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Andy Granatelli Collection

Creator:
Granatelli, Andy, 1923-2013  Search this
Grancor Automotive Specialists  Search this
Hurricane Hot Rod Association  Search this
Studebaker Corporation  Search this
Donor:
Granatelli, Vincent  Search this
Names:
Indianapolis Speedway Race  Search this
Soldier Field (Chicago)  Search this
Studebaker Corporation. STP Division  Search this
Afrons, Arthur Eugene "Art", 1926-2007  Search this
Afrons, Walter Charles "Walt", 1916-2013  Search this
Agajanian, Joshua C. James , 1913-1984  Search this
Agnew, Spiro T., 1918-1996  Search this
Andretti, Mario, 1940-  Search this
Banks, Henry, 1913-1994  Search this
Bishop, Joey  Search this
Bridges, Lloyd  Search this
Carson, Johnny, 1925-2005  Search this
Carter, Jimmy, 1924-  Search this
Chapman, Anthony Colin Bruce , 1928-1982  Search this
Clark, Jim, 1936-1968  Search this
Cole, Hal, 1912-1970  Search this
Cooper, Earl, 1886-1965  Search this
Cooper, Leroy Gordan, 1927-2004  Search this
DePaolo, Peter, 1898-1980  Search this
Derr, Ernest Virgil "Ernie" , 1921-  Search this
Egbert, Sherwood, 1920-1965  Search this
Ford, Gerald R., 1913-2006  Search this
Foyt, A. J., 1935-  Search this
Gable, Clark, 1901-1960  Search this
Garagiola, Joe  Search this
Grissom, Virgil I.  Search this
Guerrero, Roberto, 1958-  Search this
Hartke, Vance, 1919-2003  Search this
Hill, Graham, 1929-1975  Search this
Holland, Willard, 1907-1984  Search this
Hurtubise, Jim, 1932-1989  Search this
Kennedy, Edward M. (Edward Moore), 1932-2009  Search this
Kladis, Danny, 1917-2009  Search this
LaMotta, Jake  Search this
Lasorda, Tommy  Search this
Leno, Jay (comedian)  Search this
Leonard, Joe, 1932-2017  Search this
Lorenzen, Fred, 1934-  Search this
Luyendyk, Arie  Search this
Malone, Art, 1936-2013  Search this
Marcenac, Jean  Search this
Marciano, Rocky  Search this
Mays, Rex Houston, 1913-1949  Search this
McCain, John  Search this
McElreath, Jimmy, 1928-2017  Search this
Miller, Chet, 1902-1953  Search this
Murphy, Paula, 1928-  Search this
Nixon, Richard M. (Richard Milhous), 1913-1994  Search this
Palin, Sarah, 1964-  Search this
Parsons, Johnnie, 1918-1984  Search this
Petty, Richard, 1937-  Search this
Pickens, T. Boone (Thomas Boone)  Search this
Pollard, Artle Lee, 1927-1973  Search this
Quayle, Dan, 1947-  Search this
Rathman, Royal Richard "Jim", 1928-2011  Search this
Reagan, Ronald  Search this
Robbins, Marty  Search this
Russo, Paul, 1914-1976  Search this
Tremulis, Alex S.  Search this
Unser, Bobby  Search this
Weld, Greg, 1944-2008  Search this
Williams, Carl, 1930-1973  Search this
Actor:
Anderson, Eddie "Rochester", 1905-1977  Search this
DeVito, Danny  Search this
Douglas, Kirk, 1916-2020  Search this
Goulet, Robert, 1933-2007  Search this
Extent:
66 Cubic feet (108 boxes, 16 map-folders)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Advertisements
Business records
Clippings
Correspondence
Design drawings
Drawings
Financial records
Legal records
Minutes
Photographs
Scrapbooks
Speeches
Date:
1932-2008
Scope and Contents:
The collection documents Granatelli's lifelong involvement with automobiles, from his youth through his career as an auto industry executive, and as a racing car owner, designer and promoter. The collection consists primarily of files, photographs, scrapbooks, and drawings. Some of the earliest files relate to Grancor, a company founded by Granatelli and his two brothers in 1945, which customized cars for clients. Other things contained in the files include meeting minutes, articles of association, business and financial records, legal records and profit and loss statements. Also included are papers relating to an organization he started called the Hurricane Hot Rod Association.

A large portion of the files relate to Granatelli's term as President of STP, a division of the Studebaker Corporation, from 1961-1974. These files detail the internal workings of the company during this period, and include papers relating to such things as strategic planning, sales, marketing, advertising and competitors' products. Additionally, this portion contains STP's Board of Directors' minutes, documents on policies and procedures, papers documenting advertising campaigns, comparative sales figures, sales manuals, and Granatelli's business correspondence. The largest part of the files relate to the Indianapolis 500 race. There are detailed files on the drivers and race teams he assembled for the annual race, but these files also include design drawings, specifications, test data, lap logs, performance statistics, and reports documenting the implementation of design changes. The scrapbooks in the collection contain clippings, biographical materials, and other documents relating to auto racing in America and especially the Indianapolis 500. Finally, the collection contains a large number of photographs covering all aspects of Granatelli's career.
Arrangement:
Collection is arranged into nine series.

Series 1: Biographical Materials, 1946-2006

Series 2: Granatelli Corporation, 1943-1975

Series 3: Studebaker Corporation, 1935-1991

Series 4: United States Auto Club (USAC)

Series 5: Novi Engine, 1949-1971

Series 6: Product Literature, 1949-1972

Series 7: Racing Programs, Publications, and Ephermera, 1940s-2007

Series 8: Photographs, 1932-2008

Series 9: Audiovisual Materials, 1960-2001
Biographical / Historical:
Andy Granatelli (1923-2013) was an automobile racing promoter, a race car engine designer and an automotive innovator. Two of his cars, a 1967 turbine engine race car and the 1969 Indianapolis 500 winner, are in National Museum of American History's Division of Work & Industry collection. More than any other racing figure, Granatelli bridged the realms of garage tinkerers and professional motorsports, and he stimulated public interest in auto racing on a national level. His STP Corporation became a high-profile sponsor of Indianapolis 500 and NASCAR race cars, with Granatelli appearing in ads and commercials. His larger-than-life personality and flair for the dramatic made him an American cultural phenomenon. His career is well summed up in the profile written for his 2003 induction into the Automotive Hall of Fame.

Racer, entrepreneur, engineer, promoter, business executive. This is how one begins to describe the career of Andy Granatelli. But the title Mister 500 is the one that befits him most, for it describes a lifelong dream to conquer the famous 500-mile race in Indianapolis.

It was a preposterous dream for the scrappy kid growing up in the slums of Chicago, whose mother had died when he was twelve, and two years later, at the age of fourteen, dropped out of school to help his father feed the family. Andy Granatelli began his quest for Indy 500 fame at the age of 20 in 1943, when he and his brother pooled their meager, hard-earned money and purchased a Texaco gas station on the north side of Chicago, which he called Andy's Super Service. Andy, always the promoter, needed a gimmick to set himself apart from other service stations. His gimmick? Granatelli initiated the first pit stop service station, utilizing four or five mechanics to work on a car at one time.

Customers appreciated the true super service experience and would often wait in line for this unique treatment. With this unique service and Andy's P.T. Barnum style it was no wonder that the station was prosperous, and just two years later, in 1945, he formed the Granatelli Corporation, known as Grancor Automotive Specialists. As the head of Grancor, Andy Granatelli pioneered the concept of mass merchandising performance products and power and speed equipment to a generation of Americans who were discovering the joys of hot rodding.

Andy quickly learned that if you give the customer what he needs, you can make a living; give him what he wants, and you can make a fortune! Granatelli's racing career began in 1946, when he built the first rocket-powered car to race on an oval track. That same year, he took his first car to the Indianapolis 500--a pre-war Harry Miller--designed Ford.

When Andy Granatelli wasn't burning up tracks, he was tearing up the business world. In 1958, Andy and his brother Joe purchased Paxton Products, a failing engineering firm that made superchargers. With Andy at the helm, Paxton Products became profitable in seven months. In 1961, Andy sold Paxton Products to Studebaker Corporation and stayed on as Paxton's CEO. Two years later, Studebaker management wanted Granatelli to work his magic on an under-performing division called Chemical Compounds Corporation. Chemical Compounds had only one, little known product . . . STP Oil Treatment. With virtually no advertising budget, Andy created a four-pronged approach to turn the company around: a recognizable corporate logo (the STP oval), a product (oil treatment), a product spokesman (himself) and a reason for existence (racing). The STP logo became one of the best recognized in history. STP could be found in virtually every venue of speed: on land, on the water or in the air. Andy Granatelli once said that in the 1960s, virtually every kid in America had an STP sticker on his bedroom door, his notebook or his lunchbox, and he was probably right!

Back at Indianapolis, Granatelli entered a revolutionary race car of his own design - one with a turbine engine in 1967 and 1968. Even though the car failed to finish both years due to mechanical failure, the cars demonstrated superior speed and performance. At the end of the 1968 season, the U.S. Auto Club revised engine specifications, effectively outlawing Granatelli's turbine car. Undeterred, Granatelli returned to Indy the following year with a conventional car and proceeded to win his first Indianapolis 500 with Mario Andretti at the wheel. Four years later, in 1973, Andy won his second and last Indy 500 with a car driven by Gordon Johncock. Andy Granatelli's childhood dream of conquering Indy was fulfilled, not once, but twice.

Source

Andy Granatelli Biography, Automotive Hall of Fame (last accessed January 29, 2020 https://www.automotivehalloffame.org/honoree/andy-granatelli/)
Related Materials:
Materials in the Archives Center

Warshaw Collection of Business American, Series: Automobile Industry (NMAH.AC.0060)

Winton-Anderson Scrapbook Collection (NMAH.AC.0122)

Sam DeVincent Collection of Illustrated American Sheet Music, Series 1: Transportation (NMAH.AC.0300)

Evan Rangeloff Collection of Punchboards and Liggett & Myers Tobacco Sales Materials (NMAH.AC.0716)

Materials at the National Museum of American History, Division of Work and Industry

The Divison holds artifacts related to STP and the STP-Paxton Turbo Car. Included are key chains, trophies, STP stickers, TuneUp Masters stickers, belt buckle, and patch. See accession 2017.3043.

STP-Paxton Turbocar, 1967. See accession 1978.0418.

Materials at the National Museum of American History, Division of Cultural and Community Life

Division holds artifacts related to Andy Grantelli's racing career such as helmets, goggles, trophies, and coveralls and vests with the STP logo. See accession 2017.0092.
Provenance:
Collection donated by Vincent J. Granatelli, 2017.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research. Viewing film and audio portion of collection requires special appointment. See repository for details.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Automobile driving  Search this
Automobile industry and trade  Search this
Automobile industry executives  Search this
Automobiles  Search this
Automobiles -- Design and construction  Search this
Automobiles, Racing  Search this
Engines, automobile  Search this
Hot rods  Search this
Publications  Search this
Slides  Search this
Genre/Form:
Advertisements -- 20th century
Business records -- 20th century
Clippings -- 20th century
Correspondence -- 20th century
Design drawings -- 20th century
Drawings
Financial records -- 20th century
Legal records -- 20th century
Minutes -- 20th century
Photographs -- 20th century
Scrapbooks
Speeches
Citation:
Andy Granatelli Collection, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.1403
See more items in:
Andy Granatelli Collection
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8b8ed345f-7459-4956-9875-900f8585af74
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-1403
Online Media:

Donald J. Stubblebine Collection of Theater and Motion Picture Music and Ephemera

Donor:
Hauber, Joseph R.  Search this
Collector:
Stubblebine, Donald J., 1925-2010  Search this
Extent:
285 Cubic feet (600 boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Posters
Playbills
Sheet music
Design drawings
Theater programs
Date:
1866-2009, undated
Scope and Contents:
One of the most comprehensive collections of material relating to musical stage and film productions, the collection consists of an assortment of material including sheet music written specifically for or included in stage and screen musicals, television programs, Big Band performances, and radio. Some productions may have been produced under more than one title, especially if the production was presented internationally.

The collection is arranged alphabetically by title of production or personality using proper name. Folders for each entry may include sheet music, ephemeral items related to that specific production or personality such as theater programs, reviews, and posters. There are a number of costume design drawings. Folders will rarely include full printed scores. Published scores were separated from this collection before donation.
Arrangement:
The collection is divided into six series.

Series 1, Stage Musicals and Vaudeville, 1866-2007, undated

Subseries 1.1, United States Stage Musicals, 1866-2007, undated

Subseries 1.2, Ziegfeld Productions, 1911-1958, undated

Subseries 1.3, British Stage Musicals, 1890-1943, undated

Subseries 1.4, Assorted Countries Stage Musicals, 1896-1935, undated

Series 2, Motion Pictures, 1912-2007, undated

Subseries 2.1, United States Motion Pictures, 1919-2007, undated

Subseries 2.2, British Motion Pictures, 1912-1988, undated

Subseries 2.3, Foreign Motion Pictures, Assorted Countries, 1921-1985, undated

Subseries 2.4, Silent Motion Picture Cue Sheets, 1915-1930, undated

Series 3, Television, 1933-2003, undated

Series 4, Big Bands and Radio, 1925-1998,undated

Subseries 4.1, Big Bands, 1929-1998, undated

Subseries 4.2, Radio, 1925-1948, undated

Series 5, Personalities, 1875-2009, undated

Series 6, Ephemera and Single Sheet Music, 1908-2005, undated
Biographical / Historical:
Donald J. Stubblebine was born on February 4, 1925 in Reading, Pennsylvania, to Edgar W. and Emma Stubblebine. He had an older brother Edgar W. Stubblebine, Jr. His father was a sheet metal worker employed by the railroad in Reading. Stubblebine was first exposed to musicals through motion pictures. His mother attended "dish night" with her son twice a week. During the Great Depression, in order to draw an audience, theaters would give out dishes with each admission. He credited this with beginning his love of musicals. By the 1940 United States Census his mother is listed as a widow. Stubblebine attended the Wharton School of Business of the University of Pennsylvania. After graduation he was employed for forty years as controller by the Chilton Publishing Company. He retired in 1994.

As a lifelong film and theater fan, Stubblebine began collecting sheet music, programs, and ephemera from stage and film musicals in the early 1970s. As his collection grew, so did his expertise in the history of musical theatre and film. He eventually authored four reference books dealing with United States and British stage and film musicals as well as films from Canada and Australia. He became an often sought-after expert in stage and film music. His obsession with collecting eventually filled his Philadelphia apartment with one of the largest collections of material centered on music in the United States. He collected not only the sheet music and scores from musicals but often collected copies of reviews, programs, photographs, and costume sketches.

Stubblebine died on May 1, 2010 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Provenance:
Donated to the Archives Center, National Museum of American History, Smitsonian Institution by Joseph Regis Hauber in memory of Donald J. Stubblebine, in 2010.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research but is stored offsite. Arrangements must be made with the Archives Center staff two weeks prior to a scheduled research visit.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.

Reproduction restricted due to copyright or trademark.
Topic:
Silent films  Search this
Motion pictures  Search this
Vaudeville  Search this
Music -- United States  Search this
Motion pictures, British  Search this
Musical revue, comedy, etc  Search this
Music -- Performance  Search this
Musicals  Search this
Musical theater  Search this
Music -- 20th century  Search this
Music -- 19th century  Search this
Revues -- 1900-1910  Search this
Theater  Search this
Silent films -- Musical accompaniment  Search this
Genre/Form:
Posters -- 20th century
Playbills
Sheet music
Design drawings
Theater programs
Citation:
Donald J. Stubblebine Collection of Musical Theater and Motion Picture Music and Ephemera, 1866-2009, Archives Center, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.1211
See more items in:
Donald J. Stubblebine Collection of Theater and Motion Picture Music and Ephemera
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8ef54fc89-cd33-4842-ae7f-796642a67098
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-1211
Online Media:

Michael Travis Costume Design Collection

Creator:
Travis, Michael  Search this
Donor:
Lavdas, George  Search this
Names:
5th Dimension (Musical group)  Search this
Supremes (Musical group)  Search this
Liberace, 1919-1987  Search this
Sinatra, Nancy  Search this
Warwick, Dionne  Search this
Extent:
15 Cubic feet (35 boxes, 1 map-folder )
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Pastels (drawings)
Pencil works
Drawings
Design drawings
Date:
1947-1986
Summary:
The collection contains approximately 2,500 costume designs in colored pencil and pastels, on tissue paper mounted on mat boards. The designs were created for entertainers such as Liberace, Diana Ross and the Supremes, Dionne Warwick, the Fifth Dimension, Nancy Sinatra, and others. Some were created for the television show Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In.
Scope and Contents:
This collection consists of the sketches and finished renderings of costumes created over approximately thirty years by Michael Travis. Many are signed by the artist; most are not, which may indicate that Travis collected renderings done by other designers to save them from destruction. They are done in a variety of media and many pencil "roughs" are present as well as the finished art presented to clients. The earlier works are relatively small in size and are believed to have been created in the late 1950s and 1960s for New York costume houses and theatrical productions. The larger format works are primarily designs for the musical performers and television productions that comprised Travis's clients in Los Angeles in the 1970s and 1980s.

During his career his style of illustration evolved and he may also have used several different styles to suit the subject. It is likely that he used assistants for some of the drawings, especially for large productions. In any case, the liveliness of the drawings, the brilliance of their color, the sheer panache they posess is the essence of the drama and excitement that is the lifeblood of the entertainment industry. Many of the illustrations have one (or many) fabric swatches attached to them; a group of large fabric samples is included as well.

Other materials include ephemera, a few publications, and photographs. There is also a small group of artworks by other artists, particularly Waldo Angelo, a long-time friend and colleague.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into five series.

Series 1: Costume Designs for Individual Performers and Performing Groups, 1961-1986, undated

Series 2: Costume Designs for Theatrical and Television Productions, 1958-1978, undated

Series 3: Ephemera, Publications, and Photographs, 1977-1985, undated

Series 4: Fabric Samples, undated

Series 5: Artworks by Others, 1947-1968, undated
Biographical / Historical:
Costume designer Michael Travis was born Louis Torakis to a Detroit Greek-American family in 1928. While serving in the postwar United States Army he was stationed in Paris. Upon his discharge in1949 he remained in the city to study at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts and the Sorbonne on the GI Bill. Also studying haute couture, he met the designers Jacques Fath and Pierre Balmain and occasionally provided sketches for their collections.

Travis left Paris to seek work in New York and was hired at Eaves Costume Company. The company had been founded in 1863 and was the premier costumer for Broadway productions. He was hired as a secretary (his army employment) but became an assistant to the designers. With the owner's encouragement, he passed the exam for the costumers union and became a member of the Designers Guild. This made him eligible to design for Broadway shows and union films.

Travis became an assistant at Brooks Costume Company where he worked with famous Broadway and Hollywood designers such as Raul Pene du Bois and Irene Sharaff. This would lead to his designing the costumes for Ionesco's play Rhinosceros, starring Zero Mostel. The director of the play then hired Travis for a series of Public Television theater productions. Following these, he became the designer for two television programs featuring operatic and theatrical stars, The Voice of Firestone and The Bell Telephone Hour.

