VIRGINIA WHOLESALE COMPANY BOTTLING WORKS & BAKERY

While researching Appalachia Virginia's bottling companies, I came across something interesting on the sanborn maps of the area, particularly the March 1922 map. It appears that at the same time that the Pepsi-Cola and Chero-Cola bottling companies were in operation there was another bottling company in Appalachia, this bottling company was owned by the Virginia Wholesale Company. Actually the Virginia Wholesale Company operated a Bakery, on the same site as the bottling works, and a Laboratory & Storage house on Callahan near the rail road, and of course the Grocery & Dry goods building on Oak Street.

The Virginia Wholesale Company Inc. was incorporated on April 19, 1910 (1), and they amended their charter on October 7, 1919.(2) The bottling works was located on Railroad Avenue near Boggs Avenue, and sat on the right of the Bakery building. The bottling works seems to have been abandoned by 1929 as the Sanborn maps claim that the building it occupied is now used for storage. The buildings are both gone now and all that is left are the foundations, and fading memories of the bakery itself which continued to operate for a number of years.

This is what remains of the building that the Virginia Wholesale Company bottling works was housed in around 1922.

7oz Virginia Wholesale Company Incorporated bottle

7oz Gay-Ola bottle dated 1924

7oz Gay-Ola bottle dated 1928. This bottle shows that the plant was still operational by at least 1928.

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