J.F. Herrmann / A.G. Herrmann / Tiger Brand


Company Names, addresses, dates1:
  Frederick Herrmann, 809 2nd street SE (1881-1885)
  Frederick J. Herrmann, 811 2nd street SE (1886)
  Frederick J. Herrmann, 740 10th SE (1887-1888)
  John F. Hermann, 752 10th SE (1890-1891)
  Herrmann Bottling Works, 752 10th SE (1892)
  J.F. Herrmann & Son, 752 10th street SE
  J.F. Herrmann & Son, 10th c I SE (1893)
  J.F. Herrmann & Son, 750-754 10th street SE (1894-1905)
  August G. Herrmann, 750 10th street SE (1906-1907)
  August G. Herrmann, 750-754 10th street SE (1908-1913)
  Herrmann Bottling Works, 750-754 10th street SE (1914-1933)
  Herrmann Ginger Ale Co, 750 10th street SE (1934-1939)
  Tiger Brand, Washington DC

Notes:
The first city directory entry I see for Herrman as a bottler is in 1881, however one of the bottles below says "QUALITY SINCE 1874". The Mar 6, 1936 Obituary for A.G. Herrmann in the Washington Post confirms that the company was founded in 1874.
I think that John F. Herrmann and Frederick J. Herrmann are the same person. The 1870 and 1880 census lists Frederick Herrmann, and the 1900, 1910 and 1920 census lists John F. Herrmann, but in all cases they say he was born in 1837 in Germany.
August George Herrmann (born 1862) was J.F.'s son and successor. His name is sometimes listed as "August" and sometimes as "Augustus". The Herrmann Bottling Works is listed in a 1925 DC phone book under "Bottlers, Carbonated Beverages" at 750 10th Street SE, phone number Lincoln-1981.
Some of their bottles have a trade mark consisting of a dog, a key, and a safe (or is it a mailbox?). I have no idea what that was supposed to mean.
Note that the bottles with the heart trade-mark have "AGWL" on the botom, and that the "L" appears to be crudely added. This web site claims that "AGWL" was the American Glass Works Limited in Pittsburg PA, and that they added the "L" about 1880.

Finally, I have to admit that I have no idea who "S. HERRMANN" is. One of the bottles below is purple and emboseed with "S HERRMANN & CO 1897 WASHINGTON DC", but I looked through the 1897 city directory for Washington DC (even the residential section) and could not find a Herrmann whose name started with "S". So that bottle is a mystery to me.

J.F. Herrmann Bottles:

