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William Mason 'Bill' Taggard, Deli Sales Professional
b.2 Oct 1914 Boston, Suffolk County, Massachusetts
d.2 May 2003 Long Beach, Los Angeles County, California
Family tree▼ (edit)
m. 1913
Facts and Events
[edit] About William "Bill" TaggardWilliam Mason "Bill" Taggard was born 2 October 1914 in Boston, Suffolk County, Massachusetts, the son of Charles Coburn Taggard (1888-1915) and his wife Rebecca May Bursey (1889-aft. 1942). Young William's father passed away the year after he was born, and he was raised by his mother and her second husband Goodhand Clarke (1886-1974). He was one of seven children raised in their household. Bill grew up in the grocery business as his step-father had his own commission produce merchant business. As a youth, Bill was active in athletics - playing on both his high school and DeMolay football teams. He was also captain of the Boston Swimming Association. He attended Somerville High School in Somerville, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, graduating in 1931 in the midst of the "Great Depression". Bill continued on to college, enrolling at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where he majored in chemistry for two years. He then enrolled in a two-year program taking classes in business administration at night at Harvard University. After he completed his college education, Bill entered the business world in 1935 - starting as an office boy for the Lyon Furniture Mercantile Agency, a credit and collection firm, where he shortly advanced to writing credit reports. After a year, he joined the John P. Squire Company, a local pork packing house. After working for four months in the damp, cold curing cellars, Bill asked to be put on the service trucks, where he worked earning $1 a day as a "lumper" assisting the driver-salesman. In six months he was promoted to driver-salesman and in 1940, Bill was promoted to assistant sales manager and then assistant credit manager in charge of the war-time ration stamp program. Bill married his wife June in 1941 [Massachusetts Marriage Index], and they had two daughters: older daughter Sally, who married and had two sons; and Clare June Taggard born 1945 in Cambridge, Massachusetts [Massachusetts Birth Index]. Bill moved his family to New Haven, Connecticut in 1945 after joining the Sperry & Barnes Company, another pork packer, and two years later was made the assistant production manager of the plant's packaged meat division. He learned every function of the pork business in a two-year on-the-job training program and after completing the course, Bill was appointed production manager of the plant. He was also placed in charge of sales and became involved in setting up displays, writing ads and merchandising the packaged meats. In 1956, Bill accepted a position as sales and production manager with Swift & Company at their New Jersey plant, and in 1958 was transferred to Los Angeles, California. He moved over to Union Packing in 1961 and a year later joined Luer Packing Company before switching over to the brokerage side of the business, when he started Deli Specialties Company with partners Tom Keyes and Rich Miller. They had all quit their jobs in forming the new brokerage firm specializing in deli products and became the only "pure deli' broker in the nation. Gross sales increased from $250,000 during the first year to over $5 million in 1968. The principals that they represented included Superior Mexican Foods, Clearfield Cheese Co., Capri Salami Co., Fisherman's Wharf Dressings, Frigo Cheese Co., Hygrade Meats and Spring Fresh Dips.  While working at Deli Specialties, Bill was a charter member of the Southern California Deli Council, which later was re-named to the Dairy/Deli/Bakery Council of Southern California (DDBC), a local Food Industry Trade Association, and attended many of its meetings, seminars and functions. Bill was awarded the Deli Council's "Big Cheese" Award in February 1968 for his leadership and support of the Council. He worked closely with fellow Deli Council member Ed Hirschman enlisting new members and helping to sell ads for the Deli News Magazine. Bill was a licensed pilot and enjoyed flying his twin-engine Piper Aztec, which he used on excursions to Mexico for hunting quail, skin diving and deep sea fishing. He also raced his 20-foot Cal class sailboat at the Long Beach Yacht Club, played golf occasionally and also played the piano. He was a member of the Masons, the Elks, the Illuminators (a food-industry club), the Southern California Golf Association (SCGA) and the Long Beach Food Sales Club. Bill Taggard passed away on 2 May 2003 while living in Long Beach, California. His enthusiasm and passion for life, and assistance and dedication to the food industry will not soon be forgotten by his friends and co-workers. Image Gallery
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