AMAIZO, The Early Years

Frank Vargo March 2021 

From its humble beginnings in southern Mexico about 9000 years ago to one of the top sources of nourishment in the world, corn has helped feed the people globally for centuries. Today corn production outranks the other two leading food stuffs, wheat and rice, in world-wide consumption.  

When Christopher Columbus landed in Hispaniola in 1492, he was amazed at the sight of two things: a group of native people, the Taino (whom he called “Indians” since he thought he had reached one of the islands off the coast of India) and waves of tall green plants gently moving in the wind.  The Taino called their plants mahiz and the Spanish called it maize, from the Spanish word maiz which meant corn. 

From its origins in southern Mexico, the cultivation of maize spread to both South and North America.  By the time the Pilgrims landed in the “New World” the Native American tribes in New England all depended on maize as one of their main food crops. 

As Europeans settled the land further westward to the Great Lakes and then the Great Plains, they brought their corn seeds to plant in this fertile soil.  As Midwest cities grew, the need for food increased and corn and its by-products like corn oil became a staple in urban diets.   

The area around the southern tip of Lake Michigan was not suited to grow much corn or other farm products.  But it did “grow” railroads.  Railroad companies all wanted to link the eastern seaboard with Chicago.  This made our area a prime location for development.  Investors such as George and Thomas Hammond and Edward Roby saw an opportunity.  The city of Hammond was incorporated in 1883 and saw healthy growth.  Roby was not so lucky.  Roby became an area of gambling, horse and auto racing, as well as other vices.  Once Roby was rid of these problems, it became an area of open, unused land for future development.

Five investors saw the chance to use this land, with its great location near  Chicago,  as a gateway to the markets of the Midwest. Processed foods were gaining in popularity in the American diet.  Since farmers in Indiana and Illinois were already growing and selling feed corn and sweet corn throughout the Midwest, these investors wanted to build a plant that would use the simple corn kernel to make life a little easier and tastier for the consumer.

 In August 1906, these men formed the Western Glucose Company “to raise, cultivate, buy, sell, deal in and deal with corn and all like of kindred grains.”  Their plan was to buy corn from Indiana and Illinois farmers and to then process corn oil, corn syrup, corn gluten and cornstarch for the food industry as well as livestock feed.  They purchased 10 acres of vacant land from the Shedd Family in Roby/Hammond.  This area was bordered by Wolf Lake with access to Lake Michigan.  The Indiana Harbor Belt and Pennsylvania Railroad also were nearby.  Perfect for transporting their products to markets. 

December 31, 1906, saw the first concrete evidence of the Western Glucose Company venture. The first cement for the smokestack of the boiler house was poured. The investors, led by their president, Daniel B. Scully, who also owned Scully Syrup Company in Chicago, celebrated the start of their endeavor.  Their celebration was short-lived.  The year 1907 brought a minor business recession across the country.  Investment money became very hard to obtain.  Bank loans came due, but the new company didn’t have the cash to repay them.  The selling of company stock failed to attract many investors.   

One of the original investors, Philip Saenger, located a client of Western Glucose that was willing to pay off all of its debts.  The Royal Baking Powder Company needed a reliable source of cornstarch to make its baking powder.  Cornstarch was something Western Glucose produced in abundance.  Royal Baking paid all of the outstanding loans, dissolved the Western Glucose Company and created the American Maize Products Company under the Amaizo brand name. 

The building at the Amaizo site was completed in February 1908 and nearly 200 workers were hired.  Frederick Boselly was hired to oversee the operations of the Hammond plant.  Boselly felt the additional need to hire someone who would be able to oversee the daily operation of the plant.

That man was an Irishmen from Chicago, Raymond E. Daly. 

Raymond E. Daly stood six feet three inches tall and weighed about 225 pounds.  He was just the right man to make sure the workers were kept on task and the plant was operating smoothly.  Hired in 1910, Daly would stay at his job for the next 35 years.  Workers said that when they saw him they either started working twice as fast or quietly slipped away to some out of the way place until he was gone.  Employees soon learned that Daly was actually concerned for their well-being and safety. He started to introduce a variety of fringe benefits for not only the office workers but also for the day laborers.  The employees responded in kind.  By 1914, corn-processing had doubled from the 1908 level of 8,000 bushels per day to 16,500.  In a few years the footprint of the plant increased from the original 10 acres to slightly over 100. 

With the start of the Great War in Europe in 1914, came the need to feed millions of people who were displaced by the fighting.  Amaizo increased production in all areas to feed the civilians and troops all along the Western Front.  With the entrance of the United States into the war in 1917, patriotic workers were producing food for American troops as well as for the home front. 

Expansion and profits continued to grow during the Roaring 20s.  Warehouses and offices were opened in Chicago, New York, St. Paul, Pittsburgh and Seattle. Glucose storage tanks, as well as a trucking division,  were opened in Hammond.  The plant expanded again in 1929 until the economic collapse in October.  Investment capital disappeared.  People as well as companies stopped buying products, leading to more cutbacks and layoffs.  Amaizo was not spared from this national disaster, but it did not suffer as badly as other businesses.  People still needed to cook, bake and feed their families.  Amaizo limped along as best it could. 

Another crisis arose in 1929. The Fleischmann’s Yeast Company wanted to increase its market share by buying up four smaller companies.  One of these was the Royal Baking Powder Company, of which Amaizo was a subsidiary.  Royal’s president, William Ziegler, wanted to keep Amaizo as a separate business.  In an agreement with Fleischmann’s, Ziegler and the other shareholders purchased the entire plant, thus keeping Amaizo an independent company.  

The leadership at Amaizo used the Great Depression years to work on research and development.  This led to the development of many new products which included Amaizo Salad Oil, Corn Starch, Golden Syrup, Crystal White Syrup, Butterscotch Syrup and Gloss Starch.  Items such as corn sugar, corn starch, corn syrup, corn oil, gloss starch, adhesives, dextrins, lactic acid, calcium lactate and cattle feed continued to be produced in smaller quantities.  Chemists even developed a corn based substitute for the higher priced tapioca.  They called their new product “Amioca.”  Other chemists developed a thickening agent which allowed Amaizo to enter the instant pudding market. 

Other improvements in the 1930s focused on the employees. Plant superintendent Daly instituted life, health and accident insurance for the workers.  A general clean up of the plant led to the building of a sunken rock garden, the planting of trees and flowers and grassy places for workers to eat outside on warm summer days.  A combination auditorium and gym facility, where basketball, volleyball and indoor tennis could be played, was built.  Employee Christmas parties, social gatherings as well as movie nights were held there.  Later a game room and kitchen were added.  Outside the building, the annual summer employee picnic, called the “Frolic,” was held for workers and their families. A 40-piece band was even started.  As a tribute to him, the hall was named the R. E. Daly Hall.   

As the Great Depression dragged on, war clouds began to gather once again in both Europe and Asia.  Amaizo and all of America were on the brink of a new era of uncertainty. How Amaizo adapted will be part of the next story.