Beginning in 1958, Travis worked on the Motion Picture Acadmey of Arts and Sciences (MPAAS) Academy Awards, the Oscars, for eight years as assistant to well-known costume designer Edith Head. She persuaded him to move from New York to Los Angeles in the mid 1960s and he was hired to design for The Steve Lawrence Show, produced by George Schlatter. Travis and Schlatter became close friends and when Schlatter produced the ground-breaking comedy-variety show Laugh-In, Travis was hired as costume designer. The show ran for six seasons, 1968-1973, and required as many as 300 costumes per episode for a large cast, numerous guest stars, and the corps of dancers. He was nominated for an Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (ATAS) award, the Emmy, and more importantly, met and worked with a great many of the musical, film, and theatrical stars of the time. When the show ended in 1973 he was himself a star in his field. Travis was now able to concentrate on his clientele of musical performers and groups. These included The Supremes, The Temptations, The 5th Dimension, Tony Orlando and Dawn, and solo artists Dionne Warwick, Connie Stevens, Nancy Sinatra, John Denver, Wayne Newton and many others. He also acquired his most extravagant client, Liberace, when the flamboyant pianist's designer retired in 1973.

Frank Ortiz had designed an elaborately beaded and decorated jacket for Liberace as early as 1959 and, with other designers, continued to design elaborate costumes for him throughout the 1960s and early 1970s. Following this tradition, Travis was encouraged by Liberace to create the most fabulous, beautiful, and exquisitely crafted suits, vests, boots, and capes possible. The costumes were made using the finest fabrics, embroideries, crystals, sequins, feathers and furs—even lights! Anna Nateece, Liberace's longtime furrier, continued to supply his furs. One of these ensembles was valued at $300,000 dollars and they could weigh over 100 pounds. They were objects of awe for his audiences and made a spectacular appearance with the pianos and automobiles in his stage show. One of Liberace's favorite sayings was "Too much of a good thing is wonderful!" Travis was able to demonstrate how right he was and continued as his designer and friend until the pianist died in 1987.

When Travis was in his forties he had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. The disease gradually disabled him to the point that walking was extremely difficult and eventually he became wheelchair-bound. After Liberace's death, he retired from his work but continued an active social life and traveled with his care-givers both within the United States and to European countries. In 2010 he received The Career Achievement in Television Award at the 12th Annual Costume Designers Guild Awards in Beverly Hills. His friends, George Schlatter and Nancy Sinatra, were with him at the ceremony. He died on May 1, 2014 at the age of 86.

Source

Liberace Extravaganza! by Connie Furr Soloman and Jan Jewett, HarperCollins 2013
Provenance:
Donated to the Archives Center in 2015 by George Lavdas.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Costume  Search this
Costume design  Search this
Costume designers  Search this
Genre/Form:
Pastels (Drawings)
Pencil works
Drawings -- 20th century
Design drawings -- 20th century
Citation:
Michael Travis Costume Design Collection, 1947-1986, undated, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.1347
See more items in:
Michael Travis Costume Design Collection
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep82867bc01-86fa-4fa0-90ad-f34f04cf3737
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-1347
Online Media:

Aladdin Industries, Inc. Records

Creator:
Johnson, Victor S., Sr., 1882-1943  Search this
Johnson, Victor, Jr., 1906-  Search this
Aladdin Industries, Inc. (Nashville, Tenn.).  Search this
Names:
Allen, Steve  Search this
Reagan, Ronald  Search this
Extent:
50 Cubic feet (120 boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Photographs
Newsletters
Commercial art
Picture postcards
Laboratory notebooks
Patents
Design drawings
Business records
Advertisements
Scrapbooks
Date:
1889-2003
Scope and Contents:
The collection consists of approximately 50 cubic feet of material documenting Aladdin Industries Inc., manufacturers of vacuum ware and lunch boxes. The majority of the material dates from 1947 to the 1970s. The strength of the collection is with the lunch box documentation and product development, marketing, and sales records. There is some interesting labor history—specifically United Steel Workers agreement. The files of Victor S. Johnson, Sr. and Victor S. Johnson, Jr. form the core of the collection and provide rich documentation on the company's activities.
Arrangement:
The collection is divided into seventeen series.

Series 1: Historical and Background Materials, 1919-1997

Series 2: Victor S. Johnson Sr. Files, 1916-1945

Series 3: Victor S. Johnson Jr. Files, 1906-1983

Series 4: Employee and Personnel Records, 1910-2001

Series 5: Research and Development Records, 1910-1976

Series 6: Patent Records, 1889-1973

Series 7: Sales Records, 1939-2000

Series 8: Advertising and Marketing Records, 1931-2001

Series 9: School Lunch Kits, 1952-1989

Series 10: Lamps and Kerosene Heaters, 1911-2000

Series 11: Temp-Rite, 1972-2000

Series 12: Competitors, 1963-2001

Series 13: Style Guides, 1966-1998

Series 14: Newsletters, 1943-1998

Series 15: Photographs, 1923-1986

Series 16: Scrapbooks, 1908-1962

Series 17: Audiovisual Materials, 1993-1996
Biographical / Historical:
Victor Samuel Johnson Sr., (1882-1943) was born in Nebraska. As a soap salesman for the Iowa Soap Company, he became interested in kerosene mantle burners. Dissatisfied with the available kerosene lamps, he began selling and dealing U.S. made mantles and incorporated the Mantle Lamp Company of America in Chicago in 1908. Johnson selected the name "Aladdin" from the famous story, "Aladdin; or The Wonderful Lamp." Johnson began research and development of a mantle lamp that gave off a steady white light and did not smoke. The Mantle Lamp Company began manufacturing lamps in 1912, with Plume & Atwood Manufacturing Company burners, and marketed them as "Aladdin Lamps." The company diversified in 1917 and began producing insulated cooking dishes, known as Aladdin Thermalware jars, for the U.S. military. These jars had an aluminum or steel jacket wrapped around a heavy glass receptacle. The space between was filled with cork. The introduction of the thermalware began the company's venture into heat and cold retaining receptacles.

In 1919, Johnson organized a subsidiary of the Mantle Lamp Company of America, Aladdin Industries, Inc., to market and sell the Aladdin thermalware jars and vacuum ware. At the same time, Mantle lamp Company of America formed Aladdin Limited in Canada and England to sell thermalware as well as Pathfinder Radio Corporation, Cadillac Photograph Corporation, Aladdin Chemical Corporation, Aladdin Phonograph Corporation, Johnson Laboratories, Inc. (radio components), and Aladdin Radio Industries (magnetic and radio research). Pathfinder, Cadillac, Aladdin Chemical and Aladdin Phonograph all failed. In 1926, the Mantle Lamp Company acquired Lippincott Glass Company of Alexandria, Indiana, where it manufactured and fabricated glass chimneys, shades and lamp bases, mantles, wicks, and metal lamp bases. The Alexandria plant closed in 1952 and eventually moved to Nashville.

In 1943, Victor S. Johnson Sr. died and his son, Victor S. Johnson Jr. (1906-), succeeded him as president of Aladdin Industries Inc. Johnson Jr. moved Aladdin from Chicago to Nashville, Tennessee in 1949 to place the company strategically in mid-America to distribute its products. Aladdin's general offices, vacuum bottle production, and electric lamps and kerosene completed the move by 1952.

In 1950, Aladdin began illustrating flat metal school lunch kits (lunch boxes with liquid containers) with images of popular radio, movie and television figures. Hopalong Cassidy was the first character kit. This innovative marketing decision produced an explosive growth in the lunch kit market and made Aladdin a pioneer in image licensing. Character lunch boxes became a large part of the childhood experience and are collector's items today. Over the years, Aladdin extended the range of characters depicted and began manufacturing plastic and soft, vinyl lunch kits with printed themes. It also introduced "3D" embossing on the flat metal kits. Embossed metal lunch kits were completely phased out in 1986 due to high production costs. In addition to the school lunch kits, Aladdin also introduced wide mouth vacuum bottles (pint and quart size) in 1953. The wide mouth bottles also carried "adult" themes such as the "Angler" fisherman's bottle. The thermosware line eventually moved from metal to plastic jackets and from a glass insulated filler to foam.

In 1965, Aladdin purchased the Stanley steel bottle operation from Landers, Frary and Clark in New Britain, Connecticut. Aladdin's diversification strategy led to the introduction in 1968 of the Temp-Rite® meal distribution plan, an insulated thermal tray service for hospitals, the airline industry, and prisons. The Temp-Rite® system gave rise to a full line of products and services and Aladdin formed a subsidiary, known as Aladdin Synergetics, Inc., to handle its health care and food service operations. Aladdin Synergetics was sold to Welbilt Corporation in 1998; the new operation was named Aladdin Temp-Rite. Other products added over the years included electric lamps, shades, kerosene stoves, and an electronics division in 1956. This division was established from a small technical research group whose function was patent licensing. As a subsidiary of Aladdin Industries, it produced transformers and radio and telephone filters. The subsidiary was sold to Vernitron in October, 1979.

At various times, Aladdin established offices in Alexandria, Indiana; Chicago, Illinois; Nashville, Tennessee; Portland Oregon, Canada; Hungry; France; Australia, New Zealand; England; Iraq, Iran, Brazil, Japan, Peru, Venezuela, Chile, Uruguay, France, Germany, Iceland, Sweden, and South Africa to market and sell its products.

Aladdin was financially mismanaged in the 1990s and rapidly declined. Aladdin Industries Inc. reorganized in 1999 and became known as Aladdin Industries LLC. High labor costs and unsuccessful efforts to develop new products led to further decline. By January, 2002, Aladdin had sold its remaining product lines and closed its Nashville plant. Aladdin lamps are still sold today by the Aladdin Mantle Lamp Company of Clarksville, Tennessee.
Separated Materials:
The Division of Cultural History (now Division of Cultural and Community Life) holds 30 lunch boxes and 28 thermos bottles from Aladdin Industries, Nashville, Tennessee. Additionally, there is a pair of lamps. See Accession 2003.0255. Although the children's steel lunch boxes predominate, the collection represents the full spectrum of Aladdin box designs including vinyl, hard plastic, and fabric.
Provenance:
Donated to the Archives Center by Aladdin Industries in 2003.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research but the oversize map folders are stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Lunchboxes  Search this
Character merchandising  Search this
Celebrities  Search this
Food containers  Search this
Food container industry  Search this
Thermos bottles  Search this
Genre/Form:
Photographs -- 20th century
Newsletters -- 20th century
Commercial art
Picture postcards -- 20th century -- United States
Laboratory notebooks
Patents -- 20th century
Design drawings -- 1950-2000
Business records -- 20th century
Advertisements -- 20th century
Scrapbooks -- 20th century
Citation:
Aladdin Industries, Inc. Records, 1889-2002, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0844
See more items in:
Aladdin Industries, Inc. Records
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8fd6fbc8e-2f6e-4e4c-9521-d11b05b2e4de
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0844
Online Media:

Robert Ledley Papers

Creator:
Ledley, Robert S.  Search this
National Biomedical Research Foundation. Georgetown University  Search this
Names:
Automatic Computerized Transverse Axial Scanner  Search this
Computer-Assisted Tomography Scanner  Search this
National Biomedical Research Foundation. Georgetown University  Search this
Extent:
3 Cubic feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Manuals
Patents
Photographs
Design drawings
Correspondence
Articles
Diagrams
Slides (photographs)
Notes
Motion pictures (visual works)
Albums
Date:
1972-1990
Summary:
The Robert Ledley Papers document the development of the first whole-body diagnostic imaging system, the Automatic Computerized Transverse Axial (ACTA) X-ray Scanner by Ledley in 1973. Also included is material relating to Ledley's company, Digital Science Information Corporation (DISCO), as well as the public and medical communities' reactions to the scanner.
Scope and Contents:
The Robert Ledley Papers document the development of the Automatic Computerized Transverse Axial (ACTA) X-ray Scanner, Ledley's company Digital Science Information Corporation (DISCO), as well as the public and medical communities' reactions to the scanner. The collection is arranged into nine series.

Series 1, ACTA Scanner I Schematics, 1973-1975; Series 2, ACTA Scanner I [Computer and Electronics], 1973; and Series 3, ACTA Scanner Tomograph Mechanics, 1973-1974 document the development and design of the ACTA scanner through drawings, notes, memoranda, and product information. More detailed information about these materials is located in the control file. All oversize drawings have been moved to flat storage for preservation concerns.

Series 4, ACTA Scanner Operating Instructions, 1975, is the operating manual created for the scanner used in Ledley's Georgetown lab.

Series 5, ACTA Articles, Clippings, and Press Releases, 1973-1979, is comprised of the aforementioned materials relating to the ACTA Scanner. Newspaper clippings illuminate the public's perception of the scanner, and scientific pieces highlight the medical community's reaction. Ledley's published articles on the scanner and related topics are included.

Series 6, Digital Information Science Corporation (DISCO) material, 1973-1981, documents Ledley's career and his company. A biographical sketch, list of articles, textbooks, and patents highlight Ledley's achievements. Invoices, receipts, contracts, and correspondence illuminate the financial situation at DISCO and the relationship between the company and Pfizer.

Series 7, Computer manuals, 1972-1975, documents the computer systems and software that were used with the ACTA Scanner.

Series 8, Photographic material, 1973-1978, includes an album of photographs depicting the ACTA Scanner and images of the scans it created. This album was disassembled due to preservation concerns. This series also includes a collection of slides featuring the scanner and related equipment in use and images of the scans it created. A detailed description of each photograph and slide is included in the control file.

Series 9, ACTA Scanner film, [1974?], is a 16mm narrated film describing the creation of the scanner, its components, the way they work, the scanner in use, and images of the scans produced.
Arrangement:
This collection is arranged into nine series.

Series 1, ACTA Scanner I Schematics, 1973-1975

Series 2, ACTA Scanner I [Computer and Electronics], 1973

Series 3, ACTA Scanner Tomograph Mechanics, 1973-1974

Series 4, ACTA Scanner Operating Instructions, 1975

Series 5, ACTA Articles, Clippings, and Press Releases, 1973-1979

Series 6, Digital Information Science Corporation (DISCO) material, 1973-1981, undated

Series 7, Computer manuals, 1972-1975

Series 8, Photographic material 1973-1978

Subseries 1, Photographs, 19731978

Subseries 2, Slides, 1974

Series 9, ACTA Scanner film [1974?]
Biographical / Historical:
Robert Steven Ledley was born in Flushing Meadows, New York in 1926. He received a D.D.S. degree from New York University College in 1948. While attending dental school, he simultaneously studied at Columbia University; he earned a M.A. in Theoretical Physics in 1949. He volunteered for the army and was sent to the U.S. Army Medical Field Service School in Fort Sam Houston, Texas.1 After completing his service, Ledley held a wide variety of research and academic positions in physics, electrical engineering, and medicine.

Ledley was a physicist within the External Control Group of the Electronic Computer Laboratory of the National Bureau of Standards from 1953-1954. He was an operations research analyst within the Strategic Division of the Operations Research Office at Johns Hopkins University from 1954-1956. Ledley went on to become an associate professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering at The George Washington University from 1956-1960 while also serving as a consultant mathematician at the National Bureau of Standards Data Processing Systems Division, 1957-1960. At this time, Ledley also worked part time at the National Research Council's National Academy of Sciences from 1957-1961. Ledley became the president of the National Biomedical Research Foundation in 1960, a position he still holds today. He was an instructor of pediatrics at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine from 1960-1963. He returned to The George Washington University's Department of Electrical Engineering in 1968 where he was a professor until 1970. He then became a professor in the Department of Physiology and Biophysics at the Georgetown University School of Medicine in 1970. In 1974, Ledley also became a professor in the Radiology Department at the Georgetown University Medical Center. In 1975, he became the director of the Medical Computing and Biophysics Division at Georgetown University Medical Center.

In 1972, the British company Electric and Musical Industries Limited (EMI) released a medical imaging machine for use on smaller areas of the body that were positioned under a water tank. In 1973, Ledley developed the Automatic Computerized Transverse Axial (ACTA) X-ray Scanner (US Patent #3,922,552). This machine was a whole-body diagnostic medical imaging system. He was awarded a grant from the National Institutes of Health for an engineering equipment project, but the money was never received due to budget cuts. Ledley looked elsewhere for funding. He consulted with Georgetown staff and discovered a neurosurgeon had asked to buy a head scanning machine from EMI. Ledley did not think the images in EMI's brochure appeared clear, and he offered to create a similar machine for half the price. Georgetown agreed to fund this project for $250,000. Ledley secured the services of a machinist at a local machine shop, an electronic engineer, and a programmer/mathematician to assist in the project.2 The ACTA Scanner debuted in February, 1974 and did not require the use of a water tank.

Following the creation of the ACTA Scanner, Ledley organized Digital Information Science Corporation (DISCO) in order to manufacture the system. DISCO began producing scanners as orders were received. Due to financial constraints, DISCO was forced to request $100,000 upon receipt of the order, $100,000 when the scanner was halfway completed, and the final $100,000 payment upon delivery3. In 1975, Pfizer purchased the rights to manufacture the ACTA Scanner from DISCO for $1.5 million.

Ledley is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and a senior member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. He has earned numerous awards and honors for his work. In 1997, he received the National Medal of Technology from President William Jefferson Clinton for his pioneering work on the whole-body CT diagnostic X-ray scanner. He also founded the Pattern Recognition Society and Computerized Tomography Society.

Sources

1 Ash, J., D. Sittig, and R. Ledley. "The Story Behind the Development of the First Whole-body Computerized Tomography Scanner as Told by Robert S. Ledley." Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association, 2006 Sep-Oct (2006), 465-469, http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=1561796. (accessed June 24, 2009).

2 Ibid.

3 Ibid.
Separated Materials:
An ACTA Scanner and numerous accessories were donated to the Division of Medicine and Science in 1984.
Provenance:
This collection was donated by Robert S. Ledley on September 18, 1984.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning intellectual property rights. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Medical innovations  Search this
Inventors  Search this
Inventions -- 20th century  Search this
Biology  Search this
History of science and technology  Search this
Digital Information Science Corporation  Search this
Diagnostic imaging  Search this
Medicine  Search this
Medical technology  Search this
Medical radiology  Search this
Whole body imaging  Search this
Tomography  Search this
Radiology  Search this
Genre/Form:
Manuals -- 1970-1990
Patents
Photographs
Design drawings
Correspondence -- 20th century
Articles -- 20th century
Diagrams
Slides (photographs) -- 1950-2000
Notes
Motion pictures (visual works) -- 20th century
Albums
Citation:
Robert Ledley Papers, 1972-1984, Archives Center, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.1135
See more items in:
Robert Ledley Papers
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8b394c960-d574-4b92-a59f-83868a5cd581
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-1135
Online Media:

Leonard Karr Collection

Creator:
Beaudoin, Rayne  Search this
Karr, Leonard, 1913-1995  Search this
Extent:
3 Cubic feet (9 boxes, 5 oversize folders)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Albums
Blueprints
Christmas cards
Design drawings
Personal papers
Photographs
Scrapbooks
Date:
1930-1995
Summary:
Mostly photographs illustrating Leonard Karr's hunting and fishing activities in the Pacific Northwest; plus letters from Karr, photographs of his inventions, articles and other printed information, drawings and patterns for a kayak that Karr designed, clippings, scrapbooks, and albums. Personal materials relate to his personal life and his employment as a sign painter.
Scope and Contents:
The bulk of the collection consists of photographs illustrating in vivid detail Karr's hunting and fishing interests. The collection is approximately 3 cubic feet and contains photographs, correspondence, scrapbooks, albums and drawings and is divided into two series: Series 1: Sporting Materials and Series 2: Personal Materials. The collection is rich in photographic documentation of goose hunting and related sporting activities in the Pacific Northwest.

