National Museum of American History (U.S.). Division of History of Technology Search this
National Museum of American History (U.S.). Division of Mechanical and Civil Engineering Search this
National Museum of American History (U.S.). Division of Work and Industry Search this
Extent:
20 Cubic feet (42 boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Blueprints
Business records
Charts
Clippings
Correspondence
Drawings
Order books
Patents
Photographs
Specifications
Trade catalogs
Glass plate negatives
Place:
Springfield (Ohio)
Date:
circa 1848-1976
Summary:
Collection documents James Leffel and Company of Springfield, Ohio, manufacturer of turbines, water wheels and engines.
Scope and Contents:
The records contain business and legal records; correspondence; patents and patent files; specifications; charts; blueprints; mechanical drawings and original catalog art; photographs and negatives; catalogs, and clippings documenting James Leffel and Company.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into eight series.
Series 1: Correspondence, 1974-1978
Series 2: Patent Materials, 1848-1931
Series 3: Testing Data, 1913-1966, bulk 1920s
Series 4: Catalogs, 1870-1946
Series 5: Catalog Artwork, 1919-1959
Series 6: Trade Literature, 1890s-1976
Series 7: Photographs, 1908-1929
Series 7: Writings and Journal Articles, 1881-1854
Series 8: Glass Plate Negatives, 1890s-1950s, undated
Biographical:
James Leffel was born in 1806 in Botetourt County, Virginia to John and Catherine Leffel. The family moved to Ohio, settling near Springfield. where John Leffel established saw and grist mills. Leffel grew up surrounded by mills and and developed a strong interest in water wheels. Leffel trained as a millwright acquiring skills in metal work to make sickles, knives, and other small iron implements. In the late 1830s, Leffel established his first foundry and machine shop near Springfield, Ohio, quickly expanding and taking on two partners, William A. John and T.Y. Ferrell and adding mill gearing and stoves to their line of products. By 1845, Leffel ended his business relationship with John and Ferrell and formed a partnership with William Blackeney, a machinist who helped him support the foundry and its work. In 1846, Andrew Richards joined Leffel to build a cotton mill and machine shop. Leffel envisioned the utilization of water power in Springfield. Ohio, with the establishment of mills along a race--a dug channel leading from a creek or river to the mill--that would eventually bring trade. With the help of Samuel and James Barnett, gristmill operators, Leffel was able to "cut a race" and erect a Water Power and Flouring Mill. Leffel was especially interested in water wheel development and would receive patent US34,150 for a water wheel (1862) which later reissued as RE1791 and RE1792 in 1864.
Leffel also patented cooking stoves (US6775) in 1849 which became known as the "Buckeye," "Double Oven" and "Red Cook Stove" that were successful and earned him a strong reputation. In 1852, Leffel broke with Richards, and Nathaniel Cook, a machinist, joined Leffel and Blackeney. With his 1862 patent for a water wheel, Leffel focused his attention on demonstrating the water wheel and speaking about its productive uses. Numerous test runs of the water wheel convinced Leffel that he could sell the wheel to mills and factory operators. Leffel marketed the wheel as the "American Double Turbine" an efficient, cheap turbine for the mass market (Layton page 86 ). In 1863, Leffel and Blackeney formed a new firm, along with Perry Betchel and Leander Mudge to create a foundry designed solely for the production of the wheel. Leffel later joined forces with John Foos, a mill operator and James S. Goode, a lawyer, to form the James Leffel and Company. Leffel sold his water wheel to flour mills, woolen goods manufacturers, paper mills and farm equipment manufacturers. The company became one of the leading manufacturers of waterwheels and turbines and today continues to operate under the name of James Leffel and Company as part of Canyon Hydro which acquired the company in 2019.
Leffel died in 1866.
Source
Becker, Carl M. "James Leffel: Double Turbiner Water Wheel Inventor, Ohio History, Volume 75, No. 4, Autumn 1966, pages 200-211.
Layton, Edwin. "Scientific Technology, 1845-1900: The Hydraulic Turbine and the Origins of American
Industrial Research," Technology and Culture, January 1979, Vol. 20, No. 1, pages 64-89.
Related Materials:
Materials at the Smithsonian
Smithsonian Institution Libraries, Trade Literature Collection
Pelton Water Wheel Collection, NMAH.AC.1093
Lombard Governor Company Records, NMAH.AC.1091
Niagara Falls Power Company Photographs, NMAH.AC.0949
J. & W. Jolly Company Records, NMAH.AC.1009
Uriah Boyden Papers, NMAH.AC.0982
William R. Hutton Papers, NMAH.AC.0987
Warshaw Collection of Business Americana, Series: Waterworks
Materials at Other Organizations
Special Collections and Archives, University Libraries, Wright State University, Dayton, Ohio
James Leffel & Company Records, 1867-1971
The James Leffel and Company Records consist of ledgers, journals, order books, inventories, cash and day books, payroll files, correspondence, photographs, publications, and scrapbooks of a late 19th and early 20th century Springfield, Ohio manufacturer of turbines, water wheels and engines.