herrmann_01 (enlarge) This is a 7.2" aqua hutchinson bottles with a 10-sided base, embossed:
round slugplate: J.F.HERRMANN & SON / 752 10TH ST. S.E. / WASHINGTON D.C.
back: AGWL
herrmann_02 (enlarge) These are 7.2" hutchinson bottles with 10-sided bases. The one one the left is aqua, and the one on the right is clear. They'are both embossed:
oval slugplate: J.F.HERRMANN & SON / WASHINGTON / D.C. / REGISTERED
bottom: J BROS / 57
herrmann_03 (enlarge) This is an 8.9" baltimore-loop top bottle embossed:
round slugplate: J.F. HERRMANN & SON / 752 10TH ST. S.E. / WASHINGTON D.C.
herrmann_04 (enlarge) The left bottle is a 9.2" blue-aqua crown top, the one on the right is an 8.7" blue-aqua baltimore loop top. They are identically embossed with:
front: TRADE MARK (picture of heart) / J.F.HERRMANN / & SON / 750 754 10TH ST S.E. / WASHINGTON D.C.
back: THIS BOTTLE / NOT TO / BE SOLD
bottom: AGWL (the L is either crudely added or poorly deleted)
herrmann_05 (enlarge) These are 9" blob top bottles. Left bottle is clear (with original stopper - I know because I dug it out of the ground that way) and embossed:
oval slug plate: J.F.HERRMANN & SON / WASHINGTON / D.C. / REGISTERED
below slug plate: THIS BOTTLE NOT TO BE SOLD
Right bottle is aqua and embossed the same except the letters are in an oval pattern instead of an oval slug plate.
herrmann_06 (enlarge) This is a 9.6" aqua crown top embossed:
oval slug plate: J.F. HERRMANN & SON / WASHINGTON / D.C. / REGISTERED
below slug plate: THIS BOTTLE NOT TO BE SOLD
bottom: 1901
herrmann_07 (enlarge) This is an aqua 9" crown top embossed:
shoulders: J.F.H. & S.
oval pattern: J.F.HERRMANN & SON / WASHINGTON / D.C. / REGISTERED
below oval pattern: THIS BOTTLE NOT TO BE SOLD
bottom: 962
herrmann_08 (enlarge) These are 7.5" aqua crown tops. The one on the right has a "J.F.H.&S." embossed on the back, otherwise all three are embossed identically:
oval pattern: J.F.HERRMANN & SON / WASHINGTON / D.C. / REGISTERED
below oval pattern: THIS BOTTLE NOT TO BE SOLD
herrmann_20 (enlarge) This is the same as the above bottles but it's taller & kind of a blue-aqua color. It's a 9" crown top embossed:
oval pattern: J.F.HERRMANN & SON / WASHINGTON / D.C. / REGISTERED
below oval pattern: THIS BOTTLE NOT TO BE SOLD
rear shoulder: J.F.H.&S.
herrmann_15 (enlarge) This bottle is embossed the same as the 2 above, but it has a label somewhat intact. The label says:
label top edge: NO ALCHOHOL NO PEPPER / MADE FROM PURE GINGER
label center: HERRMANN'S / FAMOUS / (pic of safe/dog/key) / TRADE MARK / GINGER ALE
label bottom edge: LAY BOTTLE ON ICE - DO NOT USE IN GLASS / J-F-HERRMANN & SON WASHINGTON, D.C.
herrmann_09 (enlarge) This is similar to the above bottles, except it's clear and it has a slug plate. It's a 7.5" clear crown top, embossed:
oval slugplate: J.F.HERRMANN & SON / WASHINGTON / D.C. / REGISTERED
below slugplate: THIS BOTTLE NOT TO BE SOLD
herrmann_14 (enlarge) This is an 11.9" crown top bottle embossed:
round slugplate: J.F. HERRMANN & SON / WASHINGTON D.C. / REGISTERED / THIS BOTTLE NOT TO BE SOLD
back: AGW


S. Herrmann Bottles:
s_herrmann_01 (enlarge) This is a 7.2" purple hutchinson bottle. The deep purple color indicates that it was probably irradiated with an X-ray machine. It is embossed:
round slugplate: S. HERRMANN & CO / REGISTERED / 1897 / WASHINGTON, D.G.
below slugplate: REGISTERED / THIS BOTTLE / NOT TO BE SOLD
Note that it appears to say "D.G.", not "D.C.".



