SODAPOPBOB
Posts: 3558
Joined: 3/10/2010 Status: offline
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OsiaBoyce ~ Thanks again - seriously. But I spent about a half hour on that very site earlier today, but still did not come up with anything of real help. If you found something there please let me know. I don't want to send them a e-mail inquiry just yet. That would be too easy. Plus, for the time being I prefer to keep this in the A-B.net family. Much more fun that way! And your timing is just right, because my brother from Idaho just sent me the following ... So I guess I can scratch Q.# 3 off of my list. SPB ~ * ~ James E. Crass (1867-1930), was born in Mayfield, Kentucky, and founded the predecessor franchise group to the Central Coca-Cola Company, Inc. Orphaned at an early age Crass was sent to live with an older half-brother, John T. Crass, a contractor in Chattanooga, Tennessee. His brother built the Lookout Incline and Lula Lake Railway in the late 1890s in Chattanooga. When of age, James E. Crass worked for his brother as an agent for a new cable line in the area. Crass saved money from his jobs and at the urging of Asa G. Candler, owner of The Coca-Cola Company, he purchased a small Coca-Cola bottling plant in Charleston, South Carolina in 1899. Within the next year Crass quickly outgrew the small plant and moved to Richmond, Virginia to build a larger plant in a more expansive bottling territory. Syrup in his territory was acquired from the Coca-Cola Company (Thomas) of Chattanooga, Tennessee who held the exclusive rights to sell the syrup to other bottlers in Crass’s area. Crass grew his Coca-Cola conglomeration into 42 franchises in Virginia, Ohio, and Pennsylvania among other states. James E. Crass was married to the former Emma Leimenstoll of Ohio. They had four children: James Edward, Lottie, Ada, and Nellie. At the time of his death in 1930, Crass was one of the most successful owners in the Coca-Cola franchise network and even produced his own brand of soda. In preparation for the future of the company Crass had taken on his son-in-law, and former Coca-Cola Company sales manager, as an employee. Walter L. Sams took over the management of the Crass plants upon Mr. Crass’s death.
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