Larus & Brother Advertisements
Edgeworth: "You can put this in your pipe and smoke it"
In 1877 a partnership between Charles D. Larus and Herbert C. Larus formed the Larus & Brother Company. This small tobacco company, based in Richmond, Virginia, received national recognition with Edgeworth pipe tobacco, which then became the international hallmark of the company. By the 1930s, Larus had expanded to manufacture cigarettes, operate distribution centers outside Virginia, sponsor national radio programs, and manage local radio and television stations.
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"Smoked at both poles. Coast to Coast – Pole to Pole"
Call number: Mss3 L3297 a FA1 Box 15
Advertisements offer unique snapshots of what appealed to and captured the interest of the day. This Edgeworth advertisement features a plane from the Byrd Antarctic expedition flying above the polar terrain, no doubt capitalizing on the romantic adventure and successes of fellow Virginian, Rear Admiral Richard Evelyn Byrd. Click here for more images |
During both world wars the federal government requisitioned Larus’s entire line of production. One special war project involved the secret distribution of cigarettes in the Philippines whose packages bore the words, “I Shall Return,” and the signature of General Douglas MacArthur. After the war, Larus prospered both as a tobacco company and a broadcasting company until the late 1960s. The company dissolved in 1974.
The corporate records of Larus & Brother are a part of the collections of the Reynolds Business History Center at the VHS, (Mss3 L3297 a FA 1). Included in this collection are minute books, scrapbooks, general ledgers, director and stockholder minutes, charters, daybooks, and advertisements. Click here for more images
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