Object Record
Images
Metadata
Collection |
Waterloo Region Museum |
Object ID |
2015.017.009 |
Object Name |
Dirndl |
Description |
Orange coloured, German dirndl. Blue trim with flowers along the lower and upper edges. Zipper in the front. This dirndl was created by "Dirndl Schatz Ltd." located in Waterloo, Ontario. |
Date |
1975 |
Date |
1990 |
Dimensions |
H-40.64 W-4.445 L-81.28 cm |
History |
John Metz (J.M.) Schneider (1859-1942) began selling sausages door to door in 1886. The sausages were made with his mother's recipe and with help from both his wife, Helena Ahrens (1859-1944) and mother, Anna (Metz) Schneider (1832-1904). In 1890, J.M. began making sausages full-time from his home on Courtland Avenue. By 1900, he had built a retail store next to his home in order to expand the business. In 1911, J.M. bought a 16-acre parcel of land at the end of Courtland Avenue, where an abattoir was built. The following year, the business was organized into a joint stock company under the name of J.M. Schneider & Sons Limited. In order to keep up with demand, a new factory was built on the same 16-acre parcel of land, which opened in 1925. In 1930, the company was renamed J.M. Schneider Limited, and new items such as non-sausage meats and cheeses were introduced. By the mid-1940s, the company employed over 500 people at the Courtland plant. Expansion continued with the Wellesley Cheese Company being acquired in 1945, followed by six other companies across the country by 1972. The corporate structure was reorganized in 1975 with a holding company, Schneiders Corporation, formed to oversee the various companies. J.M. Schneider Limited became J.M. Schneider Inc. and continued to be the meat processing division. Schneiders had remained a family-owned business until 1997 when the company was sold to Smithfield Foods of the United States. Smithfield then sold the company to Maple Leaf Foods in 2004. The Courtland Avenue plant was closed in February of 2015, with 1,200 jobs being lost. Dirndl Schatz Limited was located on 2 King Street South in Waterloo. The dirndl was most likely worn by employees in parades and at other events. |
Search Terms |
J.M. Schneider Inc. Dirndl Schatz Limited |