Warner’s Safe Cure: H. H. Warner in Chicago (1873)

Although we always associate H. H. Warner with Rochester, as an agent for Mosler & Bahmann & Co., he appears to have had a presence in other major cities. To be sure, he was selling safes in Rochester as is amply demonstrated by my last post; however, he also seems to have been in a number of other cities including Cincinnati and Chicago among others. This is demostrated by this ad that appeared in the 1873 Chicago City Directory.

The ad is for Warner, Howard & Co. at 51 State Street. No telling who Mr. Howard was, but there can be little doubt that the Warner was our resident entrepeneur and patent medicine mogul, Hulbert Harrington Warner.

Warner’s Safe Cure: A Younger Warner?

 

 

Almost invariably, if you see a picture of H. H. Warner, it is a copy of an engraving that depicts him with an elder statesman visage. It is the engraving that I use on this blog showing Warner slightly graying, perhaps in his fifties. It looks like this

When Warner was elected as the President of the Chamber of Commerce in 1887, an engraving of him and other officers of the Chamber were included in the book, The Industries of the City of Rochester along with the text of Warner’s inaugeral address. That engraving is the first one in this post. Clearly, it is an earlier engraving showing a more youthful Warner. Absent are the touches of gray in his hair. The chapter about the Chamber includes a brief bio of Warner:

Both of these engravings can be compared with the elderly Warner, whose care -worn photo appeared on the cover of his catalog for Warner’s Renowned Remedies, his unsuccessful effort to resurrect his patent medicine empire in the 1920′s.

Other engravings or photographs of Warner likely exist given his great success and public image. It provides us with yet another image of a man that shaped the patent medicine industry of the late 19th Century.

Warner’s Safe Cure: The Ultimate Go-With

If you are a Warner’s collector,  what would you consider to be the ultimate go-with?  There are no shortage of possibilities since Warner was such a prolific advertiser. There are wonderful posters, almanacs, dominoes, signs, etc. While all of these items are great to highlight a Warner’s Safe Cure collection, I think the ultimate go-with might just be an actual Warner’s Safe. For those of you who are familiar with the history of the Warner’s Safe Cure Company and its founder, H. H. Warner, you know that his first fortune was made as a salesman of fireproof safes. It is that image that then graced so many bottles of his medicines into the 20th Century.

Every once in a rare while, one of these Warner’s Safes surfaces and is offered for sale. Now is such a time. The folks at Antique Searchers in Syracuse are offering a safe for sale on eBay. You can find their listing at: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=330422118971&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT. They have kindly let me reproduce their pictures here:

About two years ago, I did my first installment of Warner history entitled The Rise and Fall of the Warner Empire (Part I). In that posting, I briefly discussed Warner’s early history as a safe salesman for the Mosler Safe Company of Cincinnati. I also attached a link to Dr. Richard Cannon’s article in the Antique Bottle & Glass Collector highlighting another Warner’s Safe in Colorado. This article is repeated in the eBay listing. Dr. Cannon did some excellent research and it is well worth a read. It does not seem to me to be overstatement that had H. H. Warner not been a highly successful safe salesman and had he not contracted Bright’s Disease and been “cured” by Dr. Craig’s concoction, he would have been completely lost to history.

But I digress. This wonderful safe is up for sale for a few more days. Needless to say, the successful bidder will need to pick it up in Syracuse. Considering it weighs in at 800 pounds +, you would have some heavy lifting on your hands. However, just think how nice this safe would look adorned by a nice collection of Warner’s Safe Cures. Good luck on the bidding and thanks to the folks at Antique Searchers for letting me highlight this great go-with.

The Rise and Fall of the Warner Empire (Part I)

If one is to understand the accomplishments of Hulbert Harrington Warner (1842-1923), one must understand his spectacularly successful rise in not one, but two separate businesses and his mastery of available marketing mediums to create brand appeal.  Perhaps one of the most thoroughly researched and detailed accounts of Warner’s rise and fall is Edward C. Atwater’s “Hulbert Harrington Warner and the Perfect Pitch: Sold Hope; Made Millions,” New York History, 56(2): 154-190 (April 1975).  For those interested in Warner history, this source is essential and I refer to it liberally in this post and future posts recounting the history of one of the greatest patent medicine magnates.

In 1870, the United States was just beginning to rebuild from a devastating Civil War. A hero of that War, Ulysses S. Grant, occupied the White House. In that year, Warner arrived in Rochester. He was just 28 years old. He became a dealer for the predecessor of the Mosler Safe Company of Cincinnati. His first successful business would provide the enduring symbol for his second. Warner’s safe business grew exponentially, especially given sales of fireproof safes to those engaged in the oil exploration and drilling business that was just beginning in Pennsylvania. By the close of the decade, Warner was a millionaire, having sold some 60,000 safes for $10 million. By the time Warner exited the safe business in 1884 to devote his full attention of the patent medicine business, he employed some 200 salesman grossing $2 million a year. At the close of the turbulent 1870′s, Warner’s interest in the safe business had waned. Spurred by his own recovery from unspecified kidney disease, Warner realized the potential market for empowering the common man to serve as his own physician. He would employ all of the marketing devices at his power to harness this power and to amass his second fortune.

The above picture accompanies an article by Dr. Richard Cannon entitled “A Real Warner’s Safe” published by Antique Bottle & Glass Collector.