February 2003 marked Marmites 101st birthday and my return date from the USA to England. My journey from Boston to London was via St Louis and Chicago. Chicago was be a Marmite supply drop for my cousins, but St Louis marked my first return to the city I was born in. Incidentally, it is the current home of the Missouri Marmite Museum. Not one to waste an opportunity, I contacted Doug Schneider, the curator and part time "Doctor Marmite", to arrange a visit to his collection of Marmite memorabilia.
Doug picks me up from my hotel and gives an architectural tour of downtown St Louis that has some great buildings and history, but alas has passed its heyday. However, unlike anywhere else in North America, it does have a museum of Marmiteâ¦â¦.
Okay, so museum may be laying it on a bit thick, but Doug has made a fine collection of Marmite memorabilia over the years. Originally called the Minnesota Marmite Museum and opened to an audience of American un-believers who peppered "Doctor Marmite" ( read "Doug in a lab coat" ), the collection moved to St Louis six years ago and has grown steadily ever since.
So, how does Doug get his Marmite stuff?
"eBay and begging friends who visit England"
I have to say that when I checked eBay for Marmite, there was about a page of interesting and reasonably priced stuff.
"I set myself an upper limit for each item"; Doug tells me; "and I make sure that I donât go over it. Iâve missed out on some good stuff that way, but some weeks I feel more flush than others"
As can be seen by the emerging collection. Each piece comes out of storage and placed upon the dining table. We "oooh" and "aaaagh" as each piece catches the eye. I am particularly taken by a jar from Hong Kong that has its label in Chinese and another that states this Marmite was made, not in Burton-Upon-Trent, but in Brentford. Believe me, this is a revelation as I thought all Marmite in the UK was made in the Midlands where the beer is brewed, not in Essex where they wouldnât know a decent pint if it hit them in the eyeballs.
A collection of very old pots emerges, each of different size. Set besides each other, they look like an expanded Russian doll.
"These are tough to get hold of", I am told. Doug managed to buy some that were dug up by an Ebayer from a rubbish tip in Wales. Only the smallest jar is missing from the set and this was an example of Doug refusing to pay over the odds on eBay.
"Another one will come up", he muses.
I canât begin to tell you how impressed I am with the museum. I had no idea there was such variety in just the Marmite jars, let alone the other items in the collection. There is a classic 1930s metal sign, a wonderful tin for holding Marmite cubes and a stuffed Zippy doll. Zippy was acquired when buying the set of three Zippy Marmite Jars from a woman in England over eBay. She offered to send away for the Zippy doll on Dougâs behalf as Marmite would only deliver to the UK. Instead of the weeks of waiting expected, the jars and Zippy arrived in short order. The women had sent along her own Zippy and had sent off for the new one to replace the one sent to Doug.
Iâm telling you, as collectors go, these Marmite heads are a really nice bunch. I find that Iâm starting to get the urge to do some collecting myself, though Iâve promised Doug that I will look out for some particular stuff for him, thus creating a potential conflict of interest.
We decide that some photographs need to be taken in honour of my visit, which is the first by a member of the public who actually knows what Marmite is. Whilst Doug fetches his camera, I flick through a Japanese magazine that did a six page spread (no pun intended) about the loves and hates of Marmite. Sure enough, in amongst it all, is a picture of Doug surrounded by his collection. He couldnât get his photo and collection into a local newspaper, but a Japanese national was a piece of cake!
We pose for a few photos and keep chatting. I canât believe how the Marmite jars have changed over the years. I point out a difference in the jars not previously noted by Doug. âInterestingly, everybody who see the collection notice something I have missed. They seem to go away with an enthusiasm for Marmite, if not a taste for it.â
Well, other people may not like it, but Sidney, Dougâs dog, loves it. I can scarcely believe my eyes when she obediently waits for Doug to scoop some Marmite from the jars and on command, lets Sidney lick the Marmite from his fingers. Never, have I come across and animal that loves Marmite so much.
Its time to go and Doug drives me back downtown. A fun and informative time was had by all and I encourage you to get in contact with Doug if you every find yourself in St Louis, though make sure you bring a small gift, preferably a roundish jar, full of black stuff with a yellow lid.
