Bottling on Oleatha Avenue, St. Louis, Missouri

[bottle-bud]

4817 Oleatha
St. Louis, Missouri

This story starts in in 1941 when a new bottling facility is erected at 4803-4817 Oleatha Avenue in South St. Louis. A clipping from a local newspaper at the time partially shows the building, a fleet of trucks and a host of personnel who are posing for the paper. I recognize two names from the picture caption that were related to other bottling operations in St. Louis. Herman Dohrman at one time was president of the Breimeyer Bottling Company and Emil Bischoff at one time was manager of the Eagle Soda Water Company.

Red Rock had a full line of different flavors and was franchised by the Red Rock Cola Company of Atlanta, Georgia. Thrill was a soda that was franchised from Green & Green of Houston, Texas.

I have two samples of each bottle in my collection that have dates of 1941. The same year as the ad.

Notice the Red rock bottles say Red Rock Beverage Company and Thrill bottles say Thrill Beverage Company, both obviously bottled on Oleatha Avenue.





1947 and Red Rock Beverage Company is now Bubble Up Bottling Company. I have lots of Bubble Ups in my collection but only two that were bottled by Bubble Up Bottling Company. One 7 ounce and one 32 ounce both dated 1947. Bubble was franchised by the Bubble Up Corporation of St. Louis, Missouri. Bubble Up will get new ownership and move to Peoria Illinois around 1958.




Looks like I am limited to 10 attachments per post, to be continued.

 

[bottle-bud]

I find an old ad for Grape Win Soda from a local newspaper dated 1948. Grape Win was a product from Merwyn Concentrates of St. Louis and bottled by Bubble Up Bottling Company. I have a 7-ounce bottle dated 1948 that matches the ad. My bottle says Grape Win Bottling Co. but I am guessing it was bottled on Oleatha Avenue. Many bottling companies would operate under different names.

Also, in 1948 Bubble Up Bottling Co. is advertising for Mason’s Root Beer. I do not have a Mason’s bottled by Bubble Up Bottling Co. The one pictured is dated 1950 and bottled by The Hygrade Water & Soda Company of St. Louis.

1949 and another name change to Bob’s Cola Bottling Company. I find an ad for Bob’s in 1948 at 1556 S. 7th and in 1949 another ad for Bob’s on Oleatha. Its quite a challenge at times to put together an honest timeline of all the soda bottling companies in St. Louis with name changes, multiple names and address changes etc. The 7th Street address is almost next door to the Dupiech Bottling Co (1552 S. 7th). But the last reference I have for Dupiech is in 1940, so perhaps someone else purchased a franchise for Bob’s in 1948 started bottling at 7th street, moved to Oleatha in 1949 and then merged with Bubble Up as the name will again change to Bob’s Cola-Bubble Up in 1950. Confusing!

continued again;

 

[bottle-bud]

Bob’s Cola was franchised from the Bob’s-Cola Co. Inc. of Atlanta, Georgia. Here is a trade ad from 1948’

Here is an early St. Louis marked Bob’s bottle that is 7-ounce. He’s in rough shape but it been tough trying to find an upgrade.



Next, three 10-ounce Swanee’s, one dates to 1947 and one is 1950 and one I cannot determine a date.



Also, one Bubble Up from Bob’s, a ten-ounce dated 1949
.


continued

 

[bottle-bud]

We don’t have to wait long for another name change, 1951 rolls along and the bottling establishment on Oleatha is the Squirt Bottling Company. Squirt is a very popular drink franchised from The Squirt Company of Beverly Hills, California. I have two bottles from Squirt Bottling Co. in St. Louis, a 7-ounce bottle dated 1952 and a 12-ounce dated 1957.



A couple of ads from the 1950’s.

The name Squirt Bottling Company will last until 1957 when the name changes one last time to the Squirt-Dr. Pepper Bottling Co. But from 1952-1957 another soda is being bottled on Oleatha known as the Frostie Bottling Company. Frostie is a root beer franchised from The Frostie Company of Baltimore, Maryland. I have only one St. Louis marked Frostie bottle, a 12-ounce dated 1952.

continue again

 

[bottle-bud]

1965 and the Squirt-Dr. Pepper Bottling Company will move to a new bottling plant located on Fyler Avenue, only a few city blocks from Oleatha.

The End.

 

[carling]

Nice!

You left us hanging at the end with Squirt-Dr. Pepper Co. moving to the new Fyler Ave. location in 1965. Any idea what happened after that? Google says the building on Fyler today is now Handi-Craft Co., makers of Dr. Brown's baby bottles and accessories.

 

[bottle-bud]

Thanks for your interest in the story, here is a timeline of what occured as of 1978.
I am not sure if Squirt - Dr. Pepper had a different bottling plant before the move to Mcdonnell Blvd or not.

 

[iggyworf]

Another great write up. You sure know your St Louis bottles! Great pics of your bottles. I try many different ways to take pics of mine but they never come out the greatest.

 

[bottle-bud]

thanks iggy, I purchased a nice digital camera years ago and it does really well with bottles.

 

[Kheidecker]

I found a lot of those bottles in a bottle dump in Columbia Illinois couple Frosty's an squirt and a couple Mason one Mason is full never opened. It's hard to find them acl bottles with good coloring from the ground anyway.as a st Louisian very interesting post.