Nebraska Cigars Once a Smoker’s Delight

Ross & Bryson Cigar Factory, Lincoln. NSHS RG2158-PH9-16 (above).

The photograph above, from the collections of the Nebraska State Historical Society, depicts employees of a Lincoln establishment, identified by a sign over the awning as the Ross & Bryson Cigar Factory, about 1910. Others have gathered to pose, including a young boy seated at left. A cigar store Indian stands in the window at right.

Although Nebraska has never been known as a center of cigar manufacture, the state once boasted a number of small cigar factories that by 1900 were turning out more than thirty million cigars each year. Many of these early cigar “factories” were actually cottage industries located in a home or perhaps an adjoining shed. Two or three people made cigars by hand, using wooden molds. However, not all cigar manufacturing was done on such a small scale, even in Nebraska. A Grand Island cigar factory in 1890 employed thirty-eight people, many of them young women. The firm, said the Grand Island Independent, “keeps a great stock of fine leaf tobaccos of the best domestic brands, and of foreign tobaccos, which come all the way from Havana and even Sumatra.”

 

Employees at the Ross & Bryson Cigar Factory in Lincoln, Nebraska. On the table in the foreground are tools of the cigar rollers’ trade, including cigar holding block, presses, and containers of tobacco. NSHS RG2158-PH9-15 (above).

Said to be “shrewd, energetic businessmen,” the two proprietors of Ross & Bryson, Samuel J. Ross and C. E. Bryson, got their start in Tecumseh in June 1890, where in 1892 their firm employed from seven to twelve cigar makers to produce both five-cent and ten-cent cigars, the latter called their “Genuine Havana.” Ross later relocated to Lincoln, where he first appears in the city directory in 1907 as an employee of cigar manufacturers Herminghaus & Hellweg.

Ross & Bryson in the capital city must have been a small concern. Although Ross continued to be listed by the city directory as a cigar maker through the late 1920s, the firm name itself does not appear. The photo at the top of the page was probably taken before July 7 of 1910, when the Alliance Herald noted that Lincoln dentist Albert Gaiser, whose sign is posted at left, moved his dental practice to Alliance.

– Patricia C. Gaster, Assistant Editor / Publications

Become a Member!

Our members make history happen.

Join Now

You May Also Enjoy

The Story of Omaha Police Fingerprint Expert Emily Byram

The Story of Omaha Police Fingerprint Expert Emily Byram

Marker Monday: Cather Childhood Home

Marker Monday: Cather Childhood Home

Yutan Tornado – March 23, 1913

Yutan Tornado – March 23, 1913

About History Nebraska
History Nebraska was founded in 1878 as the Nebraska State Historical Society by citizens who recognized Nebraska was going through great changes and they sought to record the stories of both indigenous and immigrant peoples. It was designated a state institution and began receiving funds from the legislature in 1883. Legislation in 1994 changed History Nebraska from a state institution to a state agency. The division is headed by Interim Director and CEO Jill Dolberg. They are assisted by an administrative staff responsible for financial and personnel functions, museum store services, security, and facilities maintenance for History Nebraska.
Explore Nebraska
Discover the real places and people of our past at these History Nebraska sites.

Upcoming Events

View our new and upcoming events to see how you can get involved.

Become a Member

The work we do to discover, preserve, and share Nebraska's history wouldn't be possible without the support of History Nebraska members.

Latest Hall of Fame Inductee

The Nebraska Hall of Fame was established in 1961 to officially recognize prominent Nebraskans.

Listen to our Podcast

Listen to the articles and authors published in the Nebraska History Magazine with our new Nebraska History Podcast.

Nebraska Collections

History Nebraska's mission is to collect, preserve, and open our shared history to all Nebraskans.

Our YouTube Video Collection

Get a closer look at Nebraska's history through your own eyes, with our extensive video collections.

Additional Research Resources

History Nebraska Research and Reference Services help connect you to the material we collect and preserve.

Support History Nebraska
Make a cash donation to help us acquire, preserve, and interpret Nebraska’s history. Gifts to History Nebraska help leave a legacy and may help your taxes, too! Support the work of History Nebraska by donating to the History Nebraska Foundation today.

Volunteers are the heroes of History Nebraska. So much history, so little time! Your work helps us share access to Nebraska’s stories at our museums and sites, the reference room, and online.