Monroe La. Straight side coke !

[SODAPOPBOB]

I searched the U.S. Census for N.P. Cook of Monroe, Louisiana and found the following occupations for him ... 1880 ~ Age 32 ~ Clerk in store1900 ~ Age 42 ~ Public Market Master1910 ~ Age 52 ~ Mercantile

 

[SODAPOPBOB]

Major Correction ... It wasn't Joseph Renwick who married Margaret Cook in 1862, it was Joseph's father, Wiley P. Renwick. Which means N.P. Cook was Joseph's grandfather.

 

[SODAPOPBOB]

Meet ... N.P. Cook & Company From ~ The Ouachita Telegraph ~ Monroe, Louisiana ~ June 16, 1888

 

[SODAPOPBOB]

Next Question ... Why is the name reference of N.P. Cook on Ouachita Valley Bottling Works bottles?

 

[Bass Assassin]

I' m guessing he helped fund the start up of OVBW.

 

[SODAPOPBOB]

I'm guessing he helped fund the start up of OVBW.

I agree! The term "& Company" could have been other family members who were involved in his various enterprises. There is more information on N.P. Cook in the Monroe newspapers than I can shake a stick at! Just suffice it to say he was a prominent citizen and merchant in Monroe for many, many years. The newspaper articles and advertisements I found for him date between 1880 and 1927, and there may be other years I didn't have time to access. He should be added to the historical list of individuals involved with the establishment of the O.V.B.W., which eventually became the first bottlers of Coca Cola in Monroe.

 

[SODAPOPBOB]

I'm thinking it might be a name abbreviation of some type such as (for example) ... Nathan Patrick Connors & Company

Because the newspapers just show the name as N.P. Cook, I was having difficulty finding a first name for him. Needless to say, I was shocked when I discovered that his first name was ... Nathan That's why I included my earlier post. I just pulled the name Nathan out of thin air when I used it as an example as to what the "N" might stand for. So I guess I must be physic because I can offer no other explanation as to how I came up with the right first name. I was also having a bit of a problem determining what year he was born, but the following attachments will hopefully clear up all of that. 1. Monroe Daily Star - February 4, 1927 ~ Says he was 70 years old at the time, which means he was born around 1847. It also says he was in the wholesale meat business at the time. 2. 1929 Monroe Directory showing the name Nathan P Cook as a "Meat Ctr" (Cutter). Which I'm assuming is the directories shortened way of saying he was in the meat business. 3. Cropped enlargement of the 1929 Directory listing. Hence ... Nathan P Cook was born around 1847 and worked in the wholesale meat business during his elderly years. By the way, in the 1912 Monroe Directory he is listed as a "Dairy Employee." Hmm, I wonder whose dairy he worked at? []

 

[SODAPOPBOB]

And here's the 1912-1913 Directory showing the dairy connection ... at which time he was about 65 years old. This is the extant of what I intend to post about Nathan P Cook. I just wanted to establish his name in connection with Monroe history in general and the Ouachita Valley Bottling Works in particular.

 

[Bass Assassin]

Excellent work Bob. My guess is that NPC&Co was embossed on the earlier bottles, since my OVBW does not have it and we speculate that bottle to be circa 1905-1910.

 

[SODAPOPBOB]

Mark Thanks. I'm searching the newspaper archives again hoping I can find N. P. Cook involved with some type of bottling business. So far I haven't found anything but will continue to search and let you know if/when I do find something.