Series 1: Sporting Materials, 1930-1991

The first series illustrates Karr's interests in hunting and fishing and consists of photographs, decoy designs, correspondence, scrapbooks and albums. The photos are of particular value in documenting goose hunting and other outdoor activities in the Pacific Northwest. Also of interest to researchers are Karr's designs of his decoys, kayak, and a man-sized, goose-shaped hunting blind known as "Supergoose". Although most of the photographs are unidentified the bulk of the material seems to date from the mid 1930s through the early 1970s.

Series 2: Personal Materials, 1930-1995

This series contains photographs, correspondence, scrapbooks, albums, designs and drawing relating to Leonard Karr's personal life and his work as a sign painter. Of interest to students of advertising are the photos and scrapbooks that Karr maintained of signs that he worked on or found noteworthy. The majority of photographs are undated and unidentified, but presumably depict his family and friends.

Series 3: Motion Picture Film, 1951-1962

This series contains home movies related to goose hunting in the Pacific Northwest shot and edited by Karr between 1957-1962 with the exception of OF 762.1 which is a Castle Films production collected by Karr.
Arrangement:
The collection is divided into two series.

Series 1: Sporting materials, 1930-1991

Series 2: Personal materials, 1934-1995

Series 3: Motion Picture Film, 1951-1962
Biographical / Historical:
Leonard Karr was born on December 25, 1913, in Yakima, Washington to John Ross Karr and Teakla Kohlman. He attended the Yakima district schools and graduated in 1931. Prior to World War II, Karr worked as a sign painter and designer for several sign companies in the Yakima area. During World War II Karr served in the military as a sign painter for the 216th Unit of the Army Air Force at Wendover Field in Utah. After the war he returned to private life as a sign painter and designer for the Sun Beem Neon Sign Company. He later moved to the Valley Neon Service and then in 1955 joined Dwinnel's Neon Central where he worked until his retirement in 1983. Mr. Karr was an ardent and successful fisherman and hunter, especially of geese. Karr designed several implements to assist in his hunting, including decoys, pit covers and a stake hole punch. In 1933 Karr designed and built his own kayak for hunting, fishing, and other outdoor activities. In 1954 he patented his 2-dimensional goose decoys (US 2,746,196) and marketed them to hunters in the American Northwest. Karr did not renew his patent after its initial term, and it expired. Karr died on March 13, 1995.
Related Materials:
The Division of Culture and the Arts (now Division of Cultural and Community Life), holds artifacts relating to Leonard Karr and his hunting activities in the Northwest, including a kayak with paddle and car roof rack, three flat metal decoys and stakes, and a three-dimensional, hollow, pit cover used for concealment during hunting.
Provenance:
The collection was donated to the National Museum of American History in February 2001 by Rayne Beaudoin, a hunting companion of Leonard Karr.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Canada goose  Search this
Decoys (Hunting)  Search this
Fishing  Search this
Hunting -- Equipment and supplies  Search this
Inventions -- 20th century  Search this
Kayaks  Search this
Outdoor life -- Pacific Northwest  Search this
Outdoor recreation  Search this
Sign painting  Search this
Genre/Form:
Albums
Blueprints -- 20th century
Christmas cards
Design drawings
Personal papers -- 20th century
Photographs -- 20th century
Scrapbooks -- 20th century
Citation:
Leonard Karr Collection, 1930-1995, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0762
See more items in:
Leonard Karr Collection
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep88c1ca6b7-a1f8-48da-b631-b2c47c04b629
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0762
Online Media:

Frederick and Mary Hill Fried Folk Art Archives

Creator:
Fried, Frederick, 1909-1994  Search this
National Carousel Association.  Search this
Fried, Mary Hill  Search this
Extent:
36 Cubic feet (89 boxes, 10 map-folders)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Photographs
Advertisements
Clippings
Blueprints
Books
Auction catalogs
Design drawings
Date:
circa 1662-1999, undated
Scope and Contents:
Collection primarily documents American folk art collected by Frederick Fried (1908-1994) and his wife Mary McKensie Hill Fried (1914-1988). It includes photographic materials, newspaper clippings, magazine articles, research files, lecture notes, unpublished manuscripts, brochures, drawings, printed advertisements, blueprints, books, patents, correspondence, trade literature, sheet music, auction catalogs, oral history interviews, and commercially recorded music. Of particular interest is the material relating to carousels. There is a substantial amount of material relating to New York architecture, wood carvings, show figures, weathervanes, mechanical and coin operated machines, amusement parks, the circus, tattoos and lesser-known folk arts. The collection is arranged by subject or genre in the order maintained by Frederick and Mary Fried.
Arrangement:
Series 1, Professional Materials, 1930-1995, undated

Subseries 1.1, Lectures, 1968-1989, undated

Subseries 1.2, Research Notes, 1962-1975, undated

Subseries 1.3, Published and Unpublished Materials, 1960-1990, undated

Subseries 1.4, Exhibitions, 1966-1985, undated

Subseries 1.5, Correspondence, 1945-1995, undated

Subseries 1.6, Office Files, 1930-1991, undated

Series 2, Sculptors and Ship Carvers, 1855-1987, undated

Series 3, Ship Carving Reference Files, 1875-1990, undated

Series 4, Show Figures, 1847-1989, undated

Subseries 4.1, Carvers, 1847-1987, undated

Subseries 4.2, Reference Files, 1864-1989, undated

Series 5: Carousels, 1851-1999, undated

Subseries 5.1, Reference Files, 1851-1990, undated

Subseries 5.2, Manufacturerst, 1854-1999, undated

Subseries 5.3, Carvers, undated

Subseries 5.4, Foreign, 1902, undated

Subseries 5.5, Organizations, 1974-1991, undated

Subseries 5.6, Museum Collections, 1959-1989, undated

Series 5.7, Sites, 1962-1991, undated

Series 6, Charles W. Parker Company, 1904-1905; 1922-1924, undated

Subseries 6.1, Glass Plate Negatives, 6x8, 1904-1905, undated

Subseries 6.2, Glass Plate Negatives, 8x10, 1922-1924, undated

Series 7, Amusements Parks, 1917-1992, undated

Series 8, Amusement Industry, 1662-1994, undated

Subseries 8.1, Companies, 1903, undated

Subseries 8.2, Reference Files, 1662-1994, undated

Series 9, Circus, 1902-1992, undated

Series 10, Architectural Ornaments, 1832-1988, undated

Subseries 10.1, Residential Architecture, 1899-1985, undated

Subseries 10.2, New York City Municipal Parks, 1968-1988, undated

Subseries 10.3, South Street Seaport, 1965-1970, undated

Subseries 10.4, New York Civic Sculpture, 1832-1977, undated

Subseries 10.5, Architectural Ornamentation, 1873-1985, undated

Series 11, Weathervanes, 1854-1981, undated

Series 12, Automatic, Coin Operated, and Vending Machines, 1960-1980, undated

Series 13, Banner Paintings and Painters, 1892-1999, undated

Series 14, Folk Arts, 1783-1999, undated

Subseries 14.1, Reference Files, 1831-1988, undated

Subseries 14.2, Clocks and Watches, 1869-1876; 1976, undated

Subseries 14.3, Eagles, 1843-1989, undated

Subseries 14.4, Musical Instruments, 1963-1999, undated

Subseries 14.5, Painters and Paintings, 1950-1990, undated

Subseries 14.6, Signs and Symbols, 1974, 1976, undated

Subseries 14.7, Other Materials, 1872-1988, undated

Subseries 14.8, Miscellaneous, 1783-1954, undated

Series 15: Photographic Materials, 1832-1988, undated

Subseries 15.1, Photographs and Contact Sheets, 1940-1984, undated

Subseries 15.1.1, America's Forgotten Arts, undated

Subseries 15.1.2, Artists in Wood, undated

Subseries 15.1.3, General, 1940-1984, undated

Subseries 15.2, Slides, 1832-1987, undated

Subseries 15.3, Negatives, undated

Subseries 15.4, Glass Plate Negatives, undated

Subseries 15.5, Snapshots, 1964-1988, undated

Subseries 15.5.1, Artists, Manufacturers, and Dealers, undated

Subseries 15.5.2, Museum Collections, 1964, undated

Subseries 15.5.3, Parks or Other Locations, undated

Subseries 15.5.4, Private Collections, 1987-1988, undated

Subseries 15.5.5, General, 1983-1988, undated

Series 16, Audiovisual Materials, 1940-1991, undated

Subseries 16.1, Audiocassette Tapes, 1971-1988, undated

Subseries 16.1.1, Lectures, 1974-1986, undated

Subseries 16.1.2, Interviews, 1971-1984, undated

Subseries 16.1.3, Music, 1972-1988, undated

Subseries 16.2, Audiotapes, 1940-1977, undated

Subseries 16.2.1, Lectures and Performances, 1969-1973, undated

Subseries 16.2.2, Interviews, 1940-1976, undated

Subseries 16.2.3, Conferences and Meetings, 1973-1977

Subseries 16.2.4, Music, 1956, undated

Subseries 16.2.5, Other, undated

Subseries 16.3, Videotapes, 1982-1991, undated
Biographical / Historical:
Frederick P. Fried was born December 11, 1908 in Brooklyn, New York. He grew up in the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn where his father owned a clock business across the street from Charles Carmel, a carousel carver. Fried acquired a fine-arts education in the 1930s with an emphasis on sculpture. He served with the Air Force during the Second World War. After a successful military career, Fried worked as art director in several fashion agencies. He met Mary McKenzie Hill, an academically trained artist in one of the studios.

Mary McKenzie Hill was born in 1914 in Baltimore, Maryland. She graduated from the Maryland Institute of Fine Arts. After graduation, she spent a year abroad studying before she returned to the United States to work as a fashion illustrator in Baltimore and New York. During World War Two Hill was a draftsman for a firm of architects.

Fried and Mary Hill married in 1949. The couple had two children Robert Hazen and Rachel. Around 1953 Fried began to collect architectural ornaments in New York. Fried served as the art director for Bonwit Teller in New York City from 1955-1962. He left the fashion world in 1962 to pursue his passion for collecting and writing full time. Fried published his first book, Pictorial History of Carousels in 1964. In 1967, Fred and Mary Fried purchased a forty-acre farm in Bristol, Vermont where the family spent their summers.

In 1968, Fried led a national campaign to preserve the Titanic Memorial Lighthouse (Seamen's Church Institute at South Street). He also became active in politics and served as the campaign manager for a New York State senator. His interest in Indian cigar store figures resulted in his publication Artists in Wood: American Carvers of Cigar Store Indians, Show Figures and Circus published in 1970. The focus of the book was Samuel Anderson Robb a New York wood carver. Fried co-founded the National Carousel Association in 1973. In 1978, Fried wrote America's Forgotten Folk Art with his wife Mary. This publication covered subjects such as carousels, banner painting, scarecrows, beach sand sculpture, tattoos, cast iron toys, amusement park architecture and trade signs.

Fried's collecting goal was to first preserve artifacts and to then make them available through his writings and exhibitions. His most treasured relics were the items he salvaged from the ruins of Coney Island. Fried referred to such artifacts as the uncelebrated arts. He became one of the founders of the Anonymous Arts Recovery Society a group of individuals who saved architectural ornaments from the wreckers' balls. In addition, he was one of the founders of the National Carousel Round Table which was created to preserve hand-carved merry-go-rounds. As a result of his collecting, research and writing Fried became recognized as the authority on carousels, coin-operated machines, and cigar store figures. He served as a consultant to many Museums; in particular as chief consultant on American Folk Art for the Smithsonian Institution.

Frederick and Mary Hill worked together in many ways to document, collect, preserve and increase the awareness about primarily the folk arts. Mary McKenzie Hill Fried passed away in 1988 at the age of seventy-four. Frederick P. Fried died July 1994 at the age of eighty-six.
Related Materials:
Materials in the Archives Center, National Museum of American History

E. Howard Clock Company Records (NMAH.AC.00776)

M. Francis Misklea Carousel Collection (NMAH.AC.0665)

Archives Center Carousel Collection (NMAH.AC.0675)

Messmore and Damon, Incorporated Company Records (NMAH.AC.0846)

Anthony W. Pendergast Collection (NMAH.AC.0882)

Frank Paulin Photoprints (NMAH.AC.1373)

Wurlitzer Company Records (NMAH.AC.0469)

Industry on Parade (NMAH.AC.0507)

Reel #191, Craftsmen of the Carousel, 1954. Manufacturing merry-go-rounds for amusement reports. Arrow Development Co., Mountain View, California.
Provenance:
Collection a bequest of the Frederick Fried Estate.
Rights:
Reproduction restricted due to copyright or trademark. Fees for commercial reproduction.
Occupation:
Wood-carvers  Search this
Topic:
Periodicals  Search this
Merry-go-round art  Search this
Signs and signboards  Search this
Weather vanes  Search this
Coin-operated machines  Search this
Architecture -- Details  Search this
Amusement ride equipment industry  Search this
Amusement rides  Search this
Folk art  Search this
Merry-go-round  Search this
Figure sculpture -- United States  Search this
Genre/Form:
Photographs -- 20th century
Advertisements
Clippings
Blueprints -- 20th century
Books
Auction catalogs
Design drawings
Citation:
Frederick and Mary Hill Fried Folk Art Archives, circa 1662-1999, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0528
See more items in:
Frederick and Mary Hill Fried Folk Art Archives
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep86ee1b419-6b88-4312-8172-ee9f05d72195
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0528
Online Media:

Sandford Greeting Card Company and Family Papers

Creator:
MacDowell, Helen Sandford, 1889-  Search this
Pease, L.F.  Search this
Prince, Georgiana K., 1861-1915  Search this
Sandford Greeting Card Company  Search this
Gilman, Georgiana Sandford, 1887-1982  Search this
Sandford, Frank S., 1853-1924  Search this
Sandford, Mary Elizabeth, 1852-1936  Search this
Sandford, Ruth, 1879-1972  Search this
Names:
American Red Cross  Search this
Women's Christian Temperance Union  Search this
Donor:
Gilman, R. Thompson  Search this
Extent:
8 Cubic feet (37 boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Cartes-de-visite
Clippings
Travel diaries
Photograph albums
Programs
Advertising
Photographs
Letters (correspondence)
Dvds
Business cards
Trade catalogs
Genealogies
Diaries
Design drawings
Business records
Account books
Calling cards
Cabinet photographs
Daguerreotypes
Memoirs
Place:
Panama Canal (Panama)
Date:
1831-2004
Summary:
Collection documents the business activities of the Sandford Card Company and include the papers of Mary Elizabeth Sandford, founder of the company, and her immediate family.
Scope and Contents:
The collection documents the business activities of the Sandford Card Company primarily in the early part of the century. It includes product designs and samples; advertising and marketing materials, as well as, correspondence and financial papers. In addition, there are the papers of Mary Elizabeth Sandford, founder of the company, and her immediate family. These materials consist primarily of diaries, photographs, correspondence, family histories and genealogies. The collection is arranged into four series. Series one documents the business activities of the Sandford Card Company. Series two contains the personal papers of Mary Elizabeth Sandford, her husband Frank Sherman Sandford and their children. Series three is the personal papers of Mary Elizabeth Sandford's parents and siblings. Series four is the personal papers of extended family members mostly by marriage.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into four series.

Series 1: Sandford Card Company Records, 1880-1967; undated

Subseries 1.1: Correspondence, 1909-1936; undated

Subseries 1.2: Financial Records, 1880-1926; undated

Subseries 1.3: Product Designs and Samples, 1911-1941; undated

Subseries 1.4: Advertising and Marketing Materials, 1924-1967; undated

Series 2: Sandford Family Papers, 1831-2003; undated

Subseries 2.1: Frank Sherman Sandford, 1870-1925; undated

Subseries 2.2: Mary Elizabeth Kennedy Sandford, 1868-2003; undated

Subseries 2.3: Ruth Louise Sandford, 1900-1972; undated

Subseries 2.4: John Joseph Sanford, 1900-1987; undated

Subseries 2.5: Georgiana Kennedy Sandford Gilman, 1870-1973; undated

Subseries 2.6: Helen Louise Sandford McDowell, 1899-2000; undated

Subseries 2.7: Family Papers, 1831-1992; undated

Subseries 2.8: Frances Rohe, 1913, 1920; undated

Series 3: Kennedy Family Papers, 1861-2003; undated

Subseries 3.1: James Frank Kennedy, 1861-1920s; undated

Subseries 3.2: Mary Jane Durkee Kennedy, 1867-1882

Subseries 3.3: Lillian Frances Kennedy Pease, 1875-2003

Subseries 3.4: Emma Jane Kennedy, 1877-1883; undated

Subseries 3.5: Georgiana Kennedy Prince, 1878-1915; undated

Subseries 3.6: Family Papers, 1934-1992; undated

Series 4: Other Family Papers, 1840s-2004; undated

Subseries 4.1: Durkee Family, 1864-2004; undated

Subseries 4.2: Gilman Family, 1840s-1902

Subseries 4.3: Gilman Family, 1916-2004; undated

Subseries 4.4: McDowell Family, 1920; undated

Subseries 4.5: Pease Family, 1953-1984; undated
Biographical / Historical:
Mary Elizabeth Kennedy Sandford founded the Sandford Card Company in Dansville, New York in 1907. The Sandford Card Company was intended to provide consumers a means to send messages to family and friends. Such products contained more thought out verses and images than the typical postcards that were available during this time period. Initially, Mary Elizabeth created four verses with images and had five thousand of each printed by the F. A. Owen Publishing Company. The four samples were sent to two hundred bookstores and drugstores. Sales were later made with distributors and agents in various cities throughout the country. In addition, the company also sold cards to fraternal organizations using their symbols or mottos in the design. Eventually, fraternal organizations became a big part of the company's customer base expanding to more than fifty groups. The company grew as a mail order business. All card shipments were made directly from Dansville, New York to forty-eight states and countries including Canada, Alaska, Cuba, Japan, Guam, Philippines, Hawaii, Panama, and Netherlands, West Indies, England and Scotland. Although the Sandford Card Company started as a greeting card business it eventually offered place cards, calling cards, calendars, program folders, napkins, banquet supplies, gifts and souvenirs to its product line. All printing work was contracted out to lithographic businesses in New York, Boston and Cincinnati. With the death of Mary Elizabeth Sandford and her husband Frank Sherman Sandford the company continued to be operated under the guidance of their daughter Ruth Louise Sandford. In 1948, Ruth Sandford hired John G. Holden as business manager. In 1965, the company moved from Dansville to Baldwinsville, New York under the management of the third generation of the founding family. It continued to operate as a family business until it was sold to John G. Holden. The company was later purchased by Rodney Pease the grandson of Mary Elizabeth Sandford's sister Lillian Frances Pease. Pease eventually changed the name and direction of the company.
Related Materials:
Materials in the Archives Center

