The History of Prince Castle Ice Cream Shops (1931-1954) and Cock Robin, (1954-2008).

Prince Castle

A boy points to a billboard touting the One In A Million milkshakes sold at the Price Castle ice cream shop in Naperville, which later became Cock Robin.

Quite a bit of ice cream was once produced in Naperville and enjoyed at the Prince Castle/Cock Robin shops found in Chicago-area communities.

Childhood friends Walter Fredenhagen and Earl Prince formed a partnership more than 90 years ago when they decided to try their hand at selling ice cream directly to customers rather than selling what they produced to other shops.

Each had experience in the business. Fredenhagen — a Downers Grove native with a law degree from Northwestern University — owned an ice cream plant called Frozen Gold in Naperville. Castle’s ice cream plant was in Rushville.

1931, the pair joined forces to open a Prince Castle ice cream store chain. Naperville was the first, followed by Downers Grove, LaGrange, Glen Ellyn, and Elmhurst locations.

Four employees of the first Prince Castle ice cream shop in Naperville, (Left to Right) Jo (Pickell) Weymouth, Elaine (Auner) Schum, Lois Johnson, “Vange” (Whitehead) Gieske, eating cones in front of the Washington Street business in 1931. The photo was provided to the Chicago Tribune in 1999 by Rita Harvard, daughter of Walter Fredenhagen, who co-founded the ice cream store chain.

As befitted the name, the design of the shops made them look like small castles, and with a nod to the changing modes of transportation, each had a parking lot.

The partners then formed two separate chains using the same name. Prince’s operations were south of Chicago, while Fredenhagen’s shops were north and west of the city.

Walter’s wife, Grace, oversaw the selection and training of managers and had supervisory responsibilities.

With ice cream being a seasonal food, they added hamburgers and fries to the menu in the 1940s.

Ice cream was produced at a factory at 38 W. Chicago Avenue in Naperville using cream delivered by tanker trucks from dairy farms in Wisconsin. The sauces for sundaes were made with fresh fruit and shipped from Washington state.

The meat processing plant making the company’s “Castleburgers” was located in Naperville at 36 East Fifth Avenue.

Innovations included ice cream cabinets, square ice cream containers, and square-shaped ice cream scoops. The partners invented and patented the Multi-Mixer device, the first used to make malted milkshakes, powered by a one-third horsepower motor.

The square-shaped ice cream scoops were used by Prince Castle and later Cock Robin. The top of the cones were square to snugly hold a scoop of square ice cream. The double scoop cone was a side-by-side square shape.

It produced the “One In A Million” malted milkshake, which they made with a patented formula so thick that its claim to fame was it nearly clogged the straw.

Ray Kroc, who would go on to found McDonald’s, once sold Multi-Mixers out of the Prince Castle’s sales division in Chicago. Fredenhagen and Prince trained Kroc in the business.

At its height, there were more than 20 Prince Castle ice cream shops around the Chicago area. The company sold more than one million gallons of ice cream each year, and there were recipes for 100 flavors.

For a while, the company was the second-largest employer in Naperville.

The partnership between Fredenhagen and Prince came to an end in 1954. Fredenhagen changed the name of his shops to Cock Robin in 1955, creating the motto: “Cock Robin: Where Memories are Made.”

Eventually, the castle style of Fredenhagen’s shops gave way to a more modern look. The makeover of the Naperville store on Washington Street took place in 1967.

In 1980, there was a shift in the Cock Robin business model. Store managers became dealers, leasing their stores and buying their products from the company.

Fredenhagen retired in 1985 after he sold the ice cream business to Petersen Ice Cream.

The last of three Naperville stores closed on Washington Street in 2000. Walter Fredenhagen’s children, Ted Fredenhagen and Rita Harvard sold the land on which it sat to the city for $10 with one proviso to be used as part of the Riverwalk. Fredenhagen Park was dedicated in May 2004.

As for Naperville’s signature Cock Robin sign — the one featuring a robin dressed in a top hat and tuxedo — it can be seen on a wall in the beer garden of Irish Times, 8869 Burlington Avenue , just west of the former Cock Robin location.

COCK ROBIN

Skokie Boulevard, a couple of blocks north of Oakton Street, Skokie, IL.
This was my local Cock Robin Store. 

