Continental Baking Company
A historic American commercial bakery associated with Wonder Bread, Hostess cakes, and the invention of the Twinkie.
Last updated August 22, 2026
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Overview
Continental Baking Company was a major American commercial bakery whose history connected regional breadmaking, industrial-scale production, and some of the best-known packaged baked goods in the United States. The company developed from the Ward family baking business, whose origins reached back to 1849, when James Ward and his son Hugh opened a bakery in New York. The family later expanded to Allegheny City, now part of Pittsburgh, and Robert B. Ward organized the Ward Bread Company in 1900. During the early twentieth century, Ward's Bakeries built large facilities in the Bronx and Brooklyn and marketed Ward's Tip-Top Bread as an inexpensive, standardized loaf for urban consumers. William Ward, a later generation of the family, assumed control in 1921. In 1925, the Ward organization was renamed Continental Baking Company. The company expanded rapidly through acquisitions, including Wagner Baking Company of Detroit and other bakeries at the end of 1924, followed by Taggart Baking Company in 1925. Taggart produced Wonder Bread, giving Continental one of the most recognizable packaged bread names in the American market and helping make Continental the country's largest commercial bakery at that time. Continental was also an early producer of fortified bread, reflecting the growing industrial emphasis on nutritional standardization and mass distribution. The company's best-known confectionery milestone came in 1930, when James Alexander Dewar, a Continental baker in Schiller Park, Illinois, developed the snack cake later known as the Twinkie. The product became a durable symbol of American packaged food and helped broaden Continental's business beyond sliced bread. Its portfolio also included Hostess cakes and other bakery products distributed through a nationwide manufacturing and delivery network. Continental was headquartered in New York for much of its independent history, from 1923 until 1984, and also maintained executive offices in Hoboken, New Jersey. M. Lee Marshall, a member of the Marshall family and a descendant of John Marshall, served as president and later chairman between 1934 and 1944. During the Second World War period, Marshall also worked in food distribution for the War Food Administration. Ownership changed several times in the late twentieth century. ITT acquired Continental in 1968. Ralston Purina purchased it in 1984, and Interstate Bakeries Corporation acquired it in 1995. The combined business was rebranded Hostess Brands in 2009, ending Continental Baking Company's identity as a standalone operating company. Hostess Brands subsequently ceased operations and entered liquidation in 2012. Brand names, selected plants, and other assets were later acquired in 2013 by New HB Acquisition LLC, a separate entity associated with Apollo Global Management and C. Dean Metropoulos and Company. That entity adopted the Hostess Brands name. Thus, Continental Baking Company survives primarily through the brands and industrial bakery assets that passed through its succession of corporate owners rather than as an independent company.
History
The roots of Continental Baking Company lay in the Ward family's New York bakery business. In 1849, James Ward and his son Hugh established a small bakery on Broome Street. Hugh and his son Robert Boyd Ward later moved to Allegheny City, now part of Pittsburgh, where they opened another bakery. Robert B. Ward organized the Ward Bread Company in 1900, with operations in New York, Brooklyn, and Newark. The Ward organization pursued industrial scale during the early twentieth century. Around 1910, Ward's Bakeries constructed large plants in the Bronx and Brooklyn. The company promoted Ward's Tip-Top Bread in low-priced loaves, reflecting the growth of branded, standardized bread sold through urban retail channels. The Ward family business was subsequently consolidated and expanded through acquisitions. William Ward took control in 1921. After a period in which the business maintained offices in New York, the company was renamed Continental Baking Company in 1925. Continental had already acquired Wagner Baking Company of Detroit and other bakery businesses near the end of 1924. Its 1925 purchase of Taggart Baking Company added Wonder Bread, which became a central product in Continental's national portfolio. The acquisitions helped create what was described as the largest commercial bakery in the United States. Continental participated in the development of fortified bread and expanded from bread into snack cakes. In 1930, James Alexander Dewar, working at the company's Schiller Park, Illinois, facility, invented the Twinkie. The snack cake became one of the most durable products associated with the Continental and Hostess lineage. Hostess cakes and other packaged bakery goods were manufactured and distributed through a broad American network. The company's executive base remained in New York from 1923 through 1984, with additional executive offices in Hoboken, New Jersey. M. Lee Marshall served as president and later chairman from 1934 to 1944. During 1944, he also served as director of distribution in the War Food Administration, connecting his food-industry experience with wartime government distribution work. Continental's later history was defined by corporate ownership changes. ITT purchased the company in 1968. Ralston Purina acquired it in 1984, and Interstate Bakeries Corporation bought it in 1995. In 2009, the combined successor operation was rebranded Hostess Brands. Hostess Brands closed in 2012 and entered liquidation. During that process it became known as Old HB. In 2013, New HB Acquisition LLC, a separate entity backed in equal ownership by HB Holdings and associated with Apollo Global Management and C. Dean Metropoulos and Company, purchased brand names, certain plants, and other assets. New HB Acquisition subsequently adopted the Hostess Brands name. Continental Baking Company therefore became defunct as a corporate identity, while several products and brand assets continued through successor businesses.
- 2013
Hostess assets are transferred to a new entity
[1]New HB Acquisition LLC acquires selected brands, plants, and other assets and later takes the Hostess Brands name.
- 2012
Hostess successor closes
[1]Hostess Brands ceases operations during liquidation, ending Continental's corporate succession in that form.
