Yes, there is no argument about it...Michigan is the cereal king of the world. Kellogg's, Post...even General Foods got its start in Michigan.

But what about other cereals? The Quaker Oats Company produces a good handful, as did Ralston and Nabisco. Other cereal companies that took their cues from Battle Creek were Armour, California Breakfast Food, Cook's, E-C, Egg-O-See, Force Food Company, Franklin Mills, H-O Mills, Our Home, Korn Krisp Company, Malted Cereals Company, Malta-Vita Pure Food, Mapl-Flake Mills, Miller Cereal Mills, Pillsbury's, Purity Mills, and Uncle Sam Breakfast Food Company.

The gallery below shows old cereals from all the above companies spanning 87 years - beginning in 1863 and up to 1950.

One of the cereals that made me wince a little is the one that mentioned “with embryo added” on the front of the box. Even though it was wheat embryo, it just didn't seem to be an appropriate word to put on a cereal box that you would probably read at the breakfast table. But hey, that's just me.

Banana 101.5 logo
Get our free mobile app

Another box has the word “laxative” smack dab in the front of the box...not a good idea. Another one says “pre-digested” - another unappetizing word to have at the table. Bad move. Other boxes claim:
“Delicious with stewed fruit”
“Eat it like candy”
“Sterilized”
“More nerve stimulant”
“You will be bright and cheerful all day”

Nowadays cereal boxes are boring with phrases like
“100% oats”
“Family Size”
“With vitamin D”
Etc. etc.....truly BORING stuff. Not like those old cereals that boldly pushed how great their product was for your bowels, your colon, and any other internal organ that you really don't want to hear about at the breakfast table. But at least they were far from mundane.

Some of the interesting cereal names you'll see in the gallery are
'Vigor'
'Ranger Joe'
'Quakies'
'Sparkies'
and 'Malta-Vita' to name a few.

There are 32 old cereals shown below. Have a look and see what Kellogg's and Post were up against from 1863 to 1950 (I did sneak one in from Post).
Some were even from Michigan...have a look!

Old Cereals, 1863-1950

MORE STUFF:

LOOK: 40 Discontinued & Special Edition Kellogg's Cereals

Gallery Credit: John Robinson

Vintage Cereals of The Battle Creek Food Company

Discontinued Post Cereals