DID YOU KNOW?
(Did you know? Milton Hershey was almost on the Titanic during its fateful final voyage, even putting down a $300 deposit for the crossing, but a business emergency made him change his travel plans at the last minute.)
Quickly, the Hershey Chocolate Company's success far exceeded that of its founder's previous venture.
His winning ideas included the Hershey Kiss in 1907, which the company's founder named himself. The trademark foil wrapper was added in 1924. As the company grew and Hershey's wealth expanded, so did his vision for creating a model community in his home region. In the town that came to be known as Hershey, Pennsylvania, Hershey built schools, parks, churches, recreational facilities, and housing for his employees. He even added a trolley system for his workers.
Now, at his side for much of this philanthropy was his wife, Catherine, whom he had married in 1898. Unable to have children of their own, the Hersheys focused a good portion of their giving on endeavors that affected kids. In 1909, the couple opened the Hershey Industrial School, a facility for orphaned boys. It has since become a landing spot for girls as well and is now known as the Milton Hershey School.
In 1918, three years after Catherine's unexpected death, Hershey transferred much of his wealth, including his ownership stake in the Hershey Chocolate Company, to the Hershey Trust, which funds the Hershey School. Hershey's philanthropy continued even when the economy struggled and he was nearing the end of his life. In the 1930s, during the Great Depression, Hershey ignited a building mini-boom in his town to keep men working. He ordered the construction of a large hotel, a community building, and new offices for the Hershey Company.
During World War II, Hershey backed the country's military efforts by supplying forces with chocolate bars called the Ration D Bar and the better-tasting Tropical Chocolate Bar.
To those who knew Hershey, his generosity was not surprising. Shy and
delicacy and largely the domain of the Swiss. Hershey was determined to find a new formula that would allow him to mass-produce and mass-distribute milk chocolate candy.
In 1900, he sold the Lancaster Caramel Company for an astonishing $1 million. Three years later, he began building a mammoth and modern candy-making facility in Derry Church. It opened in 1905, setting a new course for Hershey and the candy industry.