Blue Plate mayonnaise is now made in Tennessee, but Reily Foods, which bought Blue Plate Foods and its iconic building in Gert Town, left the sign on the structure because of the company's connection to New Orleans.

I'll bet that a lot of people have forgotten or don't know that there was a Catholic Eucharistic Congress here in New Orleans. It was a big thing with the pope attending. I was born in 1926, and I was in my early teens then. Perhaps folks would enjoy reading of this.

John Larmann

Dear John,

In 1938, New Orleans played host to the Eighth National Eucharistic Congress, in which clergy and laymen gather to adore and evangelize the Holy Eucharist. The first one took place in Lille, France, in 1881. Since then there have been many national and international congresses. The 49th International Eucharistic Congress was held in Quebec City last month.

The Archbishop at the time of the 1938 Congress in New Orleans was Joseph Francis Rummel, and he directed this important event. Pope Pius XI was leader of the Catholic Church. He reigned as Pope from 1922 until his death in 1939. Pope Pius XI did not visit America or New Orleans for the Eucharistic Congress, however. Instead, he spoke to the faithful via a radio message delivered on Oct. 18, 1938. In fact, Pius XI was the first pope to use the power of modern communications technology for the purpose of evangelizing. He established Vatican Radio in 1931, and was the first pope to broadcast on the radio.

For the historic Eighth National Eucharistic Congress, a special monstrance " a receptacle in which the host is held " was designed. The monstrance weighs 24 pounds and is 42 inches high. Except for the silver statuettes, angels and the platinum diamond settings, it is made of 14-karat gold. It is decorated with 817 diamonds and 90 other precious stones. The monstrance is a magnificent work of art and was donated in large part by the faithful of the archdiocese. Archbishop Rummel wrote that it was 'a gift of the people of this city."

Hey Blake,

I found two gallon cans of Blue Plate Pure Cottonseed Oil distributed by Wesson Oil & Snowdrift Company, New Orleans. When could this have been made and sold?

Neil Daigle

Dear Neil,

Blue Plate Pure Cottonseed Oil began production in 1930, but the company that distributed it had its origin many years before.

The Wesson Oil & Snowdrift Company was founded in Philadelphia in 1887 as The Southern Cotton Oil Company. The company is completely Southern, however; one of the early mills was in Gretna. For many years, the company was the largest prime producer of cottonseed oil in the United States.

In 1899, David Wesson invented a new way of deodorizing cottonseed oil. The Southern Oil Company first sold it as the 'Snowdrift" brand of cooking oil, but the oil later was renamed after the man who was responsible for that discovery.

After World War I, several investors and bankers purchased the Southern Cotton Oil Company for $9 million, more than half of that money coming from New Orleans. In 1925, the men organized a corporation, the Southern Cotton Oil Company of Louisiana, but after three monthhs the name was changed to Wesson Oil & Snowdrift Co. Inc.

An important subsidiary of the company was Blue Plate Foods Inc., which was started in 1930. The Blue Plate label was expanded to include products such as peanut butter, jams, jellies and mayonnaise, and by 1941, the company began construction of a new building at 1315 S. Jefferson Davis Parkway.

In 1974, Reily Foods Company purchased Blue Plate Foods and the building in Gert Town. Since 2000, Blue Plate mayonnaise has been made in Knoxville, Tenn., but Reily left the sign up on the New Orleans building for old times' sake.

Since the 1940s, there have been many mergers of various companies producing cooking oil. Today you can buy Wesson Oil, but it's been a long while since Blue Plate Cottonseed Oil was in the stores.