Seltzer Truck

Does anyone remember a Seltzer Truck going through their neighborhood? I recall one going through Southfield MI, (a Detroit Suburb) in the mid to late 70's. It probally went the way of the milkman.

Sure. Growing up we had a seltzer truck stop every other week to leave a case with U-Bet chocolate Syrup and some siphon bottles of seltzer.

I could use that now. if i'm not drinking Bud, i'm drinking seltzer.
having both home delvered would sure be a time saver.
I could go for a chocolate soda right now.

I remember when I was a little boy living in Brooklyn during the 40's, my aunt and uncle used to have seltzer, sodas and Fox's U-Bet chocolate syrup delivered to their apartment. The seltzer man had to carry that heavy wood box up 5 flight of stairs. No elevator! I also remember they used to keep the box of bottles out on the fire escape. Does anyone else remember such a thing?

When I was a kid growing up in Philadelphia, some distant relatives ran a beverage company. They delivered. It was called Sheffield Beverages. Anybody remember it?

I have a nice collection of old seltzer bottles. Green, clear, and the common blue ones. My oldest is from 1910.
We had a couple of seltzer trucks come down our back alley in Philadelphia in the 60's.

My memory is that the deliveries stopped in the mid 60s

Correct me if I am wrong, but my memory says that Seltzer was
a Jewish thing. I lived in Brooklyn and then in Far Rockaway as
a kid. Both neighborhoods were mostly Jewish and the Seltzer
truck made deliveries only to Jewish homes. I do not remember any
of the gentile families buying Seltzer. Am I right? Or does my
memory deceive me ?????????????????

My family is Jewish. Not sure about gentiles and seltzer. But, there maybe a "kosher" element involved if only the Jewish families ordered delivery of bottles of seltzer. Anyone out there that can clarify this question?
Btw, I also grew up in Brooklyn and, later in Far Rockaway.

BTW, am having trouble subscribing to topics today. Anyone know why?

Friends used to have it delivered in Los Angeles in the 60's. We're also Jewish.

2¢ Plain

Me? I'd like a Phosphate.

"Walter Backerman - Seltzerman"

www.radiodiaries.org/newyorkworks-home.html

First aired on "The Next Big Thing" on radio station WNYC and later on "All Things Considered" on National Public Radio in January 2002.

Twinwillow I don't remember you in Brooklyn or in Far Rock----
so obviously you must be mistaken.

I left the wonderful Rockaways in 1941 and it immediately started
down hill. I loved the years we lived just off Beach 19th St. Those
were the days my friend, those were the days !!!

Does anybody elsw from philadelphia remember Sheffields? They also did a great ginger ale, much better than the mainstream products

quote:

Originally posted by the ancient mariner

Correct me if I am wrong, but my memory says that Seltzer was
a Jewish thing. I lived in Brooklyn and then in Far Rockaway as
a kid. Both neighborhoods were mostly Jewish and the Seltzer
truck made deliveries only to Jewish homes. I do not remember any
of the gentile families buying Seltzer. Am I right? Or does my
memory deceive me ?????????????????

Growing up in Bklyn I remember it too. Green bottles with clunky spigots, no? Since I am Irish Catholic + Italian + German, we did not get any, but neighbors did. In fact my first association, on seeing the thread was: yes, a Jewish favorite, as many of you note. Like traditional Chinese food. It's so funny, you can grow up in a "mixed" neighborhood and know all the kids' food from being at their house, but your own mother would never cross ethnic lines in her ow shopping and preparations!

Does anyone know why it is a Jewish favorite?

quote:

Originally posted by NYNM

quote:

Originally posted by the ancient mariner

Correct me if I am wrong, but my memory says that Seltzer was
a Jewish thing. I lived in Brooklyn and then in Far Rockaway as
a kid. Both neighborhoods were mostly Jewish and the Seltzer
truck made deliveries only to Jewish homes. I do not remember any
of the gentile families buying Seltzer. Am I right? Or does my
memory deceive me ?????????????????

Growing up in Bklyn I remember it too. Green bottles with clunky spigots, no? Since I am Irish Catholic + Italian + German, we did not get any, but neighbors did. In fact my first association, on seeing the thread was: yes, a Jewish favorite, as many of you note. Like traditional Chinese food. It's so funny, you can grow up in a "mixed" neighborhood and know all the kids' food from being at their house, but your own mother would never cross ethnic lines in her ow shopping and preparations!

Does anyone know why it is a Jewish favorite?

Funny, that is my recollection and heritage, Catholic+ german+ Irish +Swiss, and not in NY but seen and wondered.

If you called it Club Soda would it have the same connection?

Club Soda you bought in a bottle at the store, it had names like
Canada Dry and Hoffman-------Seltzer, on the other hand, was delivered
in big jugs by guys with trucks and strong backs. Seltzer was often drunk
plain at dinner-----maybe it preceded Evian.

I believe that harry Golden wrote a book called "For 2 cents Plain", which explained the Jewish connection, but I don't recall the details.

We used to have seltzer delivered from the "seltzer man" in Northeast Philly in the 1950s and 1960s. I remember the blue bottles.There were 2 competing companies- one was Podel's and I can't remember the other.

Here's a good website:

www.givemeseltzer.com

The National Museum of American Jewish History in Philly has some artifacts:

http://www.nmajh.org/weblog/cur/index.htm

http://www.uwishunu.com/2007/09/26/national-museum-of-american-jewish-history/

Here's a good story:

http://www.imbibemagazine.com/backissues/ghost.html

quote:

Originally posted by the ancient mariner

Twinwillow I don't remember you in Brooklyn or in Far Rock----
so obviously you must be mistaken.

I left the wonderful Rockaways in 1941 and it immediately started
down hill. I loved the years we lived just off Beach 19th St. Those
were the days my friend, those were the days !!!

Mariner, I lived in Far Rockaway for a short time in the mid 50's. I remember being in our apartment watching my (beloved) Brooklyn Dodgers win the world series in 1955.

quote:

Originally posted by the ancient mariner

Club Soda you bought in a bottle at the store, it had names like
Canada Dry and Hoffman-------Seltzer, on the other hand, was delivered
in big jugs by guys with trucks and strong backs. Seltzer was often drunk
plain at dinner-----maybe it preceded Evian.

mariner, I think seltzer was drunk for "therapeutic" reasons. Like, allowing one to, "greps" (belch) after eating our heavy Jewish meals.

TW------by 1955 I was long gone so we didn't cross paths but I went back
in the 70's to visit the Old Homestead (not the great NY Restaurant) and
found that the wide street in front of our house was a narrow one-car lane
and the bar where the neighborhood men stopped when they could afford it was
still there. Just recently I googledmapped the street and the house to show
my lovely Mary. Came right down on the street where we played all those kid's
games. I loved Far Rockaway back in the 30's it was a wonderful town.

You might be right about the therapeutic value of burping, I never once heard
of acid-reflux while living there. I guess there was a whole lot of burping going on.
Viva la Seltzer !!!!!!!

quote:

Originally posted by Twinwillow

I remember when I was a little boy living in Brooklyn during the 40's, my aunt and uncle used to have seltzer, sodas and Fox's U-Bet chocolate syrup delivered to their apartment. The seltzer man had to carry that heavy wood box up 5 flight of stairs. No elevator! I also remember they used to keep the box of bottles out on the fire escape. Does anyone else remember such a thing?

I grew up in a subdivision that had mostly two story colonial houses, so the Seltzer Truck Man only had to do a little bit of schlepping. He came until the late 70's early 80's when the neighborhood was largely Jewish, (allthough there was a Baptist and Lutheran Church nearby.)