I picked up a few more Wiffenpoofs and one is unmarked

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edteach
Posts: 177
Joined: Wed Sep 01, 2010 6:31 am

I picked up a few more Wiffenpoofs and one is unmarked

Post by edteach »

I picked up a few wiffenpoofs and all the ones I have are marked C.J.C.O one is not marked. I don't think this was made outside of the CJ company. Why would some not be marked?
Jeffrey Maxwell
Posts: 162
Joined: Thu Mar 10, 2011 11:48 pm
Location: Wellington KS

Re: I picked up a few more Wiffenpoofs and one is unmarked

Post by Jeffrey Maxwell »

Hello edteach,

I have noticed five different molds of plastic Whiffenpoofs so far. Four -- marked C.J.CO. -- are probably different mold positions (cavities) from the original Lind Plastic molds of the early 1950's. This seems consistent with other shapes in this series, although I haven't made a formal survey of the other shapes in my possession yet.

The fifth mold I have is, as you mentioned, not marked. I believe this to be a Canadian prize. I have purchased several collections of prizes from Canadian sellers, so I have identified quite a few Canadian prizes from the same era. Although I have not received a Whiffenpoof in one of those accumulations, the characteristics of the unmarked Whiffenpoof I have are consistent to the prizes made in Canada.

When this prize was produced in the 1950's, The Cracker Jack Co. did not have a presence in Canada, and high Canadian tariffs against US manufactured goods prevented them from exporting Cracker Jack to Canada. So The Cracker Jack Co. licensed the Cracker Jack brand to Walter M. Lowney Co. of Canada, a US-owned company that had been manufacturing confections in Canada for decades. Prizes used in Canadian Cracker Jack were made in Canada only because of the tariffs. But another consideration is that Lowney's would not have used prizes with the name of another company on them, namely C.J.CO.

Hope this helps the conversation. Let me know if you have any questions or want more information. Happy Collecting! Jeffrey Maxwell
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