Two Friedmans and One Lieberthal - The Double Crown Yeast Company

Another significant Jewish business in the area was the Double Crown Yeast Company, which made soap, yeast, baking powder, and a tick killer called Dodenbossie. According to a 1952 publication publication, a key turning point happened when the company expanded into soap production, with the tick killer division starting in 1939. The Double Crown brand became well known far beyond Vryburg.

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The company was started by Leopold (Lolly) Friedman, Sam Friedman, and their brother-in-law Simon Lieberthal, who was married to their sister Lea Friedman.

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From Latvia to Vryburg

Simon Lieberthal arrived in South Africa in 1891 from Talsen, Latvia, and settled in Vryburg in 1911. Lea Friedman and her brothers were also from Talsen. According to Phil Toube, a grandson of Simon Lieberthal, the Friedman siblings probably arrived in Vryburg a few months before Simon and Lea.

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Before starting the Double Crown Yeast Company, Simon tried several businesses. He first sold photographs to farmers nearby, briefly ran a tobacco shop in town, and then opened a grocery store in 1915. By 1916, Simon was running a grain trading business, as shown by an ad in the Northern News. But the economic depression forced him to leave this business. Sometime between 1918 and 1920, Simon teamed up with the two Friedman brothers—who, according to Phil Toube, also traded—to start what would become the very successful Double Crown Yeast Company.

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Factory Locations

The original factory was located on Market Street, right in the center of town, diagonally across from the Grand Hotel. The site later became the home of what is now Lewis Furniture Store. As the business expanded, the factory eventually moved to the industrial area.

 

A Family Business

The business remained firmly family-run. Simon Lieberthal later bought out the Friedman brothers. Nathan Mendelow, who married Annie Lieberthal (born in Vryburg on August 25, 1913), worked as a sales representative for the company.

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Earlier, Charlie Toube married Helen Lieberthal, the oldest of Simon and Lea’s two daughters (born in Vryburg on March 24, 1912), and joined the business. Arnold Bayer fondly remembered Charlie Toube visiting his family’s store in Taung, selling Double Crown products and restocking shelves.

Sam Lieberthal, born in Vryburg in 1918, also joined the company, further strengthening its family ties.

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Charlie’s son Phil Toube, along with Mervyn Lieberthal (son of Sam Lieberthal), vividly recall the strong smell produced when tallow—made from cattle fat—was melted to produce soap. The smell spread throughout town, as the tallow was cooked in large boilers with other ingredients. This process created triglycerides, allowing the fat to be stored without refrigeration.

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Childhood Memories and Craftsmanship

“There's a Jewish lady who lived right behind the factory and complained loudly about the smell. I believe her name was Sonja Friedman. She also had a Dalmatian dog named either Tiger or Lion. She thought naming the dog Lion would scare off intruders by making them think she had a real lion. As kids, we found her terrifying and thought she was a witch.”

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Eventually, according to Mervyn, the town council agreed that no boiling would take place on Tuesdays, since that was the day farmers and travelers came into town.

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Remembering their youth, Issy Lieberthal talks about working in the yeast section of the factory on Saturdays or during school holidays: “We cut the yeast into circles and placed them on the drying racks. The older kids sealed the small baking powder packets. Pay was about a sixpence. Child labor—LOL.”

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Mervyn and Issy also remember busts made from soap or yeast depicting their grandparents and Jan van Riebeeck. Phil Toube explained that the molds for these figures were made by a Black worker at the factory named Johnny: “He not only made the large molds but also shaped animals—cows, bucks, and lions—while the soap was still cooling. It was like plasticine: the longer it sat, the drier and harder it became.”

 

A Remarkable Legacy

Phil Toube later shared Simon Lieberthal’s obituary, published in the Stellelander on 19 June 1958. As a sign of the deep respect Simon earned, the town’s shops closed for the afternoon of his funeral, marking the passing of a man whose business and character made a lasting impact on Vryburg.

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