CCSI Cork Crowncap Database - Brewer/Bottler
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 Brewer/bottler #132 | | | Name | Vess Beverage Company |
| | Address | Use for all Vess, Whistle, Cleo Cola, and 3-V products where local bottler is not known.
2916 Locust St. |
| | | | | | | | Extra info | Franchised bottling to multiple locations.
“The Billion Bubble Beverage”
The Vess Beverage Company (Orange Whistle Company) was founded by Silvester (Vess) Jones in 1916 at 307 N. Main Street in St. Louis, Missouri. The company specialized in cola and fruit-flavored sodas that were sold primarily in the Midwest. Around 1919 or 1920 the company was simply called The Whistle Company and relocated to 1418 Pine. In 1921 they relocated to a new larger facility at 2916 Locust. From 1926 to around 1933 the local name was The Whistle Company of St. Louis.
The name would change again to the Whistle-Vess Company and finally to Vess Bottling Co.
Whistle Orange Soda was introduced in 1925. Whistle was developed and marketed in the 1920s by Charles Leiper Grigg, a Vess salesman. Born in Price’s Branch, Missouri in 1868, Grigg later invented 7Up, a lithium and lemon-lime flavored soda. In 1929, he started The 7Up Company.
Jones introduced Vess flavors around 1927, using his nickname (Vess) as the product's name. The Stock Market Crash of 1929 left the company in bad financial shape. The business was sold to Donald Schneeberger. Schneeberger was considered a genius at marketing and added several new flavors to the line, many of which are still produced today. There was a change of ownership because of bankruptcy during the depression, but Whistle continued on. Paper label bottles of the teens and early 20s were followed by an unusual embossed pinch bottle in the mid-20s.
In 1935, the new company introduced Cleo Cola, named after the owner's favorite cigar and featured Cleopatra as a trademark. Cleo Cola advertising is classic soda pop memorabilia and is very sought after by collectors. Beautiful paper label and ACL bottles as well as some attractive tin and cardboard signs are to be found.
Around 1938, ACL bottles, as well as the Whistle Elves were introduced and appeared on Whistle orange soda products until the early 50s. The tagline for the soda was: “Thirsty? Just WHISTLE!”
At the height of its popularity, Vess had bottling plants in several locations including Ashville, NC, Lafayette, IN, Cincinnati, OH, Lorain, OH and El Paso, TX.
The company was bought by Cott Beverages Inc. of Toronto in 1994 and many of the early brand names are still being bottled. |
| | | | | | | Other names used for this Brewer/bottler | | Name 1 | Whistle and Vess Beverage Inc. |
| | | | | Name 3 | Orange Whistle Co. |
| | | Name 4 | Cleo Syrup Corporation |
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