A.G. Herrmann Bottles:
herrmann_16 (enlarge) This 9" aqua blob top has a porcelain stopper that is in great shape. The bottle is embossed:
front-horiz: TRADE / (picture of safe/dog/key) / MARK / THIS BOTTLE IS NOT SOLD / RETURN PROMPTLY WHEN EMPTY
front-vert: A.G. HERRMANN / SUCCESSOR TO / J.F. HERRMANN & SON / WASHINGTON, D.C. / REGISTERED
back: C & CO.
The porcelain stopper is embossed:
top: A.G. HERRMANN / SUPERIOR / (picture of safe/dog/key) / TRADE MARK / WASHINGTON, D.C.
bottom: PAT'D / K. HUTTER / FEB. 7, 1893
herrmann_17 (enlarge) These aqua crown tops are embossed the same, but have slight variations. The left is 8.5" tall and the right is 8.3" tall. Also, the dog on the left bottle is facing front, whereas the dog on the right bottle is facing to the side. They are both embossed:
front-horiz: TRADE / (picture of safe/dog/key) / MARK / THIS BOTTLE IS NOT SOLD / RETURN PROMPTLY WHEN EMPTY
front-vert: A.G. HERRMANN / SUCCESSOR TO / J.F. HERRMANN & SON / WASHINGTON, D.C. / REGISTERED
back: C & CO.
herrmann_21 (enlarge) This is similar to the above bottles but it's taller, the lines are spaced farther apart, and the logo does not have a circle around it. It's a 9.2" aqua crown top embossed:
top front-horiz: TRADE / (picture of safe/dog/key) / MARK
front-vert: A.G. HERRMANN / SUCCESSOR TO / J.F. HERRMANN & SON / WASHINGTON, D.C. / REGISTERED
bottom front-horiz: THIS BOTTLE IS NOT SOLD / RETURN PROMPTLY WHEN EMPTY
herrmann_18 (enlarge) These are 8.5" crown top (machine made) bottles that are identical except for color, and are embossed:
front: TRADE / (picture of safe/dog/key) / MARK / REGISTERED WASHINGTON DC / THIS BOTTLE NOT TO BE SOLD / RETURN PROMPTLY WHEN EMPTY
back: A.G. HERRMANN / CONTENTS 8 FLUID OZ
herrmann_11 (enlarge) This is the same bottle as the one above (on the right), except that it has a cap and a label. The label is marked:
label center: HERRMANN / AROMATIC / (picture of safe/dog/key) / TRADE MARK / GINGER ALE
label top left: CARBONATED BEVERAGE / COLORED WITH CARAMEL.
label top right: LOOK FOR THIS LABEL / BEWARE OF SUBSTITUTES.
label bottom left: LAY BOTTLE ON ICE - DO NOT USE ICE / IN GLASS.
label bottom right: A.G. HERRMANN / WASHINGTON, D.C.
herrmann_10 (enlarge) This is a 12" machine-made crown top bottle embossed:
front: TRADE / (picture of safe/dog/key) / MARK / REGISTERED WASHINGTON DC / THIS BOTTLE NOT TO BE SOLD / RETURN PROMPTLY WHEN EMPTY
back: A.G. HERRMANN / 1 PT & 8 FLUID OZ
herrmann_19 (enlarge) This is a 9.9" machine-made crown top bottle embossed:
front: TIGER / (picture of tiger) / BRAND / REGISTERED WASHINGTON DC / THIS BOTTLE NOT TO BE SOLD / RETURN PROMPTLY WHEN EMPTY
back: A.G. HERRMANN / CONTENTS 1 PT
herrmann_13 (enlarge) This is a 9.5" crown top bottle embossed:
front: A.G. HERRMANN / CONTENTS 13 FLUID OZ. THIS BOTTLE IS NOT SOLD
back: WASHINGTON D.C. / REGISTERED / DOC 1511
herrmann_12 (enlarge) This is a 9.8" Applied Color Label crown top bottle. The coloring is black on white and says:
shoulder: HERRMANNS
front: QUALITY / SINCE 1874 / HERRMANN'S / "Famous" / BEVERAGES
back: HERRMANN'S BEVERAGES / Carbonated Water, Sugar, / Flavor or Artificial Flaver, / Other Ingredients on Crown. / Contents 12 Fluid Ounces / HERRMANN GINGER ALE CO. / Washington, D.C.


Other Items:
tiptray_01 Enlarge This is a 4.3" diameter lithographed tip tray. It is marked:
around edge: THE HERRMANN BOTTLING WORKS, / WASHINGTON DC
inside circle: HAVE YOU TRIED / HERRMANN'S / TIGER BRAND / GINGER ALE

letter_01 Enlarge This is a letter that is postmarked 1894. It shows JF Herrmann & Son were wholesale dealers in Val Blatz's Milwaukee Beer.
herrmann_cap_01 Enlarge This is a bottle cap. It is marked:
FAMOUS / SINCE 1874 / HERRMANNS / ARIFICIALLY COLORED / LIME SODA / 8 OZ. / WASH DC
fan_01 Enlarge This is a cardboard fan (front & back shown). This business side is marked:
DRINK / HERRMANN'S / FAMOUS / Ginger Ale and Root Beer / Put up in 8-oz. Bottles HAVE YOU TRIED THEM? / Tiger Ginger Ale / GOLDEN AND PALE DRY! NONE BETTER! / In 10-zo., 12-oz. and 16-oz. Bottles / AND NOW YOU CAN BUY / HERRMANN'S Famous GINGER ALE and / OTHER FLAVORS / in 24-oz. Bottles at 10c Each, Plus Usual Deposit / Ask Your Dealer for HERRMANN'S / QUALITY BEVERAGE SINCE 1874 / REFUSE SUBSTITUTES / A.G. HERRMANN, Washington, D.C. / PHONE: LINCOLN 1981-1982



1 Boyd's Directory for the District of Columbia (various years)



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This page last updated on March 7, 2010.