Fredericksburg, Pennsylvania (May 2, 2019) – Local, family-owned, premium poultry producer Bell & Evans is celebrating 125 years of business. In celebration, Bell & Evans is expanding its historical archive and asking the community for help in contributing old stories, photographs and other artifacts.
Bell & Evans originated in Moorestown, New Jersey, when locals Howard Bell and Carlton Evans partnered to sell their fine poultry to upscale establishments within NJ and surrounding states. By the 1950s, they had created such a strong demand for Bell & Evans chicken that they needed additional processing support and found it in Fredericksburg, Pennsylvania with Clarence Manbeck’s poultry operation, C. F. Manbeck, Inc. and Farmer’s Pride, Inc.
In 1984, Manbeck sold his companies to current Bell & Evans Owner Scott Sechler, and two years later, the retiring Bell family sold Sechler the Bell & Evans brand. Sechler married the companies together and, as they say, the rest is history.
Today, Bell & Evans is America’s oldest branded chicken company with a rich history. If you have something to contribute to the history of Bell & Evans, C. F. Manbeck, Inc., Farmer’s Pride, Inc. or Wilson H. Degler’s poultry business, the predecessor to C. F. Manbeck, Inc., please contact Heather Hitz at [email protected] or 717-820-3113. All contributions will become property of Bell & Evans, and the company reserves the right to use contributions in its marketing efforts. There will be no compensation for contributions.