For a long time mentioning Cock Robin ice cream brings back days when ice cream cones cost 12¢ and lines wound out the door and around the building on hot summer nights.

After a date at the movies, a couple would go to Prince Castle and buy a pint of ice cream with two spoons or the signature One in a Million, the first thick shake of its kind. “We would take our dates down to the theater and have a sundae or soda after that, and then walk up to the girls dorms before their 10 o’clock curfew,” said Jack Koten, 70, of Barrington, who was a student at Naperville’s North Central College in the late 1940s.

After nearly 70 years of serving square-dipped ice creams and malted milkshakes, Naperville’s Cock Robin, home of the original Prince Castle store and ice cream factory, closed its doors.

In a deal struck with the city, the land where the Cock Robin store and the original creamery stand were gifted to the City of Naperville in October 2000.

The store and creamery will be razed and replaced with Fredenhagen Park on the 1-acre site along Washington Street just north of the Riverwalk.

A visitors center, with an area recalling the history of Cock Robin, is proposed for the site.

Nearly everyone who grew up in Naperville, it seems, remembers going to Prince Castle and later Cock Robin.

“My cousin lived right next door on Ellsworth Street. In the summertime at night, we would walk down Washington Street to get ice cream,” said Ruth Hageman, 70, a life-long resident of Naperville who was a waitress at Prince Castle as a teenager and young adult.

“You had regular customers, and you almost knew what they were going to order,” Hageman said.

Koten said that three or four times a week, he walked down the hill from the college with his roommate to get a pint or quart of ice cream as a late-night study break.

“I had never gone to an ice cream place with so many different flavors,” Koten said. “A pint or quart was in a square box. It was just sort of a novelty. We could have a different flavor every night for a month.”

The ice cream was made from scratch in the brick creamery behind the store for years. In addition to the standards, there would be cinnamon- or pumpkin-flavored concoctions, depending on the season, said Rita Harvard, 70, daughter of the store’s founders, Walter and Grace Fredenhagen.

In the late 1920s, Walter Fredenhagen teamed with a boyhood friend, Earl Prince, with an idea to manufacture ice cream.

“It was rather innovative,” Harvard said. “In those days, no one manufactured the ice cream and then sold it.”

Both opened 25 stores in the Chicago area and shared the limestone castle design of the shops and the ice cream formulas. Fredenhagen’s first Prince Castle store opened in Naperville in 1931.

Everything was homemade. Fredenhagen opened a dairy nearby to pasteurize the milk for the ice cream. Chocolate was bought from Holland to make the hot fudge, and Harvard said that Fredenhagen’s daughter Jeanne Moen ran a strawberry farm in Seattle and shipped the fruit to Naperville for the ice cream and toppings.

Fredenhagen bought a factory in Downers Grove to efficiently construct square ice cream cans that fit snugly in the store’s display cases.

When the partnership with the Prince family split during the 1950s, Fredenhagen renamed his stores Cock Robin and his son Ted took over the business. Over time, the family stopped making their own ice cream.

The last Cock Robin store was in Brookfield and closed in 2008

After Fredenhagen died in 1993, the family left the ice cream business. The remaining Cock Robin stores–in Brookfield, Melrose Park, River Grove, and Wheaton–were sold over the last decade.

CLICK TO READ THE 1852 STORY.

Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D.

The Chicago Home Insurance Building: The Pioneer of Skyscraper Architecture in 1885.

Standing tall and proud amidst the bustling streets of Chicago, the Home Insurance Building etched its name in the annals of architectural history as the world's first true skyscraper.

Designed by the visionary architect William Le Baron Jenney, this impressive 138-foot-tall, 10-story structure revolutionized how buildings were conceived and constructed, paving the way for modern skyscrapers that dominate cities worldwide. Construction of the Home Insurance Building began in 1884 at the Northeast corner of LaSalle and Adams Streets and was completed in 1885.

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Two additional stories were added to the Chicago Home Insurance Building in 1890. This increased the building to 12 stories and its height to 180 feet.

CONCEPTION, DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION

In the late 19th century, Chicago was booming, its population swelling and its businesses expanding. The demand for office space was surging, and traditional masonry construction methods were proving inadequate to meet the growing needs. 

