Courtesy Reedy Press
Everyone knew Switzer’s. The brick building was a landmark on Laclede's Landing, where a pleasant aroma filled the air for decades. Even after the company moved, the brand's large, flowing yellow script loomed large on the building above the Eads Bridge.
Courtesy Left Bank Books
The story behind the beloved company has now been brought to life in Candy Men: The Story of Switzer’s Licorice, published by Reedy Press. The author is Patrick Murphy, whose name you might recognize from his work as a producer on the Nine Network of Public Media but also because he's part of the family behind the storied candy company. His book tells the tale of the Murphy and Switzer families—how they met, married, and made candies.
Courtesy Switzer's Licorice Archives
The latter’s name was originally Schweitzer, the spelling changed during a century and a half spent living in Ireland after leaving Germany. The Switzers had moved to St. Louis by 1857 and lived in the Kerry Patch neighborhood. Joseph Murphy, who first appears in St. Louis records in 1879, grew up in Dublin before leaving for the United States because of political turmoil. Here, he eventually married Margaret Switzer and launched a candy business with her brother Frederick. The Murphy side made candies; the Switzer side had an aptitude for business. It was a dynamite combination.
From the start, the Switzer family made a variety of candy besides its famous licorice, including the Chocolate Soldier (made to stand up to the rigors of a St. Louis summer before air conditioning), the Delmar Cream, Buttermels, Betterscotch, and more.
Courtesy Switzer's Licorice Archives
Courtesy Murphy family
The book moves smoothly from describing life in the Patch to present-day Dublin and the church where Joseph Murphy (whose nickname was The Old Gent, a fitting moniker, considering his mustachioed countenance) was baptized. It also recounts when the company changed hands, in the mid-'60s. The tale of how corporations work and think is a sharp contrast to the family lore, but it’s just as much a part of the history.
Courtesy Switzer's Licorice Archives
These days, the Switzer's label lives again, with a new Switzer at the helm, making both licorice and the contemporary flavors that the market expects. Nostalgia is fine, but contemporary tastes change, as the Switzers well knew. In telling the company's story, Candy Men manages to deliver both sweet nostalgia and the industry's evolution.
Released October 1, the book is now available in local bookstores and can be ordered at ReedyPress or CandyMenTheBook.com.
Patrick Murphy will be signing Candy Men: The Story of Switzer’s Licorice on Saturday, October 24, from 2–4 p.m. in front of Webster Groves Library, 301 E. Lockwood.
