The 1901 U.S. revenue tax stamp was at the time when the Tobacco Trust, led by the American Tobacco Company was dominant and targeted in a major antitrust lawsuit. In the 1800s and early 1900s, the U.S. law required cigars be packaged in wooden boxes with the revenue stamp affixed as proof that the taxes had been paid. The American Tobacco Company founded in 1890 by James B. Duke,

bought out competitors, creating a near monopoly. In 1911, The US Supreme Court ruled that the ATC was in violation of the Sherman antitrust act and must dissolve into sixteen successor companies.

This cigar box was given from the Stella Gebhardt estate.