An Aerial View of J.L. McIntosh

Aerial view of J.L. McIntosh

The J.L. McIntosh building is highlighted in this aerial photograph.

The History of Our Building

The 108-year-old Elija Morse Rising Sun Stove Polish factory building located in Frog Island section of historic Canton was bought in May of 1999 by the J.L. McIntosh Company of Brookline, Massachusetts.

One of the most influential Canton manufacturers and politicians in the late nineteenth century was Mr. Elijah Morse. He was elected to the state legislature in 1876 and was elected to the state senate in 1886 and 1887. He served in four sessions of Congress and would have served a fifth term if his health hadn’t failed. Mr. Morse resided in Sharon at the time of the Civil War when he enlisted as a member of the Massachusetts 4th Regiment. During their campaign against Port Hudson, Louisiana, he was captured by the Confederates during their raid on Brashear City.

When Elijah returned from the war in 1864, he obtained a formula to manufacture stove polish from Dr. Charles Jackson, a noted Boston chemist. He began production of the polish in small amounts, selling it from door to door, eventually building a factory on the east side of Washington Street just north of Sherman Street. In 1868 he joined forces with his brother Albert and formed Morse Brothers.

The company had Plumbago (graphite) mined and shipped in bulk from Ceylon. Once the raw product arrived in Canton it was ground into a fine dust and mixed according to the formula, compressed into cakes and packaged for sale. The paste or polish was distributed under two names, Rising Sun Stove Polish and Sun Paste Polish. The product was sold in wrapped cakes, and tins. The tins were made of good American tin and manufactured on the factory grounds. Mr. Morse was a true believer in advertisement and made Rising Sun Stove Polish and Morse Bros., Canton, Massachusetts U. S. A. well known around the world. Elijah Morse died in 1896 at which time his sons gained control of the company and continued the business. As advances were made in new types of stoves the market in this country for their product began to drop and the business suffered. On July 19, 1912 the last advertisement for the polish appeared in the Canton Journal and shortly thereafter the doors closed.

The separate buildings that made up the Rising Sun plant were sold off and by 1925, there were three separate companies operating at the site.

The Brooks Glue Co. manufacturers of various glues and adhesives occupied the building from just after World War II until 1988 when ERC Wiping Products, Inc. arrived, as seen in the aerial photo. In 1999, the building was purchased by the J.L. McIntosh.

Some of this text has been adapted from the Canton Historical Society's History of Canton which can be found here.