Advertising Poster, "Ben-Hur Flour is For Sale in This Town," circa 1910
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In the late nineteenth century, printers developed a lithograph method that produced brightly colored posters. Manufacturers quickly adopted the new poster style to advertise their products. The Royal Milling Company of Minneapolis, Minnesota, and Great Falls, Montana, had this advertising poster made in the early 1900s. They chose the Ben-Hur brand name because the story was a popular theatrical drama. …
In the late nineteenth century, printers developed a lithograph method that produced brightly colored posters. Manufacturers quickly adopted the new poster style to advertise their products. The Royal Milling Company of Minneapolis, Minnesota, and Great Falls, Montana, had this advertising poster made in the early 1900s. They chose the Ben-Hur brand name because the story was a popular theatrical drama.
In the late nineteenth century, printers developed a lithograph method that produced brightly colored posters. Manufacturers and other businesses quickly adopted the new poster style to advertise their products. The posters were glued to building walls, fences, and hung in store displays where they readily attracted the attention of passersby.
Companies hired printers who worked with artists to create art that would advertise the products. In the early years, the point of the artwork was to gain notice rather than illustrate the product. By the early twentieth century, the design began to reflect a direct connection to the merchandise advertised. Although most of the artists are unknown today, these posters reflected popular American taste from the 1870s through the 1920s.
Over a century ago, changes were taking place in America that made national selling of products advantageous and manufacturers sought to capture attention with catchy brand names and appealing images. Changes in milling of wheat lengthened the shelf life so storekeepers far from the original flourmill were sure to have a good product to sell and the extensive railroad system allowed rapid and consistent delivery.
The Royal Milling Company of Minneapolis, Minnesota and Great Falls, Montana, had this colorful poster made for outdoor advertising in towns across America in the early 1900s. At this time, Ben-Hur was a popular motif because the theatrical producers Klaw & Erlanger made a play in 1899 based on the best-selling American novel written by Lew Wallace in 1880. The team of racing horses coming toward the viewer gives a sense of adventure meant to attract the attention of potential buyers walking along a town's street.
Artifact
Poster
Date Made
circa 1910
Creators
Place of Creation
United States, Ohio, Cincinnati
United States, New York, New York
Creator Notes
Created and copyright by The U.S. Lithograph Company, Russell-Morgan & Company Print, Cincinnati, Ohio & New York, New York.
Keywords
Collection Title
On Exhibit
By Request in the Benson Ford Research Center
Object ID
33.388.5
Credit
From the Collections of The Henry Ford.
Material
Paper (Fiber product)
Linen (Material)
Technique
Lithography
Color
Multicolored
Dimensions
Height: 41 in
Width: 28.25 in