VIRGINIA WHOLESALE COMPANY

The Virginia Wholesale Company Inc. was incorporated on April 19, 1910, with S. C. Whitaker as President, W. B. Edwards Vice President, E. J. Prescott Secretary Treasurer. An interesting thing with this company is that one of the directors is D. B. Wentz of Philadelphia, PA. If I'm not mistaken Wentz was the owner of a large wholesale grocery supplier in that city. The earliest mention I can find of them bottling is in the Dairy and Food Commissioner report noting that their bottling plant was inspected and found to be in good condition in the second quarter of 1914.

The plant appears on the March 1922 Sanborn maps on Railroad Avenue near Boggs Avenue on the right hand side of the Bakery building. They appear to be bottling Gay-Ola by 1924. The last period mention I have found was in the 1925 edition of the Beverage Blue Book. The latest date that I've seen on a bottle is the Gay-Ola at the bottom of the page which appears to be dated 1928. The bottling plant section of their building is noted to being used for storage according to the 1929 Sanborn map; however, the bakery and the rest of the company would continue to operate for many years.

This is what remains of the building that the Virginia Wholesale Company bottling works located in.

7oz Virginia Wholesale Company Incorporated bottle

7oz Gay-Ola bottle

7oz Gay-Ola bottle dated 1924

7oz Gay-Ola bottle

7oz Gay-Ola bottle dated 1928. This bottle shows that the plant was still operational by at least 1928.

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