** Tins of Taste Museum ** within NationalBreadMuseum.org
GERMANY - Index of Companies w/Tins
Company List -- Ivory Section Below - Left Column
In the 40-year Tins of Taste cataloging record, there are over 1,000 tins/chests that once held a food item from Germany. Around 80% of them are German Lebkuchen tins & chests as Germany carved itself out to be the Lebkuchen industry capital of the world since the 1300s. One of the most significant aspects of these tins is that on many of them, much of the exquisite & colorful art work portrayed history of the German people, country, & culture during past centuries. Because of that, they document an incredible historical record.
I would say the 800-or-so Lebkuchen tins in this collection (with most in storage & never photographed, yet, until I have your financial, volunteer, &/or other help) are just a "sampling" because I know there are so many others. I found out, back in 1990, that there was no preservation of Lebkuchen tins by the companies I knew about, connected with, & visited at that time while still living in Germany. There was no computer, no internet, no sources available to me in English, etc. I had no idea, back then, about "bread museums" & this museum project. Were there any Germans who had huge, private collections? I didn't then, and still don't know, nor how to find out if there are. And as far as I knew, along with what the people knew whom I met with at the Nürnberg Lebkuchen companies, there wasn't any museum keeping this historical record. And has that changed in Germany in the past 35 years? If anyone knows something of this, it would be extremely helpful for them to connect with me . . . just because I'm curious (being in the U.S. & wanting to have a museum for "German Lebkuchen tins" -- because they serve a very worthwhile, historical, cultural, & educational purpose & are of significant value to many Americans regarding their roots of ancestral heritage, even if there's an ocean between us!). Germans have always been the largest historical group of immigrants in this country.
Some of the background story: After I had a couple dozen "pretty & colorful" Otto Schmidt "Festive Chests," the "collecting" took a turn one morning at a flohmarkt when 2 vendors across from each other had a total of 5 "old" Festive Chests for under $10. I thought, "This is nuts to pass them up just because they aren't very colorful. Already having so many, why don't I try to collect ALL the years if possible?" That put a new emphasis on feeling it was important to collect them for the sake of German history, even though I'd be going back to the United States. I just figured that even though I'd be across the ocean, someplace there'd be a "home" for them because of the millions of Germans who emigrated to the U.S. in the 18- & first half of the 1900s. And as I noted, today German is still listed as the largest ancestry group of people in the U.S., from my roots in Wisconsin, & now living in Nebraska, at one time in the 1800s, the 2 largest German-populated states! And if you have a/some German food tins, esp. Lebkuchen, which you don't know what to do with & would consider donating them for this historical record, contact me at breadmuseum@aol.com. Become part of the higher calling of historical preservation so in time our future generations have access to this information. Blessings, Donna Kozak, Founder
Index of German companies (or a major subject) of candy & food tins other than Lebkuchen ~
If the name is underlined & in bold, it has a/some tins on a connecting page. The following are assorted subjects or companies for which there are tins which will, in time, be posted.
_A page of tins of assorted Subjects such as _Gummy Bears _Hummels, _Neuschwanstein Castle, _Pied Piper of Hameln, etc.
_Bahlsen Biscuit/Cookie Co.
_Heidel Candy Company
_Heilemann
_Stollwerck (a candy company)
_Windel Candy Company
Index of Lebkuchen Companies
--This *# marking at the end of a name means a tin, significant cardboard container, or wooden chest for Lebkuchen has been seen, but none still exists in this collection, sad to say.
--As information becomes available regarding basic dates, acquisitions, etc., of Lebkuchen companies, it will be posted. If you have knowledge of any information of a former or current Lebkuchen company that had/has a tin, and is not in this list, please email me/Donna at breadmuseum@aol.com. If there are corrections to be made regarding what I've written, please let me know. I strive to have all information as accurate as possible!
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NOTE: Blue = a link to their Tins of Taste website page;
Green = in business today
*# = Don't have a tin, in case you can donate one 🤗.
Red = the company's online website today
51 Lebkuchen companies discovered so far - by Feb. 2024 - which had a tin, plus I'm now finding some full-line bakeries that had/have a tin for their Lebkuchen.
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Adam Kraft
Anker-Lebkuchen - Nurnberg; connected with R. Ad. Richter & Cie, and possibly, also a stand-alone company - just don't know.
