| A.
M. Todd Company: Flavoring Oils
On a breezy day, the sweet smell of Albert M. Todd’s legacy
still wafts through downtown Kalamazoo. Building on a boyhood interest,
Todd established the mint industry in this area in 1869 and was
so successful at it that he became known as the "Peppermint
King." Nearly seventy years after his death, the A. M. Todd
Company still scents the air of the city and flavors the chewing
gum and toothpaste of the world from its headquarters on Douglas
Avenue.
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Todd Company's Rose Street building, 1894 |
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Source: Art Work of City of Kalamazoo. |
Todd’s interest in growing and distilling
peppermint began with boyhood experimentation in his own backyard,
spurred by the wide growth of mint in his native St. Joseph County,
Michigan. After enrolling as a chemistry student at Northwestern University,
he continued to learn all he could about the cultivation of mint.
Later, he studied mint production in Europe, bringing back numerous
specimens from European gardens. The flavor of mint has the tendency
to replace all other flavors in the mouth, leaving only its own flavor.
This characteristic has made it popular in the production of toothpaste,
chewing gum, and candies.
The mint plant can only be grown in the northern hemisphere, preferably
in muck-soil bottom lands. Todd located just such land about 12
miles northwest of Kalamazoo, eventually putting 5,000 acres under
cultivation. In 1875, Todd began marketing his "Crystal White"
mint oil, the product of his plant cultivation and mint oil distilling
inventions. He revolutionized the industry by the introduction of
improved plants and manufacturing methods, and the establishment
of high standards of purity in the essential oils that he produced.
By the turn of the century, the A.M. Todd Company Ltd. was responsible
for half of the world’s mint production.
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The Douglas Avenue headquarters, undated
but about 1950. |
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Source: Kalamazoo Public Library
Photograph P-829 |
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In 1891, the company moved into the newly
constructed Todd Block on the southwest corner of Rose Street and
Kalamazoo Avenue, where it had easy access to the rail line for shipping.
It stood as a city landmark for decades until its demolition in 1970.
The Kalamazoo County Administration Building now occupies the site.
In the nineteenth century, most mint oil was shipped abroad for
medicinal use, but after the turn of the century, a developing taste
for mint flavored candy and chewing gum and other products, increased
the domestic market. The company outgrew the Todd Block and in 1929
moved to its current Douglas Avenue facility, where it survived
the Depression and expanded its production into citrus oils, vanilla,
and other flavorings for food, confections and medical and dental
products. One hundred and thirty years after its founding, it continues
to be run by descendants of Albert
May Todd.
Written by Catherine Larson and Martha
Lohrstorfer, Kalamazoo Public Library Staff, 1999.
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For further information, we suggest
these sources:
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History Room Subject File: Todd, A. M., Company |
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"A. M. Todd: The Peppermint King," Encore, October
1981, pp.16-28. |
H 977.418
M417 |
Massie, Larry B. and Peter J. Schmitt. Kalamazoo, the Place
Behind the Products. Windsor Publications, 1981, p.288. |
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