Box, Food Storage
Object number2015.42.1 a,b
Manufacturer
General Foods Corporation
Date1939-1945
OriginNew York, NY
MediumPaper/Ink/Adhesive
Credit LineGift of Susan Muir
DescriptionSupper Ration Type K cardboard box with one piece detached. Brown cardboard box with green text and decoration on all exterior sides. Decoration is geometric shapes and stars. The text describes the contents, opening instructions, manufacture information, and safety information. Box is open on one end and empty.
Dimensions(a) Height 3.75, Width 7.25, Depth 1.625;(b) Height 1.5, Width 3.5, Depth 0.125.
Marks(a)
Side has green printed maker's mark: "Packaged by / GENERAL FOODS CORPORATION / New York, N. Y., U. S. A."
Green printed text on all exterior sides:
Front:
"Supper / RATION TYPE K / Open inner bag carefully. It may be / used as a waterproof container for / matches, cigarettes and other items. / For security, hide the empty can and / wrappers so that they cannot be seen."
Side:
"NOTICE - Mosquito bites cause malaria. If you / are in a malaria zone keep your shirt on and / your sleeves rolled down, use mosquito repellent / when out of doors between sunset and sunrise."
Back:
"SUPPER / Meat: eat cold, or after heating by / boiling can in water, or after frying in / its own fat with added biscuit crumbs. / Assorted biscuits Bouillion / add to two-thirds canteen cup of / hot or cold water Confection / Cigarettes Chewing Gum".
End:
"S".
Historical NotesPart of a collection of WWII-related artifacts from the military service of Gabe Torisky of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, who served with the 99th “Checkerboard” Infantry Division during the Ardennes campaign in Belgium. Martin Gabriel "Gabe" Torisky was of Slovak ancestry and was born on November 11, 1911, in Uniontown, PA. He moved to Pittsburgh in the 1920s and was drafted and sent to 99th Division during World War II. The 99th Division is especially important in relation to Pittsburgh, as the Division was originally headquartered in the city in 1942, and the unit insignia, a black shield with a checkerboard band of nine alternating white and blue squares (for “99”) was derived from the coat of arms for William Pitt and thus, also the city seal of Pittsburgh, on which the checkerboard also appears. Donor Susan Muir is Gabe Torisky's daughter.
Previous owner
Martin Gabriel Torisky
(born 1911)
Related institution
99th Infantry Division
On View
Not on viewAmerican Safety Table Company
Kern Foods Inc.
Universal Folding Box Company, Inc.