Lillian Pease Card Company Records (AC1251)
Provenance:
Donated to the Archives Center in 2011 by R. Thompson Gilman, Executor for the estate of Elizabeth G. Essley.
Restrictions:
Collection open for research on site by appointment. Unprotected photographs must be handled with gloves.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Women-owned business enterprises  Search this
Women -- Political activity  Search this
Women -- Organizations  Search this
Postcards -- 20th century  Search this
Greeting cards -- 20th century  Search this
Greeting card industry  Search this
Family-owned business enterprises  Search this
Women's suffrage -- United States  Search this
Temperance  Search this
Health resorts  Search this
Genre/Form:
Cartes-de-visite
Clippings -- 20th century
Travel diaries -- 20th century
Photograph albums -- 20th century
Programs -- 20th century
Advertising -- 20th century
Photographs -- 20th century
Letters (correspondence) -- 19th century
DVDs
Business cards
Trade catalogs -- 20th century
Genealogies
Photographs -- 19th century
Diaries -- 20th century
Design drawings -- 20th century
Business records -- 20th century
Account books -- 20th century
Letters (correspondence) -- 20th century.
Calling cards
Cabinet photographs
Diaries -- 19th century
Daguerreotypes
Memoirs
Citation:
Sandford Greeting Card Company and Family Papers, circa 1839-2000; undated, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.1252
See more items in:
Sandford Greeting Card Company and Family Papers
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep81b1ccf0d-eb81-4700-87bc-1b731a16572a
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-1252
Online Media:

Andre Piette Collection

Creator:
Piette, Andre, 1934-1984 (ceramic designer, artist)  Search this
Collector:
National Museum of American History (U.S.). Division of Ceramics and Glass  Search this
Names:
Johnson, Lady Bird, 1912-2007  Search this
Donor:
Magdoff, Sam  Search this
Extent:
8 Cubic feet (8 boxes, 1 oversize folder)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Correspondence
Black-and-white photographic prints
Drawings
Design drawings
Christmas cards
Designs
Clippings
Tracings
Wrapping materials
Date:
1954-1979
Summary:
Collection documents Andre Piette's career as an illustrator and designer. The materials include sketches, drawings, tracings, photographs (color transparencies, slides, and prints), and samples of wallpaper, designs for gift wrap, and a few textiles.
Scope and Contents:
The collection consists of a wide range of materials documenting Andre Piette's career as an illustrator and designer. The materials include sketches, drawings, tracings, photographs (color transparencies, slides, and prints), and samples of wallpaper, designs for gift wrap, and a few textiles. The materials are the product of the Piette's early years in the United States (1960s) as a landscape artist in New England and as an associate of Norman Rockwell and of his later work for Tiffany & Company as a freelance designer. As an employee of Tiffany, Piette designed the White House china set for Mrs. Lyndon B. Johnson. Materials documenting this effort—White House China—are the largest series in the collection. Other design work includes cards, silver, parquet flooring, and china. There also are drawings and tracings not associated with specific functional products.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into four series.

Series 1: White House China, 1967-1970, undated

Series 2: Other Designs, undated

Series 3: Andre Piette Scrapbook, undated

Series 4: Oversize, undated
Biographical / Historical:
Piette, artist and designer, spent his early years studying at the Academie Royale De Beaux-Arts in Liege, Belgium. He is noted for his designs of Christmas cards, wrapping paper, and wallpaper. In 1968 he was commissioned by Mrs. Lyndon B. Johnson to design a set of White House state china, consisting of 2,500 pieces.
Provenance:
Donated by Sam Magdoff, Dean of Continuing Education, Parsons School of Design, July 29, 1985.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Ceramics  Search this
Porcelain -- 20th century  Search this
Ceramics -- Design  Search this
Design -- United States  Search this
Wallpaper -- Design  Search this
Designers  Search this
White House china  Search this
Christmas card design  Search this
Genre/Form:
Correspondence -- 1940-2000
Black-and-white photographic prints -- Silver gelatin -- 1950-2000
Drawings -- 1950-1990
Design drawings -- 1950-2000
Christmas cards
Designs
Clippings -- 1950-2000
Tracings
Wrapping materials -- Design
Citation:
Andre Piette Collection, 1954-1979, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0129
See more items in:
Andre Piette Collection
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep82bdf2ad8-b5b0-4d6a-9dd8-68f4b5efd798
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0129
Online Media:

Nordic Ware records

Topic:
Bundt Brand Bakeware
Creator:
Nordic Ware Division, Northland Aluminum  Search this
Donor:
Dalquist, H. David  Search this
Dalquist, Dorothy  Search this
Extent:
28 Cubic feet (53 boxes and 25 oversize folders )
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Correspondence
Photographs
Legal records
Catalogs
Financial records
Design drawings
Place:
Minneapolis (Minn.)
Date:
1940-2006
Summary:
Records of a family-owned manufacturing firm, best known for kitchenware products including the Bundt Pan and Micro-Go-Round. The collection richly documents the entrepreneurial spirit of the Minnesota firm and its history of product innovation through technical files, marketing materials, and administrative and financial records.
Scope and Contents:
The Nordic Ware collection consists of approximately twenty-eight cubic feet of records from the Northland Aluminum Company, most dealing with its Nordic Ware business. The Dalquist family recognized the importance of record keeping, and this collection documents very well the evolution of an entrepreneurial, family-owned American business from its earliest years.

Of particular interest for researchers may be the Pillsbury and Bundt Cake Pan dual marketing strategies, showcased mainly in Series 3, Marketing and Sales Records, 1948-2004, the introduction of ethnic cookware into American Culture through such dishes as the Rosettes and Timbales set and Taco dinner kit, the segmentation of product lines by price level to target consumers of differing incomes, and the issue of a trademarked term like "Bundt" becoming generic as seen in Series 6, Legal Records, 1962-1978. Series 4, Engineering Department Records, 1950-1994, provide in-depth documentation of the technical development of several of Nordic Ware's innovative products.

Series 1: Historical and Background Materials, 1940s-2006

These materials provide a history of Dave Dalquist as an entrepreneur and how this led to his ownership of Northland Aluminum Products and the Nordic Ware brand. There are histories put together by the company as well financial summaries for some years. The series contains The Nordic Ware Saga, a book edited and produced by the Dalquist family, and America at Home: A Celebration of Twentieth-Century Housewares. Both books have valuable background information on the company and how it fits into the housewares industry. There also are materials from the original business, Plastics for Industry. An undated marketing booklet, published about 1990, briefly describes the company's history and its product line and corporate structure. Additional company history is found in six installments written by Dave Dalquist under the title "From the Skipper" and covering the years 1946 to l985.

Series 2: David Dalquist Files, 1963-1993

David Dalquist, the president and founder of the company, kept these files in his office and home. Dalquist had no formal filing system and preferred to group records together as he used them. This order has been maintained as much as possible to the folder level. Several files contain information and notes from Dalquist's attendance at the National Housewares Shows and the meetings held there with his sales representatives. The annual Housewares Shows in Chicago were key events in this industry and Nordic Ware made them a high priority. The sales meetings materials include speeches Dalquist delivered. This series reveals Dalquist's involvement with every aspect of the company. It portrays an entrepreneur who began with an engineering degree, very limited capital, and no business experience. Dalquist built a multi-million dollar company while insisting on high ethical and business standards.

The several companies owned by the Dalquist family are documented in these files. There is a merger agreement between Northland Metal Finishers and Northland Aluminum. The records show the company went through several phases and had several brands besides Nordic Ware, including Minnesota Ware, DuNord, and Norcast.

Series 3: Marketing and Sales Records, 1948-2004 The Marketing and Sales Records focus mainly on the promotion of the Nordic Ware Brand and the sale and distribution of products, especially to the retail trade industry. There is evidence of how Nordic Ware presented its products to the industry and of other types of promotions to build brand awareness. These records are divided into three subseries: Subseries 1, General and Department Records, 1967-1995; Subseries 2, Promotional and Trade Sales Materials, 1958-2004; and Subseries 3, Public Relations, 1948-1992

Subseries 3.1: General and Department Records, 1967-1995

Dave Dalquist initially handled most of the company's marketing and sales, but as the company grew, a separate department was created. Among other things, this department created sketches of new product ideas that employees submitted as part of the New Product Idea meetings periodically scheduled by Dave Dalquist. Several files contain this artwork and a design notebook. There are also the files of Doug White, a Vice President of Marketing and Sales. Other art renderings, such as line art used in catalogs, are in this series.

Subseries 3.2: Promotional and Trade Sales Materials, 1958-2004

This subseries consists both of advertising geared towards the trade industry and that aimed at the consumer to promote brand image and sales. A 1970s scrapbook is a record of cross-promotional offers in which Nordic Ware and other firms advertised their products together in a single advertisement. The scrapbook also documents Nordic Ware products offered as sales premiums. The advertisements are organized by the brand co-featured in the advertisement. The Bundt Pan was the predominant Nordic Ware product in these advertisements. The Pillsbury file is especially important as it shows the building of the dual marketing arrangement which allowed Bundt Pans to be packaged with Pillsbury mixes. Nordic Ware received national publicity that it would otherwise have been difficult to generate. The Bundt Pan was integrated into magazine recipes and articles and included in mentions of other brands. These records document the remarkably brief time in which the Bundt Pan achieved national recognition.

The trade market was critical to Nordic Ware. The Sales Guides, 1982-2004, were given to regional sales representatives with information on sales promotions and incentives to representatives for sales of Nordic Ware products in specific markets. The Guides also have product descriptions, so that each representative was fully familiar with the products. Along with these guides, Nordic Ware put out trade catalogs, also found in this subseries. Although there is no master list of the catalogs, many have been hand-dated by Nordic Ware employees. Many of the models in the catalogs and the advertisements were members of the Dalquist family, neighbors, and other acquaintances.

Subseries 3.3: Public Relations, 1948-1992

These materials mainly document a series of campaigns created by Sara Jean Thomas, a public relations contractor. She worked with the marketing and sales department to build the Nordic Ware brand and to create a series of television and radio product promotions in the form of household hints. Several scripts are included here along with details of the overall campaigns. There also are files documenting the reach of these promotions. Other materials include a press kit for Chef Tell, a celebrity chef who represented Nordic Ware products for several years and who made appearances at its booth at the National Housewares Shows. New product press releases (with photographs) and general public relations files (1986-1989), along with the Marketing Communication Plans (1987-1989), give details on the planning of other public relations efforts. The trade press clippings scrapbook documents mentions of Nordic Ware and its products, competitors' advertising, and general developments in the house wares industry. Trade press clippings also are found in Series 8, subseries 4.

Series 4: Engineering Department Records, 1950-1994

The Engineering Department was vital to the success of Nordic Ware. Records in this series reveal the process by which a new product idea was developed, built, tested, and turned into a saleable product. Museum staff members selected the records in this series, occupying about five cubic feet, from a much larger group of files, roughly twenty-five feet in extent. The criteria for selection included substantive information on the design development of new products, especially those requiring substantial engineering work, and on product re-design to create cost efficiencies and resolve product problems.

Subseries 4.1: General Records, 1969-1992

These records deal with general departmental business and include incoming and outgoing correspondence and general files kept by individual engineers. They also provide operational information such as source for production materials, work orders processing, and treatment of employee issues in the department.

Subseries 4.2: Laboratory Notebooks, 1972, 1984-1993

Engineers in the department kept these notebooks mainly for developing design ideas and working out the technical logistics of bringing the designs into production. The notebooks also served as evidential records for patent disputes. The engineers signed and dated the pages of their notebooks as proof of when ideas were conceptualized and who recorded them.

Subseries 4.3: Product Files, 1976-1993, undated

These records originally were organized by product number, but no index to the numbering system accompanied the records so files of like products were grouped together. The Micro-Go-Round, Oven-Aire, and Wok are the most thoroughly documented. The records include blueprints at various stages of the products development, work orders for research and development, outside quotations, invoices, quality control tests and guidelines, memoranda to and from other company offices about product development, and other types of operational materials. Most of these products had multiple versions, and evidence of ongoing testing and modification is seen in the records.

These records document some of the innovation that made Nordic Ware an important presence in the housewares industry. The Micro-Go-Round was a particularly revolutionary product at the time, and the records show how the company recognized a need for the product and did what was necessary to develop it, although it had little or no experience with microwave technology. Micro-Go-Round records also are found in Subseries 5 of this series. The Oven-Aire required extensive development efforts to bring to fruition. The idea behind this product was to make conventional ovens cook more evenly and operate like a convection oven. The records include photographs of the original working model, tests done in some of the engineers' home kitchens, and comparison photographs of foods cooked with and without the device. Though the product never took off in the market, the invention and development process is documented here from the perspective of the several parties who worked on it. To a much more limited degree, records for some of the other products -- like the Popgun Popcorn Popper and the Supremer Ice Creamer --demonstrate the design and development process. There is even information about packaging design for some of the products.

Subseries 4.4: New Product Ideas Files, 1976-1993

These records document Nordic Ware's efforts to identify and develop a stream of new products and to involve employees in that process. They include product ideas submitted from outside the firm but primarily relate to New Product Meetings at which employees shared their own ideas. The meetings often included voting for the best ideas and for those that would be most feasible to manufacture. Most of the files contain original artwork, usually brought to the meeting by the marketing department. They also include lists of product ideas and who submitted them, ballots for the voting on the best ideas, and notes taken at the meetings. Several files have memoranda to the employees encouraging submission of ideas outside the annual meeting cycle. Related materials are found in Series 3, Marketing and Sales Records, 1948-2004, Subseries 1, General and Department Records, 1967-1995.

Subseries 4.5: General Research and Development, 1976-1993

This subseries mainly contains files on the development of microwave cookware products and the Micro-Go-Round. Dr. T.K. Ishii, a leading researcher in microwave technologies from Marquette University, served as a consultant to Nordic Ware. He advised on technical problems and explained processes to the Nordic Ware engineers to enable them to develop products. Other materials deal with the application and certification process for Underwriters Laboratories, an independent organization that tested products and certified them as meeting its safety standards.

Subseries 4.6: Patent Materials, 1950-1994

Many records in this subseries deal with the patent application process. An outside legal firm submitted Nordic Ware's applications and negotiated with the Patent Office. The records include correspondence surrounding patent disputes and sworn affidavits by engineers submitted as proof of their work. Several reference files of non-Nordic Ware patents are in this subseries. Many were sent by the law office to Nordic Ware engineers to keep them current on new developments.

Subseries 4.7: Trade Associations, 1977-1994

These records reflect the participation of Engineering Department staff in trade associations, especially The Society of the Plastics Industry, Inc. Lloyd Keleny and several others were involved with the Microwave Oven Cookware Committee. The Society was concerned with the absence of standards for microwave ovens and the resulting problem that cookware used in these ovens was not always effective. The Committee gathered data and encouraged the microwave industry to recognize that consistency was needed. There also are files from the Frankfurt International Housewares Fair, 1994. Nordic Ware tried to build its presence internationally, and fairs such as this were opportunities to meet foreign manufacturers and distributors. They also enabled the company to see what was happening on a global level.

Series 5: Financial Records, 1948-1982

These records include financial information for Nordic Ware and other Dalquist interests, including Maid of Scandinavia Company, when it was still joined with Northland Aluminum Products, and the Minnesota Brand of Cookware. The intermixing of financial reports, invoices and receivables, petty cash receipts, and bank statements for the various enterprises demonstrates the close relationship of all of the beginning operations of the Dalquist family. There are many examples of consolidated financial information in the records including the balance sheets, combined financial reports, income statements, and the audit reports. Of particular interest is the accounting ledger (1949-1950) for Plastics for Industry, the Dalquist brothers' original company. It has handwritten entries and shows the company's simplified bookkeeping system. It also provides important financial data on the startup capital and the progress in the first year of business.

Reports created by the research firm Dunn and Bradstreet contain information submitted by the Dalquists to prove their credit worthiness to lenders. Several loan agreements document the company's practice of borrowing money on future earnings in order to meet operating expenses and finance innovation. Machinery owned by Nordic Ware is listed in several factory inventories. The firm also leased machinery instead of buying in order to save money. Inventory summaries (1950-1978) detail the numbers and value of the unsold product then on hand.

Though Nordic Ware stock was never traded publically, there was an employee shareholder plan that included profit sharing. Records in this subseries document the evolution and operation of the plan, including one employee's case for a public offering of the company stock. At some point Dave Dalquist did consider making the company public but decided to maintain private ownership. The emphasis on taking pride and ownership in the company was often repeated in memoranda that Dalquist wrote to employees about stock options. The records show that he was very conscious of morale and high standards of work within the company.

Series 6: Legal Records, 1962-1978

The bulk of these records deals with trademark issues, especially Nordic Ware's creation, licensing, and protection of the "Bundt" mark. Included are copies of correspondence with the law firms that handled applications to the Patent and Trademark Office and correspondence from that office. Correspondence and legal papers document licensing negotiations with Pillsbury and others. In several instances Nordic Ware took legal steps when the Bundt Pan trademark was being misused.

Series 7: Recipes and Cookbooks, 1966-2004, undated

This series is comprised of a large selection of cookbooks and recipe files maintained by Dotty Dalquist and reflect her active role in business activities. She did much of her cooking and experimenting in a test kitchen in her own home and was integral to the preparation of foods to be photographed in Nordic Ware products. These photographs demonstrated the use of the products and were included in the advertisements, catalogs, and product or recipe brochures.

Subseries 7.1: Dotty Dalquist Recipe Files, bulk 1950s-1970s, mainly undated

Dotty Dalquist kept recipes, product booklets, notes, and other materials to aid in the development of her own recipes. She organized much of the material by food type, but she also had several files for specific Nordic Ware products. The Bundt Pan was a major product, and the files on it reflect that. As Nordic Ware sought new ways to promote the use of its products, Dalquist's development of new and inventive recipes was a major part of that effort.

Subseries 7.2: Bundt Pan Cookbooks, 1966-2004

Nordic Ware published several books by Dotty Dalquist to promote use of the Bundt Pan. Pillsbury and other firms also published their own books. Pillsbury incorporated its products into the recipes to promote the dual product relationship between the Bundt Pan and the Pillsbury brand of cake mixes. These books were sold in stores and added as premiums to go along with the purchase of the other products.

Subseries 7.3: Other Recipe and Public Relations Materials, 1970-1996, undated

Recipe contests and a cookbook were among the efforts to involve employees with the Nordic Ware products and to generate new recipes and ideas. These files include photographs and entries and correspondence about these employee activities.