August Häusler*# - Nürnberg
BärenSchmidt (a municipality in Mainbernheim)
Bahlsen - July 1889; Hermann Bahlsen Founder in Hanover: "Hannoversche Keksfabrik H. Bahlsen"
Diakoneo Bakery*# in Dinklesbuhl
Düll*# - 1934; https://www.lebkuchen-nuernberg.com
Eckstein - 1955; https://www.lebkuchen-eckstein.de/ueber-eckstein/
F. Ad. Richter & Cie-Lebkuchen Nurnberger - maybe 1884-1913; One online resource article says that at some point the company became part of Schöller Ice Cream (https://www.ankerstein.org/html/CO.HTM ). But something is missing between Richter's 1910 death; his heirs broke within 10 years; Schöller not beginning until 1935 w/ice cream (Wikipedia), & beginning in Lebkuchen in 1957.
Ferd. Stemmler*# - Friedrichsdorf im Taunus
Ferdinand Wolff GmbH & Co. KG - 1839 (in Lambertz group - 1994)
Feyler, Wilhelm in Coburg - 1892; www.Feyler-Lebkuchen.de
Frank Lebkuchen GmbH, Arzberg*#; https://www.frank-lebkuchen.de/ Since 1865; This company sells only w/the German banking payment transfer system -- nothing over the internet.
Fraunholz (1911) & Gebr. Fraunholz (Gebr. = brothers)
Home page: https://www.fraunholz-lebkuchen.de/
Fritz Weghorn*# - (a tin at the German Digital Library) https://www.deutsche-digitale-bibliothek.de/item/WPESEIB4TQEYS5X5EJQGF4VUVVSOKSJG
Gebr. Dauscher - Nuremberg (The logo on the cover is an intertwined "GD" inside a 4-pointed star of sorts.)
Gebr. Koppe*# - A.G. Berlin-Lichtenberg (This name was in small print along the bottom rim of a round, 6-stuck-shaped tin with the "Sarotti" name/emblem on the cover & on the tin itself.)
Gebrüder Schmidt*# - Bärenlebkuchen Mainbernheim Bayern (Also see "Schmidt Bros.")
Georg Goess - first mentioned in 1610; https://www.georg-goess.de (Today this company is under Lebkuchen-Schmidt management.)
Haeberlein - 1598
Haeberlein-Metzger - 1920 merger (1976 sold to Schöller; 1998 sold to the Lambertz Group); https://www.haeberlein-metzger.de
Hans Schneider*# - Nürnberg
Hildebrand's*# - (a tin at the German Digital Library) https://www.deutsche-digitale-bibliothek.de/item/WPESEIB4TQEYS5X5EJQGF4VUVVSOKSJG
J. F. Kisskalt - 1801
JGH Lotter*# - (a tin at the German Digital Library)
https://www.deutsche-digitale-bibliothek.de/item/WPESEIB4TQEYS5X5EJQGF4VUVVSOKSJG
Jospeh Wolf
KARL B*A*R (logo had a bear with Z K B)
Keim & Co.
Kreutzkamm GmbH, Conditorei*#; Munchen/Munich; https://kreutzkamm.de/en (Saw a 2007 lime green & brown 6-stuck tin)
Lambertz - est. 1688 (1820?/1831? Henry Lambertz created his version of Printe (a kind of Lebkuchen/cookie); Company remains in family ownership today; has acquired many older Lebkuchen companies related to Lebkuchen tins: Ferdinand Wolff; Haeberlein-Metzger; Schöller; Schulmann; Seim; Türmer; Weiss; https://www.lambertz.us/history/
Lebkuchen-Schmidt (Since 1926, had been under the name of E. Otto Schmidt, better known until 1990/91 as the Otto Schmidt Lebkuchen Company; location: Nürnberg) https://www.lebkuchen-schmidt.com/
Acquired Georg Goess ???; Gottfried "Wicklein" in 2015. Both in production by their recipes for Lebkuchen, but no tins by Goess.
Mark Graf
Martin Wirsing - Bayreuth*#
Matthias Stielfried; https://www.lebkuchengeschenke.de This company is the retailer for 12 different German confection/cookie/Lebkuchen, etc. companies, both independents and subsidiary-owned name brands. They are usually the major online source for "most" of the Haeberlein-Metzger tins.
Metzger (F. G.)*# - as a pre-1920 name on it's own, no tin as of yet.
