J.W. BRANT CO. WORKERS POSTCARD

Occasionally someone will call me about a small bottle they found that has the name “J.W. Brant Co.” on it. Most of their bottles are rectangular and have raised-lettering in the glass itself. This was a patent medicine firm which manufactured its concoctions for a half century at 214 E. Mulberry St.

Their medicines were sold all over the country. An 1891 article stated, “Manufacturers of Brant’s Remedies, Magic Dyes, Fluid Extracts, etc. are becoming to be well known...The liberal sale of Brant’s Balsam is easily accounted for because of its honest value as a remedy for coughs, croup, and other throat and lung troubles.” I wonder what the main ingredient was which seemed to make their products work so well? Hmmmm?

Located just north of the Lake Shore & Michigan Southern Railroad tracks just west of N. Huron St., this firm came to Albion in the late 1880s from Hillsdale. It was owned locally by James W. Shanley who served as Mayor of Albion in 1901. The firm was later was acquired by J. Clifford Smith and Robert Baldwin, and went out of business during World War II. The building was demolished in 1963.

In our column last week we mentioned that “real photo” Albion postcards are especially desirable for this column. This week from our Historical Notebook we present one such card. It shows several workers at the J.W. Brant Company standing outside of their workplace. From the looks of things, it appears to have been taken around 1915. The identities from left to right are: Victor Leavy, Ray Baker, Coral Greenlee, Else (Fiss) Sauer, Violet (Coulson) Gifford, and the last two ladies are unidentified.

	Frank Passic — Albion Historian An Albion native and 1971 graduate of Albion High School, Frank Passic has been researching and writing Albion history since 1976. He is the creator of the Albion Historical Notebook, with hundreds of articles appearing weekly in the Morning Star and The Recorder. Frank maintains an extensive personal archive including Riverside Cemetery records, family surname files, genealogies, photographs, city directories, and high school yearbooks. Support his 2026 research at the Historic Albion Michigan Facebook page. Historical Notebook \| From the Archives \| Subject List \| 100 Years Ago \| Alphabetical Index \| Frank Passic Home Page \| Albion History Books \| Contact Frank
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