A file of correspondence, mainly to and from Dotty Dalquist, concerns problems consumers encountered using specific recipes that she had published. Consumers also wrote about recipes they had tried on their own and could not get satisfactory results with a Nordic Ware product. Dalquist's problem-solving efforts were an example of the personal customer service in which Nordic Ware took pride.

Series 8: Non-Nordic Ware Reference Materials, 1940-2001, undated

The materials in this series were used by Nordic Ware as reference resources. They have been organized into subseries by type.

Subseries 8.1: Sponsored Cookbooks, 1943-1996, undated

Dotty Dalquist collected cookbooks published by a wide range of manufacturers and trade organizations. The cookbooks are arranged in alphabetical order by the name of the sponsor. Many companies, such as Pillsbury and General Foods, put out these kinds of books to promote their own brands. This may have influenced Dalquist's creation of her own Bundt Pan cookbook.

Subseries 8.2: Product Guides (some with recipes), 1940-1992, undated

These product guides, for appliances and other items used in Dotty Dalquist's kitchen, include use instructions and, often, recipes. Nordic Ware often included recipes in the print materials packaged with its products and associated with its advertising.

Subseries 8.3: Home and Food Related Ephemera, 1950-1980, undated

These materials include booklets of general household hints, recipe cards published by various organizations, and information on food processes.

Subseries 8.4: Periodicals, 1967-2001

Several scrapbooks in this subseries contain clippings from various trade publications. Some focus on Nordic Ware and Northland Aluminum Products in articles or advertisements while others contain industry, including competitors', product advertisements. There are several issues of trade periodicals with Nordic Ware related stories. Trade press clippings also are found in Series 3, Marketing and Sales Records, 1948-2004, Subseries 3, Public Relations, 1948-1992.

Subseries 8.5: Newsletters, 1961, 1973-1987, undated

Most of these newsletters were for reference use with Nordic Ware's microwave cookware projects. With its extensive line of these microwave products, there was an active effort to stay up to date with the field. The firm also tried to find different kinds of foods and recipes that could be prepared using a microwave oven.

Series 9: Photographs, 1940s-2006, undated

This series consists of a wide range of photographic prints re-housed in archival sleeves and assembled into a single binder. The photographs are arranged roughly by image content and document the Dalquist family and employees; factory and offices scenes, including a series of black and white images by Mel Jacobsen, a commercial photographer; and product displays at trade shows and other locations. The photographs also include a few images of Nordic Ware products and of baked foods and black and white images of plastic molds created by Plastics for Industry. Most of the photographs are undated and many are unidentified. There is a View Master viewer with one viewing card containing photographs assembled for Nordic Ware's sixtieth anniversary in 2006. Series 2, David Dalquist Files, includes five photographs of foods baked in Bundt Pans. Series 3, Marketing and Sales Records, Subseries 1, General and Department Records, 1967-1995, has photographs of a factory outlet store and product displays.
Arrangement:
The collection is divided into nine series.

Series 1: Historical and Background Materials, 1940s-2006

Series 2: David Dalquist Files, 1963-1993

Series 3: Marketing and Sales Records, 1948-2004

Subseries 1, General and Department Records, 1967-1995

Subseries 2, Promotional and Trade Sales Materials, 1958-2004

Subseries 3, Public Relations, 1948-1992

Series 4: Engineering Department Records, 1950-1994

Subseries 1, General Records, 1969-1992

Subseries 2, Laboratory Notebooks, 1972, 1984-1993

Subseries 3, Product Files, 1976-1993, undated

Subseries 4, New Product Ideas Files, 1976-1993

Subseries 5, General Research and Development, 1950-1994

Subseries 6, Patent Materials, 1950-1994

Subseries 7, Trade Associations, 1977-1994

Series 5: Financial Records

Series 6: Legal records

Series 7: Recipes and Cookbooks

Subseries 1, Dotty Dalquist Recipe Files, 1950s-1970s, undated

Subseries 2, Bundt Pan Cookbooks, 1966-2004

Subseries 3, Other Recipe and Public Relations Materials, 1970-1996, undated

Series 8, Non-Nordic Ware Reference Materials

Subseries 1, Sponsored Cookbooks, 1943-1996, undated

Subseries 2, Product Guides (with some recipes), 1940-1992, undated

Subseries 3, Home and Food Related Ephemera, 1950-1980, undated

Subseries 4, Periodicals, 1967-2001

Subseries 5, Newsletters, 1961, 1973-1981, undated

Series 9: Photographs, 1940s-2006, undated
Biographical / Historical:
In 1946, the year he returned from Navy service in the Pacific, H. David (Dave) Dalquist (1918-2005) joined his brother Mark to launch a new manufacturing firm, Plastics for Industry, in Minneapolis. The two University of Minnesota graduates soon were making foundry patterns and industrial plastic products for area businesses, as well as aluminum consumer cookware. Among their earliest products were ebelskiver pans, krumkake irons, and rosette irons, essential kitchen tools for the area's large Scandinavian population. Their first employee, Donald Nygren, remained as head designer for many decades.

In 1950, the brothers bought Northland Aluminum Products, a small firm with a line of "Nordic Ware" products including griddles and steak platters. The same year, Dave Dalquist created a cast aluminum, fluted cake pan at the request of two local women, members of the Hadassah organization. The women sought to replicate a heavy mold used in Europe. Northland Aluminum registered the trademark "Bundt" for the new product and began to sell it to local department stores. (The women sold manufacturing "seconds" as a fund raiser for their group.) Mark Dalquist created a firm, Maid of Scandinavia, to market products by mail. It separated from Northland Aluminum in 1963. Over the years, Northland Aluminum increasingly used "Nordic Ware" to identify itself for marketing and public relations purposes.

Northland Aluminum created a subsidiary finishing and coating firm, Northland Color Anodizing Company, in 1962. In 1964, Northland became one of the first to license the use of Teflon from its inventor, DuPont, and non-stick products became an important part of the company's line. Northland also did coating work for many industries including medical, computer, and commercial food processing. For many years Northland also had a division to produce heads for video recording machines. Product sales reached $1,000,000 in 1964.

During the 1960s, Nordic Ware grew slowly, gradually increasing its product line to include specialty baking and cookware items and stove-top cookware. The company also expanded its production capacity and built its sales and marketing capabilities, including a national network of sales representatives working on commission. Dorothy Dalquist, Dave's wife, played a vital role in the company's history. She joined him at crucial annual sales conventions to demonstrate products, tested new products, and developed recipes for them in her home kitchen. Additionally, she represented the firm in public relations activities.

Although the Bundt Pan was only one of many Nordic Ware products, it became a national celebrity in 1966 when a Texas woman used it for her prize-winning Tunnel of Fudge Cake in the immensely popular Pillsbury Bake-Off Contest. In 1970, Nordic Ware licensed the Bundt trademark to Pillsbury for use with a line of cake mixes. Customers received a cake pan at a small additional price with the purchase of the packaged mix. Although this pan was spun of light aluminum, not cast like the original models, the Pillsbury promotion was very successful. In addition to the classic Bundt design, the company began producing special designs, including a cathedral, a castle, a rose, a heart, and, in 2006, a stadium shaped pan. The Bundt Pan continues to be the most popular cake pan in America, and the company estimates it has sold sixty million pans over the past six decades.

Despite the steady popularity of the Bundt Pan, Dalquist and his firm knew that the spike in Bundt Pan sales resulting from the Pillsbury promotion was temporary, and they continued their strategy of seeking new products to buoy overall sales revenues. In 1978 Nordic Ware developed a "new thermoset plastic molding technology to create an extensive line of cookware designed to work in both conventional and microware ovens." In these same years, as microwave oven use rapidly spread, Nordic Ware developed its second celebrity product. Designed by the company's own engineers, the Micro-Go-Round was promoted in print and television advertising and is still its most successful product. Since then, Nordic Ware has introduced a wide range of new products, some of them successful (for example, nonstick Barbecue Grill Cookware), others not (including a device to create convection currents in a baking oven and a bicentennial cake platter). Northland Aluminum holds at least twenty-five patents for its products.

Today David Dalquist (born 1949) -- son of founder "Dave Dalquist" and, like his father, an engineer -- heads Nordic Ware. He has been involved with the company for his entire working life with major executive responsibilities since the early 1980s. David Dalquist's mother, Dotty, is on the Board of Directors and serves as Corporate Secretary. David's three sisters—Corrine, Linda, and Susan—are also involved in the business. The firm employs between 200 and 400 people and continues, as a point of pride, to manufacture its products in the United States. The family has refused numerous buyout offers. Nordic Ware has managed to design and market products for the large, low price retailers, including Wal-Mart, and for the upscale, specialty gourmet market. Williams-Sonoma, a leader in the latter field, has exclusive sales for a small number of new Nordic Ware products each year.

For its sixtieth anniversary, Nordic Ware produced a company history, H. David Dalquist, The Nordic Ware Saga: An Entrepreneur's Legacy (Kirk House Publishers, Minneapolis, 2006). The volume provides edited recollections of "Dave," many family members, and other employees drawn from oral history interviews. This finding aid is based largely on that information, other historical sources within the collection, and visits to Nordic Ware offices by National Museum of American History staff members Paula Johnson and Nanci Edwards (June 2006) and Paula Johnson and John Fleckner (August 2006).
Related Materials:
The Division of Work and Industry holds thirty-six objects from Nordic Ware (Accession # 2007.0034), including Bundt Pans in a variety of shapes, foundry patterns and molds for Nordic Ware products, a wood panel display of products manufactured by Plastics for Industry, three versions of the Micro-Go-Round, and other kitchenware products.
Provenance:
This collection was donated by Dorothy M. Dalquist and H. David Dalquist in 2007.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research but is stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning intellectual property rights. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Ethnic food industry  Search this
Cookery, American  Search this
Kitchen utensils  Search this
Aluminum  Search this
Kitchen utensil industry  Search this
Baked products  Search this
Bakery equipment and supplies industry  Search this
Baking pans  Search this
Baking  Search this
Genre/Form:
Correspondence -- 1950-2000
Photographs -- 2000-2010
Legal records
Catalogs
Correspondence -- 2000-2010
Financial records
Photographs -- 20th century
Design drawings -- 1950-2000
Citation:
Nordic Ware Collection, 1942-2006, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0980
See more items in:
Nordic Ware records
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep894dc31f0-f3a9-457d-9097-4906863295b5
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0980
Online Media:

S. Newman Darby Windsurfing Collection

Creator:
Darby, S. Newman, 1928-2016 (inventor)  Search this
Darby, Kenneth  Search this
Darby, Naomi  Search this
Names:
Mistral, Inc.  Search this
Windsurfing International, Inc.  Search this
Drake, Jim  Search this
Schweitzer, Hoyle  Search this
Extent:
2.65 Cubic feet (7 boxes, 1 oversize folder)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Advertisements
Sketches
Photographs
Rigging plans
Sail plans
Legal files
Blueprints
Film (performing arts)
Illustrated periodicals
Correspondence
Design drawings
Drawings
Videotapes
Place:
Falls (Pa.) -- 1950-1990
Susquehana River -- 1950-1990
Date:
1944-1998
Summary:
The collection documents S. Newman Darby's development of the sailboard, which became known as the windsurfer through sketches, mechanical drawings, plans, patent specifications, legal documents, photographs, correspondence, notebooks, clippings, periodicals, and an 8mm film.
Scope and Contents:
The S. Newman Darby Windsurfing Collection, 1946-1998, documents the body of Newman Darby's inventive output as well as the development of the windsurfing industry. It consists of sketches, mechanical drawings, plans, patent specifications, legal documents, photographs, correspondence, notebooks, clippings, periodicals, an 8mm film and a videocassette. The collection is particularly rich in the material related to the development of the sailboard, including Darby's personal memoirs. It contains U.S. and foreign patents related to windsurfing as well as records and reports related to Darby's testimony in litigation and the recognition of the priority of his invention. the collections research value lies in the documentation of the invention of the windsurfer and the industry and culture it spawned. It documents the processes of invention and marketing of new devices. It is evidence of the full range of S. Newman Darby's imagination, life and career.
Arrangement:
The collection is divided into six series.

Series 1: Biographical materials, 1969-1982

Series 2: Inventions and designs, 1953-1990

Series 3: Darby Industries, 1982-1983

Series 4: History of windsurfing, 1944-1998

Series 5: Photographs, 1946-1997

Series 6: Audio-Visual materials, 1965-1997
Biographical / Historical:
S. Newman Darby is recognized as the first person in the United States to conceive of connecting a hand-held sail rig fastened with a universal joint to a floating platform for recreational use. He called it sail boarding in 1965, when he published his designs in Popular Science Monthly magazine. Although he and his brothers Ronald and Kenneth began manufacturing the boards through their company Darby Industries, they never applied for a patent.

S. Newman Darby (1928-2016) was born in West Pittston, Pennsylvania. He graduated from West Pittston High School in 1946. A sign painter and artist, like his father Sidney Darby, he studied drafting at the Pennsylvania State University extension school where he took chemistry, business, art, and photography courses for one year. His first invention, the Darby Dory, a folding rowboat dates from 1953. The sailboard developed out of Darby's experiments with a personal pontoon catamaran, each hull being big enough for one foot and designed to be operated with a hand-held sail and no rudder. By 1964 he had designed a universal joint that connected a mast to a flat bottom sailing scow. This board had a centerboard, tail fin and kite shaped free sail. Early tests were conducted on Trailwood Lake and the Susquehanna River, near West Pittston.

Today sail boarding is known as windsurfing. It adopted its name from Windsurfer International, a company Hoyle Schweitzer and Jim Drake established on the basis of a patent granted to them in 1970 for a "wind-propelled apparatus." In all essential qualities, their claims duplicated Newman Darby's earlier work.

After Schweitzer bought out Drake's share in 1973, he energetically promoted the sport and licensed manufacturing rights to more than 20 companies around the world. Schweitzer forcefully prosecuted patent infringements he perceived among windsurfer manufacturers and he threatened to sue the 1984 Olympic Committee should it authorize a board produced by a manufacturer not licensed by Windsurfer International. Although he was aware of the growth of the sport and the profits flowing into Windsurfer International through its licensing activities, Darby was unable to mount a legal challenge to Schweitzer. His priority in the invention of the sport was overlooked and almost forgotten.

In the late 1970's, Mistral, a Swiss manufacturer sued by Windsurfer International in Germany, located Darby and presented his "prior art" as a defense. In the early 1980's, courts in the United States were asked to rule on the validity of the Windsurfer International patent. Newman Darby's prior art was at the center of the controversies. The court voided Windsurfer's original patent and Schweitzer was forced to apply for a reissue based on severely limited claims. He lost the use of "windsurfer" as a trademark. Schweitzer retained the reissued patent through further challenges until it expired in 1987. The example of Newman Darby has become a textbook case of the importance of thorough searches for "prior art" for patent attorneys.

Following completion of the patent litigation Darby designed original sail rigs for Mistral in Europe and Horizon in the United States. In 1982 Newman entered into a new partnership with his brothers Ronald and Kenneth and formed NRK, Inc., to design and manufacture windsurfing boards, training devices and to produce written and video documentaries of his contributions to the history of the sport.

Naomi Albrecht Darby, Newman's wife, sewed the first sails for the boards and participated in their testing and marketing. She documented Darby's inventions through the years in photographs and moving images. Over the years, Darby has worked on numerous inventions--most of them related to wind propulsion. Like many independent inventors, Newman Darby conceives of his ideas, executes all of the mechanical plans, builds his own prototypes and tests them. Darby continues to research improvements in windsurfing and to teach courses in boat building and design.
Related Materials:
An original sailboard, rig, mast and daggerboard from the same period are also housed in the Pennsylvania State Museum at Harrisburg.
Separated Materials:
The Division of Culture and the Arts (now Division of Cultural and Community Life) holds artifacts relating to S. Newman Darby and his invention of the windsurfer, including an original board, boom and mast, and sail dating from 1964. See accessions #1998.0086 and #1998.0323.
Provenance:
Most of the collection was donated to the Archives Center of the National Museum of American History by S. Newman Darby and his wife Naomi on February 3, 1998.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Sporting goods industry -- 1950-1990  Search this
Sailboats -- 1950-1990  Search this
Patent law and legislation -- 1950-1990 -- United States  Search this
Patent licenses  Search this
Patents (international law) -- 1950-1990  Search this
Boatbuilders -- 1950-1990  Search this
Boats and boating -- 1950-1990  Search this
Boats and boating -- Designs and plans -- 1950-1990  Search this
Inventors -- 1950-2000  Search this
Inventions -- 1950-2000  Search this
Aquatic sports -- 1950-1990  Search this
Darby simulator  Search this
Windsurfers -- 1950-1990  Search this
Windsurfing -- Inventions -- 1950-1990  Search this
Genre/Form:
Advertisements -- 1950-2000
Sketches -- 1950-1990
Photographs -- 20th century
Rigging plans -- 1950-1990
Sail plans -- 1950-1990
Legal files -- 1950-1990
Blueprints -- 1950-2000
Film (performing arts) -- 1950-1990
Illustrated periodicals -- 1950-1990
Correspondence -- 1940-1990
Design drawings -- 1950-2000
Drawings -- 1950-1990
Videotapes
Citation:
S. Newman Darby Windsurfing Collection, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0625
See more items in:
S. Newman Darby Windsurfing Collection
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8a1c39256-e51a-4c44-92ca-dc22ec812dbb
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0625
Online Media:

James W. Holmes Karting Collection

Creator:
Holmes, James W.  Search this
Di Nozzi, Robert  Search this
Extent:
2 Cubic feet (7 boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Black-and-white photographic prints
Posters
Design drawings
Correspondence
Decals
Microfilms
Programs
Business records
Black-and-white negatives
Specifications
Newsletters
Date:
1961-1979
Summary:
Collection documents James Holmes, an advertising agent who specialized in advertising for the Karting industry. Holmes created magazine advertising, product catalogs and event promotional materials as well as logo and patch designs for manufacturers and karting sport sanctioning organizations.
Scope and Contents note:
The collection spans the years 1961-1979, but the majority of the documentation is from the 1960s. The collection is arranged into seven series.

Series 1: James W. Holmes Advertising Agency, 1979, consists of invoices from the Holmes Advertising Agency.

Series 2: Manufacturers, ca. 1960s, is arranged alphabetically by manufacturer name (clients Holmes handled) and consists of negatives and some photographs of parts produced by the manufacturers. The negatives were used to create catalogs for various companies selling go-karts.

Series 3: Go-Kart Races, 1961-1978, undated, is arranged alphabetically by the race site. Almost exclusively negatives, there are some photographs and two microfilm reels depicting races throughout the United States.

eries 4: Go-Kart Associations, 1964-1968, undated, contains documentation on associations, councils and clubs associated with the go-karting industry. Of interest are seven issues of the Grand Prix Press, a newspaper published by Meadowdale International Raceways, Inc.

