VERY LARGE 19th Century Leavitt & Peirce Tobacco Famous Cake Box Toleware Tin Cambridge Massachusetts- Harvard-Tobacianna/Cake/Storage

This VERY LARGE 19th Century Leavitt & Peirce Tobacco Famous Cake Box Toleware Tin is SPECTACULAR and would be wonderful presented in any smoking den! Great advertising, great paint, great storage. It is very large and measures 18"x13"x13"; the tin is in excellent condition with no dents or holes. The lid opens and closes easily and the box retains its original hinges. There is some wear to the black paint especially the top lid (please see our photos); there is paint wear under the original side handles which can only be accomplished from age and use (and only adds to its charm).
Some history of the smoke shop:
"Like its Cake Box tobacco, over the years Leavitt and Peirce has retained a flavor all its own. Founded in 1884 to serve the Harvard man, it immediately attained primacy as an exclusive gathering place for upperclassmen. Around its pot-belly stove pipe smokers gathered to experiment with tobacco mixtures and help the proprietors perfect the Cake Box brand that brought them fame. Today, Leavitt's struggles to maintain its old intimate atmosphere. In a world of Shultes and Hav-a-Tampas, it still conceives of itself as a gentleman's smoke shop.
Two customs of the nineteenth century have survived: an open tobacco tin and an upstairs "lounge." At Leavitt's these are revered traditions, to be distinguished from its more modern day practices of posting University athletic notices and supplying free train schedules for over fifty railroads.
When Frederick Leavitt and Wallace Peirce opened their shop at what is now 1316 Massachusetts Avenue, they left an open tin of tobacco scraps on the counter beside the stove. Up the street, where Bob Slate's Stationery Store now stands, they operated a smaller shop under similar arrangements for freshmen. The proprietors tried different mixtures until they found one undergraduates particularly enjoyed. This was packed up in cake box tins for Leavitt and Peirce customers to take home. Later it was shipped to graduates, who passed it among their friends, establishing the brand abroad. Soon Leavitt's found itself in the wholesale business, manufacturing Cake Box tobacco, cigars, and cigarettes. Today, the flourishing wholesale business guarantees the tobacco shop's solvency. Out of gratitude Leavitt's has kept an open tin of tobacco on its counter."
Please message us if you have any questions at all- It is a wonderful tin! Thank you for stopping by!