John W. Hemig Diaries -- 4 advertising notebooks and diaries used by Philadelphia waiter 1916-1920

1916. Hardcover. Good. John W. Hemig (1891-1978) was born in Reading, Pa.; by 1916 he had moved to Philadelphia where he worked as a waiter and assistant manager at Schwoerer's cafe on Market St. through 1930 or later. In that year the census indicates that his wife was Elsie and, though he could read and write, he had not attended college. He used these four advertising notebooks and diaries to records information about his life from 1916 to 1920. (1) Central Trust Co. diary. [approx. 80] p.: illustrations, tables; 10 cm. Calf with Central Trust Company emblem gilt-stamped on front cover. All page edges gilt. Endpapers are light green printed in blue. Front free endpaper has illustration of the Central Trust Company, Camden, N.J., and list of officers and directors. On Dec. 31, 1915, Hemig noted that he played his last game of pool per his New Year's resolution. However, this is crossed out and on Jan. 7 he notes that he played pool. In June 1916 he notes the Admen's Parade and in Nov. he notes the election of Woodrow Wilson. For most of the year, he records his work hours. In Very Good Condition: edges rubbed; first leaf has closed tear; solid. (2) W.J. McCahan Sugar Refining Co. advertising notebook. (Philadelphia: W.J. McCahan Sugar Refining Co., 1915). 6, [101], 7-13 p.; 11 cm. Full calf with name of company embossed on front cover. Calendars attached to inside of cover. No date of publication; includes calendars for 1916 and 1917. W.M. McCahan, a grocer, established a molasses house in 1873, which he converted into a sugar refinery in 1892. In 1920 it was sold to a Cuban sugar refiner, Czarnikow-Rionda Co., and became W.J. McCahan Sugar Refining and Molasses Co., which in 1944 was sold to the American Sugar Refining Co., becoming the Philadelphia Refining Co. In addition to the calendars, the book contains information on the products sold by McCahan, statistics on world sugar prices over many years, and various type of business information. The unpaginated pages are graph paper, where Hemig recorded the sale of pies throughout Philadelphia. In Good Condition: leather is heavily rubbed, with minor loss at head of spine; occasional staining and soiling. (3) Diary 1917 Atlas & Manual. [128] p.: tables, color maps; 14 cm. Light green cloth over light card cover with black stamped cover title. No publication information. All pages red. Corners rounded. The diary portion of this small book contains ruled pages with one week per page, as well as some memoranda pages. Hemig wrote his draft number on the front free endpaper verso. He recorded his hours of work; visiting his family in Reading; the death of Buffalo Bill; the death of his father; and the declaration of war against Germany. In Jan. "the Boss forbid us to take tips." On June 5 Hemig placed a patriotic sticker and wrote "Must Redgister for War" but on July 4, "Examined for Army I did not Pass." In Good+ Condition: cover is soiled; starting to split over back joint. (4) The Excelsior Diary 1913. [approx. 200] p.: tables; 13 cm. Leather flap binding with "Excelsior Diary" gilt-stamped on the flap. All page edges marbled. The first 28 pages contain one month per page and then the usual useful information, including interest tables, and a weekly table of wages. The remainder of the book contains lined paper arranged as a diary with two days per page. On the first few pages Hemig recorded candy recipes; his diary entries start on the Jan. 20 page with an entry for May 10, 1920, indicating that he had started a new job and the circus was in town. Entries continue for a month or so, then nothing until pages printed for Nov. and Dec. Final pages contain pages lined for accounting, with some used. In Good Condition: flap is detached but present; spine is rubbed with loss of leather; pages are clean and tight.