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Ivory Soap Advertising Collection

American History Museum

Advertisements
There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page .
Finding aid
There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page .

Object Details

sova.nmah.ac.0791
GUID
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep88550648b-e85c-4b62-9ccb-f8e6872e4a86
Creator
Procter & Gamble Company
Leyendecker, J. C., 1874-1951
Smith, Jessie Willcox, 1863-1935
Elliott, Elizabeth Shippen Green
Topic
advertising
Soap
Provenance
Procter & Gamble donated this collection to the Archives Center, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution on October 24, 2001.
Creator
Procter & Gamble Company
Leyendecker, J. C., 1874-1951
Smith, Jessie Willcox, 1863-1935
Elliott, Elizabeth Shippen Green
See more items in
Ivory Soap Advertising Collection
Summary
Print advertisements covering almost the entire history of Ivory Soap, including advertisements designed by artists including Jesse Wilcox Smith, Elizabeth Shippen Green, and J. C. Leyendecker.
Biographical / Historical
In 1837, candle maker William Procter and soap maker James Gamble formed a partnership in Cincinnati, Ohio, to sell their products. The new company prospered, and by 1859 Procter & Gamble sales reached one million dollars. Contracts with the United States Army during the Civil War to supply soap and candles increased Procter & Gamble's customer base and reputation. In 1879, James Norris Gamble, son of the founder, developed an inexpensive pure white soap. A factory worker who forgot to shut off the soap-making machine when he left for lunch inadvertently improved the product. When he returned, the soap mixture was frothy due to the air that had been whipped into it, and the resulting soap cakes floated in water. There was immediate demand for the "floating soap." After considering many names for the new product, Harley Procter, son of the founder, finally named the soap "Ivory" after Psalms 45:8: "All thy garments smell of myrrh and aloes and cassia, out of the ivory palaces whereby they have made thee glad." Chemical analyses of the soap in 1882 revealed that 56/100 of the ingredients were not pure soap. Harley Procter subtracted that amount from one hundred and the slogan "99 and 44/100% pure" was born. The first ads appeared in 1882 in The Independent, a weekly newspaper. Innovations in production, distribution, and market research contributed to Procter & Gamble's success. Procter & Gamble also developed other products such as Ivory Flakes, Chipso (the first dishwasher soap), and Crisco. By 1945, Procter & Gamble had become a nearly $350 million company. The company also was an innovator in advertising, developing creative print advertisements aimed at different target groups, sponsoring radio shows and comic strips, and airing its first television commercial (for Ivory Soap) during the first televised major league baseball game. Procter & Gamble is now a global company, selling more than 250 products, including Ivory Soap, to five billion customers in 130 countries.
Extent
10 Cubic feet (30 boxes)
Date
1883-1998
Archival Repository
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
Identifier
NMAH.AC.0791
Type
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Advertisements
Photomechanical reproductions
Citation
Ivory Soap Collection, 1883-1998, undated; Archives Center, National Museum of American History. Gift of Procter & Gamble.
Arrangement
The collection is arranged into two series. Series 1: Ivory Soap Products Advertisements, 1883-1998, undated Series 2: Publications, 1883-1969, undated
Processing Information
Processed by Laura E. Hunt, 2003 and Anne Jones, volunteer, 2017.
Rights
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Genre/Form
Advertisements -- 20th century
Photomechanical reproductions
Advertisements -- 19th century
Scope and Contents
The collection consists of print advertising and publications covering almost the entire history of Ivory Soap. Researchers may use this collection to examine the evolution of advertising strategies and techniques from the very early days of mass-produced brand-name consumer products to the present. From the beginning, Ivory advertisements proclaimed the product's "99 and 44/100%" purity, its ability to float, and its versatility. The collection, however, is much more than a glimpse into advertising history. It is an extremely rich resource for a wide range of cultural studies. Ivory advertising was primarily aimed at women, and it contains many images of women, babies, and young children. The depictions reflect contemporary attitudes toward class structure, race, immigrants and residents of other countries, cleanliness, and domestic relationships. The advertisements often play upon the guilt of women, suggesting that their main concerns should be their husbands, children, and dishpan hands. Many advertisements associate cleanliness with social and religious propriety, physical fitness, and athleticism. There also are many images of men and women performing every-day tasks in gender-defined situations.
Restrictions
Collection is open for research.
Related Materials
Several collections in the Archives Center have materials relating to Ivory Soap. The J. Walter Wilkinson Papers contain art he created for Ivory Soap advertisements. The Ivory Soap 1940 Essay Contest Collection consists of documents relating to the contest and its winner, Helen Nixon. The Procter & Gamble Product Packaging Collection, 1940s-1970s, includes Ivory brand products. The Warshaw Collection of Business Americana's "Soap" subject category contains documents relating to Procter & Gamble and other manufacturers. About twenty-five per cent of the advertisements in this collection are reproduced in the Archives Center's digital image library.
Separated Materials
Artifacts donated to the Division of Medicine and Science.
NMAH.AC.0791
Large EAD
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep88550648b-e85c-4b62-9ccb-f8e6872e4a86
NMAH.AC.0791
ACAH
Record ID
ebl-1562730500512-1562730500716-0