Ohio Historical Society, Columbus, Ohio
James Leffel and Company Records, 1845-1890
Records of water-wheel company of Springfield, Ohio including a letter press book, notebook of hydraulic tables, and patents for water wheels and cooking stoves.
Provenance:
Collected for the National Museum of American History.
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.
A New York bookseller, Warshaw assembled this collection over nearly fifty years. The Warshaw Collection of Business Americana: Paper Products forms part of the Warshaw Collection of Business Americana, Subseries 1.1: Subject Categories. The Subject Categories subseries is divided into 470 subject categories based on those created by Mr. Warshaw. These subject categories include topical subjects, types or forms of material, people, organizations, historical events, and other categories. An overview to the entire Warshaw collection is available here: Warshaw Collection of Business Americana
Scope and Contents:
This collection consists primarily of receipts, invoices, samples, sample books, publications, and advertisements relating to paper products and the paper industry. There are industry-related materials, several catalogs, and publications detailing the history or elements of papermaking. The material also includes patents, import/export documents, information regarding papermaking machinery and supplies, and industry-related correspondence.
Manufacturers of Paper and Paper Products contains bills, receipts, business cards, printed advertisements and invoices from manufacturers of paper and paper products, including blank books, stationery, envelopes, and cards. The businesses range in size from paper mills to smaller warehouses and stores. Such businesses were located in the Northeastern United States, primarily New York, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania, with several from other areas in the U.S., and a few from England, France, Germany, and Canada. These materials indicate that these businesses were often family owned and operated. The materials also reflect the changing ownerships/partnerships in many of the businesses. Materials in this series are arranged in alphabetical order by business name.
Distributors of Paper and Paper Products is comprised of receipts and invoices from distributors of paper and paper products, including blank books, stationery, envelopes, and cards. These materials are concerned with businesses that imported and exported paper goods and those that sold them. The materials are from the Northeastern United States (primarily New York, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania) with several from other areas in the U.S., and a few from England, France, Germany, and Canada. The businesses are generally family-owned and operated, and there is often evidence of the transferal of ownership within these companies. The material in this series is arranged in alphabetical order by business name.
Publications consists of publications created by the paper industry itself, whether to inform its employees or the general public about various aspects of papermaking.
Papermaking Supplies and Machinery contains information regarding the makers and suppliers of papermaking machinery and other supplies such as twine, board, rags, and wood pulp that are needed in the manufacturing of paper and paper products and for use in the sale of paper. There are advertisements for various types of machinery ranging from factory machines to office paper cutters, and receipts and invoices from suppliers of these items.
Paper Samples includes samples of several types of paper, including tissue paper, mapmaking paper, book leaf paper, greeting cards, and appointment diaries. These materials are arranged by type.
Related Materials includes information related to the paper industry, but not necessarily related to any particular manufacturer or distributor. There is industry-related correspondence, as well as patents for paper products, and import/export documents. These materials are arranged by sub-series.
Additional materials contain trade literature and publications, a significant volume of sample books, a folder with several watermark examples.
Materials in the Archives Center:
Archives Center Collection of Business Americana (AC0404)
Forms Part Of:
Forms part of the Warshaw Collection of Business Americana.
Series 1: Business Ephemera
Series 2: Other Collection Divisions
Series 3: Isadore Warshaw Personal Papers
Series 4: Photographic Reference Material
Provenance:
Paper Products is a portion of the Business Ephemera Series of the Warshaw Collection of Business Americana, Accession AC0060 purchased from Isadore Warshaw in 1967. Warshaw continued to accumulate similar material until his death, which was donated in 1971 by his widow, Augusta. For a period after acquisition, related materials from other sources (of mixed provenance) were added to the collection so there may be content produced or published after Warshaw's death in 1969. This practice has since ceased.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research. Some items may be restricted due to fragile condition.
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.
Genre/Form:
Business ephemera
Ephemera
Citation:
Warshaw Collection of Business Americana Subject Categories: Paper Products, Archives Center, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution
Sponsor:
Funding for partial processing of the collection was supported by a grant from the Smithsonian Institution's Collections Care and Preservation Fund (CCPF).
1 Item (Photoprints mounted on scrapbook paper pages., 4.9" x 6.0")
Container:
Box 15, Folder 8
Type:
Archival materials
Blueprints
Photographs
Date:
1916-1917
Scope and Contents:
Pages of labeled construction photographs and blueprint.
Local Numbers:
AC0218-0000010-01 (AC Scan No.)
AC0218-0000010-20 (AC Scan No.)
AC0218-0000010-46 (AC Scan No.)
AC0218-0000010-49 (AC Scan No.)
AC0218-0000010-61 (AC Scan No.)
Restrictions:
Unrestricted research use by appointment. Photographs must be handled with cotton gloves unless protected by sleeves.
Collection Rights:
Copyright held by the Smithsonian Institution. Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no gurantees concerning copyright restrictions. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
British Isles. Vice-County: Norfolk. Between West Newton & Hillington, in field near Paper Mill, amongst Lupin & Buckwheat; frequent., United Kingdom, Europe