During Construction

The Home Insurance Building's origins can be traced back to the late 1870s when the Home Insurance Company of New York sought to establish a branch office in Chicago. The company's management envisioned a grand and imposing structure reflecting its prominence in the insurance industry. In 1884, they approached Jenney, a respected architect known for his innovative designs and use of fireproof construction. Jenney faced the challenge of creating a tall, fire-resistant building that could withstand Chicago's harsh weather conditions.

PIONEERING CONSTRUCTION TECHNIQUES

Interior Views

Note the full-size windows.

Jenney's solution was a 10-story, 138-foot-tall building with a frame made of wrought and cast iron, along with Bessemer rolled steel beams (steel), a revolutionary concept at the time. Before this, buildings were primarily constructed using masonry walls, limiting their height and fire resistance. The steel frame provided the strength and support needed to build taller buildings, allowing for thinner walls and larger windows hung on the steel frame. It could withstand the weight of its walls and floors. The building also featured fireproofing measures, including fireproof terra cotta cladding and hollow tiles filled with concrete.

This revolutionary design enabled the building to reach an unprecedented height of 138 feet and set a precedent for future skyscrapers.

IMPACT AND LEGACY

The Home Insurance Building was a testament to Jenney's architectural ingenuity and marked a turning point in skyscraper design. Its innovative use of a steel skeleton frame and other features established the foundation for modern skyscrapers, paving the way for taller, safer, and more efficient buildings.

The "I WILL" Postcard Series № 186C: Home Insurance Building, Chicago. From the private collection of Dr. Neil Gale. Chicago Postcard Museum.

The building's impact was immediate and far-reaching. It inspired a wave of skyscraper construction in Chicago and other cities, transforming urban landscapes and ushering in a new era of vertical architecture.

The building's impact extended beyond its structural innovations, influencing the aesthetic of skyscrapers. Its exterior, clad in terracotta panels, reflected a transition away from the heavy ornamentation of Victorian architecture towards a more streamlined and modern aesthetic.

While the Home Insurance Building was demolished in 1931 to make way for the Field Building, another skyscraper, its impact on architecture and urban development remains profound. It stands as a symbol of innovation and ingenuity, forever etched in the history of skyscrapers and the evolution of modern cities.

Architect and Engineer William LeBaron Jenney was born on September 25, 1832. He died in Los Angeles, California, on June 14, 1907, at the age of 74.

Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D.

World's First Nuclear Reactor at the University of Chicago.

THE BEGINNING

Construction of CP-1, or Chicago Pile Number One, was constructed under the University of Chicago's Stagg Field football stadium (1893–1957) in an abandoned squash court. Mankind first harnessed the energy of the atom on December 2, 1942. Fermi's pile produced only ½ watts of power. It constantly emits radiation.

Envisioned by famous physicist Enrico Fermi, CP-1 was a crude, ugly contraption of 330 tons of graphite bricks surrounding 5 tons of unrefined uranium metal. It had no shielding to protect the scientists operating it, but it was nonetheless a major breakthrough in developing nuclear weapons. Fermi successfully achieved a controlled atomic chain reaction.

Despite its crudeness, CP-1 was a major breakthrough in nuclear science. It showed that it was possible to produce a controlled nuclear chain reaction and paved the way for developing atomic weapons and nuclear power plants.

As the use of CP-1 improved, concern for the safety of its operators (and the thousands of nearby students) promoted a move a few miles to the west to the Cook County Forest Preserves, Lemont, Illinois, named 'Site A.'

Chicago Pile Number One or CP-1

The scientists dismantled CP-1, moved it to Site A, and reassembled it into a cube about 25 feet high and 30 feet on each base. This time, Fermi added a few safety elements. Five-foot concrete walls surrounded its sides. Six inches of lead and 50 inches of lumber acted as a lid.

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Site A is about 20 acres in size and contains the buried remains of Chicago Pile-1.

Plot M is 150x140 foot (21K sq. ft.) area that is the radioactive waste dumpsite.

This redesigned reactor was named Chicago Pile-2 (CP-2). It was still a crude device but much safer than CP-1. CP-2 was used for research on nuclear weapons and other applications of atomic energy.

