Museum Artifact: Kellogg Redbar 1000 Series Masterphone, 1952
Made By: Kellogg Switchboard & Supply Co., 6650 S. Cicero Ave., Chicago, IL
Widely promoted during the Kellogg Switchboard & Supply Company’s 50th anniversary in 1947, the 1000 Series “Redbar” Masterphone—like the one in our collection—is a bit of a postwar icon. It might not have the rich oak exterior of an early box phone or the brass shimmer of an old candlestick model,
Museum Artifact: Ribbonette Ribbon Spool Dispenser, c. 1940s
Made By: Chicago Printed String Co., 2300 W. Logan Blvd, Chicago, IL
“In the decorative wrapping and ribbon business, you can’t find any larger than Chicago Printed String.” —Chicago Tribune, August 5, 1960
While the name would certainly suggest a homegrown original, the Chicago Printed String Company could actually trace its beginnings about 4,500 miles to the east,
Museum Artifact: American 3 Vees Bird Nesting, c. 1940s
Made by: American Bird Products, Inc., 2610 W. 25th Place, Chicago, IL
Starting with the pet canary craze of the ‘20s and ‘30s up through the post-war budgie boom, Chicago’s American Bird Products, Inc. (aka the American Bird Food MFG Co. and American Bird Corp.) established a nice niche for itself—evolving from a mere seed supplier into something more like a lifestyle brand for the feathered set.
Museum Artifact: Promotional Display Sign for Die Cast Drive Pulleys, 1949
Made By: Chicago Die Casting Manufacturing Company, 2500 W. Monroe St., Chicago, IL
Research is underway on this one and a full write-up will be coming soon.
Museum Artifact: Hand Painted Baseball Figurine, 1940s
Made By: Electric Corp. of America / ECA Toys, Inc. / ECA MFG Co., 2518 W. Montrose Ave., Chicago, IL
Dating from the early 1940s, our sleepy ceramic Little Leaguer here was produced a few years after the first Hummel figurines hit the U.S. market, making him a sort of hyper-Americanized, wartime knockoff of those popular German collectibles.
Museum Artifact: Maybelline Mascara, c. 1940s
Made By: Maybelline Co. Distr., 5900 N. Ridge Ave., Chicago, IL
When the company now known as Maybelline New York marked its 100th anniversary in 2015, the celebration was—much like that patently unnecessary name change—almost suspiciously disconnected from the real history of a business born, built, and largely defined in Chicago.
A promotional blitz that could have served as the long overdue “coming out”
Museum Artifact: Precision Time-It Electric Timer, c. 1940s
Made By: Precision Scientific Company, 3737 W. Cortland St. Chicago, IL
Research is underway on this one and a full write-up will be coming soon.
Museum Artifact: Bit-O-Honey Candy Display Box, c. 1940s
Made by: Schutter Candy Company (Schutter-Johnson Candy Co.), 1013 N. Cicero Ave.
Research is underway on this one and a full write-up will be coming soon.
Museum Artifact: Gold Eagle Radiator Seal, c. 1940s
Made By: Gold Eagle Products Co., 1050 W. Kinzie Street, Chicago, IL
In the early 1990s, when a lot of Chicago’s remaining “mom and pop” manufacturing businesses were reluctantly cashing in their chips, the family-owned Gold Eagle Company was bucking the trends—50% annual revenue growth, to be specific, with tailwinds into the 21st century.
Museum Artifact: Lineman’s Pliers, 1942
Made By: M. Klein & Sons / Klein Tools, 3200 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago, IL
Research is underway on this one and a full write-up will be coming soon.
Museum Artifact: Leaf Spearmint Chewing Gum Stick, c. 1948
Made By: Leaf Gum Company, 1155 N. Cicero Ave., Chicago, IL
Research is underway on this one and a full write-up will be coming soon.
Museum Artifact: Seeburg Music System “Wall-O-Matic” Selector Jukebox, Type W1-L56, c. 1947
Made By: J. P. Seeburg Corp., 1500 N. Dayton St., Chicago, IL
Research is underway on this one and a full write-up will be coming soon.
Museum Artifact: Signode No. 1 Rawhide Mallet, c. 1940s
Made By: Signode Steel Strapping Co., 2618 N. Western Ave., Chicago, IL
Despite its century-long history and former Fortune 500 status, Signode has never quite become a household name—nor has the firm ever concerned itself much with the household. The company’s natural ecosystem, instead, has always been the warehouse; the docks; the receiving departments—any industrial landscape where they could wrap themselves around the cargo.
Museum Artifact: Helene Curtis “Duchess Machineless Oil Wave,” c. 1940s
Made By: Helene Curtis Industries, div. of National Mineral Company, 505 N. Sacramento Blvd. / 4401 W. North Ave., Chicago, IL
Research is underway on this one and a full write-up will be coming soon.
Museum Artifacts: Stenograph Reporter Model (c. 1947) and LaSalle Stenotype Master Model Four (c. 1935)
Made By: Stenographic Machines, Inc., 80 E. Jackson Blvd.
“The Stenograph was the best machine ever made. It would work with or without oil. Every bearing was like a jewel.” —Robert T. Wright (1906-2000)
Now I will admit from the outset,
Museum Artifact: Majestic Portable Radio 7P420 – “Mighty Monarch of the Air,” c. 1947
Made By: Majestic Radio & Television, 2600 W. 50th St., Chicago, IL and Elgin, IL
Research is underway on this one and a full write-up will be coming soon.
Museum Artifact: Backglass from “All Star Hockey” Coin Op Game, c. 1942
Made By: Chicago Coin Machine Company, 1725 W. Diversey Parkway, Chicago, IL
Research is underway on this one and a full write-up will be coming soon.
Museum Artifact: Box of Addition Flash Cards, c. 1940s
Made By: Ideal School Supply Company, 8316 S. Birkhoff Ave., Chicago, IL
Research is underway on this one and a full write-up will be coming soon.
Museum Artifact: Ferrara’s Boston Baked Beans box, c. 1940s
Made By: Ferrara Candy Co., 2200 W. Taylor St., Chicago, IL
Research is underway on this one and a full write-up will be coming soon.
Museum Artifact: Presto DeLuxe Stapler and No. 165 Presto Staples, c. 1940
Made By: Metal Specialties Manufacturing Company / Loren Speciality MFG Co., 3200 W. Carroll Ave,, Chicago, IL
Research is underway on this one and a full write-up will be coming soon.
Museum Artifact: Wooster College Felt Pennant, c. 1940s
Made By: Chicago Pennant Co., aka ChiPenCo, 6542 S. Cottage Grove Ave., Chicago, IL
Research is underway on this one and a full write-up will be coming soon.
Museum Artifact: Holloway’s Milk Duds, 5-cent box, c. 1940s
Made By: M. J. Holloway & Co., 308 W. Ontario St., Chicago, IL
Research is underway on this one and a full write-up will be coming soon.
Museum Artifact: Mall Electric Drill model no. 380, 1940s
Made By: Mall Tool Company, 7740 S. South Chicago Ave., Chicago, IL
Research is underway on this one and a full write-up will be coming soon.
