“There’s no question concerning the quality of either cake,’ said Claxton Mayer Perry Lee DeLoach. “ They’re both very good.”

Although the Claxton Bakery, Inc., and the Georgia Fruitcake Company are owned by separate families, they can both trace their roots back to Savino Tos, an Italian pastry-maker who found his way to Claxton in the early 1900s. Tos established the Claxton Bakery in 1910 where both Albert Parker, who later both the bakery in 1945, and Ira Womble, Sr., served as apprentices.

Georgia Fruit Cake Company
Womble left Claxton during the Depression and went to Florida where he managed a federal bakery. He moved to Savannah after the Depression. A friend of car magnate Henry Ford, Womble ran a bakery in Richmond Hill Ford built for him. After Ford’s death, Womble moved back to Claxton and opened a bakery. A master baker, Womble made and sold all types of baked goods, including wedding cakes and doughnuts. Once Womble began contracting with the U.S. Government to sell his fruitcake at military commissaries around the world, he didn’t have much time left to bake other things, says his son, Ira Jr., who joined the business after serving in the Korean War and working for the FBI.
“My dad told me it would be my decision if I wanted to join the business with him, and that’s the same thing I told my son,” said Ira, Jr. John Womble is the third generation at the Georgia Fruit Cake Company.
In addition to selling their fruitcake to the U.S. Government, the Wombles also market their cakes through mail order and at their bakery on Duval Street.
“No one other than my dad or me or john has ever mixed a batch of our cake.” said Ira. “There’s no big secret about the recipe. It’s just that if the customers like the fruitcake we take the credit, and if they don’t we take the blame.”
In 1976 the Wombles Georgia Fruit Cake was awarded the Monde Selection Gold Medal, for excellence in taste, quality and purity during the 15th annual Canned Food Products World Selection in London, England. While the Wombles to sell one-pound and two-pound cakes that are cellophane wrapped, they are more well-known for their tow-pound cakes that are baked and sealed in a round tin. The recipe for the loaf and tin cakes is identical, Ira says.
The Wombles also sell a fruitcake in a vac-pack can that is aged in a shot of bourbon. These cakes, sold as Womble’s Fruit Cake, are only available throughout the company’s mail order or at their bakery store. They are not sold to the military commissaries.
“We’re certainly not trying to give someone a drink,” Ira laughs. “It’s just a matter of taste. Some of the extract flavoring has a higher alcohol content than the bourbon.” Ira is also quick to point out that his father never touched a drop of bourbon.
All of the fruitcake produced by the Wombles includes a nut blend of almonds, walnuts and pecans. You’ll also find raisins, cherries, lemon and orange peel and pineapple wedges. All for the dry ingredients are inspected before being added to the batter.
“We go to extra trouble to inspect our ingredients and very few people have ever complained of getting a shell,” Ira said. “John has super sharp eyes. He notices pecan shells or cherry pits when they are unwrapped.”
The only change that Ira, Jr. and John have made to the original recipe is to stop using citron. “We don’t use citron anymore because people have decided they don’t like citron,” Ira explains.
Asked how long a fruitcake will last, Ira says that the can cakes will easily stay fresh for several years. He even recommends keeping them on hand as emergency supplies in case of hurricanes or other natural emergencies.