A year later, CP-3 joined CP-2. CP-3 was a more advanced reactor that used heavy water (H³O+) instead of graphite to slow nuclear reactions. CP-3 was used for research on nuclear power plants.

"World's First Nuclear Reactor," followed by a summarized history of Argonne. Photo: Forest Preserves of Cook County, IL.

For a decade, scientists conducted hundreds of experiments using these primitive reactors. The experiments ranged from nuclear weapons to biomedical research to sustained atomic energy.

The work at Site A and Argonne National Laboratory (which grew out of the Metallurgical Laboratory at the University of Chicago) laid the foundation for the development of nuclear science and technology. 

The two reactors, CP-2 and CP-3, were shut down in 1954. The most radioactive and dangerous elements of the reactors were disposed of by the Oak Ridge Laboratory in Tennessee. 

U.S. Department of Energy, 1974.

The reactor was buried in 1954 an extremely deep hole, and the surrounding area was designated as a radioactive waste dumpsite.

In the 1940s and 50s, visitors to the Red Gate Woods often encountered well-armed military police. The MPs would question the confused strangers, check IDs, and search pockets. Then without an apology or explanation, the confused visitors would be ordered firmly to leave the area and not return.

RED GATE WOODS

In the early 1980s, amid the nuclear disasters at Three Mile Island and Chornobyl, the City of Chicago asked Greenpeace surveyors to test the burial grounds at Site A. The surveyors were horrified to find islands of radioactive elements dotting the Site. The City requested help from the federal government, but their request was denied. However, when the information about the radioactive contamination went public, there was an outcry from the community. People who had spent years strolling, picnicking, and riding horseback in the woods near Site A were outraged to learn that they had been exposed to dangerous radiation. 

The federal government eventually gave the City $30 million to fence off, analyze, and decontaminate the Site. A decade later, their efforts transformed Site A into a safe, recreational area where people can enjoy the outdoors without fear of radiation exposure. However, the Site is still monitored annually for radiation levels. 

The Legacy of Site A and Plot M is foremost a reminder of the early days of the nuclear age. It's a testament to the ingenuity of the scientists who developed the world's first atomic reactor. And most importantly, reminds us of the dangers of nuclear technology.

PUBLIC OUTCRY

In 1976, the public learned there was radioactive material in Red Gate Woods (Site A). The United States Department of Energy (DOE) released a report that found low levels of tritium in three wells in the area. Tritium is a radioactive isotope of hydrogen that is produced by nuclear reactors. The DOE concluded that the tritium likely came from Site A, which had been used for atomic research during World War II.

The DOE's report sparked a public outcry. The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) conducted its own investigation and found that the wells' tritium levels were elevated but posed no immediate health risk to the public. However, the IDPH recommended that the DOE take steps to further study and clean up the Site.

The DOE continued to study Site A in the years that followed. In 1994, the DOE and the Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) began a significant cleanup effort at the Site. As part of the cleanup, 500 cubic yards (135 tons) of radioactive waste was removed and sent to the Hanford Site for disposal. By 2002, the IDPH had determined that the remaining materials posed no danger to public health.

Today, Site A is a fenced-off area within Red Gate Woods. There are signs in the parking lot that warn visitors about the radioactive material on the Site. However, the IDPH has determined that it is safe for people to visit the area as long as they stay on the trails, do not disturb the soil, and, most importantly, DO NOT DIG.

Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D.

Nikola Tesla's "Egg of Columbus" at the 1893 Chicago World's Columbian Exposition.

Nikola Tesla (1856-1943) was a Serbian-American engineer and physicist who made dozens and dozens of breakthroughs in the production, transmission and application of electric power.

Tesla Electric Light and Manufacturing Company was in Rahway, New Jersey, that operated from December 1884 through 1886. Tesla is forced out of the Tesla Electric Light Company with nothing but worthless stock.

Nikola Tesla (1856-1943)

He endured a brutal winter of 1886/87 working as a ditch digger. He persevered, determined to develop his concept of generating electricity through rotating magnetic fields. However, Tesla knew that he must find a way to help investors and supporters understand the potential of his invention.