Series 5: Miscellaneous, undated, consists of one folder of material which includes newspaper clippings, business cards, art work, and articles.
Arrangement:
Collection is aranged into five series.
Biographical/Historical note:
The first go-kart was built in southern California by Art Ingels in 1957. Three other individualsBBill Rowles, Duffy Livingstone, and Roy DesbrowBfounded GoKart Manufacturing Company in 1957, and offered the first commercially available kart, the GoKart 400. James Holmes was a prominent advertising agent involved with the karting industry in the midwest from the 1960s to 1980s. He created magazine advertising, product catalogs and event promotional materials as well as logo and patch designs for manufacturers and karting sport sanctioning organizations. Some of Holmes= clients included: G.E.M. Products, Evans Supply Company, Max-Torque, Inc., Rolfe Aircraft Associates, Rupp Mfg., and Simplex Mfg.
Provenance:
Collection donated to the Archives Center, National Museum of American History by Robert DiNozzi, January 16, 2002. Items donated are from the personal collection of Mr. James Holmes of the James Holmes Advertising Agency
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Go-Karts  Search this
Karting  Search this
Karts (Automobiles)  Search this
advertising  Search this
Genre/Form:
Black-and-white photographic prints -- Silver gelatin -- 1950-2000
Posters -- 20th century
Design drawings
Correspondence -- 1960-1990
Decals
Microfilms
Programs -- Sports
Business records -- 1950-2000
Black-and-white negatives
Specifications
Newsletters -- 1950-2000
Citation:
James W. Holmes Karting Collection, 1961-1979, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0787
See more items in:
James W. Holmes Karting Collection
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8b7757392-2533-4d5d-8762-4a591db90bb1
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0787

John Challis Records

Creator:
Challis, John, 1907-1974  Search this
Truesdale, Ephraim  Search this
Donor:
Frayer, William W.  Search this
Extent:
24 Cubic feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Advertisements
Ledgers (account books)
Sound recordings
Photographs
Magazines (periodicals)
Design drawings
Letters (correspondence)
Concert programs
Drawings
Musical scores
Diplomas
Trade literature
Clippings
Business records
Date:
circa 1900-1974
Scope and Contents:
The collection documents the Challis Harpsichord business, and the lives of Mr. Challis and his partner, Ephraim Truesdale. The collection contains correspondence, both personal and business; business records, including ledgers and journals; drawings, including design drawings for harpsichord decorations and elements; client files; subject files, especially on harpsichord and musical instrument subjects; printed materials such as concert programs, trade literature, magazines on the subject of music and musical instruments, clippings, advertisements and publicity materials; photographs, including many of instruments and many of Challis' family members; music scores; ceremonial items such as diplomas; templates for elements of harpsichords; and recordings.
Arrangement:
Collection is unarranged.
Biographical / Historical:
John Challis was an American builder of harpsichords and clavichords. He attended Michigan Normal College (now Eastern Michigan University), where his interest in constructing keyboard instruments emerged. He spent four years apprenticing with Arnold Dolmetsch in England, returning in 1930, when he set himself up building instruments in a two-story space above a dress shop in Ypsilanti, Michigan.
Provenance:
Collection donated by Dr. William W. Frayer, 2016.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research but is stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Musical instrument makers  Search this
Harpsichord  Search this
Harpsichord makers  Search this
Musical instruments  Search this
Clavichord  Search this
Genre/Form:
Advertisements -- 20th century
Ledgers (account books) -- 20th century
Sound recordings
Photographs -- 20th century
Magazines (periodicals) -- 20th century
Design drawings
Letters (correspondence) -- 20th century.
Concert programs
Drawings -- 20th century
Musical scores
Diplomas
Trade literature
Clippings -- 20th century
Business records -- 20th century
Citation:
John Challis Papers, ca. 1930-1974, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.1375
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8b0899464-06ac-4cd9-98c5-a35ef3e5f9e9
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-1375

Freda Diamond Collection

Creator:
Diamond, Freda, 1905-  Search this
Names:
Libbey-Owens-Ford Glass.  Search this
Extent:
3 Cubic feet (3 boxes, 4 folders )
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Design drawings
Scrapbooks
Awards
Articles
Photographs
Date:
1945-1998
Summary:
Archival materials relating to Diamond's career as an industrial designer, including various client files (especially Libbey Glass) containing photographs, designs, sketches, and other papers; articles by and about Diamond; magazines; awards; and a scrapbook.
Arrangement:
The collection is divided into eight series.

Series 1: Client Files, 1945-1966

Series 2: Libbey Glass, 1946-1984

Series 3: Shaker Furniture and Clothing, undated

Series 4: Articles, 1945-1983

Series 5; Scrapbook, 1937-1946

Series 6: Presentations and Awards, 1951-1994

Series 7: Japan (1957 and 1968) and Israel (1973)

Series 8: Photographs, 1964-1967
Biographical / Historical:
Freda Diamond's work shaped the tastes of many Americans in the middle of the twentieth century. Diamond was born in New York City in 1905. She graduated from Cooper Union, a renowned institution of design, and then studied in Europe. As an industrial designer, Diamond's area of expertise focused largely on the home, influencing the tastes of the average American housewife. Her ability to predict consumer demands through market research was an important factor in the success of her designs. In 1942, Libbey Glass, a division of Owens-Illinois, commissioned Diamond (at her own prompting) to make a survey of consumer tastes. The resulting award-winning designs sold many companies on the idea of researching consumer preferences before manufacturing a product. Her opinion was so respected that in 1945 she was appointed to a manufacturing rehabilitation committee sent to Italy. Diamond's role was to educate Italian craftsmen on what to manufacture for the American mass market. In 1957 and 1968 she made similar trips to Japan. She died in 1998.
Provenance:
The collection was donated to the division of Ceramics and Glass, NMAH by Freda Diamond in June of 1997.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Glassware  Search this
Furniture, Shaker  Search this
Furniture  Search this
Designers  Search this
Industrial design  Search this
Genre/Form:
Design drawings
Scrapbooks -- 20th century
Awards
Articles
Photographs -- 20th century
Citation:
Freda Diamond Collection, 1945-1984, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0616
See more items in:
Freda Diamond Collection
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep84e98848f-dc81-46af-a080-4f28b5dbb7a3
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0616
Online Media:

Clark Maddock Collection

Topic:
Mr. Goodwrench
Advertiser:
General Motors Corporation  Search this
Creator:
Maddock, Clark, 1912-1988  Search this
Donor:
Frederick, Jeffry A.  Search this
Extent:
1.5 Cubic feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Letters
Sketchbooks
Photographs
Watercolor drawings
Storyboards
Clippings
Awards
Fliers (printed matter)
Design drawings
Date:
1931 - 1994
Scope and Contents:
The collection documents the life and career of Clark Maddock, from his early years as a bandleader, through his work in the advertising industry and subsequent retirement. There are clippings and a few photographs relating to his musical career, but most of the collection relates to his work in the advertising industry for several ad agencies, and includes original artwork for print advertisements (especially GM's "Mr. Goodwrench" campaign) letters, flyers, a sketchbook, drawings, storyboards, photographs, and awards.
Arrangement:
1 series.
Biographical / Historical:
Maddock was an artist who worked for several decades in the advertising industry. He graduated from the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts, worked on campaigns for GM, Dow, Goodrich, Sohio, and other, while employed by several ad agencies. After retirement he lived in Hawaii where he edited a local newspaper and devoted more time to his watercolors, which were exhibited in local galleries.
Provenance:
Donated to the Archives Center in 2015 by Maddock's grandson, Jeffry Frederick.
Restrictions:
Collection open for research on site by appointment. Unprotected photographs must be handled with gloves.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Occupation:
Band directors  Search this
Commercial artists  Search this
Topic:
advertising  Search this
Commercial art  Search this
Genre/Form:
Letters
Sketchbooks
Photographs -- 20th century
Watercolor drawings
Storyboards
Clippings
Awards
Fliers (printed matter)
Design drawings -- 20th century
Citation:
Clark Maddock Collection, 1931-1994, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.1346
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8d11e5ef9-9ee2-45e4-bc0b-dd7136588f88
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-1346

A. Bernie Wood Papers

Creator:
Wood, Arthur Bernie, 1921-1986  Search this
Extent:
10 Cubic feet (27 boxes, 2 oversize folders)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Slides (photographs)
Clippings
Negatives
Transparencies
Matchcovers
Placemats
Stationery
Business cards
Business records
Advertisements
Photographs
Drawings
Motion pictures (visual works)
Design drawings
Date:
1942-2001
bulk 1960-1969
Summary:
A. (Arthur) Bernie Wood (1921-1986) was an advertising designer, consultant, and inventor actively involved in the development of the restaurant franchise industry in America during the 1960s and 1970s. Particularly notable is his work with marketing, promotion, and merchandising for the McDonald's Corporation during its formative years.
Scope and Contents:
The collection documents the post-war development of the franchise business system from an insider's view. Wood participated in almost all aspects of franchising activities from design to ownership. The materials consist of a wide variety of corporate identity elements--primarily visual--developed by Wood under contract to various corporations in the food service industry. Wood delivered his services in design concepts and graphics for advertisers and industrial firms using photo graphics and lithographic media.
Arrangement:
The collection organized into seven series.

Series 1: Personal Materials, 1942-1986, undated

Series 2: Business Materials, 1959-2001, undated

Subseries 1: Franchise information, 1961-2001

Subseries 2: Design work, undated

Subseries 3: Reference materials, 1959-1972

Series 3: McDonald's Corporation, 1957-1985

Subseries 1: Background materials, 1963, 1985, undated

Subseries 2: Corporate materials, 1960-1984

Subseries 3: Newsletters, 1960-1964, 1983

Subseries 4: Advertising and marketing materials, 1957-1978, undated

Subseries 5: Packaging, 1964, undated

Subseries 6: Sales materials, 1963, 1964, [1972?], undated

Subseries 7: Drawings, 1960s-1970s

Series 4: Client Files, 1958-1984

Series 5: Patent and Trademark Materials, 1962-1976

Subseries 1: Patents and patent applications, 1962-1969, 1975-1976

Subseries 2: Trademarks, 1964-1970

Series 6: Photographs, Slides and Negatives, 1963-1975, undated

Subseries 1: Biographical, 1964, 1975, undated

Subseries 2: Client Work, 1963-1968

Subseries 3: Slide Presentations, 1963-1969, undated

Series 7: Audio and Moving Image Materials, 1963, 1964, 1968

Subseries 1: Audio Materials, 1963, 1964, 1968

Subseries 2: Moving Image Materials, undated
Biographical / Historical:
Arthur Bernie Wood (1921-1986) was born in Council Grove, Kansas. Wood graduated from Central High School in Kansas City, Missouri, in 1939 and subsequently attended several junior colleges and business and trade schools. Wood held a variety of positions in typesetting and lithographic services from 1940 until military service in the United States Navy (1942-1945). In the Navy, Wood served as a Laboratory Technician, 1st Class Photographic Specialist at the Naval Air Station, Glenview, Illinois. While in the Navy, Wood produced patentable material for a photo-litho process for instant printing techniques through photosynthesis. After being discharged from the Navy, Wood worked for an art studio that serviced advertising agencies. This work involved reproduction art, direct mailing services, mail order books, and newspaper art for Marshall Field's. From 1958 to 1960, Wood established the A. Bernie Wood Studio in Chicago to provide finished photographic art for leading advertising and print publications and television.

In 1961, Wood founded Admart, Inc., Advertising. As the president and creative director of Admart, he created, promoted, and merchandised the new fast-food corporate image of McDonald's Carry-Out Restaurants. While working for McDonald's, Wood designed interior food service floor plans, a logotype, direct mailing materials, posters, newspaper mat campaigns, and radio taped productions (1963-1964). Wood obtained several patents--beverage cup holder (1964), candy box (1967), finger-grip food product containers (1967), and a refreshment tray-forming template (1964) and trademarks--"Chick'n-2-Go" (1968);"NEATRAE" (1967); and "Ma and Pa's Country Candy Store" (1966). Wood, and Donald Conley formed Neat Containers Associates to promote the use of "Neatrae" and license it.

In 1965, Wood founded a franchise business called Ma and Pa's Country Candy Stores in Arlington Heights, Illinois, which he owned and operated with his wife Marilyn until 1972. They also owned another unit in Long Grove, Illinois. As the director and co-founder of this franchise, Wood was responsible for creating names, trademarks, copyrights, and image materials. He sold franchise rights to others, and there were other Ma and Pa's Country Candy Stores located in the United States, especially in St. Louis. He also designed store interiors and exteriors for other clients and supervised construction. From 1964 to 1965, Wood was a freelance designer and consultant on design, marketing, and franchising issues for restaurants and drive-ins. Other corporate images designed by Wood include: Prince Castle, Neba Roast Beef, and Friar Fish's Fish and Chips. Wood expressed his goal to design an image/logo as one "that would be recognized and one that would relate to products, packaging, properties, people, procedures and promotion. Put together, these elements communicated and coordinated the corporate image."

Wood also developed the concept Dial "All Wood," the use of a memorable association of letters rather than phone numbers (255-9663) and requesting specific phone numbers from the local Illinois Bell Telephone.

Wood married Marilyn Dewar (1923-1981) on May 27, 1942, in Kansas City, Missouri. They had five children: Ronald W.; Rhonda C.; Randall S.; Rayne Ann; and Rodger L.

Wood died on April 5, 1986.
Provenance:
The collection was donated by Rayne Ann Wood, daughter of A. Bernie Wood, on February 25, 2007.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research but is stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning intellectual property rights. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Restaurants  Search this
Trademarks  Search this
Patents  Search this
advertising  Search this
Franchises (Retail trade)  Search this
Genre/Form:
Slides (photographs) -- 20th century
Clippings -- 20th century
Negatives
Transparencies
Matchcovers
Placemats
Stationery
Business cards
Business records -- 1950-2000
Advertisements -- 20th century
Photographs -- 1950-2000
Drawings
Motion pictures (visual works) -- 20th century
Design drawings -- 1950-2000
Citation:
A. Bernie Wood papers, Archives Center, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0962
See more items in:
A. Bernie Wood Papers
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8cfc4a0c6-0591-4be1-81c6-9a0a45f0fb25
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0962
Online Media:

Kryptonite Lock Company Records

Creator:
Zane, Michael Stuart, III  Search this
Kryptonite Lock Company (Canton, Massachusetts)  Search this
Zane, Elizabeth  Search this
Extent:
5.6 Cubic feet (15 boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Advertisements
Business records
Awards
Bumper stickers
Correspondence
Press releases
Photographs
Newsletters
Oral history
Date:
1972 - 2003
Summary:
Massachusetts entrepreneur Michael Zane purchased a bicycle lock design and its trade name, 'Kryptonite lock," in 1972. Working with members of his family, Zane developed the Kryptonite Corporation. The records consist of audio-visual materials, correspondence, design drawings, photographs, testing records, patent information, sales reports, product information, advertisements, clippings, periodicals, legal documents, and research files.
Scope and Contents:
The Kryptonite Lock Company Records, 1972-2001 document a wide spectrum of activities engaged in by the company. The records consists of audio-visual materials, correspondence, design drawings, photographs, testing records, patent information, sales reports, product information, advertisements, clippings, periodicals, legal documents, and research files. The strength of the collection resides in the marketing and sales documents. They tell a remarkable story of a small family business which created an internationally recognized brand name product. The collection also richly documents competition and innovation in the bicycle and motorcycle lock industry, through sales representative trip reports, product research and development records, and the research files on other companies. Although the collection provides a wide spectrum of documents from most aspects of the company's activities, some portions of the record are sparse and incomplete.

Series 1: History, 1973-1974, 2001, 2003, contains a company history and chronology as well as the field notes and photographs documenting the acquisition of the collection. There are two oral history interviews with Michael Zane conducted by NMAH archivist John Fleckner. The 2001 interview is an overview of the Kryptonite history; the 2003 interview focuses on Zane's description and history of the artifacts collected by the museum. There is a seven-page transcription of the 2001 interview. In addition, this series includes materials related to two companies associated with the early history of the Kryptonite Corporation, Zane Manufacturing Company (the sheet metal company owned by Michael Zane's father) and Ernest Zane and Liberty Distribution (a short-lived bicycle accessory distribution company) created by the Zane brothers to supplement and encourage the sale of their locks.

Series 2: Correspondence, 1983-2000, arranged by topic, documents some of the company's key areas of interest. The topics include customers, design ideas, media, suppliers and distributors, and sponsorships. Most of the correspondence focuses on complaints about or suggested improvements for the locks.

Series 3: Product Research and Development, 1987-2000, is arranged into three subseries, Subseries 1: Development, 1987-2000; Subseries 2: Research, 1985-1999

Subseries 1: Development, 1987-2000, is arranged by project and documents the design process of various security devices. It contains design drawings and design revisions.

Subseries 2: Research, 1985-1999, includes research on various lock patents. It also contains testing data for various locks produced by Kryptonite and outside testing companies.

Series 4: Administrative and Financial Papers, 1972-2000, includes various memos, meeting notes and agendas that thoroughly document the later part of the company's history. There is sporadic documentation of human resources activities of the company in this series. The series also includes various financial records. Sales representative trip reports are included as well. These reports are narrative accounts written by Kryptonite sales representatives to detail the state of product placement and the competition in retail stores throughout the country.

Series 5: Marketing, Advertising, and Publicity, 1972-2001, consists of five subseries, Subseries 1: Marketing materials, 1985-2000; Subseries 2: Advertising materials, 1989, undated; Subseries 3: Publicity materials, 1973-2001; Subseries 4: Crime-related materials, 1982-1996; and Subseries 5: Liz Zane files, 1990-1998 and is the most comprehensive series in the collection. It documents the marketing, advertising, and publicity efforts of the company.

Subseries 1: Marketing materials, 1985-2000, includes marketing materials, such as product sheets describing each of the company's products, and promotional materials, such as posters, bumper stickers, and postcards. Market research undertaken by the company is also included.

Subseries 2: Advertising materials, 1989, undated, contains various advertisements dating from the earliest lock designs to the merger with Ingersoll-Rand. Of particular note is a retrospective advertising notebook illustrating the numerous advertising campaigns undertaken by the company from its creation in 1972 to 1989.

Subseries 3: Publicity materials, 1973-2001, documents the multi-faceted publicity efforts of the company. Included are company newsletters, press clippings, reprint notebooks, various printed materials, press kits, and press releases.

Subseries 4: Crime-related materials, 1982-1996, consists of materials that document theft prevention activities. Included are claim reports that Kryptonite used to develop new designs and to generate an annual list of the top twenty cities for bicycle theft. Also included is the report on bicycle theft undertaken by the company in response to a sharp increase in the number of claims filed in New York City in 1988; ultimately this report resulted in the repeal of the lock guaranty in that city.

Subseries 5: Liz Zane files, 1990-1998, contains materials documenting Liz Zane, wife of Michael Zane, founder of the Kryptonite Corporation. She served as the Communications Manager for the company in the 1990s. Included in this series are press kits, her correspondence with law enforcement officers, and various research files related to publicity activities.

Series 6: Other Companies, 1985, 1991, 2001, undated, includes the Kryptonite Corporation's files documenting its patent infringement suit against Ming Tay, a Taiwanese competitor. Also included is information about the company's relationship with Trek and the company's merger with Ingersoll-Rand. In addition, the research files contain catalogs and advertisements of the company's competition.

