Elijah's Manna
Came across a very intriguing sign on an online auction site:
"Eliah's Manna"
What an incredibly unique product name!
I just had to research a little to find out more. And I was stunned:
Charles William “C. W.” Post was born October 26, 1854 in Abraham Lincoln’s hometown of Springfield, Illinois.
He attended Illinois Industrial University at Urbana (known today as the University of Illinois) for two years before heading west to Independence, Kansas without a degree.
C.W. returned to Springfield a short time later to work as a salesman for a manufacturer of agricultural machinery.
While there, he invented and patented several farm implements, including a plow, a harrow, and a hay-stacking machine.
In 1895, C.W. Post founded the Postum Cereal Company and began to develop his first prepared food cereal product launching a new industry.
By 1897, C.W. had developed a breakfast cereal he named “Grape Nuts” because of the fruity aroma he noticed during the manufacturing process and the nutty crunch of the finished product.
In 1904, he followed up his Grape Nuts label with a brand of corn flakes, which he called “Elijah’s Manna.”
(excerts from https://nowweknowem.wordpress.com)
And, of course, the rest of the story:
Church groups were outraged over the use of Elijah as a cereal mascot. The book Cerealizing America by Scott Bruce and Bill Crawford has a quote from C.W. Post who was outraged at the outrage over his new cereal:
"Perhaps no one should eat angel food cake, enjoy Adam's ale, live in St. Paul, nor work for Bethlehem Steel... one should have his Adam's apple removed and never again name a child for the good people of the bible."
Post stuck with his guns until he noticed the Biblical backlash was cutting into his sales. In 1908, he renamed the cereal as Post Toasties. Micky Mouse would later replace the Prophet Elijah on the box.
Cool little historical "trivia" like this is so freakin' fascinating!
Grace & Peace & Love to you all -
Matt
