Acme Packing Company

The Indian Packing Company was an American canned meat company that operated between 1919 and 1921. It was founded in Delaware and had various facilities across the country, including Green Bay, Wisconsin. It was purchased by the Acme Packing Company, which shut down in 1943 due to supply shortages related to World War II. The company had a connection to the founding of the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL). Curly Lambeau, one of the co-founders of the Packers, worked as a shipping clerk in 1919 for the Indian Packing Company. In return for use of the company's athletic field and money for sports equipment, the team took on the name "Packers". Although the company quickly faded from history, its name stuck with the team and is still in use today.

History

The Indian Packing Company was formed in Delaware and legally organized on July 22, 1919. Earlier that year, a patent for "Council Meats, A Market on Your Pantry Shelf" was granted to the company. Indian Packing operated multiple packing plants in Wisconsin, Indiana, and Rhode Island. The plants were known to be modern for that era. The company was well known for its Council Meats brand, which was well-advertised.

Merger with Acme Packing

In December 1920, it was announced that the Acme Packing Company acquired all of the assets of the Indian Packing Company, subject to approval by the shareholders of the Indian Packing Company. At the time, no additional details were provided by company president Frank Peck, although an audit of financial records was ongoing. The merger of the two firms was finalized in January 1921, with Acme Packing Company being valued at $12 million . Acme's president, C. E. Martin, took over as the president of the merged company, with the expectation that the merger would save a significant amount of money. Almost all of the staff of Indian Packing Company retired at the merger. In 1943, during World War II, Acme Packing Company closed, as did many other meat packing companies.

Green Bay Packers

In 1919, Curly Lambeau and George Whitney Calhoun worked together to form a local football team in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Lambeau, who had recently started a job as a shipping clerk for the Indian Packing Company, reached out to his employer, Frank Peck, for funding to support the new team. The company put up funding to purchase equipment and allowed the team to use a field next to the packing plant for practices. The team entered the American Professional Football Association, the precursor to the National Football League (NFL), in 1921, with John and Emmett Clair of the Acme Packing Company (which was now in control after the merger with Indian Packing) being granted the franchise. Acme lost the franchise after the team fielded collegiate players under assumed names. Lambeau saved up enough money to have the franchise reinstated under his control. With their meat packing roots, the team became known as the "Packers". Even though other nicknames, such as the Bays, the Indians, and the Blues, were used, the "Packers" ended up sticking. Frank Jonet, who served as the secretary-treasurer of the Packers for many years, worked for Acme Packing prior to his association with the Packers. Wally Ladrow, who played with Lambeau on the original Packers teams, also worked for Indian Packing.

In 2000, PETA called for the Packers to change their name due to its association with the packaging and consumption of meat. The historic meat packing plants are now identified as part of the Packers Heritage Trail.

References

{{Green Bay Packers, state=collapsed

History of the Green Bay Packers
Meat companies of the United States
American companies established in 1919
American companies disestablished in 1921
Agriculture companies established in 1919
Packers Heritage Trail