The D. L. Clark Company was founded in 1886 in

Allegheny, Pennsylvania Allegheny City was a municipality that existed in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania from 1788 until it was annexed by Pittsburgh in 1907. It was located north across the Allegheny River from downtown Pittsburgh, with its southwest border formed by ...

, now part of

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

, by David L. Clark (1864–1939), an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

-born candy salesman. In 1921, Clark Brothers Chewing Gum Company was spun off as a separate corporation. In 1955, when the family-owned D. L. Clark company was sold 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 ...

, they had production facilities in Pittsburgh and Evanston, Illinois. Beatrice sold it in 1983 to

Leaf A leaf ( : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, ste ...

, and they in turn sold Clark in 1991, though Leaf retained the rights to Clark's

Zagnut Zagnut is a candy bar produced and sold in the United States. Its main ingredients are peanut butter and toasted coconut. History The Zagnut bar was launched in 1930, by the D. L. Clark Company of western Pennsylvania, which also made the Clar ...

and P. C. Crunchers bars. The new owner, entrepreneur Michael P. Carlow, would operate it under the umbrella of the

Pittsburgh Food & Beverage Company The Pittsburgh Food & Beverage Company was a holding company created in 1991 by entrepreneur Michael P. Carlow to manage a pair of struggling but iconic companies in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Originally joining the candymaker D. L. Clark Co., make ...

. The Pittsburgh Food and Beverage Company entered bankruptcy in 1995, and many assets from the D. L. Clark Company, such as the rights to the

Clark Bar The Clark Bar is a candy bar consisting of a crispy peanut butter/spun taffy core (originally with a caramel center) and coated in milk chocolate. It was the first American "combination" candy bar to achieve nationwide success. Two similar candy ...

, were sold. The assets of D. L. Clark were purchased by Pittsburgh businessman James Clister for $3.2 million, and operated under the newly formed Clark Bar America, Inc. Following a subsequent bankruptcy, its assets were acquired by

Necco Necco (or NECCO ) was an American manufacturer of candy created in 1901 as the New England Confectionery Company through the merger of several small confectionery companies located in the Greater Boston area, with ancestral companies dating b ...

(New England Confectionery Company) in 1999 for $4.1 million ($ million today). Clark's chewing gum spinoff, renamed Clark Gum Company, was sold in 1931 to Philip Morris, who held it until 1973, when they sold the rights to Clark Gum to Reed's Candy, an

HP Hood HP Hood LLC is an American dairy company based in Lynnfield, Massachusetts. Hood was founded in 1846 in Charlestown, Massachusetts, by Harvey Perley Hood. Recent company acquisitions by HP Hood have expanded its reach from predominantly New Eng ...

subsidiary. They would have the gum made through a cooperative arrangement with Amurol, a Wrigley Gum subsidiary. Reed's Candy was sold to Amurol in 1989, but the deal did not include the gum, retained by a newly rechristened Clark Gum Company.

Clark's Teaberry Clark's Teaberry is a brand of chewing gum. The D. L. Clark Company of Pittsburgh's north side purchased the patent for it from Charles Burke, who experimented with various flavors of chewing gum in the basement of 533 McClintock Ave, Pittsburgh ...

gum is currently marketed by First Source, LLC in

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from South ...

, and made in

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

Clark products over the years

Candies

*Alligator Eggs *Banana Caramels *Black Jack Caramels *Boomer *Bun (vanilla, maple and caramel flavors) *Chocolate Chips *Chocolate Malted Milk Balls *Clarconut *Clark (original) *Clark Coconut *Clark Dark *Clark Light *Clark's Miami Coconut *Clark Mint *Clark's Wintergreen *Coconut Frosted Creams *Crispy *Crunchy *Fudge Bar *Honest Square *Iceland Sandwich *Mario Bun, named for

Mario Lemieux Mario Lemieux (; ; born October 5, 1965) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. He played parts of 17 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Pittsburgh Penguins between 1984 and 2006, and he assumed ownership of the f ...

*Mint Appetizers *Nutcracker *Peanut Blossom Kisses *Peanut Butter Log *Reggie! *Sassy *Sour Cherry Crème *Sour Grape Crème *Sour Lemon Crème *Spanish Chips *Sunpower *Wild Cherry Caramels *Winter Clark *Zagnut (now made by Hershey's) *Zig Zag

Clark's gum flavors

*Cinnamint *Cinnamon *Diet Spearmint *Freshmint *Fruit Punch *Peppermint *Smile Sugar Free (various flavors) *Sour Cherry *Sour Lemon *Sweetwood * Teaberry *Tendermint *Winter Green

References

External links

A Short History of Clark's Teaberry Chewing Gum
{{DEFAULTSORT:Clark, D. L. Defunct companies based in Pennsylvania Food and drink companies established in 1886 Confectionery companies of the United States Chocolate companies based in Pennsylvania Buildings and structures completed in 1924 Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation Historic Landmarks 1886 establishments in Pennsylvania 1955 mergers and acquisitions