Morton Salt is a
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
company producing
saltIn chemistry, salts are ionic compounds that result from the neutralization reaction of an acid and a base. They are composed of cations and anions so that the product is electrically neutral...
for food, water conditioning, industrial, agricultural, and road/highway use. Based in
ChicagoChicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, the business is North America's leading producer and marketer of salt. It is a subsidiary of the German company
K+SK+S AG is a German-based agricultural chemical and salt company, headquartered in Kassel. The company is Europe's largest supplier of potash for use in fertilizer and, after the acquisition of Morton Salt, the world's largest salt producer...
.
History
The company began in
ChicagoChicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
,
IllinoisIllinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, in 1848 as a small sales agency. In 1910, the business, which had by that time become both a manufacturer and a merchant of salt, was incorporated as the Morton Salt Company. In 1982, Morton was purchased by
ThiokolThiokol is a U.S. corporation concerned initially with rubber and related chemicals, and later with rocket and missile propulsion systems...
Corporation, producing Morton Thiokol Incorporated (MTI). Morton Thiokol divested itself of Morton in 1989, following the 1986
Space Shuttle Challenger disasterThe Space Shuttle Challenger disaster occurred on January 28, 1986, when Space Shuttle Challenger broke apart 73 seconds into its flight, leading to the deaths of its seven crew members. The spacecraft disintegrated over the Atlantic Ocean, off the coast of central Florida at 11:38 am EST...
, which was blamed on Morton Thiokol products. Morton received the company's consumer chemical products divisions, while Thiokol retained only the space propulsion systems concern.
In 1999 Morton Salt was acquired by the Philadelphia-based
Rohm and Haas Company, Inc.Rohm and Haas Company, a Philadelphia, Pennsylvania based company, manufactures miscellaneous materials. Formerly a Fortune 500 Company, Rohm and Haas employs more than 17,000 people in 27 countries, with its last sales revenue reported as an independent company at USD 8.9 billion. On July 10,...
and operated as a division of that company along with the
Canadian Salt CompanyFounded in 1893, in Windsor, Ontario, with three employees of the Canadian Pacific Railway Company and was originally named The Windsor Salt Company. Within a few years, the operation was sold and became The Canadian Salt Company, Limited...
(which Morton had acquired in 1954).
On 2 April 2009, it was reported that Morton Salt was being acquired by German fertilizer and salt company
K+SK+S AG is a German-based agricultural chemical and salt company, headquartered in Kassel. The company is Europe's largest supplier of potash for use in fertilizer and, after the acquisition of Morton Salt, the world's largest salt producer...
for a total
enterprise valueEnterprise value , Total enterprise value , or Firm value is an economic measure reflecting the market value of a whole business. It is a sum of claims of all the security-holders: debtholders, preferred shareholders, minority shareholders, common equity holders, and others...
of US$1.7bn. The sale, completed by October 2009, was in conjunction with the
Dow Chemical CompanyThe Dow Chemical Company is a multinational corporation headquartered in Midland, Michigan, United States. As of 2007, it is the second largest chemical manufacturer in the world by revenue and as of February 2009, the third-largest chemical company in the world by market capitalization .Dow...
's takeover of Rohm and Haas.
Company information
The Morton Salt company's headquarters is 123 North Wacker Drive, Chicago, Illinois 60606. Prior to their acquisition in 1999, their corporate headquarters was 100 N Riverside Plaza (later the headquarters of
BoeingThe Boeing Company is an American multinational aerospace and defense corporation, founded in 1916 by William E. Boeing in Seattle, Washington. Boeing has expanded over the years, merging with McDonnell Douglas in 1997. Boeing Corporate headquarters has been in Chicago, Illinois since 2001...
).
Acquired in 1954, the company's main facility, the second-largest solar saline operation in
North AmericaNorth America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
, is in
Matthew TownMatthew Town is the chief and only settlement on Great Inagua Island of the Bahamas. It is located on the southwest corner of the island. It was named after Bahamian Governor George Matthew and first settled during his tenure in office...
,
InaguaInagua is the southernmost district of the Bahamas comprising the islands of Great Inagua and Little Inagua.Great Inagua is the third largest island in The Bahamas at 596 sq mi and lies about 55 miles from the eastern tip of Cuba. The island is about 55 x 19 miles in extent, the highest point...
,
The BahamasThe Bahamas , officially the Commonwealth of the Bahamas, is a nation consisting of 29 islands, 661 cays, and 2,387 islets . It is located in the Atlantic Ocean north of Cuba and Hispaniola , northwest of the Turks and Caicos Islands, and southeast of the United States...
.
Morton Salt's hand-drawn
logoA logo is a graphic mark or emblem commonly used by commercial enterprises, organizations and even individuals to aid and promote instant public recognition...
features the "Morton Salt Girl," a young girl walking in the rain with an opened umbrella and scattering salt behind her from a cylindrical container of
table saltSodium chloride, also known as salt, common salt, table salt or halite, is an inorganic compound with the formula NaCl. Sodium chloride is the salt most responsible for the salinity of the ocean and of the extracellular fluid of many multicellular organisms...
