The Horn Blowing Rooster

The Horn Blowing Rooster - Democratic Rally Icon to Dry Goods Trademark

Several years ago I stitched this block for a crazy quilt I am working on (and still am - I work on it a bit each week when I get some free time).  I had found the image on an antique crazy quilt and thought it was perfect for my quilt.  My son played tuba in the local marching band, and I of course was a band mom.  I had found the rooster motif on a redwork quilt, so I know there had to be a source for the design, but had not found it yet.  Just recently, a member of the AQSG (American Quilt Study Group) shared an image of the backing fabric of a quilt - depicting a rising sun with a rooster.  Of course, everyone started doing searches on roosters, and came to find out that the rooster was the symbol of the Democratic Party.  I too joined the search and much to my surprise, found a 1868 ad for a Democratic Rally with a horn blowing rooster.  I shared it with the group, and another member sent me images from a 1950s book called The Egg Tree, which had a similar design.  More searching led to a lithographic print of the same idea - a rooster blowing a horn - and it was a trade mark.

The trademark searches yielded the trademark owners and company histories.  The following images show what I found:

In 1905, John Lowe Salter was awarded trademarks for his Dry Goods Commission company. 

COMPANY INFO:  John Lowe Salter (1853-1907) - Employed by the Dry Goods Commission house of Low, Herriman & Co (formed in 1867), and in 1888 became the Joseph T. Low & Co.  John Salter became partner in that business until it dissolved in 1896 with the retirement of Mr. Low.   Mr. Salter established an account for himself in 1898, the John L. Salter, Dry Goods Commission, where he continued until his death in 1907. 

John Lowe Salter, Jr. (1880-1963) entered into his father’s business in 1898, and continued as a partner there until his father’s death in 1907.  His brother Robert Shores Salter (1882 - 1969) joined him in 1907 to form John L Salter & Sons.  Robert retired from the business in 1929 to pursue other interests.

Along with the trademark filings, a couple of ads were found, a color lithograph image was found on Worthpoint (8x10-inch in size, was sold on ebay in 2011).  The text FIRST CALL and Registered Trade Mark 43162 was written on the rock according to the listing.  No further information provided, nor found regarding that trademark number.

April 4, 1914 ad from the Dry Goods Economist (notice the trade mark images in the ad) and 1922 Ad from America’s Textile Reporter

In 1927, John L. Salter and Sons merged with Woodward, Baldwin & Co, as the Salter Department.  John L Salter, Jr. retired in 1955, and was in charge of the textile finishing department.

TRADEMARK INFO: 
1905 – Trademarks in existence since 1883 and 1886 – PRIOR to John L Salter forming his own company, but used by him;
1955 – Trademark re-issued with updated design to Woodward, Baldwin and Co, stated in existence since 1885.

Registered Trademarks & Renewals:
17 Oct 1905 (46903, 47028, 47337) by John L Salter (Initial)
31 Oct 1925 (46903, 47028, 47337) by John L Salter & Sons (Renew)
17 Oct 1945 (46903, 47028, 47337) by John L Salter to Woodward, Baldwin & Co (Renew)
24 May 1955 (606492, 606493) by Woodward, Baldwin & Co (Initial)
29 Jun 1965 (47028) by John L Salter to Woodward, Baldwin & Co (Renew)
18 Nov 1975 (606492,606493) by Woodward, Baldwin & Co (Renew)
06 Jun 1986 (47028) Trademark expired
26 Feb 1996 (606492,606493) Trademarks expired
21 Oct 2005 (46903, 47337) Trademarks expired

IMAGE FOUND ITS WAY ONTO QUILTS
The red rooster/green tail image is from a crazy quilt sold on ebay in 2007, found on WorthPoint. 
The red rooster/cream tail image is from a crazy quilt found on ebay in 2015. 
The redwork quilt was found at
https://quilts-vintageandantique.blogspot.com/2011/08/red-and-white-quilts-again.html 
I would date the quilt somewhere around 1905-1915 – it has Bernhardt Wall’s Sunbonnet Girls and Teddy Bear DOW designs sprinkled throughout the quilt.  The next embroidered rooster is from the crazy quilt that I am working on, inspired by the vintage CQ image found in 2015.

OTHER HORN BLOWING ROOSTER IMAGES FOUND:
1868 Democratic Rally Ad, the San Luis Obispo Pioneer
First Call Tobacco Tin Tag (Tags were used between 1870-1930 to identify brands of plug tobacco at point of sale)
1949 Milhous - Preliminary art for cover, for "The Egg Tree"
1950 The Egg Tree by Katherine Milhous (1894-1977)
1957 Flier from the Pennsylvania City Institute Library re-opening event
1988 serving bowl produced by Howard Kaplan’s French Country Store, © 1988 NEWCOR, Made in Thailand. (Esty Listing 751496495)

I thought I was finished, but earlier today I found a few more interesting images of roosters playing a horn.  The brass image really looks like the 1905 trademark and look to see what 3D printing can do!