Images(4)

Box, Cigarette

Object number2015.42.3

Manufacturer JEMCO

Manufacturer Liggett and Myers Tobacco Company

Date1939-1945

MediumMetal/Paper/Ink

Credit LineGift of Susan Muir

DescriptionMetal container holding paper cigarette pack. Metal framework with open front and back sides that show the cigarette pack inside. Metal framework has inscribed circle designs on all sides and maker's mark on bottom; a two-paneled hinged lid is released by push button on side. Off-white paper soft-pack of Chesterfield Cigarettes inside with colorful printed text and decoration.Dimensions3.063 x 2.25 x 1 in. (7.8 x 5.7 x 2.5 cm)
MarksMetal framework has maker's mark on bottom: "JEMCO" inside a diamond with "HOLD-a-PAK" to the right.

Pack of cigarettes has purple text on front "Chesterfield / CIGARETTES / LIGGETT & MYERS TOBACCO CO."; back has additional purple text describing the contents.
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

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