Bill Harmsen (June 20, 1912, in

Saint Paul, Minnesota Saint Paul (abbreviated St. Paul) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital of the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Ramsey County, Minnesota, Ramsey County. Situated on high bluffs overlooking a bend in the Mississip ...

– April 10, 2002 in

Wheat Ridge, Colorado The City of Wheat Ridge is a home rule municipality located in Jefferson County, Colorado, United States. Wheat Ridge is located immediately west of Denver and is a part of the Denver–Aurora–Lakewood, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area. The ...

) was one of the creators of the

Jolly Rancher Jolly Rancher is an American brand of sweet hard candy, gummies, jelly beans, lollipops, sour bites, and a line of soda put out by Elizabeth Beverage Company in 2004. It is currently manufactured by The Hershey Company. History Bill and Doroth ...

brand of hard candies.

Family

His wife Dorothy Harmsen was born on September 3, 1914, in

Minneapolis, Minnesota Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

, and died on August 29, 2006, of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...

at age 91. They had three children.

Jolly Rancher

The couple moved to

Denver, Colorado Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

, in 1942. In 1949 they opened a candy store in

Golden, Colorado Golden is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Home rule municipality, home rule city that is the county seat of Jefferson County, Colorado, Jefferson County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 20,399 at the 2020 United States Censu ...

, called the Jolly Rancher, named after the Jolly Farmer, a depression era general store selling hard candies in their hometown of

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

. Unhappy with local candy suppliers, they decided to make their own candy, which led to the creation of Jolly Rancher candy. The Harmsens ran a very successful company for almost 21 years before selling it to

Beatrice Foods Beatrice Foods Company was a major American food processing company founded in 1894. In 1987, its international food operations were sold to Reginald Lewis, a corporate attorney, creating TLC Beatrice International, after which the majority of ...

in 1966, with Bill Harmsen residing as president until 1977. The company was purchased by Hershey in 1996, and Jolly Rancher has become one of America's most popular hard candies with over a dozen flavors and millions sold since their creation.

Life After the Jolly Rancher

After his leaving the business, the Harmsens became even more involved in collecting Western Art and writing about it with their own publishing company. Some of the pieces in their collection included works by artists such as Alfred Miller,

George Catlin George Catlin (July 26, 1796 – December 23, 1872) was an American adventurer, lawyer, painter, author, and traveler, who specialized in portraits of Native Americans in the United States, Native Americans in the Old West. Traveling to the We ...

, Joseph H. Sharp, Victor Higgins,

Frederic Remington Frederic Sackrider Remington (October 4, 1861 – December 26, 1909) was an American painter, illustrator, sculptor, and writer who specialized in the genre of Western American Art. His works are known for depicting the Western United State ...

, and

Robert Henri Robert Henri (; June 24, 1865 – July 12, 1929) was an American painter and teacher. As a young man, he studied in Paris, where he identified strongly with the Impressionists, and determined to lead an even more dramatic revolt against A ...

. Later in life, they donated tracts of land to the Golden Gate Canyon State Park in Colorado. In 2001, the couple donated close to 5,000 pieces of art and

American West The Western United States (also called the American West, the Far West, and the West) is the region comprising the westernmost states of the United States. As American settlement in the U.S. expanded westward, the meaning of the term ''the Wes ...

memorabilia to the

Denver Art Museum The Denver Art Museum (DAM) is an art museum located in the Civic Center of Denver, Colorado. With encyclopedic collections of more than 70,000 diverse works from across the centuries and world, the DAM is one of the largest art museums between t ...

. He died of prostate cancer in 2002, aged 89.

References

External links

Bill Harmsen
profile at Internet Accuracy Project
Dorothy HarmsenJolly Rancher
- Official site {{DEFAULTSORT:Harmsen, Bill Businesspeople in confectionery 1912 births 2002 deaths