  • Images 109 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Archival materials 109 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Print advertising 105 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Photographs 62 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Comics 19 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Point-of-purchase displays 3 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Comic strips 2 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Proof sheets 2 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Advertisements 1 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Portraits 1 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Jews 3 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • 1930s 58 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • 1940s 51 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Minneapolis (Minn.) 2 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Pittsburgh (Pa.) 1 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Ivory Soap Advertising Collection 109 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • hands 48 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Women 35 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Dishwashing 29 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Children 27 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Wives 25 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Soap 22 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Husbands 18 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Women in advertising 18 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Complexion 16 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Skin 16 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Marriage 14 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Men 12 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Mothers 11 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Premiums (Retail trade) 11 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • World War, 1939-1945 11 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Baths 10 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Beauty, Personal 8 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Courtship 7 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Children in advertising 6 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Men in advertising 6 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Daughters 5 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Family 5 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Hosiery 4 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Laundry 4 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Women employees 4 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • CC0 109 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Yes 109 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • ead_component 109 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus

Clear facet(s):

Included:

  • Remove Set Name: Ivory Soap Advertising Collection / Series 1: Ivory Soap Products Advertisements / Advertisements- Newsprint close
  • ["You won't find romance in a book.."]. [Print advertising.] Newspapers

  • 12 Days from Today your HANDS can be LOVELIER! [Point-of-purchase display.] Newspapers

  • In wartime, keep your colors flying!...Get up to TWICE THE WEAR... [Print advertising.]

  • Why a daily odorless Ivory bath keeps my skin silken. [Print advertising.] American Weekly

  • No-oh..he doesn't look like a Movie Hero! [Print advertising.] New York Mirror

  • Her skin is sensitive so her soap is Ivory. [Print advertising.] Saturday Evening Post

  • Everybody Loves My Improved Ivory Soap! [Print advertising.]

  • Where do pretty models come from? [color advertisement]

  • How Judy, age 1 taught Jane, age 22 to look more beautiful. [Print advertising.] Chicago Tribune

  • Lady, Beware of Strong Soap In Your Dishpan! [Print advertising.]

  • My baby's so cross this hot weather! [Print advertising.] Newspapers

  • He says Sending Flowers is Crazy! [Print advertising.]

  • Could this happen to you? [Print advertising.] Newspapers

  • Oh Dear! A Gray Hair! [Print advertising.] Newspapers

  • Don't Let Wartime Colors Fade! [Print advertising.] This Week

  • Tick! Tick! I'm Telling You, Lady! [Print advertising.] This Week

  • An all year 'round Gift to the Busy Family [Print advertising.]

  • Li'l Ivry. [Print advertising.] Newspapers

  • Historians Overlooked the Biggest Event of 1879. [Print advertising.] Wall Street Journal

  • Husband Cruel. [Print advertising.]

  • [Mother with children, text in Yiddish]. [Print advertising.] Jewish newspapers

  • The Gibson Family Has Moved to Sunday. [Print advertising.] Newspapers

  • The Standby of the "Busy Family" can help you in 1001 ways. [Print advertising.]

  • Look! A Penny! [Print advertising.]


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