George Kelly & Co.
Credit LineCollection of Museum London, 1994
Object number1994.009.001
Label TextGeorge Kelly & Company cigar manufacturers operated in London from 1889 to 1916. In the late 19th century, London had dozens of cigar factories whose buildings still stand in the city's downtown. The city was second only to Montreal when it came to the production of cigars in Victorian Canada. London’s cigar-making industry took off after Prime Minister John A. Macdonald introduced the National Policy in 1879. This placed duties on manufactured products, like German cigars, but not on unprocessed materials like Cuban and American tobacco. Homegrown business could produce good quality, affordable products, including cigars. It's not surprising that Kelly closed his factory in 1916. With the introduction of Prohibition, the cigar industry suffered because the treating system ended. In that system, men in taverns would buy each other drinks, and those who didn't drink would receive a cigar. Another blow to cigars was the popularity of cigarettes. Men who smoked cigarettes during the First World War kept up the habit when they returned home.
NameSign, Trade
