| Date | Text | |
|---|---|---|
11 Oct 1844
Henry John Heinz |
birth Henry John Heinz Born 11 Oct 1844; died 14 May 1919 at age 74. American businessman who founded H.J. Heinz Co.and invented its “57 varieties” slogan was a born salesman. His entrepreneur and business genius had roots in post-Civil War Pittsburgh, where iron, steel and glass factories were forging industrial America. By age 12 he was peddling produce from the family garden. At 25, in 1869, he and a friend launched Heinz & Noble. Its first product: Henry's mother's grated horseradish, bottled in clear glass to reveal its purity. Heinz & Noble thrived until an overabundance of crops in 1875 brought bankruptcy. But Henry plunged back in, eventually building a model factory complex along the Allegheny River. By 1896, at only 52, the pickle king had become a millionaire and celebrity. |
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