- 2009
Successor business becomes Hostess Brands
[1]The combined Interstate-related operation adopts the Hostess Brands identity.
- 1995
Interstate Bakeries acquires Continental
[1]Interstate Bakeries Corporation purchases Continental Baking and its associated bakery assets and brands.
- 1984
Ralston Purina purchases Continental
[1]Ownership passes from ITT to Ralston Purina.
- 1968
ITT acquires Continental
[1]Continental Baking becomes part of ITT.
- 1930
Twinkie is invented
[1]James Alexander Dewar develops the snack cake at Continental's Schiller Park, Illinois, bakery.
- 1925
Continental Baking Company is created
[1]The Ward organization is renamed Continental Baking Company after a series of acquisitions.
- 1925
Wonder Bread enters the portfolio
[1]Continental acquires Taggart Baking Company, the maker of Wonder Bread.
- 1921
William Ward takes control
[1]William Ward assumes leadership of the family baking business.
Products and positioning
Mass-market packaged bakery products combining standardized industrial production with broad American retail distribution.
Packaged bread · 1925
Wonder Bread
Wonder Bread was acquired through Taggart Baking Company in 1925 and became one of Continental's defining mass-market bread brands. Its importance reflected the company's strategy of producing standardized loaves for broad American distribution. The brand remained associated with the Continental and later Hostess corporate lineage after the original company ceased to operate.
Snack cake · 1930
Twinkies
Twinkies were developed in 1930 by Continental baker James Alexander Dewar at the company's Schiller Park, Illinois, facility. The cream-filled snack cake expanded Continental's profile beyond bread and became one of the most recognizable products associated with Hostess. Its brand and production assets later passed through successor companies.
Packaged snack cakes
Hostess cakes
Hostess cakes formed a major part of Continental's packaged bakery offering, complementing its bread business with individually portioned cakes and related snack products. The Hostess name became the principal identity of the successor business after the Continental and Interstate Bakeries operations were rebranded.
Packaged bread · 1911
Ward's Tip-Top Bread
Ward's Tip-Top Bread was an early branded bread line marketed by the Ward family businesses before the 1925 formation of Continental Baking Company. Sold in inexpensive standardized loaves, it illustrates the commercial bakery model and urban distribution system that preceded Continental's national expansion.
Brand decisions
2009
Adopt the Hostess Brands identityStrategyBackground
Interstate Bakeries and the Continental-related operations were being presented as a combined bakery business.
Action taken
The combined company was rebranded Hostess Brands.
Aftermath
Continental Baking Company ceased to be the visible corporate identity, while its brands continued under the Hostess name.
1995
Join Interstate Bakeries CorporationM&ABackground
Continental had passed through ITT and Ralston Purina ownership.
Action taken
Interstate Bakeries Corporation acquired Continental Baking.
Aftermath
The Continental-related brands and assets became part of the business later known as Hostess Brands.
1968
Sell Continental Baking to ITTM&ABackground
Continental had become a large national bakery with established bread and snack-cake brands.
Action taken
ITT purchased Continental Baking Company.
Aftermath
Continental continued under new corporate ownership rather than as an independent Ward-family company.
1930
Develop the Twinkie snack cakeProduct launchBackground
Continental was expanding its business from bread into packaged snack cakes.
Action taken
Baker James Alexander Dewar developed the Twinkie at the Schiller Park, Illinois, bakery.
Aftermath
Twinkies became a signature product associated with Continental and its later Hostess successor.
1925
Rename the Ward organization as Continental Baking CompanyStrategyBackground
The Ward family baking business had expanded through new facilities and acquisitions, including Wagner Baking Company and Taggart Baking Company.
Action taken
William Ward and the organization adopted the Continental Baking Company name.
Aftermath
The new company became a major national commercial bakery and controlled the Wonder Bread business.
Recent events
- 2013
New HB Acquisition acquires selected Hostess assets[1]
M&A
A newly created entity acquired Hostess brand names, selected plants, and other assets from the liquidated predecessor and later took the Hostess Brands name.
- 2012
Hostess Brands closes and enters liquidation[1]
Bankruptcy
The successor company ceased operations during a liquidation process, ending the corporate succession through which Continental's assets had been held.
- 2009
The combined business adopts the Hostess Brands name[1]
Other
The former Interstate Bakeries Corporation and the Continental-related business were rebranded Hostess Brands.
- 1995
Interstate Bakeries Corporation acquires Continental Baking[1]
M&A
Interstate Bakeries Corporation bought Continental Baking, bringing its brands and bakery assets into the Interstate system.
- 1984
Ralston Purina acquires Continental Baking[1]
M&A
Ralston Purina purchased Continental Baking, ending the company's long period under its previous ownership.
- 1968
ITT purchases Continental Baking Company[1]
M&A
Continental became part of ITT in a major corporate ownership transaction.
- 1930
Twinkie is developed by Continental baker James Alexander Dewar[1]
Product launch
James Alexander Dewar developed the snack cake in Schiller Park, Illinois, establishing one of Continental's most enduring product lines.
- 1925
Continental Baking Company is formed through the renaming of the Ward organization[1]
Other
William Ward renamed the Ward baking business Continental Baking Company after a period of expansion and acquisition.
- 1925
Continental acquires Taggart Baking Company and gains Wonder Bread[1]
M&A
The acquisition of Taggart Baking Company brought the Wonder Bread business into Continental's portfolio and strengthened its position as a national commercial bakery.
Sources1 sources
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