Quality Street Tins … or ‘A Hundred Soldiers Under My Bed!’
By Celia Cotton

I expect many of you will have a ‘Quality Street’ tin, full of buttons or screws, that has been in your home for years. It probably held a pound of chocolates and toffees and has a soldier and his lady on the lid. The soldier and lady may be standing in the street, on a beach, in a cottage garden, at a fair, or – well, that’s what makes the collecting interesting.

When my husband and I started collecting tins, we often came across ‘Quality Street’ tins, usually costing very little. As the collection grew, I thought it would be interesting to find out about the designs and a little of the history of the manufacturers. This is a brief summary.

John Mackintosh of Halifax, Yorkshire, first produced ‘Quality Street’ in 1936. Mackintosh had been going for over 40 years by this date and were well known for their toffees. They acquired a chocolate manufacturer, Caley’s of Norwich in 1932, and were then able to produce an assortment of toffees and chocolates.

The name ‘Quality Street’ was taken from a 1902 play by J.M. Barrie (better known for Peter Pan) and the soldier and lady are based on the lead characters of the play, Major Quality and Miss Sweetly. The film ‘Quality Street’ starring Katherine Hepburn and Franchot Tone came out around the same time as the sweets.

Major and Miss were used in designs from 1936 onwards and still feature today. At first they appeared in a street scene, outside a bow fronted shop window with a large tin of ‘Quality Street’. This design has been used in 1986 and 1996 anniversary tins too. As well as Major and Miss, the designs also feature a boy with a hoop, a little dog and a horse drawn carriage.

In the 1950s several street based designs were used, including some snow scenes for Christmas, and as time went on both Major and Miss became more youthful in appearance. Major lost his moustaches in the 1950s.

Major and Miss were from the nineteenth century but designs show the influence of the present day. A psychedelic design was used in the late 1960s for example, complete with purple clouds. Miss appears in a midi skirt in one design, whereas Major sports sideboards in a 1970s pose.

They also move away from the street and into a variety of settings from the 1960s onwards. None of the designs I have found so far is signed; nearly all are graphic designs although at least one used photos.

‘Mackintosh merged with Rowntree in 1969 and Nestle bought Rowntree in 1988, so it is possible to get an idea of tin date by looking at the manufacturer’s address.

Catalogues provided to grocers are also extremely useful in dating designs. I have found one part catalogue from 1964 and it shows nine different ‘Quality Street’ tin designs were available, including two for ½ lb children’s tins.

The name Mackintosh has finally disappeared from the tins (it survived into the 1990s) but Major and Miss still appear, albeit in usually a smaller motif.

‘Quality Street’ tins do not always feature Major and Miss. In 1964 three ‘Fancy’ tins were available with abstract flower and leaf motifs. Another popular series in the 1960s and 70s took a theme, e.g. Toby Jugs, china plates, windmills etc., and featured one Toby Jug (etc.) on the lid and several different ones on the sides.

One final point to ponder: When did the purple wrapper brazil nut in caramel, the largest chocolate in the assortment, become demoted to a mere hazelnut in caramel?

Article courtesy of ‘Squirrels: The Little Magazine for the Little Hoarder’, Issue 5, Summer 2001.

ISSN 1474-3485