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 The
Underwood story began more than 180 years ago when an
Englishman by the name of William Underwood set up a
small condiment business on Boston’s Russia Wharf
in 1822. William Underwood was born in Ealing, England
on November 8, 1787 as the eldest son of a family of
six children.
After crossing the Atlantic to set up his condiment
business, Underwood began making his first product, mustard.
Soon, however, he found himself preserving ketchup, marmalade,
cranberries and pickles in bottles and glass jars made
by early Boston glassmakers. By 1836,
however, the small glass shops of Boston could not keep
up with Underwood’s burgeoning business. Out of
necessity, Underwood turned to packing his products in
tin canisters–or as we call them today, “cans.”
Business
boomed. Underwood’s canned foods were
among the staples pioneers took westward in their covered
wagons. Soon, Underwood was adding oysters, lobster and
mackerel to his product list. By the time he died in
1864, Underwood’s company was making a fortune
selling canned goods to the Unionist government during
the Civil War.
Around 1868, Underwood’s sons began experimenting
with a new product created from ground ham blended with
special seasonings. They introduced a line of seasoned
meat products including chicken, turkey, tongue, lobster
and ham. They dubbed the seasoning process “deviling,” and
the Underwood red devil was born. It holds U.S. Patent
Office trademark NO. 82, granted in 1870, the oldest
existing food trademark still in use in the United States.
Today
many other foods, including eggs and crab, are served “deviled.” To be truly deviled, a
dish has to have a kick, most often from Dijon mustard,
hot sauce, cayenne pepper or chopped hot peppers. Underwood’s “deviling” recipe
remains a company secret even to this day.
The original
red devil was a real he-goat, half man, half goat, with
horns, pronged spear and a tail. He was a leering demonic
Lucifer, frequently portrayed in early ads dipping a
whole ham into a boiling caldron as flames roar in the
background and Satan’s sons dance with
glee. The current red devil has been stripped of evil.
He is a happy Satan, smiling, carrying his spear, and
apparently waving at the potential customer. His footwear
appears to be elves slippers. The logo appears prominently
on Underwood’s entire line of meat spreads, chunk
meats and sardines.
 Advertising showing the little red
devil began to appear nationally as early as 1895. It
has become and icon of American culture. The adorable
redhead, Mason Reese, made Underwood a household name
when he bungled the “smorgasbord
in a can” line in commercials that aired on television
during the 1960’s and 70’s.
Here in the 21st century, Underwood
continues to carry on its long tradition of quality goods.
Along with our Deviled Ham, Underwood’s product
line today includes Chicken Breast, Chicken Spread, Liverwurst
Spread, Roast Beef Spread and Sardines. Whether you enjoy
the convenience of our products at home or “on
the trail” as
American early pioneers did, you can be sure that the
Underwood brand will always stand for quality and great
taste!
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