As smoking declines, so does the hobby of collecting matchbox labels. By Michael Foley, one of the last collectors
Competing match companies once produced the most colourful and imaginative range of labels. Foreign labels were available, especially from countries such as Sweden and India. And there was a large domestic match industry. Early match-workers often worked in very poor and dangerous conditions. In the late-19th century, the Salvation Army began to make their own brand, Lights in Darkest England, produced by well-treated workers. By the early-20th century, many smaller match-manufacturers had been taken over by the big three: Bryant & May, Masters and Morelands. They went on to form the British Match Corporation. Early labels were multicoloured with an endless variety of designs, including strange animals and birds. Patriotic labels were also common, along with naval ships and royalty. Really keen collectors would soak the labels off in water and put them in improvised albums. There are few matches on sale in shops now, but there still are a...
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