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An Informative Narrative by Phelps Fullerton

Our Podcast with Phelps on the subject: Click Here

I think to get a better understanding of the antique advertising market you need to get some background on how product branding came about, and some insight into the actual processes used to produce the advertising signs themselves.

So I’ll start off by briefly mentioning some background on product branding.

Branding

After the Civil War, companies that manufactured everything from tobacco to soap and flour to shoe polish began to see branding their products as a way to increase sales. A national consumer base could now be accessed by expanding train routes that offered low cost transportation. The transcontinental railroad was completed in 1869 and provided a vital link for commerce, trade and travel between the East and West.  No longer did merchandise have to be shipped by boat or wagon.

Factories created during the industrial revolution were now mass-producing products and by branding their products with easily identifiable trade-marks, they were able to make them stand out from the competition. Consumers gained confidence that product quality could be expected to remain the same from one box of Fairbanks “Fairy Soap” to the next for …