MORTON SALT — THE CHICAGO BRAND MUSEUM

A can of Morton's Free Running Salt with a blue label, white text, and a yellow illustration of a girl holding an umbrella in the rain.

WHEN IT RAINS, IT POURS

Vintage advertisement poster for Morton’s Salt featuring a young girl with blonde hair, wearing a yellow dress with red flowers, holding a box of Morton salt, using an umbrella during rain.

Morton Salt started in Chicago, Illinois in 1848 when Alonzo Richmond established Richmond & Company, a sales agency for salt manufactured from New York. Businessman Joy Morton, later purchased controlling interests in the company, renaming the company to Joy & Morton Company in 1889. It wasn’t until 1910 when the company was officially rebranded to the Morton Salt Company, laying the foundation and revolutionizing to what would eventually become one of America’s most popular food brands. Alongside the product, the Morton Salt Company’s famous slogan “When Ir Rains It Pours”, and the iconic Umbrella Girl became two of the most successful advertisement symbols after being introduced in 1914.

THE BRAND BEHIND THE “UMBRELLA GIRL”

Morton Salt manufactured beyond just table salt, expanding into products for conditioning, agriculture, and highway de-icing. While quickly growing into the lead producer for salt in the United States, the company kept consistent quality in their products making Morton Salt a common everyday household item. Since 2021, ownership of Morton Salt has been led by Stone Canyon, still continuing to manufacture the iconic blue container paired with the famous Umbrella Girl and remaining one of America’s most recognizable food brands in history.

Vintage advertisement depicting a smiling girl in a yellow dress holding a jar of Morton’s salt while holding an umbrella in the rain. The ad promotes Morton’s salt with the slogan: 'When it rains it pours' and features an illustration of a salt container and a salt shaker.