Rare 1950s Vintage Clem’s Orange Drink Cork Bottle Cap, Malvern, AR, Historic!

This rare and unique piece of memorabilia were produced and found at Clem Bottling Works in Malvern, Arkansas which was founded in 1907 by J.M. Clem and his son, Harold “Dock” Clem. The Clem prided themselves on creating all their own flavors and this one their Orange was the best seller.

The Clem family ran the business out of a small outbuilding behind their home at the time. Fortunately, in 1914 a bottling plant and warehouse were built on South Main Street in Malvern.

Interestingly the family made its own carbonated water. Let’s just say consistency was an issue and bottles exploded often usually in the plant. Any operator wore a blacksmith/firefighter like outfit to protect themselves.

A very neat fact to this Americana is their sales skyrocketed when than President Franklin D. Roosevelt tried the Clem orange pop during his visit to Malvern for the celebration of Arkansas’ centennial in 1936 and pronounced it “the best.” Roosevelt insisted on a meet ordering more from Clem.