In the decade following the end of World War II, Holyoke experienced an influx of small companies leasing the unused space formerly filled by paper-making and paper-converting companies. One of these start-ups was Trophy Papers Incorporated.
The Parsons division of the Holyoke Water Power Company (HWP) on Gatehouse Road, adjacent to the dam, had space available to accommodate Trophy Paper Incorporated, a new business formed in mid-1953. HWP had already leased 15,000 square feet to Laminated Paper Incorporated.
Trophy Papers Inc. leased 5,000 square feet to conduct its business, which involved "precision lamination of papers, boards, and other types of films, and other material for the paper trade." The company employed 15 workers at its inception.
The company was co-founded by F. Allan Barr, a native of Washington, D.C., who moved to Holyoke in 1919, and George C. Schmid, who hailed from Neenah, Wisconsin. Mr. Barr was the corporate President, and Mr. Schmid, its Treasurer.
Both principals were previously employed by the Holyoke Card and Paper Company of Springfield, Massachusetts. Mr. Barr had been Vice-President in the sales division, and Mr. Schmid was the technical director.
In April 1954, George Schmid purchased F. Allan Barr's ownership interest. The company was entertaining investors from Eastern Massachusetts who wished to specialize in corrugated cartons.
Bill Snyder Jr. was identified as the company's head in 1956. He touted Holyoke's skilled labor pool and excellent trucking in delivering products to its customers.
In 1957, Chesley H. Bell led this company and Laminated Papers Inc. He expanded into another 10,000 square feet of space in the existing plant to perform wax and resin laminations. The two companies employed 25 workers in 1960.
The 1964 Holyoke City Directory continued to list Mr. Bell as the corporate President. No further information for this company was discovered after 1967.
Citations:
Newspapers.com (paid subscription): Citations: Holyoke (Massachusetts) Transcript & Transcript-Telegram; Springfield (Massachusetts) Republican; publication dates and pages are shown.
Ancestry.com (paid subscription): Price & Lee Holyoke, Massachusetts, City Directories
Hampden County Registry of Deeds, Springfield, Massachusetts
Secretary of State, Corporations Division, Boston, Massachusetts
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