Candy Factory by the Pel Brothers

It seems as though the student flat that overshadows city villa Naomi was savagely stuck to the side of the villa. But the older photos show that Naomi has always stood against another building - she has never stood alone. Here you can see how the quay of the Morsweg looked in 1919. All the way to the right, you can recognize Naomi as she stands today. On the spot where the student flat is currently located once stood another house, as well as the candy factory owned by the Pel brothers.

In 1912, the brothers Hendrik and Gerardus Pel, who moved their renowned business from the Hogewoerd to the Transvaal neighborhood, opened their factory on the Morsweg (fig. 1). “Wie Pel zegt, zegt borstplaat” (If you say Pel, you say “borstplaat”), would be a common expression back then.Wetering, E., ‘Firma v/h Gebroeders Pel: in Suikerwaren, Vruchtenpâté’s & Limonadesiropen’, Stieltz 4 (3), 7. Known for their ‘borstplaat’ (Fig. 2), pates, fruit syrups and other treats, the company expanded to become a large firm where generations of factory workers would earn their money (and their ‘borstplaat’!). The factory and its products were known by almost everyone in Leiden, both because of the delicacies the factory produced and the many jobs it provided.

The award-winning candy by Pel was sold in enormous amounts in the Netherlands and in the colonies. During Sinterklaas the colonial elites would fill their bellies with borstplaat and marzipan made by Pel. The candy factory flourished in the heydays of Dutch colonialism. This was clearly visible, for example in their production of ‘Javaantjes’ (little Javans), oval-shaped cookies with coffee flavor, made especially for the Dutch consumer.The Pel brothers got wrapped up in a lawsuit with other manufacturers about the patent on these cookies.

The Pel factory played an important social role in the neighborhood, particularly in its capacity as an employer. The factory workers often lived closeby in the Transvaal neighborhood, which contributed to a close-knit community. However, the employees were not always satisfied with the Pel brothers’ authoritarian style of management, and the relationship between employer and employees could be quite tense. For example, there are letters in the archive from ex-employees asking for their salary check after having resigned (Fig. 3).

During and after World War II things between management and workers remained tense. The managers of the factory from that time, two cousins of the Pel brothers who had built the factory, were pro-German. After the war, they were arrested and held prisoner in the Doelenkazerne for their membership with the NSB (National-Socialist Movement in the Netherlands). They were released just a few months later, but with a high fine for collaboration. On their return, some of the office staff refused to work for them.Want to read more about the war history of the Pel factory? See this website: Leiden 40-45.

In 1964, the firm was taken over by the American Pet Milk Company, who wanted to modernize the factory in a short amount of time. When their investments did not have the desired effect, the factory had to be shut down a year later.Wetering, E., ‘Firma v/h Gebroeders Pel: in Suikerwaren, Vruchtenpâté’s & Limonadesiropen’, Stieltz 4 (3), 6-13. After the factory was shut down, it made way for the student flat that even today bears the name of the Pel brothers. With the rise of the ‘Pelcomplex’, more than 150 students started living in the neighborhood. What was their role in the close-knit Transvaal neighborhood?

But first: if you are still interested in the people on the balcony of the house on Morsweg 46, then read the longread below first!