Antique World War I Medal & Ribbon Rutland Mass 1917 - 1919 By Whitehead & Hoag
Item History & Price
| Reference Number: Avaluer:65036 |
Antique World War I Medal & Ribbon Rutland Mass 1917-1919 made by Whitehead & Hoag. Measures 3" long total; medal part is 1 5/8" wide. Issued by the town of Rutland Massachusetts to honor their WW1 veterans. Fine clean condition, essentially perfect. We recently acquired a large collection of Whitehead & Hoag and Bastian Bros artifacts from a former employee of the two firms.
Whitehead & Hoag was founded in 1892 in Newark, New Jersey, by Benjamin S. Whiteh...ead (1858-1940) and Chester R. Hoag (1860-1935) when the two teamed up to combine their expertise and formalize their friendship.Benjamin Whitehead had studied Printing at the Cooper Union Institute in New York City and first distinguished himself as a printer when his products were exhibited at the 1876 Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia. He was very enterprising, traveled a lot and collected ideas for novelties that he might later prodce in his shop.Chester Hoag had no formal education beyond grammar school but was a voracious reader and self-educator. Hoag first met Whitehead when he sold him paper and twine for his printing business. At the time, Whitehead was busy printing programs and badges for local picnics and parties. The business developed in conjunction with their friendship.In 1892 the two friends decided to team up and formally incorporated under the name Whitehead & Hoag Company. Over time they developed expertise in manufacturing buttons and acquired three major patents that allowed them to grow the company into the dominant player in this lucrative field. Buttons were in high demand as they were a very cost-effective way of advertising, both in business and in politics, and Whitehead & Hoag serviced that demand very well.During the Second World War Whitehead & Hoag employed over 400 workers but it could not successfully grow from a mid-sized family-owned company to a large corporation. In 1953 the last founders' family member with an active interest in the company died and the firm started deteriorating. One or two profitable years would be followed by several years of financial losses. In 1959, a long-time competitor, Bastian Bros. of Rochester, N.Y., bought the business.It appears that more than a little vengefulness were at work in winding down operations. Rather than merging Whitehead & Hoag into Bastian's business, the new owner ordered the factory to be sold and all dies and records destroyed. Thus the carefully archived records and dies of many beautiful medals were lost.Bastian kept the tradename Whitehead & Hoag alive till 1965 but then stopped using it completely. While the real end had come years earlier, 1965 marks the official end of Whitehead & Hoag, a once proud firm that had produced quality medals for many years.
July 12, 2018 Rutland Legion Post #310 restores memorial:The World War I monument on the Town Common had been neglected for so long that most folks weren’t aware it was there. Situated at the foot of the flagpole in front of the town library, the memorial is a massive boulder with a bronze plaque carrying the names of 59 local men who served between 1917-1918 in the war that was meant to end all wars.Over the years, vegetation overgrew the monument and plaque, burying the names of the veterans.“For the past several years we said we have to do something about this, ” said Thomas Ruchala, an American Legion Post #310 member. “Finally, we decided let’s just get it done.”The Post got approval for its plan from the town’s Board of Selectmen, but paid entirely for it themselves. They hired local landscapers Green Gardens LLC, owned by the Ressler family and came up with a restoration plan.The town’s Department of Public Works took out the old plants right down to the roots. Green Gardens put new plants in, replaced soil and installed gray pavers in front of the memorial and plaque.Joseph M. Ressler said the landscapers chose to refurbish the memorial with gold threadleaf cedar, globe arborvitae and Russian cypress, all slow-growing, low maintenance plants.Legion Post paid for the restoration at a cost of about $4000 and are grateful to the Ressler family for waiving the cost of labor. The work was completed in time for Memorial Day ceremonies.“We were happy to do it, ” Ressler said.It was coincidence that the restoration came this year, the 100th anniversary of the end of the war, Ruchala said, but he likes that it happened that way.The Legion also gives scholarships annually and pays for the American flags that are out on Main Street each year. Anyone who would like to contribute towards the World War I memorial project can send a check to the Legion Post #310 at P.O. Box 80, Rutland MA 01543.Rutland American Legion Post #310 was chartered in 1934
Whitehead & Hoag was founded in 1892 in Newark, New Jersey, by Benjamin S. Whiteh...ead (1858-1940) and Chester R. Hoag (1860-1935) when the two teamed up to combine their expertise and formalize their friendship.Benjamin Whitehead had studied Printing at the Cooper Union Institute in New York City and first distinguished himself as a printer when his products were exhibited at the 1876 Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia. He was very enterprising, traveled a lot and collected ideas for novelties that he might later prodce in his shop.Chester Hoag had no formal education beyond grammar school but was a voracious reader and self-educator. Hoag first met Whitehead when he sold him paper and twine for his printing business. At the time, Whitehead was busy printing programs and badges for local picnics and parties. The business developed in conjunction with their friendship.In 1892 the two friends decided to team up and formally incorporated under the name Whitehead & Hoag Company. Over time they developed expertise in manufacturing buttons and acquired three major patents that allowed them to grow the company into the dominant player in this lucrative field. Buttons were in high demand as they were a very cost-effective way of advertising, both in business and in politics, and Whitehead & Hoag serviced that demand very well.During the Second World War Whitehead & Hoag employed over 400 workers but it could not successfully grow from a mid-sized family-owned company to a large corporation. In 1953 the last founders' family member with an active interest in the company died and the firm started deteriorating. One or two profitable years would be followed by several years of financial losses. In 1959, a long-time competitor, Bastian Bros. of Rochester, N.Y., bought the business.It appears that more than a little vengefulness were at work in winding down operations. Rather than merging Whitehead & Hoag into Bastian's business, the new owner ordered the factory to be sold and all dies and records destroyed. Thus the carefully archived records and dies of many beautiful medals were lost.Bastian kept the tradename Whitehead & Hoag alive till 1965 but then stopped using it completely. While the real end had come years earlier, 1965 marks the official end of Whitehead & Hoag, a once proud firm that had produced quality medals for many years.
July 12, 2018 Rutland Legion Post #310 restores memorial:The World War I monument on the Town Common had been neglected for so long that most folks weren’t aware it was there. Situated at the foot of the flagpole in front of the town library, the memorial is a massive boulder with a bronze plaque carrying the names of 59 local men who served between 1917-1918 in the war that was meant to end all wars.Over the years, vegetation overgrew the monument and plaque, burying the names of the veterans.“For the past several years we said we have to do something about this, ” said Thomas Ruchala, an American Legion Post #310 member. “Finally, we decided let’s just get it done.”The Post got approval for its plan from the town’s Board of Selectmen, but paid entirely for it themselves. They hired local landscapers Green Gardens LLC, owned by the Ressler family and came up with a restoration plan.The town’s Department of Public Works took out the old plants right down to the roots. Green Gardens put new plants in, replaced soil and installed gray pavers in front of the memorial and plaque.Joseph M. Ressler said the landscapers chose to refurbish the memorial with gold threadleaf cedar, globe arborvitae and Russian cypress, all slow-growing, low maintenance plants.Legion Post paid for the restoration at a cost of about $4000 and are grateful to the Ressler family for waiving the cost of labor. The work was completed in time for Memorial Day ceremonies.“We were happy to do it, ” Ressler said.It was coincidence that the restoration came this year, the 100th anniversary of the end of the war, Ruchala said, but he likes that it happened that way.The Legion also gives scholarships annually and pays for the American flags that are out on Main Street each year. Anyone who would like to contribute towards the World War I memorial project can send a check to the Legion Post #310 at P.O. Box 80, Rutland MA 01543.Rutland American Legion Post #310 was chartered in 1934
