghetti eater is in Elmira.” In 1925, cracker contests (which involved eating a bunch of crackers and whistling a tune) were so popular, the newspaper printed contest instructions. The YWCA hosted caramel and marshmallow contests in 1930 as part of their Halloween celebration. A 1933 Kiwanis meeting featured a “ludicrous banana eating contest” between Fred D. Crispin and Osmond G. Wall.

The heyday of competitive eating in Elmira seems to have peaked in the 1920s, but it remained popular through early 1950s. Understandably, there was a decrease in that type of activity during the Great Depression. Likely, if there was extra food available, it would have been seen as poor taste to make such a spectacle of gorging oneself. By the 1910s and 1920s, contests sometimes featured branded products (like the original Nathan’s contest in 1916) or a 1920 Nabisco eating contest in Elmira.

1939

I will conclude with my favorite instance of competitive eating in Elmira, which also happened to be a city-wide endeavor. For Good Friday, April 10, 1925, local bakeries worked together to make 56,936 hot cross buns. The goal was for everyone in the city to have all of them eaten by midnight. By 3pm, 31,726 had been eaten. I’m not sure if they hit their goal or not.