Are you among the thousands of people who miss the days when the city of Fulton smelled like chocolate? Have you ever wondered what it must have been like to work in a factory that produced some of America’s favorite sweet treats? The answers to those and many other questions are now available! Beginning this April, the Fulton Chocolate Works Museum Committee is offering a taste (pardon the pun) of what it meant to have the Nestlé factory in our city.

The Museum Committee, which includes former Nestlé employees as well as interested Fultonians, is committed to creating a permanent location to honor those who produced all that yummy chocolate for all those years. (The factory made chocolate from 1906 until 2003.) While searching for the right location for their museum, the Committee has been invited to offer a temporary showcase at the Friends of History in Fulton’s Pratt House.

Chocolate Works Museum Committee President Bob MacMartin explained what the group has in mind for the museum. “We want visitors of all ages to experience what it was like to make chocolate. We’ll display artifacts and other memorabilia to preserve the history of a century of chocolate manufacturing in Fulton. We’ll tell the story of the factory’s history as well as the generations of employees that worked there. We think it’s important to remember how those employees and the community contributed to that growth.”

MacMartin walked me through the display rooms at the Pratt House that the Committee has prepared. There are large panels with photographs depicting the factory’s growth and expansion. There’s a section to honor significant people who created such groundbreaking confectionary treats as The Crunch Bar, Toll House Morsels, and Nestlé Quik. Another exhibit is a step-by-step look at how the Fulton factory turned cocoa beans into mouth-watering chocolate. Visitors will also find out what part of the process created that city-wide smell of chocolate and what it was like to be on the candy wrapping line, trying to keep up with the conveyor belt. Did workers really feel like Lucille Ball?

They’ll be displays of the contributions that the Fulton Chocolate Works and its employees made to the city: the short-lived, but fondly remembered Chocolate Fest, the colorful floats in summertime parades, and the Nestlé Park complex where many played sports and attended picnics.

Visitors will enjoy the cabinets full of Nestlé memorabilia, bottles, canisters, cups, glasses…there’s even an oversized Toll House Morsel pillow! A video of the factory in action shows how during its busiest years, the workers produced one million pounds of chocolate a day.

Designing and creating all those displays are the Chocolate Works Committee members. Here’s how Committee member Ed McCormick, who worked in many departments at the factory throughout his 31 years of service, sees the museum’s purpose and goals: “The displays are important to the museum as they create a timeline of chocolate as it existed in Fulton. Chocolate has been good for the city. It offered good jobs, tax revenue for the city and over the years has participated in many community events. The museum will show how the people of Fulton benefited from the gift of chocolate that was given to them.”

Mike Malash, another Committee member who worked over 35 years for the company, explained the importance of honoring the factory’s contributions to Fulton: “The Chocolate Works was a vital part of the city for over 100 years. Its history needs to be made available to the residents of the city and to those that enjoy history. Visitors can ‘dig into’ why Henri Nestle got involved with baby food. They can learn why Daniel Peter, who created the milk chocolate bar, moved from being a candle maker to milk chocolate.”

Not only former Chocolate Works employees themselves, but also their children and grandchildren have reason to value the museum. Jackie Klaiss Brons is the daughter of Chris Klaiss, a Swiss-born chocolatier who shared his craft with Fultonians while employed at the factory from 1969 until 1991. Jackie lives in Switzerland now, but has memorabilia from her father’s work she’d like to donate to the Museum. Here’s why:

“The museum commemorates the many years of product innovation that took place in Fulton, as well as the close relationship that existed between the facility and Fulton, and among the many families whose livelihoods were directly dependent upon Nestlé's presence in the city. I hope the museum provides an impetus to those wishing to pursue new possibilities in Fulton and the surrounding area.”

While the Committee collects memorabilia, finds financial support and selects a location for their museum, they are appreciative of the Pratt House’s offer for their temporary exhibits. Friends of History in Fulton’s President, Tom Brown, knows why having this display is so important:

“The Friends of Fulton History, which is in charge of the Pratt House and decides what exhibits are on display, strongly supports the Chocolate Works Museum. As a museum for the city, we are the caretakers of a fantastic history of Fulton. People do not realize how important the city was for the economy of New York and even the entire country. We were a city that the Great Depression missed because we had so many factories. Now the Chocolate Works Museum Committee is looking for a permanent home and The Friends of History has reached out as good neighbors, offering our newest museum a temporary home. I believe Fultonians will really enjoy seeing the city’s newest museum.”

The Chocolate Works Museum displays opens at the Pratt House, located at 177 S. First Street, on April 12. Their days and hours of operation are Wednesday through Friday, 10am until 3pm. Plan to visit this exhibit multiple times over the coming year as the Committee promises to change displays regularly. But one thing that will remain throughout their time at the Pratt House—and you won’t want to miss this—is how the Committee has recreated the smell the chocolate within the display area. It’ll feel like you’re back in the days when the city of Fulton smelled of sweet chocolate.