Description
A significant parchment and another window into the Ireland of the 1800's. This brave little bakery on Bridge Street is about to expand their range of products to include fancy cakes and biscuits. To facilitate this, they will open a new premises at No. 69 The Quay, Waterford. It was an optimistic move in light of the famine, which was ravaging the country at the time. It was a "life must go on attitude" of perseverance. It is not readily known how successful the venture was in the new shop on The Quay. What we do know however is that the little bakery in Bridge street continued as such until 1885. It was the beginning of a biscuit making empire!
A man named Joseph Haughton from Dublin invented the cream cracker in his home and subsequently William Jacob went on to manufacture the crackers in his little bakery at Bridge Street, Waterford. During that time in Waterford, there was huge demand to provide food for ships which created an opportunity for the family to produce biscuits, as they had become a staple food for sailors on long voyages. The Jacob's brand went on to become a huge success and the cream cracker a world favourite snack.
P.S. The poster mentions a substance called BARM for sale at four pence a gallon. Barm was a by-product of the brewing process and used as a raising agent when baking bread.