Michael Stich - Dinkelsbühl
Nusselt - 1888; https://www.nusselt-lebkuchen.de
Oskar Wagner (owner name on an August Häusler tin)
Oswald Stengel*# G.M.B.H. of Wilkau-Haßlau, a town in Sachsen (i.e. Saxony) – a German State; Began ???; was in the Lebkuchenfabrik business at least by April 25, 1928, till ???
E. Otto Schmidt (today known as Lebkuchen-Schmidt) 1926 till now, in Nürnberg; https://www.lebkuchen-schmidt.com/
Acquired Wicklein in 2015; Goess, date unknown)
RÜGER HANSI*#
Sarotti - Berlin*# - (a tin at the German Digital Library) https://www.deutsche-digitale-bibliothek.de/item/WPESEIB4TQEYS5X5EJQGF4VUVVSOKSJG
Schmidt Bros. (Also see: Gebrüder Schmidt) - Mainbernheim*#, 1863-1902 https://mainbernheim.de/page/?p=94
Schöller, Theo -- Schöller Lebensmittel GmbH & Co KG, began 1957;
(Wikipedia: b. 1917, d. 2004; Began with ice cream in 1935. To provide for year-round employment, in 1957, Theo Schöller began gingerbread by buying the Scheidacker gingerbread factory in Furth; took over Haeberlein-Metzger in 1976; Gebrüder Seim in 1985; the Aachen Printen and gingerbread manufacturer Kinkartz KG from Würselen in 1991; then sold all of the baked goods division to the Lambertz Group in 1998.)
Schuhmann - 1938; acquired by the Lambertz Group in 2015
Seim (Gebr. Seim) (began???; 1985 sold to Schöller; 1998 Schöller & its Lebkuchen companies were sold to the Lambertz Group)
Türmer - part of Lambertz: https://www.lambertz.us/history
Weiss, Max - 1925 (Weiss Spezialitäten owned by Lambertz Group 1994)
Weissella (part of Weiss?)
Wicklein, Gottfried - 1615; 2015 Bought by Lebkuchen-Schmidt https://wicklein.de
Woitinek, Wolfgang (baeckerei-Woitinek.de) in Nurnberg
Wölfel, Georg
Wolff - Go up to Ferdinand Wolff GmbH & Co. KG - 1839 (in Lambertz group - 1994)
- Unknown company, Lebkuchen tins -
Index of Stollen Companies
Dresdner Stollen
Oebel Stollen
Reimann Stollen
Question: Why have the German people had such a significant impact on the United States bread culture?
Answer #1: Because of the number of German people who came to this country (said to be 5 million in the 1800s & 2M+ more in the 1st half of the 1900s). There were "30 millions of citizens of German birth or descent in this country" by 1916. (A personal note to understand this, regarding my own family tree: families averaged 5-10+ children during the half-century of time in the U.S. -- 1865-1915.)
An amazing historical resource of the German influx into the USA: the book, THEIR TRUE FAITH AND ALLEGIANCE by Gustavus Ohlinger with a Forward by Owen Wister; pub. by The Macmillan Company, New York, June 1916, with reprints June 1916 & March 1917; (c) 1916.
continuing later . . .
The following stein is a most unusual tin with a plastic handle. It was from a candy company in La Crosse, Wisconsin, USA, and pre-1989 because it was made in West Germany. Wisconsin is one of the states in which the greatest percentage of the population is of German heritage. In fact, today, German is still the largest ancestry group of Americans - over 44 million.
Worth Noting: Most of the following company brand names seem to have been connected with some product of "gingerbread, i.e. Lebkuchen of some sort." From available information, they were all acquired by the Lambertz Group during the past 50 years, but I don't believe all still have product lines in the retail market today.
In 1991, "Aachen Printen" and gingerbread manufacturer "Kinkartz KG" were bought by Scholler* from "Würselen." Today all three are part of the Lambertz Group*, as is Feinbackerei Otten, Heemann (Heemann Lebkuchen-und Süßwaren-Spezialitäten GmbH (founded in 1839), Otto Scharschmidt Marzipan, Türmer*, Weiss*, and Ferdinand Wolff*.
* These companies are in the Lebkuchen list on this page and had one or more Lebkuchen tins in their name in past years. Lebkuchen by Weiss was currently made in 2023 (no tin that I know of), and also Lambertz (had tins), but I don't know about Lebkuchen (& tins) under the names of Scholler, Türmer, & Wolff.
Search "Aachen Printen in Germany" for a vast list of resources to learn more about the cookie, "Printen."