, and is one of the ten best-known symbols in the United States. The company's logo (from 1914), and its motto, "When it rains it pours" (from 1911), were developed to illustrate the point that Morton Salt was free flowing, even in rainy weather. Originally, the company had added
magnesium carbonateMagnesium carbonate, MgCO3, is a white solid that occurs in nature as a mineral. Several hydrated and basic forms of magnesium carbonate also exist as minerals...
as an absorbing agent to ensure that its table salt poured freely;
calcium silicateCalcium silicate is the chemical compound Ca2SiO4, also known as calcium orthosilicate and sometimes formulated 2CaO.SiO2. It is one of group of compounds obtained by reacting calcium oxide and silica in various ratios e.g. 3CaO.SiO2, Ca3SiO5; 2CaO.SiO2, Ca2SiO4; 3CaO.2SiO2, Ca3Si2O7 and...
is now used instead for the same purpose. The "Umbrella Girl" has gone through six different iterations within
advertising campaignAn advertising campaign is a series of advertisement messages that share a single idea and theme which make up an integrated marketing communication...
s; the company sells associated memorabilia and makes some of its vintage advertisements freely available.
The American punk rock band
JawbreakerJawbreaker may refer to:* Gobstopper or jawbreaker, a hard candy with multiple layers* Jawbreaker , an American rock band* Jawbreaker , a 1999 film starring Rose McGowan...
used the Morton Salt Girl logo as one of their band promo shirts with the original motto changed to "when it pains it roars".
In 2005 the Morton Salt Girl appeared in a
MasterCardMastercard Incorporated or MasterCard Worldwide is an American multinational financial services corporation with its headquarters in the MasterCard International Global Headquarters, Purchase, Harrison, New York, United States...
commercial in which many different icons from food or house products meet for dinner. Among these icons were the
Jolly Green GiantGreen Giant and Le Sueur are brands of frozen and canned vegetables owned by General Mills. The mascot of Green Giant is the Jolly Green Giant....
, the
Gorton's FishermanGorton’s of Gloucester is a subsidiary of the Japanese seafood conglomerate Nippon Suisan Kaisha, Ltd., producing fishsticks and other frozen seafood for the retail market in the United States. Gorton’s also has a North American foodservice business which sells to fast-food restaurants such as...
,
Count ChoculaGeneral Mills monster-themed breakfast cereals are five current and formerly distributed breakfast cereal brands in North America. The series includes Count Chocula, Franken Berry, and Boo Berry, and the discontinued Fruit Brute and Fruity Yummy Mummy.-History:In 1971, the first two cereals in the...
, Charlie the Tuna,
Mr. PeanutPlanters is an American snack food company, a division of Kraft Foods, best known for its processed nuts and for the Mr. Peanut icon that symbolizes them. Mr. Peanut was created by grade schooler Antonio Gentile for a 1916 contest to design the company's brand icon...
,
Chef BoyardeeChef Boyardee is a brand of canned pasta products sold internationally by ConAgra Foods. Named after its founder, Italian-American immigrant Ettore Boiardi, the company began production in the United States in the 1920s...
, Jovny the Vlasic Stork and
Mr. CleanMr. Clean is a brand name fully owned by Procter & Gamble. It is used for a cleaning solution and related products, and as "Mr. Clean Magic Eraser", for a melamine foam cleaner.-History:...
. She pokes the Pillsbury Doughboy in the stomach, causing him to let out his signature giggle.
The founder of the Morton Salt company,
Joy Morton, Joy Morton founded the Morton Salt Company and The Morton Arboretum.Morton grew to manhood in Nebraska City, Nebraska in Nebraska Territory. His mother, Caroline Joy, was an accomplished artist, musician, and gardener...
, was the son of
J. Sterling MortonJulius Sterling Morton was a Nebraska editor who served as President Grover Cleveland's Secretary of Agriculture. He was a prominent Bourbon Democrat, taking the conservative position on political, economic and social issues, and opposing agrarianism...
, who was the founder of
Arbor DayArbor Day is a holiday in which individuals and groups are encouraged to plant and care for trees. It originated in Nebraska City, Nebraska, United States during 1872 by J. Sterling Morton. The first Arbor Day was held on April 10, 1872, and an estimated 1 million trees were planted that day.Many...
.
Morton Salt is the sponsor of the
Morton ArboretumThe Morton Arboretum, in Lisle, Illinois, covers 1,700 acres and is made up of gardens of various plant types and collections of trees from specific taxonomical and geographical areas. It includes native woodlands and a restored Illinois prairie. The Arboretum has over 4,100 different species of...
, a 1700 acres (6.9 km²) botanical garden in
Lisle, IllinoisLisle is a village in DuPage County, Illinois, United States. The population was 22,930 at the 2011 census, and estimated to be 23,135 as of 2008. It is part of the Chicago metropolitan area and the Illinois Technology and Research Corridor...
. It was established by
Joy Morton, Joy Morton founded the Morton Salt Company and The Morton Arboretum.Morton grew to manhood in Nebraska City, Nebraska in Nebraska Territory. His mother, Caroline Joy, was an accomplished artist, musician, and gardener...
, the company's founder, in 1922 to encourage the display and study of shrubs, trees, and vines. About 300,000 visitors a year hike on miles of trails, and over 3,600 kinds of plants are displayed.
See also
- History of salt
Salt's ability to preserve food was a foundation of civilization. It eliminated the dependence on the seasonal availability of food and it allowed travel over long distances. However, salt was difficult to obtain, and so it was a highly valued trade item...
- Iodised salt
Iodised salt is table salt mixed with a minute amount of various iodine-containing salts. The ingestion of iodide prevents iodine deficiency. Worldwide, iodine deficiency affects about two billion people and is the leading preventable cause of mental retardation. It also causes thyroid gland...
- Sodium chloride
Sodium chloride, also known as salt, common salt, table salt or halite, is an inorganic compound with the formula NaCl. Sodium chloride is the salt most responsible for the salinity of the ocean and of the extracellular fluid of many multicellular organisms...