The logo uses the school’s green and gold colors, so it appears to fit with the current look quite well. Even better, it will probably sell well at the gift shop.

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RICHMOND – We hear that the much beloved Richfood store brand is disappearing. Richfood was, for most of the 20th century, the dominant grocery name in Virginia; its dairy complex along I-95 in Richmond promoted ubiquitous Richfood milk to anyone driving up and down the East Coast. A friend in Richmond tells me that the [...]

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MATHEWS, Va. – For brand archaeologists, the best dig site is Cracker Barrel. They are fascinating museums of America’s business history, not to mention their gift shops filled with old-time brands. Here pictured in a restaurant near Jacksonville, Florida are cans of Tidewater Long Wearing Motor Oil. We thank Catesby Jones of Peace Frogs for [...]

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Israel does it. Virginia does it. Britain does it. Italy does it. They even do it on Marco Island, where old native Calusa artifacts helps to define an image of the city, and the Southwest Florida kingdom that they used to rule. It’s archeology, and it’s a very under-used weapon in tourism and place-branding. Most [...]

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One of the oldest extant American tobacco brands is Dill’s. J.G. Dill was once a great Virginia tobacco company, known worldwide for its Dill’s Best pipe tobacco. While as far as we know the tobacco brand Dill’s does not survive, Dill’s Premium Pipe Cleaners, known by their yellow and red package, do live on. J.G. [...]

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We are fascinated by the whole idea of the woman’s exchange movement, which started in the 1830s to allow “nice” women to sell goods on consignment to make spending money. In an age when there were few jobs for women and working outside the home had a stigma, this was a revolution. Through the years, [...]

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GOOCHLAND, VA – There aren’t too many drive-ins left, but some thrive. We can think specifically of Hull’s Drive In of Lexington, Virginia, where a community comes together summer nights to watch movies in their car. Hull’s almost closed, but the community rallied round, and saved the theater. There are many cases like this around [...]

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SUFFOLK – The home of the founder of Mr. Peanut, Amadeo Obici, is in danger of destruction, and has been named to Preservation Virginia’s Most Endangered list, just released this week. Obici was the founder of Planter’s Peanuts, and moved his company from Pennsylvania to Virginia to be closer to his supplies. In the process, [...]

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RICHMOND – I am a bit partial to the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities. They saved Jamestown Island, began the effort to save Williamsburg and have saved hundreds of historic houses across the state with their many affiliate groups. They have been a strong and potent advocate for quality of life issues in [...]

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I’d like to send a warning to those cities that are looking at putting up a new venue for their local ball clubs: The era of “retro” parks could end soon. (Quite an upbeat theme for baseball’s Opening Day, eh?) This also dovetails into a recent post on the the status of a ballpark in [...]

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