Museum Artifacts: Chicago Clipper (c. 1902), Stewart Clipper (c. 1910), Stewart Carriage Heater (c. 1908), and Rain King Sprinkler (c. 1920)
Made By: Chicago Flexible Shaft Co., LaSalle Ave. and Ontario St., Chicago, IL
Don’t be fooled by the rusty and rustic-looking artifacts pictured above. When the Chicago Flexible Shaft Company introduced its line of hand-cranked horse clippers and sheep shearers at the end of the 19th century,
Museum Artifact: Airguide “Highlander” Wall Barometer and No. 36 Field Glasses, c. 1948
Made by: Airguide Instrument Co. / Fee & Stemwedel, Inc, 2210 W. Wabansia Ave.
“Into every Airguide instrument go the finest of materials, the painstaking care of skillful workers, and the thorough inspection of an exacting laboratory. No instrument leaves the factory until it has proved its dependability under conditions more severe than those actually encountered throughout the year.
Museum Artifact: Foley Banner Salve, c. 1900s
Made By: Foley & Co., 319-333 W. Ohio St., Chicago, IL
John Burton Foley was one the many opportunistic men of the Gilded Age to find his fortune in proprietary medicines; aka, patent drugs—the “cure-alls” that required no scientific substantiation to sell to the public. The Made In Chicago Museum has tracked several similar quackery kingpins from this same era,
Museum Artifact: Yourex “Silver Saver” Silverware Protector, c. 1920s
Made By: Associated Silver Company, 4450 N. Ravenswood Ave., Chicago, IL
“Ladies, did you ever get your nice silverware out to use for company and find it was badly tarnished, and that you had to rub and rub and rub to get it to look right? There is another way! We have just received a shipment of the marvelous Yourex Silver Saver.
Museum Artifact: Bally Mechanical Slot Machine Reel, c. 1930s
Made By: Bally MFG Co., 2640 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago, IL
Bally is one of the most recognizable and yet seemingly untethered brand names in America. It’s been associated—depending on your age and demographic—with arcade video games, casinos, rollercoaster theme parks, fitness club chains, and, starting in 2021, a stable of regional TV sports networks.
Museum Artifact: Ace Pilot Stapler 404, c. 1960s
Made by: Ace Fastener Corp., 3415 N. Ashland Ave., Chicago, IL
Adapted from a patent application first filed back in 1930, the Ace Pilot stapler is a fine example of a simple, utilitarian design that’s gradually earned itself more of a retro, decorative appeal.
The early models were so pitch perfect in function, in fact,
Museum Artifact: McLaughlin’s Imperial Mocha & Java Coffee Tin, c. 1900s, + 19 McLaughlin XXXX Coffee Trade Cards, 1890s
Made By: W. F. McLaughlin & Co., State Street and South Water Street., Chicago, IL
“Tastes Good—Always. You get the extra good quality in this coffee because it is imported direct and sold direct to retail dealers by W. F. McLaughlin & Co., the largest exclusive coffee roasters in the world.”
Museum Artifact: Paymaster Series X-550 Check Writer Machine, 1960s
Made By: The Paymaster Corp., 1811 W. Winnemac Ave., Chicago, IL
“The only way to have the Paymaster system when you NEED it is to have one all the time—NOW!”—tagline from 1951 Paymaster sales manual
Often kept well out of sight in the backrooms of banks and the HR departments of small businesses,
Museum Artifact: “End of the Trail” Native American Print & Wood Frame, 1925
Made By: Borin Manufacturing Company / Borin Art Products Co., 1325 S. Cicero Ave., Cicero, IL
When it comes to talented men of potentially questionable character, some folks say you must learn to “separate the art from the artist”—to appreciate their work on its own merits. It’s not clear if this same philosophy applies to the art dealer,
Museum Artifact: “Swing Girl” Electronic Mantle Clock, c. 1950
Made By: MasterCrafters Clock & Radio Co., 216 N. Clinton St., Chicago, IL
The MastersCrafters Clock & Radio Company was a literal mom and pop shop through most of its 50 year existence—operated first by Ben Lerman and his wife Kate in the 1940s and ‘50s, then by their daughter Doris and her husband Bernard Ellman into the 1980s.
Museum Artifacts: QRS Player Piano “Autograph Word Roll” #340 – “Forever is a Long Long Time,” 1916
Made By: The Q-R-S Company, 412 Fine Arts Building – Factory at 4829 S. Kedzie Ave.
“Up to the advent of the Q-R-S Autograph Roll all player piano music rolls were much alike—all made the same mechanical way. . . The Q.R.S. Autograph Music Roll is hand played—it is practically a photographic record of the hand playing of an artist.
Museum Artifact: Shure 708A Stratoliner Crystal Microphone, 1940s
Made By: Shure Brothers, Inc., 225 West Huron Street, Chicago, IL
“We know very well that absolute perfection cannot be attained, but we will never stop striving for it.” —Sidney N. Shure, founder of Shure Brothers, Inc.
Introduced in 1940, the “Stratoliner” microphone in our museum collection finds the world famous Shure,
Museum Artifact: Squirrel Nut Cracker, 1910s
Made By: Kelling-Karel Company / Double Kay / Kelling Nut Co., 217 W. Huron St., Chicago, IL
“The ‘Squirrel’ Nut Cracker is suitable for all kinds of table nuts, and is so designed that it cracks the shell but not the kernel. It is adjustable for different sizes of nuts—pecans, hazelnuts, walnuts, etc.. Are all easily cracked with it.
Museum Artifact: Shotwell’s Popcorn Brittle & 3-to-1 Wax Candy Wrappers, 1920s
Made By: Shotwell MFG Co., 3501 W. Potomac Ave., Chicago, IL
The Shotwell Manufacturing Company is one of Chicago’s forgotten confectionery giants; a former popcorn, candy bar, and marshmallow maker that operated from 1903 to 1952. The firm was notably opportunistic in its business practices—sometimes a tad shady even—and it wouldn’t achieve the longevity or cultural relevance of local rivals like Cracker Jack,
Museum Artifacts: 1933 Chicago World’s Fair Postcards (C.T. American Art and C.T. Colortone), published by Max Rigot Selling Company
Made By: Curt Teich & Company, 1733-1755 W. Irving Park Rd., Chicago, IL
“If one were seeking the vernacular aesthetic of a period, the postcard is where you will find it . . . It is the least elitist form of artefact.” —Tom Phillips,
Museum Artifact: Olson Rug 75th Anniversary Calendar, 1949
Made By: Olson Rug Co., 2800 N. Pulaski Rd., Chicago, IL
No other manufacturing business in Chicago ever had a headquarters quite like that of the Olson Rug Company. From 1935 to 1965, the sprawling Olson factory campus at the northwest corner of Diversey Avenue and Pulaski Road—with its stunning man-made waterfalls, rock gardens, sculptures,
