Milton S. Hershey
Milton S. Hershey | |
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Hershey Bar, Hershey, Pennsylvania-founder/planner, Hershey Cemetery | |
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Website | www |
Milton Snavely Hershey (September 13, 1857 – October 13, 1945) was an American chocolatier, businessman, and philanthropist.
Trained in the confectionery business, Hershey pioneered the manufacture of
The first Hershey bars were sold in 1900 and proved so popular that he was able to build his own company town of Hershey, Pennsylvania. Hershey's philanthropy extended to a boarding school, originally for local orphans, but accommodating around 2,000 students as of 2016.[1] In World War II, the company developed a special non-melting bar for troops serving overseas. The Hershey Company, known as Hershey's, is one of the world's biggest confectionery manufacturers.
Early life
Milton Hershey was born on September 13, 1857, to Henry and Veronica "Fanny" (
In April 1862, Hershey's sister Sarena Hershey was born in Derry Township, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, and died in 1867 at age 4.[3]
Hershey had a very limited education, with no schooling beyond the 4th grade. In 1871, Milton Hershey left school and was apprenticed to a local printer, Sam Ernst, who published a German-English newspaper. He soon lost this job, and took up the candy trade after recommendation by his family.[4] His mother arranged for the 14-year-old Hershey to be apprenticed to a confectioner named Joseph Royer in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. He studied under Royer for four years. In 1876, he moved to Philadelphia to start his first confectionery business.
Milton then traveled to Denver and, finding work at a local confectioners, learned how to make caramels using fresh milk. He then went to New Orleans and Chicago looking for opportunities, before settling in New York City in 1883 and training at Huyler's. He started his second business which, while initially successful, lasted only three years, closing in 1886.[5]
Lancaster Caramel Company
Hershey returned to Lancaster in 1883 and started the Lancaster Caramel Company, which became a success. By the early 1890s Lancaster Caramel Company had begun employing over 1,300 workers in two factories. After traveling to Chicago for the World's Columbian Exposition, Hershey became interested in chocolate. He sold Lancaster Caramel Company for $1 million to start the Hershey Chocolate Company.[6]
The Hershey Chocolate Company
Using the proceeds from the 1900 sale of the Lancaster Caramel Company, Hershey initially acquired farm land roughly 30 miles (50 km) northwest of Lancaster, near his birthplace of Derry Township. He created his own formula, and the first Hershey bar was produced in 1900. Hershey's Kisses were developed in 1907, and the Hershey's Bar with almonds was introduced in 1908.
The factory was in the center of a dairy farmland, but with Hershey's support, houses, businesses, churches and a transportation infrastructure accreted around the plant. The area around the factory eventually became known as the company town of Hershey, Pennsylvania.
Philanthropy
Hershey and his wife established the Hershey Industrial School with a Deed of Trust in 1909.[7]
In 1918, Hershey transferred the majority of his assets, including control of the company, to the
Hershey built Hershey Cemetery on Laudermilch Road in Hershey, Pennsylvania. On July 31, 1923, Hershey transferred the land into a cemetery for $1.00.[8][9]
In 1935, Hershey established the M.S. Hershey Foundation, a private charitable foundation that provides educational and cultural opportunities for Hershey residents.
The founding of the
Close call of the Titanic
In 1912, the Hersheys were booked to travel on the maiden voyage of the
World War II
Hershey Chocolate supplied the
Personal life
On May 25, 1898, Hershey married Catherine Elizabeth "Kitty" Sweeney (b. 1871), an Irish-American Catholic from Jamestown, New York.[15] The couple did not have any children.[16]
On March 25, 1915, Catherine died of an unknown disease.[15] In 1919, Hershey moved Catherine's body from Philadelphia to Hershey Cemetery.[8] In March 1920, Hershey's mother, Fanny Hershey, died and she was buried in Hershey Cemetery. In late 1930, his father's body was moved there.[8]
Death
Hershey died of pneumonia in Hershey Hospital on October 13, 1945, at the age of 88.[17] Hershey is buried at Hershey Cemetery, a cemetery which he built, on Laudermilch Rd in Hershey, Pennsylvania. Hershey's grave is located at Section Spec-Her, Lot 1, Grave 1, next to his wife (Grave 2).[8][9]
Legacy
At the Hershey School, there is a bronze statue of Milton Hershey with an orphan boy wrapped in his arms. Below the statue are these words: "His deeds are his monument. His life is our inspiration."[18]
Hershey's birthday, September 13, is one of several competing dates celebrated as
On September 13, 1995, the United States Postal Service issued a 32-cent stamp for Milton S. Hershey, which honors him as a philanthropist, as part of the Great Americans series. The stamp was designed by Dennis Lyall, an artist from Norwalk, Connecticut.[20][21]
See also
References
- ^ Fernandez, Bob (November 6, 2016). "Milton Hershey School's lack of charity isn't candy-coated". Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved October 30, 2020.
- ^ "Milton S. Hershey", Milton Hershey School. Mhs-pa.org. Retrieved on 2013-07-23.
- ^ "April 12, 1862 Sarena Hershey". HersheyArchives.org. Archived from the original on September 6, 2018. Retrieved September 5, 2018.
- ISBN 978-0876148303.
- ^ Hershey, Milton Snavely; 1857–1945, Hershey Archives.org Retrieved on 2014-08-15.
- ISBN 978-0448479361.
- ^ "Milton Hershey School Deed of Trust" Archived 2010-11-01 at the Wayback Machine November 15, 1909 (As restated on November 15, 1976)
- ^ a b c d "History of the Hershey Cemetery". HersheyCemetery.com. Retrieved September 5, 2018.
- ^ a b "Hershey Cemetery, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania". Interment.com. Retrieved September 5, 2018.
- ^ The Philanthropy Hall of Fame, Milton Hershey
- ^ Daugherty, Greg, "Seven Famous People Who Missed the Titanic." Smithsonian Magazine, March 2012.
- ^ Todd Mountford ”Milton S.Hershey's link to Titanic highlights exhibit“. The Harrisburg Patriot-News, January 10, 2009.
- ^ "The Hershey Story". www.hersheystory.org. Retrieved March 16, 2018.
- ^ Hostetter, Christina J. "Sugar Allies: How Hershey and Coca-Cola Used Government Contracts and Sugar Exemptions to Elude Sugar Rationing Regulations". Master's Thesis, University of Maryland, 2004.[pages needed]
- ^ a b "It was Kitty's idea". Milton Hershey School. Archived from the original on November 20, 2018. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
- ISBN 978-0448479361.
- ^ D'Antonio, Michael. Hershey: Milton S. Hershey's Extraordinary Life of Wealth, Empire, and Utopian Dreams. New York: Simon & Schuster (2006), p. 239
- ISBN 978-0-7385-5661-1.
- ^ "Candy Holidays (September)". candyusa.com. Retrieved September 5, 2018.
- ^ "September 13, 1995 First Day of Issue..." HersheyArchives.org. Retrieved September 5, 2018.
- ^ "32-cent Hershey". Smithsonian National Postal Museum. Retrieved September 5, 2018.
Further reading
- Katherine B. Shippen & Paul A. W. Wallace, Milton S. Hershey. New York: Random House, 1959.
External links
- Hershey Community Archives website
- M. Hershey's Biography by the Hershey Entertainment and Resorts Company
- Biography
- Hershey photo
- Hershey Public Library
- HersheyArchives.org – Image of Catherine Sweeney Hershey in 1910
- Flickr.com – Catherine Hershey archival photographs
- Worldcat.org – Who Was Milton Hershey by James Buckley Jr.
- Milton S. Hershey at Find a Grave