Series 7: Visual Materials, 1988, 1996, 1997, undated, consists of black and white and color prints, slides, contact sheets, negatives and two 1⁄2" VHS tapes. The prints, slides, contact sheets and negatives document Michael and Peter Zane, the factory, a motorcycle lock, and promotional prints featuring the lock in advertising and being used. The 1⁄2" VHS tapes include a New York City Channel 4 News piece about bike theft (April 1988) and an Inside Edition, (October 1996) and Dateline (October 1997) programs on the Kryptonite Corporation.
Arrangement:
This collection is organized into seven series.

Series 1: History, 1973-1974, 2001, 2003

Subseries 1.1: Chronology and company history, undated

Subseries 1.2: Field Documentation, 2001, 2003

Subseries 1.3: Zane Manufacturing Company, undated

Subseries 1.4: Liberty Distribution, 1973-1974

Series 2: Correspondence, 1983-2000

Series 3: Product Research and Development, 1987-2000

Subseries 3.1: Development, 1987-2000

Subseries 3.2: Research, 1985-1999

Series 4: Administrative and Financial Papers, 1973-2001

Series 5: Marketing and Sales, 1972-2001

Subseries 5.1: Marketing materials, 1985-2000

Subseries 5.2: Advertising materials, 1989, undated

Subseries 5.3: Publicity materials, 1973-2001

Subseries 5.4: Crime-related materials, 1982-1996

Subseries 5.5: Liz Zane files, 1990-1998

Series 6: Other Companies, 1985, 1991, 2001, undated

Subseries 6.1: Ming Tay lawsuit, 1985

Subseries 6.2: Relationships with other companies, 1991, 2001

Subseries 6.3: Competition research files, undated

Series 7: Visual Materials, 1988, 1996, 1997, undated

Subseries 7.1: Photographs, undated

Subseries 7.2: Video cassettes, 1988, 1997
Biographical / Historical:
In 1971, Michael Zane read a newspaper article that sparked his imagination. He discovered that bicycle mechanic, Stanley Kaplan had designed and built a new bicycle lock, which he named the Kryptonite lock. Zane and Kaplan quickly became partners. Aided by the metal manufacturing experience of Ernest Zane, Michael's father, the partners began to produce and market the locks amid a rapidly growing bicycle industry. In this first year, the company sold approximately 50 locks.

In 1972, Zane bought the lock idea and the company name from Kaplan, and founded the Kryptonite Corporation with $1,500 from his personal savings. Using his father's sheet metal business, Zane Manufacturing Company, as a subcontractor for the metal work, Michael Zane's Kryptonite Corp. began manufacturing a slimmer, stronger lock made of stainless steel versus the original hardened steel version. Concentrating in the Boston area where the company was based, Zane started selling the lock to local bike shops. Realizing the need to expand his market and having no money for national advertising, Zane decided to undertake an experiment. He locked a bicycle to a parking meter with a Kryptonite lock on the Lower East Side in New York City for a month. By the time he retrieved the bike, it was completely stripped except for the part attached to the lock. The press was alerted to the experiment, and the resulting publicity helped move Kryptonite locks into New York City bicycle shops, as well as those in Philadelphia and Washington, D.C.

Michael's brother, Peter, joined the company in 1974. Peter concentrated on exporting and legal matters, while Michael handled marketing, design, research, and manufacturing. In this same year, to supplement and encourage their lock sales, the brothers started Liberty Distribution, a bicycle accessory distribution company. It was also at this time that Kryptonite began guaranteeing its locks—if your bike was stolen while secured with a Kryptonite lock, the company would send you up to $500. The guarantee quickly became a selling point.

The next year the company received another free publicity boost; Consumer Reports awarded the Kryptonite's U-lock its highest bicycle security device rating. Distribution expanded to Chicago and Los Angeles, and the company sold approximately 25,000 locks.

In 1977, Kryptonite introduced the K-4 lock. Michael Zane refined the company's basic U-shaped lock by creating a bent foot on one end making the lock easier to use and simplifying the design. This design gained the Kryptonite K-4 U-lock a place in New York's The Museum of Modern Art permanent design collection in 1983 and won both Japan's Good Design Prize and Germany's Museum of Utilitarian Art Award in 1988.

In 1978, Kryptonite expanded into the motorcycle lock market and began exporting its product into European markets. In the late 1980s, just as Kryptonite began to offer a newly designed mountain bike lock, anti-theft guarantee claims began to increase dramatically in Manhattan. This increase in theft forced Kryptonite to stop offering the guarantee in Manhattan and spurred the Zane's to redesign their locks. During this same time, Kryptonite was under constant competition from various domestic and foreign competitors. Many of these competitors adapted Kryptonite's U-lock design. Some so closely mimicked the Kryptonite design that the company took legal action.

In 1992, in response to an increase in thefts and ongoing competition, Kryptonite introduced its Evolution series of locks. This new design placed the locking mechanism in the middle of the crossbar of the lock, rather than at the end, making it less susceptible to breakage.

The next year Kryptonite entered the automobile security market. In its first year on the market, the Kryptonite Steering Wheel Lock was named one of Motor Trend magazine's top ten innovative car care products for 1993. Kryptonite's entrance into automobile security generated interest from Winner International Corporation, the maker's of The Club automotive lock, resulting in a number of court battles.

Kryptonite introduced the New York Lock in 1994. This newly designed lock allowed Kryptonite to reestablish an anti-theft guarantee for $1,000 in Manhattan. The company recreated its earlier publicity event by successfully locking bicycles throughout New York City to prove the efficacy of its locks. Kryptonite also issued a top ten list of cities with the most bicycle thefts (based on its claim reports) and expanded its involvement in theft prevention activities.

In 1995, Gary Furst became CEO of the rapidly growing company. In the following year, Kryptonite celebrated its twenty-fifth anniversary and developed a program called Flex Security, focusing on innovative locking systems for homeowners and contractors. In addition, Kryptonite entered the computer security market by creating locks for desktops and laptops.

With its expansion into new markets and rising sales, larger companies became increasingly interested in Kryptonite. In 2001, Ingersoll-Rand, a leading industrial firm, bought Kryptonite.
Related Materials:
Materials held at the National Museum of American History

The Division of Work and Industry holds related artifacts. See accession 2003.0234.

2003.0234 Bicycle lock collection—Kryptonite Brand

2003.0234.01a, b, c Earliest Kaplan design lock, metal bar, U shape with padlock; ca. 1971; 22cm x 15.8cm x 4 cm

2003.0234.02a, b Second generation design, stainless steel bar with combination lock; ca. 1972; 24cm x 17cm x 4cm

2003.0234.02c Crossbar plate marked "SK Associates"; 14.5cm x 3.75cm x .25cm

2003.0234.02d "Sesamee" brand combination lock for use with .02a; 8.5cm x 5cm x 2.4cm

2003.0234.03a, b, c, d Kryptonite-2, improved version of lock with changed lock cover; 24cm x 18cm x 4cm

2003.0234.04a, b, c Kryptonite-2, lock with attached padlock; 21cm x 17cm x 4 cm

2003.0234.04d Cross bar samples tested with bolt cutters; 14cm x 3.8cm & 10cm x 4cm

2003.0234.04e "Dynalock" brand, key operated padlock; 7cm x 4.5cm

2003.0234.05a, b, c Competitor style lock, "Citadel" brand, ca. 1973; 26cm x 17.8 cm

2003.0234.06a,b Kryptonite-3 (K-3) integrated lock eliminated need for padlock; 18cm x 25cm x 4cm

2003.0234.06c, d Sample of integral lock and cover used on K-3 lock; 7cm x 4cm x 8cm

2003.0234.06e Bracket for attaching to bike to carry K-3 lock; 10cm x 3.2cm x 1.5cm

2003.0234.07a, b, c Kryptonite-4 (K-4) made of rod rather than flat steel; 27cm x 19.6cm

2003.0234.08a, b, c Motorcycle version of K-4 lock; 41.3cm x 22.3cm

2003.0234.09 Vinyl lock cover branded "Secur-a-Glide by Harley Davidson"; 28.5cm x 2.5cm d.

2003.0234.10a, b, c Die stamp for lock cam, example of cost saving part; small metal parts

2003.0234.11a Steel lock carrying bracket for attachment to bike, in retail package; 9.5cm x 7cm x 4cm

2003.0234.11b Plastic lock carrying bracket for attachment to bike, retail package; 8.5cm x 4.5cm x 4cm

2003.0234.11c Punched, flat steel plate to be formed into item .11a, bracket; 21cm x 7cm

2003.0234.12a, b, c "Velo Racer" lock; 18cm x 13.4cm

2003.0234.13a, b, c "Evolite" lock with cut-away to show lock mechanism; 25cm x 16cm

2003.0234.13d Sample of lock mechanism opening from side rather than end of cross arm; 7.5cm x 2cm d.

2003.0234.14a, b, c, d K-4 lock and bike bracket in retail package targeted to Mountain Bikers; 27.5cm x 19.7cm

2003.023415a, b, c Heavy weight lock branded "New York Lock"; 32.5cm x 16.5cm

2003.0234.16a, b, c Uncoated metal prototype of "New York Lock"; 27.5cm x 16.3cm

2003.0234.17a, b, c "New York Lock" in retail packaging; 25.5cm x 14cm

2003.0234.18a, b, c Heavy weight chain and Kryptonite EV Disc lock for motorcycle; chain 97cm x 3.7cm x 6cm; lock 9cm x 9.8cm

2003.0234.19a, b, c "Evolution 2000" lock with prototype titanium U bracket; 27.2cm x 16cm

2003.0234.19d Titanium U rod of lock tested to destruction; 60.7cm x 1.3cm d.

2003.0234.20a, b, c, d Computer parts manufactured by Zane family before manufacturing bike locks, 4 small, metal items
Provenance:
This collection was donated to the National Museum of American History by Michael Stuart Zane III and Elizabeth Zane on June 3, 2003.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research but is stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
Rights:
Copyright held by the Smithsonian Institution. Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Bicycle theft -- Prevention  Search this
Bicycles -- Equipment and supplies  Search this
Inventions -- 20th century  Search this
Locks and keys  Search this
Inventors  Search this
Marketing  Search this
Genre/Form:
Advertisements -- 20th century
Business records -- 20th century
Awards
Bumper stickers
Correspondence -- 1970-2000
Press releases
Photographs -- 20th century
Newsletters
Oral history
Citation:
Kryptonite Lock Company Records, 1972-2003, Archives Center, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0840
See more items in:
Kryptonite Lock Company Records
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep868780254-8ffa-41f6-b85b-e61b7832babe
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0840
Online Media:

William R. Stone Microwave Oven Papers

Creator:
Stone, William R., 1920-2006  Search this
Raytheon Company  Search this
Donor:
Hoffman, Robin  Search this
Extent:
0.6 Cubic feet (2 boxes )
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Graphs
Memorandums
Reports
Specifications
Patents
Articles
Notes
Photographs
Design drawings
Trade literature
Date:
1967-1985
Scope and Contents:
Papers documenting William R. Stone's involvement in the invention and development of the microwave for industrial and home use. The collection includes biographical information; patents, and other invention related papers; photographs; design drawings; internal company papers and memoranda; Stone's research and reports, especially on the subject of microwave safety; and trade literature relating to products for both industrial and home use.
Arrangement:
1 series.
Biographical / Historical:
Stone was an engineer for Raytheon. He was involved in the invention and development of microwave ovens for industrial uses, such as for ink drying, rubber vulcanization, and later for home use.
Provenance:
Donated to the Archives Center in 2014 by Robin Hoffman, William Stone's daughter.
Restrictions:
Collection open for research on site by appointment. Unprotected photographs must be handled with gloves.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Microwave heating  Search this
Microwave equipment industry  Search this
Engineers -- 20th century  Search this
Safety  Search this
Microwave ovens  Search this
Microwave oven industry  Search this
Genre/Form:
Graphs
Memorandums -- 1950-2000
Reports
Specifications
Patents -- 20th century
Articles -- 1950-2000
Notes
Photographs -- 20th century
Design drawings -- 20th century
Trade literature
Citation:
William R. Stone Microwave Oven Papers, 1967-1985, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.1320
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8c760eb63-1196-4c03-82fe-5b53d89bce90
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-1320

Solomon Adler Papers

Creator:
Adler, Solomon, 1901-1989  Search this
Extent:
4.5 Cubic feet (5 boxes, 1 oversize folder)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Printed material
Sketches
Photographs
Notes
Legal records
Drawings
Correspondence
Date:
1916-1980
bulk 1950-1966
Summary:
The papers document independent inventor Solomon Adler's work with sewing machine technology through correspondence, photographs, notes, drawings, sketches, patents, litigation records, and printed materials. The collection provides insight into both an independent inventor's process of invention and Japanese work culture during the post-World War II period.
Scope and Contents:
The papers include correspondence, photographs, notes, drawings, sketches, patents, litigation records, and printed materials, primarily documenting Adler's work with sewing machine technology. The papers provide insight into an independent inventor's process of invention and Japanese work culture during the post-World War II period.

Series 1, Personal Materials, 1920s-1950s and undated consists primarily of high school chemistry and biology notes, business cards, photographs, speeches, and writings of Sol Adler. The photographs contain one black-and-white portrait of Adler, November 1958, and two negatives of him from the nineteen teens; and one scanned copy of a photograph, circa the 1920s of Sol Adler with his children, R. Michael and Diane Zoe Adler. There is a small booklet, Agreement between Manufacturers Machine and Tool Co., Inc., and Amalgamated Machine and Instrument Local No. 475 from 1941. Adler worked for Manufacturers Machine and Tool Co., Inc.

Series 2, Inventions, is divided into two subseries: Subseries 1, Other, 1919-1980 and undated, and Subseries 2, Sewing Machines, 1938-1962 and undated. Arranged chronologically, both subseries highlight Adler's inventive work. While the primary focus of Adler's invention work was on sewing machines, his interests were broad.

Subseries 2.1, Other Inventions, 1919-1980 and undated, contains documentation in the form of drawings and sketches, photographs, correspondence, and patents. Overall, the documentation is uneven. The inventions include a dividing head (a specialized tool that allows a workpiece to be easily and precisely rotated to preset angles or circular divisions); decorative window treatment; telescoping umbrella; can opener; question/answer machine; correlating device; radio station recording device; receptacle tap; fountain pen; television projection device; combined ash tray and cigarette holder; automatic machine gun; juice blender; thermonuclear idea; apparatus for producing pile fabric; an extensible, retractable and concealable table; and textile machinery.

Only some of Adler's inventions were patented. However, many of his ideas were well documented through drawings or descriptive text. In some instances prototypes were built.

The question and answer machine, 1939, was approximately three feet by four feet and was powered by a battery, the device was intended for educational use by children and adults. It used interchangeable answer cards on a broad range of subjects and informed the user of a correct and wrong answer by lights and a buzzer.

The correlating device, 1942, was designed for automobile use, and it combined driving directions and maps on a roll of paper data mounted on the dashboard. Although patented (US Patent 2,282,843), the device was never manufactured.

The radio station recording device, 1939, was a device to maintain a record of radio stations tuned on a radio receiver during a twenty-four hour period using recording disks.

The receptacle tap (Siphon-It), 1939, was patented (US Patent 2,184,263). The Siphon-It was designed to fit any size bottle, can, or the like containing fluids without removing the bottle cap. The "tap" punctured the bottle cap and was then turned like a screw several times. It allowed the contents under pressure to not lose carbonation and be poured easily.

The combined ash tray and cigarette holder and lighter, 1951, was Adler's only design patent (US Patent Des. 163,984). Purely ornamental, the tray would light and hold a cigarette.

The automatic machine gun, 1952, was conceived of by Adler and his son R. Michael Adler. The drawings and accompanying narrative text detail a method for cooling the gun through the use of an automatically operated gas turbine centrifugal air compressor and a gun of simple design with few parts and capable of an extremely high rate of fire. Adler submitted his drawings and text to the United States Army Ordance Department at the Pentagon, but it was not manufactured.

Adler's thermonuclear fusion proposal, a technical paper written in 1960, was never realized. The paper, titled "Attempt to Utilize the Concentrated Magnetic Field Around a Pinched Plasma Column as the Focal Point for Particle Acceleration," details through text and schematics Adler's ideas about a thermonuclear reactor. Additionally, there is correspondence, journal articles, newspaper articles, and a notebook with notes from other publications and some loose drawings related to thermonuclear issues.

An apparatus for producing pile fabric (US Patent 3,309,252), was patented in 1967. The intention of the apparatus was to create a method for producing carpets and rugs in a fast, practical, and inexpensive way.

Adler's work with non-woven textiles and fabrics (see US Patent 3,250,655) is well documented through correspondence, drawings, notes, fabric samples, and photographs. Adler founded the Adler Process Corporation in the 1960s as a research and development organization specializing in the development of products for domestic and industrial uses. The corporation also built machinery for the commercial production of the products which included pile fabric (such as carpeting), non-woven fabrics, and leather-like material. A prospectus details the "Adler Process."

Method and apparatus for production of pile carpeting and the like (US Patent 3,424,632, 3,592,374, and 3,655,490)

Subseries 2.2, Sewing machines, 1938-1962 and undated, consists primarily of documentation about the development of the Pacesetter sewing machine and its predecessors through correspondence, drawings and sketches, photographs, guide manuals, and promotional materials. Adler constructed skeletal aluminum models to better understand the functions and internal mechanisms of sewing machines. Between 1940 and 1948, he designed and constructed a sewing machine prototype, which he called his "Parent Machine." The Parent Machine would become known as the Pacesetter. Seven patents were awarded for the novel mechanisms contained within this prototype (US Patent 2,561,643), the most notable being for a compact sewing machine that could expand to a full-sized machine. Additional sewing machine inventions include the needleless sewing machine; a zig-zag sewing machine, and an attachment for a zig-zag sewing machine (US Patent 3,016,030).

While working as an engineer for the Brother International Corporation in Japan in the early 1950s, Adler developed the Pacesetter sewing machine. This portable machine was designed to meet the rapidly growing popularity of multiple decorative and embroidery patterns. A selector dial, which Adler called the "Wishing Dial," controlled sixteen internal cams, multiple cam selectors and followers to automatically sew thirty different basic decorative stitch patterns. Since the Pacesetter could sew both zigzag and straight stitches, varying the width and length of the basic patterns made it possible to create thousands of decorative variations. Adler introduced the Pacesetter sewing machine at the Independent Sewing Machine Dealers Show in New York, July 18, 1955.

Series 3: Brother International Corporation, 1954-1959 and undated

Started in 1908 by Kanekichi Yasui, the Yasui Sewing Machine Company manufactured and repaired sewing machines. The company was later renamed Yasui Brother Sewing Machine Company by Masayoshi Yasui, the eldest of Kanekichi's ten children, who inherited the company. The new name reflected the involvement and spirit of cooperation of other "brothers" in the Yasui family.

