Advertising Poster, "Virginia Sweet Brand Self-Raising Pancake Flour," 1912-1917

In the late nineteenth century, printers developed a lithograph method that produced brightly colored posters. Manufacturers and other businesses quickly adopted the new poster style to advertise their products. The posters were glued to building walls, fences, and hung in store displays where they readily attracted the attention of passersby.

Companies hired printers who worked with artists to create art that would advertise the products. In the early years, the point of the artwork was to gain notice rather than illustrate the product. By the early twentieth century, the design began to reflect a direct connection to the merchandise advertised. Although most of the artists are unknown today, these posters reflected popular American taste from the 1870s through the 1920s.

Over a century ago, changes were taking place in America that made national selling of products advantageous and manufacturers sought to capture attention with catchy brand names and appealing images. Changes in milling of wheat lengthened the shelf life so storekeepers far from the original flourmill were sure to have a good product to sell and the extensive railroad system allowed rapid and consistent delivery.

This poster promotes the Virginia Sweet Brand Pancake Flour. The "self-rising" pancake mix made from "the three Staffs of life--wheat, corn and rice--together with phosphate leavening and salt" produced a faster way to cook pancakes. The Geiger-Fishback Company, a specialty foods business headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, was known for their cake mixes, flavoring extracts, spices, coffee and tea.