Thanks everyone for the leads.


It seems that there was a early Hercules Powder Company created in 1882 by
Laflin & Rand Powder Company and Dupont. It produced dynamite only and was
extinct by 1912, when a second Hercules Powder Company was created by
DuPont. This second Hercules Powder Company made black powder and other
explosives until 1966 when they finished their 25 year transition to
specialty chemicals. This company is now a large chemical corporation called
Hercules Incorporated.  They have a current presence in, at least, Hercules,
CA, Hattiesburg, MS, Brunswick, GA and Wilmington, DE. DuPont or the
Hercules Powder Company acquired the California Powder Works in Hercules,
CA, sometime after 1893, when it started producing Hercules brand black
powder. This company town was named after the Hercules brand black powder
first made at the California Powder Works when it was located in Santa Cruz,
CA.

These canisters must date from the period 1912-1966. To narrow down the
dates, were these canisters used for the entire period or did they vary in
style, size and/or material? The histories I consulted had no details on
packaging.


Jeffrey Lee Johnson M.A.,RPA
EcoPlan Associates, Inc.
701 West Southern Avenue
Mesa, Arizona 85210

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