My Quest to Bring Necco’s Epic Candy Tale to the World

Author Darlene Lacey with her book "Necco–An Epic Candy Tale".

A roll of Necco Wafers has been described as “the indestructible candy,” and for 171 years its originator, the New England Confectionery Company (Necco), seemed just as indestructible. From its start in 1847 with the invention of the first American candy machine, the company prevailed through two world wars, the Great Depression, and countless trends, changes, and setbacks to become the longest-running candy company in US history until its sudden and tragic closing in 2018.

When the news broke about Necco being gone for good, candy lovers were devastated. People raced out to buy what was left with the fervor of shoppers for bread before a blizzard. I went out and bought a few Necco Wafers, but I still believed that Necco would come back. Sadly, I eventually realized that I was living in denial.

Necco factory at 254 Mass. Ave., Cambridge - 1980s and Necco factory 135 American Legion Hwy., Revere - 2000s

That’s where my Necco tale ended. Or so I thought until one day three years ago when I received a donation to my Candy Wrapper Museum that changed the course of my life. It was a giant scrapbook saved from Necco’s dumpsters by the vice president of R&D during the company’s 2003 move from its historic Cambridge facilities to its new headquarters in Revere.

Within the sooty covers of this scrapbook, I found a time capsule of Necco’s packaging and promotions, meticulously annotated 70 years ago. As a candy wrapper collector, I knew these artifacts had not seen the light of day since when they appeared on store shelves. I also knew that I should share it with the world by publishing a book. As it turned out, I have published two books: Necco-An Epic Candy Tale and its companion  Necco-The Archive Collection: An Almost-Lost History.

These two books are the result of a massive multi-year research, preservation, and restoration effort. While my husband Joe worked each day on photographing, scanning, restoring damaged art, and transcribing all the annotated technical information in the scrapbook, I pored over old books, magazines, trade journals and newspapers for details large and small about Necco’s past. Considering that Necco operated for 171 years, this was no small task, but with every piece of this gigantic puzzle that we put together, the more excited we became. The project grew even larger as members of the candy historical and collecting communities even more rare items graciously contributed images and company lore.

The more I learned through my research, the more I realized that Necco’s history is tied inextricably to the history of dozens of Cambridge and Boston confectioners, all with their own rich histories.  Necco’s  confectionery “family tree” also extends beyond New England to Wisconsin, Louisiana, New York, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, Georgia, the United Kingdom, and Canada. Some names are still well-known, while others have faded in fame. With my books, I am ensuring that the names live on. These include Chase & Co., Wright & Moody, Fobes Hayward & Co., Lovell & Covel, The Daggett Chocolate Co., Page & Shaw, F.H. Roberts, Sparrow, Gobelin, Squirrel Brand, the Deran Confectionery Co., the Norris Candy Co., John Mackintosh & Sons, Lowney’s, Cumberland Valley, Candy House, Charles N. Miller, D.L. Clark, the American Candy Co., the Ziegler Candy Co., and Howard B. Stark.

Necco's 100 Year Anniversary dinner dance at boston's Copeley plaza Hotel, 1947.

Necco–An Epic Candy Tale chronicles the complete history of Necco and its family of brands and takes you along the inspirational journey of generations of workers who navigated countless trends, changes, and setbacks to become the longest-running candy company in US history. Along with the company’s amazing history, this book includes the stories behind the invention of Necco Wafers, Sky Bar, Canada Mints, Sweethearts, Mary Jane, Squirrel Nut Zippers, Rolo, Candy Buttons®, Slap Stix, and the Clark Bar®.

Necco–The Archive Collection is a companion museum-style collectors’ catalog filled with hundreds of candy and candy related images of Necco and its family of brands: Charles N. Miller, Squirrel Brand, D.L. Clark, Deran-Haviland, Daggett’s, Mackintosh, Howard B. Stark, Lovell & Covel, Page & Shaw, Gobelin, and Norris Exquisite Candies. This showcase of artifacts, much of which have never been seen by the public, will take you a visual tour from 1881 to 2018, providing a view into this almost-lost history of the United States candy industry.

The goal of this quest was to bring Necco’s inspiring story and confectionary creations of the past to a new audience, the people of today and in the future.  And, at last, the quest is complete. I hope these books will leave you with a deep appreciation for all that Necco’s dedicated workers accomplished. To put it in perspective, if a candy company started today, it would need to keep going until the year 2193 to match what the people of Necco did!

Necco–An Epic Candy Tale • BUY NOW and Necco–The Archive Collection • BUY NOW

More about these books can be found at the publisher's WEBSITE