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2008 SESSION


SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 174
Commending the Jessup family and the Pepsi-Cola Bottling Company of Central Virginia.
 
Agreed to by the Senate, February 14, 2008
Agreed to by the House of Delegates, February 22, 2008
 

WHEREAS, in 2008, the Jessup family of Charlottesville celebrates the 100th anniversary of their highly successful Pepsi-Cola franchise; and

WHEREAS, Samuel Ambrose “S. A.” Jessup moved his family to Charlottesville in 1908, seeking better educational opportunities for his six children and looking to expand the bottling business he had started a few years earlier in Martinsville; and

WHEREAS, after doing some research, S. A. Jessup decided that Pepsi-Cola was the best candidate and he signed a licensing agreement with the Pepsi-Cola Company on December 28, 1908, which is the oldest franchise agreement on record with the parent company today; and

WHEREAS, S. A. Jessup started the business in 1908 with a plant on the corner of 4th and Water Streets in downtown Charlottesville, making deliveries first by pushcart and then with a horse and wagon; and

WHEREAS, in 1912, S. A. Jessup began using power-driven vehicles and in 1918 he opened a larger plant near the railway station so that the product could be delivered to the Crozet and Louisa markets by rail; and

WHEREAS, the company continued to grow, opening a bottling plant in Warrenton in 1922 and selling Pepsi-Cola fountain syrup beginning in 1946; and

WHEREAS, in 1960, S. A. Jessup died and his son, Jimmie Jessup, became president of the Pepsi-Cola Bottling Company of Central Virginia, and during his tenure he oversaw a move to a new location on Millmont Street in 1963 and the introduction of Diet Pepsi in 1964 and the 12-ounce aluminum can in 1969; and

WHEREAS, the company continued to grow and experience change—the present production facility in Charlottesville’s Seminole Square was built in 1983, and the following year Jimmie Jessup died, leaving the management of the company in the capable hands of his children, James L. Jessup, Jr., and Suzanne Jessup Brooks, who became president and executive vice president, respectively; and

WHEREAS, the Jessup family is proud of their long history with Pepsi-Cola and with the City of Charlottesville and looks forward to celebrating the company’s 100th anniversary on June 7, 2008, at a gala event taking place at the John Paul Jones Arena; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the Senate, the House of Delegates concurring, That the General Assembly hereby commend the Jessup family and the Pepsi-Cola Bottling Company of Central Virginia on the occasion of the company’s 100th anniversary; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the Senate prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to James L. Jessup, Jr., and Suzanne Jessup Brooks as an expression of the General Assembly’s congratulations and best wishes for future success.