In 1934, the Yasui brothers liquidated the Yasui Brother Sewing Machine Company and created the Nippon Sewing Machine Company in Nagoya, Japan. Nippon emerged in response to a Japanese sewing machine market dominated by imported products, and it began mass producing industrial sewing machines. In 1941, Brother Sales, Ltd. was established as a sales outlet for the Japanese market, and in 1954 Brother International Corporation (BIC) was created as an exporting company with offices established in New York City. The company actively promoted exporting in advance of other Japanese companies.

Adler joined BIC in 1954 as a consultant for their product design and development work. This work was previously done in-house by design and engineering staff, so Adler, an American, was charting new territory. The materials in this series consist of corporate histories, and annual report, correspondence, product literature, conference materials, and notebooks maintained by Adler. The latter constitutes the bulk of the material along with the correspondence.

The "conference" materials document a meeting Adler attended, presumably in Japan in 1957. The file contains detailed notes about product marketing and production factors. A flow chart for "product coordinating factors" outlines the motivations, idea sources, management control, and execution of an idea generally.

The correspondence, 1954-1958, consists of letters and inter-company communications (memorandum), patents and drawings between Sol Adler, Max Hugel and the legal firm of, Kane, Dalsmier and Kane of New York. The correspondence relates almost exclusively to patenting matters, especially by Adler and legal matters involving Singer Sewing Manufacturing Company alleging that Brother International infringed on certain Singer-owned patents.

The notebooks of Solomon Adler, approximately 1951-1958, consists primarily of materials documenting Adler's work in Japan on sewing machines. The materials were assembled by Adler and titled "notebook." Some of the materials are three hole punched (indicating they may have been in a three-ring notebook) and are both handwritten and typescript. Also included are chronologies of his work; translations of Japanese words into English; drawings in pencil on tracing paper; sketches in pencil on scrap paper and letterhead; detailed notes about mechanisms and methods of sewing machine operation; business cards; comparative data for sewing machines; and correspondence.

Of note is the "digest" or chronology of events from 1958 to 1959 maintained by Adler to detail the alleged patent infringement of BIC on Singer Sewing machine patents. The digest also notes the value, author of a document, to whom it was sent, date, and a brief description. Adler created a ranking system for his digest, assigning different values, very important, urgent, important, and general. He also compiled a chart of competitor sewing machines by brand name. Many of the Japanese documents--patents and drawings--bear Adler's "chop" or rubber stamp with Japanese characters for his surname.

The Litigation Materials, 1952-1961 and undated, consists of documents (numbered exhibits) assembled by Adler for use in litigation against Brother International Corporation (BIC). The exhibits were used as documentary evidence in court, and the materials are primarily typescript notes and correspondence, newspaper clippings, articles, technical drawings by Adler, patents, photographs and some product literature detailing aspects of the BIC sewing machines.

In 1958, Singer Sewing Machine Company filed a lawsuit against Nippon Sewing Machine Company for patent infringement by BIC's Pacesetter and Select-O-Matic sewing machines. Adler, on behalf of Nippon, conducted extensive patent research into the allegations, working with BIC attorneys in New York as well as creating new sewing machine designs to overcome Singer's claims. In 1959, Singer filed another lawsuit alleging that Nippon was violating United States customs laws by shipping automatic zigzag sewing machines to the United States, which were alleged to infringe on Singer patents. Correspondence related to this patent infringement can be found in Series 3: Brother International Corporation.

Adler returned to the United States in April of 1959 as the representative for Nippon and the Japanese sewing machine industry to help prepare the case and act as a consultant. BIC and Singer representatives appeared before the United States Tariff Commission (USTC). Adler officially testified on behalf of BIC, explaining the three angle cam structure difference between the Singer #401 sewing machine and imported Japanese sewing machines. Adler's testimony was successful, and with patent problems resolved, Adler resigned from BIC in July of 1959 and commenced a long negotiation with the company for financial compensation for his invention work.

Series 5, Publications, 1953-1967, consists of select issues of theNew Japan Sewing Machine News, which followed developments in the Japanese sewing machine industry and other publications featuring articles and brief pieces about sewing machines in general.

References

(http://welcome.brother.com/hk-en/about-us/history.html last accessed on March 24, 2011)
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into four series.

Series 1: Personal Materials, 1920-1950s and undated

Series 2: Inventions, 1938-1980

Subseries 1: Other, 1938-1980

Subseries 2: Sewing, 1938-1962 and undated

Series 3: Brother International Corporation, 1952-1961

Series 4: Publications, 1953-1967
Biographical / Historical:
Solomon "Sol" Adler is probably best known for his sewing machine inventions, but his portfolio of work also includes ideas and patents for a fountain pen, a window treatment, a receptacle tap, a telescoping umbrella, an ashtray, a retractable table, and jewelry designs. Adler wrote fiction as well (mostly short stories) that reflected his experiences during the early 1900s in New York City. He filled pages with themes on social protest, radicalism, mobs, unions, poverty, and sweatshop operators. In 1958 Adler wrote about theories of nuclear physics, noting, "Indeed a very bold attempt and definitely a long way from sewing machines." Adler's flow of ideas was constant, and he sought to express them constantly.

Sol Adler was born on July 8, 1901, [Russian?] on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, one of Isaac and Mindel Adler's five children. Isaac was a tailor, so sewing machines were part of Sol's life from the beginning. As a young man, Adler apprenticed in machine shops, honing his skills until he became an expert machinist and toolmaker; these skills eventually allowed him to build the machines he visualized. Adler's design drawings show his precision as a draftsman and engineer (he attended the City College of New York) and provide good insight into the drawing abilities that he later used in preparing patent drawings. Adler also enjoyed metalworking. His home workshop boasted a geared lathe, tilling head machine, drill press, bench grinder, and an assorted hand tools.

Adler's work on sewing machines began in the late 1930s with tinkering with his sister-in-law Bess's treadle-operated Singer machine. Bess wanted a lightweight, motorized sewing machine that had enough space between the frame and the needle for large projects such as quilts. Using his own basement machine shop, Adler began building simple frameworks for sewing machines to understand better the relationships between the parts and their functions. Adler's first sewing machine (which he dubbed the "parent machine") earned U.S. Patent 2,561,643, issued in 1951. The machine was a full-size home machine, with a concealed motor and power cord that could also expand into a commercial-size machine. Six subsequent patents for subassemblies were derived from the "parent machine" over the next several years.

During the Second World War, Adler worked for Manufacturing Methods Technology (MM&T) as a development engineer and experimental machine shop supervisor.

Analyzing the evolving U.S. domestic sewing machine market gave Adler ideas for further inventions, refining the machines and adding new features. Unfortunately, success was elusive; his machine with zigzag and straight-stitch capability was rejected by several U.S. and European sewing machine manufacturers. But in 1954, Adler met Max Hugel, president of the Asiatic Commerce Corporation of New York, later known as Brother International Corporation (BIC), a subsidiary of the Nippon Company. Nippon wanted to solve certain design and operational problems it was having in developing a zigzag sewing machine for sale in the United States. Adler joined BIC, moved to Japan, and succeeded in helping correct the design issues. Adler named the machine the "Select-O-Matic" because by turning a few knobs, an operator could select one of the six patterns that the machine produced.

Adler stayed with BIC until 1959, and worked on a variety of sewing machines, including an automatic zigzag machine and the versatile "Pacesetter," which was unveiled in the United States to great acclaim at the Sewing Machine Show in New York City on July 18, 1955 (a version of the Pacesetter is still sold by Brother). Additionally, he worked on a line of industrial and domestic sewing machines, home washing machines, home knitting machines, and other small appliances. Adler earned several Japanese patents for his work.

Among Adler's writings is a pronouncement of his passion for invention: "When an idea is conceived by an inventor, it never leaves him in peace, it possesses him day and night until it is expressed, after which he enjoys a sense of relief and accomplishment."

Adler married Fay (neé Kagan) in 1928. They had two children, Ralph Michael Adler and Diane Zoe Adler. Adler died on May 31, 1989 at the age of 88.

Issued United States Patents:

Receptacle tap (2,184,263)

Correlating device (2,284,843)

Sewing machine (2,561,643)

Sewing machine feed (2,473,934)

Bobbin winder for sewing machine (2,455,638)

Extension leaf for sewing machines (2,464,838)

Sewing machine feed (2,473,934)

Threading device (2,516,171)

Sewing machine pressure bar (2,554,970)

Sewing machine needle bar operating mechanism (2,554,971)

Sewing machine (2,561,643)

Sewing machine (2,709,978)

Attachment for zigzag sewing machines (3,016,030)

Sewing machine (3,053,207) assigned to Nippon Sewing Machine Manufacturing Company

Sewing machine (3,055,325) assigned to Nippon Sewing Machine Manufacturing Company

Method and apparatus for making non-woven fabric (3,236,711)assigned to Adler Process Corporation

Method for producing non-woven fabric (3,250,655)

Method and apparatus for producing pile fabric (3,309,252) assigned to Adler Process Corporation

Method and apparatus for production of pile fabric and the like (3,424,632) assigned to Adler Process Corporation

Combined ashtray, cigarette holder and lighter (Des. 163,984)
Separated Materials:
The Division of Home and Community Life (now Division of Cultural and Community Life) holds artifacts related to this collection, including several sewing machine prototypes, the Siphon-It and the combination ashtray, lighter and cigarette holder. See Accession numbers: 2009.0118 and 2009.0114.
Provenance:
The collection was donated by R. Michael Adler and Diane Zoe Adler, September, 2009. Additonal materials were donated by R. Michael Adler in 2012.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research use.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Sewing machines  Search this
Inventors  Search this
Genre/Form:
Printed material
Sketches
Photographs -- 20th century
Notes
Legal records
Drawings -- 20th century
Correspondence
Citation:
Solomon Adler Papers, dates, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.1157
See more items in:
Solomon Adler Papers
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8b992432c-1412-4f33-b983-c02c8d35871e
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-1157
Online Media:

Ralph H. Baer Papers

Creator:
Baer, Ralph H., 1922-2014  Search this
Extent:
16 Cubic feet (45 boxes and 1 oversize folder)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Audiotapes
Audiocassettes
Cd-roms
Diagrams
Drawings
Interviews
Videotapes
Correspondence
Sketches
Photographs
Oral history
Notes
Manuals
Date:
1943 - 2015
Summary:
Ralph H. Baer was a German-born ordnance specialist, inventor, and engineer. He was a pioneer of early videogame technology. The papers include autobiographical materials; firearms notes, manuscripts, and photographs; and videogame and television engineering notes, diagrams, schematics, and video documentation.
Scope and Contents:
The Ralph Baer Papers include autobiographical materials and an extended oral history interview. The Papers also include materials about military small arms created by Baer during his World War II service. The largest portion of the collection documents Baer's work on video games.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into 12 series.

Series 1: Autobiographical Documents, 1962-2006

Subseries 1.1: Manuscript, book and other documents, 1962-2006

Subseries 1.2: Other Media: CDs, VHS videos, periodical, 1991, 2000-2003

Series 2: WW II Small Arms Documents, 1943-1953

Subseries 2.1: Correspondence, 1950-1953

Subseries 2.2: Writings and notes, 1943-1948

Subseries 2.3: Drawings and schematics, undated

Subseries 2.4: Manuals and encyclopedias, 1943

Subseries 2.5: Photographs, 1945

Series 3: Hans Otto Mauksch Materials, 1944-1964

Subseries 3.1: Personal background information, 1944, 1945, 1946, 1964

Subseries 3.2: Instructional materials, 1944-1946, undated

Subseries 3.3: Ft. Riley, Kansas, 1946, 1953

Series 4: TV Game Documents, 1966-1972

Subseries 4.1: Working notes, diagrams and schematics, 1966-1971

Subseries 4.2: Administrative documents, 1966-1972 Subseries 4.3: Notebooks, 1966-1968

Subseries 4.4: TV game development documentation, 1966-1968

Series 5: Sanders Associates, Transitron, and Van Norman Industries, 1952-2003

Series 6: Product Development Documents, 1974-2015

Series 7: Product Guides and Technical Support, 1943-2011

Series 8: Legal and Patent Documents, 1966-2014

Series 9: Writings and Notes, 1946-1999

Series 10: Miscellaneous, 1961-2012

Series 11: Correspondence, 1983-2014

Series 12: Publicity and Awards, 1979-2015
Biographical / Historical:
Ralph H. Baer (1922-2014) was born in Germany and immigrated to the United States with his family in 1938. A graduate of the National Radio Institute (1940), Baer worked as a radio technician in the New York City area, servicing all types of home and auto radios. During World War II, Baer served in the United States Army, one year stateside, and two years in Europe. He was assigned to Military Intelligence and became an expert on military small arms. Baer returned to the United States with eighteen tons of foreign small arms for use in exhibits at Aberdeen, Maryland; Springfield, Massachusetts Armory; and Ft. Riley, Kansas.

After the war, Baer attended the American Television Institute of Technology in Chicago, graduating with a BS in television engineering. In 1949, Baer joined a small electro medical equipment firm, Wappler, Inc., as their chief engineer. He designed and built surgical cutting machines, epilators, and low frequency pulse generating muscle-toning equipment. In 1951, Baer moved to Loral Electronics of Bronx, New York as a senior engineer, designing power line carrier signaling equipment for IBM. During 1952-1956, Baer worked at Transitron, Inc., in New York City as a chief engineer and later as vice president. In 1956, Baer joined Sanders Associates in Nashua, New Hampshire building airborne radar components. He became manager of the Electronic Design Department at Sanders and eventually Division Manager and Chief Engineer for Equipment Design. Baer retired in 1987.

At Sanders in 1966, Baer began an independent project experimenting with ways for consumers to interact with standard home television sets. Development of interactive TV Game (TVG) ideas became a company-supported project continued by Baer and assisted by William H. Harrison and William T. Rusch (download the TV Game chronology prepared by Ralph Baer in 2006). By mid-1967, ping pong videogames were played inside Sanders, patent disclosures were applied for, and hardware was designed. Baer and his associates called the devices they were developing "boxes" and numbered the various versions one through seven. In 1971, Magnavox became Sanders Associates's first videogame licensee. Between 1972 and 1975, Magnavox produced and sold over 700,000 units of Odyssey, a set of games played on its television receivers. Atari became a licensee in 1976 after the first of many lawsuits won by Sanders in pursuit of patent infringements.

During his tenure at Sanders and thereafter, Baer was a prolific inventor. His creations included many electronic toys and games and other consumer electronic products. Among the better known products based on Baer's work are Milton Bradley's Simon, Galoob's Smarty Bear Video, and Kenner's Laser Command. In 2004 President George W. Bush awarded Baer the National Medal of Technology.

Baer married Dena Whinston in 1952 and they had three children, James, Mark, and Nancy. Ralph Baer died on December 6, 2014, at the age of 92.
Related Materials:
Materials at the Archives Center, National Museum of American History

Ralph H. Baer Innovative Lives Presentation, August 15, 2009 (AC1179)

The presentation documents a moderated conversation about Baer's life and work. Baer reenacts, with his partner William Harrison, the first time he played "Odyssey," the first home video game for the consumer market, which he invented, and answers questions from the audience. Materials include original video (born digital), master videos, and reference videos.

Materials at Other Organizations

Brian Sutton-Smith Library and Archives of Play at The Strong

Ralph H. Baer Papers, 1968-2010 inclusive; 1975-1998 bulk

The Ralph H. Baer papers are a compilation of correspondence, game designs, drawings, notes, reference materials, photographs, product descriptions, digital videos, schematics, electronic components, and manuals utilized by Ralph H. Baer throughout his lengthy career in the toy and game industry. The bulk of the materials are from 1975 through 1998.

U.S. Ordnance Museum, Fort Lee, Virginia

Materials consist of data on foreign small arms brought back from Europe in 1946 by Ralph H. Baer.

Museum of the Moving Image, Astoria, New York

Holdings include set of seven recreations of "TV game" prototypes originally created between 1966 and 1969, donated by pioneering game developer Ralph Baer. One of Baer's game prototypes, known as the "Brown Box," was licensed by Magnavox and released in 1972 as the Magnavox Odyssey, the world's first commercial home video game console.

University of Texas, Austin, Briscoe Center for American History

Ralph H. Baer "Brown Box" replica, 1952-1983, 2006-2012

The Ralph H. Baer "Brown Box" replica includes a fully-functional replica of Ralph Baer's "Brown Box," the prototype video game console that was used as the basis of the Magnavox Odyssey in 1972. The collection also contains related research materials.
Separated Materials:
The Division of Medicine and Science holds artifacts related to this collection including early video game prototypes and TV Game products.

TV Game Unit #1 (TVG#1); 1966; vacuum tube spot generator with Heathkit IG-62 Generator (See Accession 2006.0102.01)

Heathkit IG-62; used with TVG #1 (See Accession 2006.0102.02)

TV Game Unit #2 (TVG #2), aka the "Pump Unit," 1967; large aluminum chassis with wooden "pump" handle (See Accession 2006.0102.03)

TV Game Unit #7 (TVG#7), aka "Brown Box," 1967/1968; prototype for Magnavox Odyssey (See Accession 2006.0102.04)

Cardboard program cards for use with Brown Box (See Accession 2006.0102.05)

Lightgun, 1967/1968; game accessory for Brown Box (See Accession 2006.0102.06)

TV Game Unit #8, 1968; "de/dt" (velocity responsive) ballgame chassis for use with Brown Box (See Accession 2006.0102.07)

Magnavox Odyssey (Model ITL200) video game unit, 1972; with all accessories in the original carton (See Accession 2006.0102.08)

Milton-Bradley Company SIMON handheld microprocessor-control game, 1978 (See Accession 2006.0102.09)

Ideal Toy Company MANIAC microprocessor-control game, 1979, in original box with game instructions (See Accession 2006.0102.10)

Golf Game accessory, 1968; golf ball mounted on joystick handle for use with Brown Box (See Accession 2006.0102.11

"Brown Box" programming card, target shooting, 1967 (See Accession 2006.0102.12)
Provenance:
The collection was donated by Ralph H. Baer in 2003.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research use. Gloves must be worn when handling unprotected photographs and negatives.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning intellectual property rights. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions. Copyright held by the Smithsonian Institution.
Topic:
Books  Search this
Firearms  Search this
Games  Search this
Litigation  Search this
Inventions -- 20th century  Search this
Machine guns  Search this
World War, 1939-1945  Search this
Weapons  Search this
Video games  Search this
Toys -- 20th century  Search this
Television -- History  Search this
Rifles  Search this
Pistols  Search this
Military intelligence  Search this
Genre/Form:
Audiotapes
Audiocassettes
CD-ROMs
Diagrams
Drawings -- 1940-1950
Interviews -- 2000-2010
Videotapes
Correspondence -- 1950-2000
Sketches
Photographs -- Black-and-white photoprints -- Silver gelatin -- 1940-1950
Photographs -- 20th century
Oral history -- 2000-2010
Notes
Manuals -- 1940-1950
Citation:
Ralph H. Baer Papers, 1943-2015, Archives Center, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0854
See more items in:
Ralph H. Baer Papers
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep82f137fe4-60d3-4527-aa78-fed55d4b4fef
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0854
Online Media:

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