The rotating magnetic field is one of Tesla's most far-reaching and revolutionary discoveries. This is a new and wonderful manifestation of force — a magnetic cyclone — producing striking phenomena that amazed the world when he first showed them. It results from the joint action of two or more alternating currents definitely related to one another and creating magnetic fluxes, which, by their periodic rise and fall according to a mathematical law, cause a continuous shifting of the lines of force.

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Tesla invented the first alternating current (A/C) 'motor' and developed A/C electric  generation and transmission technology.

There is a vast difference between an ordinary electromagnet and the one invented by Tesla. In standard electromagnets, the lines are stationary, and in Tesla's invention, the lines are made to whirl around at a furious rate. The first attracts a piece of iron and holds it fast; the second causes it to spin in any direction and speed desired. 

Long ago, when Tesla was still a student, he conceived the idea of the rotating magnetic field. This remarkable principle is embodied in his famous induction motor and power transmission system, now universally used.

Tesla's exhibit at Chicago's 1893 World Columbian Exposition.

Tesla devises a machine to illustrate the concept: an electromagnetic motor that generates the force needed to spin a brass egg and stand it upright on its end.

Nikola Tesla's "Egg of Columbus" was exhibited
at Chicago's 1893 World Columbian Exposition.

Tesla named the device the "Egg of Columbus" after the famous story in which Christopher Columbus challenged the Spanish court and investors to stand an egg upright. When they failed, Columbus took an egg and crushed the bottom flat so it would remain upright. They accused him of playing a cheap trick. Still, Columbus overcame their objections by explaining that an idea can seem impossible until a clever solution is found, at which point it suddenly becomes easy.

How The "Egg of Columbus" Works.

Canadian Tesla Technical Museum.

Tesla Projects Laboratory Inc.

 

Tesla incorporates this logic in his Egg of Columbus to present his concept of alternating current A/C electricity to investors. It is a stroke of brilliance that results in funding from investors Alfred S. Brown, director of Western Union, and Charles F. Peck, a big-shot attorney from New York City. 

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Tesla’s first laboratory opened in April 1887 and was located at 89 Liberty Street in New York’s Lower Manhattan Financial District. This is where Tesla began planning and developing his designs for the A/C induction motor.

Tesla wrote in his autobiography of this time in his life when he went from ditch digger to laboratory owner, where he finally built the first models of his induction motor concept: "Then followed a period of struggle in the new medium for which I was not fitted, but the reward came in the end, and in April 1887, the Tesla Electric Company was organized, providing a laboratory and facilities. The motors I built there were exactly as I had imagined them. I made no attempt to improve the design but merely reproduced the pictures as they appeared to my vision, and the operation was always as I expected."

Nikola Tesla (year unknown).

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In 1893, three years prior to the earliest attempts in Hertz wave telegraphy, Tesla first described his wireless system and took out patents on a number of novel devices which were then but imperfectly understood. Even the electrical world at large laughed at these patents. But large wireless interests had to pay him tribute in the form of real money, because his "fool" patents were recognized to be fundamental. He actually antedated every important wireless invention.

Nikola Tesla lived a century behind his time. He had often been denounced as a dreamer even by well-informed men. He has been called crazy by others who ought to have known better. Tesla talked in a language that most of us still do not understand. But as the years roll on, Science appreciates his greatness, and Tesla receives more tributes.

"Today, Nikola Tesla is considered to be the greatest inventor of all time. Tesla has more original inventions to his credit than any other man in history. He is considered greater than Archimedes, Faraday, or Edison. His basic, as well as revolutionary, discoveries for sheer audacity, have no equal in the annals of the world. His master mind is easily one of the seven wonders of the intellectual world."                                                                                        ─ Hugo Gernsback

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There are a lot of assumptions made reguarding Tesla's private life. One of the few 

things that we know for sure is that Tesla never married. Tesla's seemingly indifference  in women {friends, like a sister}, made him the perfect target for whispers and gossip that he was homosexual, but, of course, there's no evidence. (Karl-Maria Kertbeny coined the term 'homosexual' in print 1868.) 

Tesla, unbeknownst to him, was the cynosure of all the lady's eyes. Despite being surrounded by beautiful, intelligent, women of substance, many who grew to love Nikola, yet nobody became Mrs. Nikola Telsa.

The issue wasn't the failure to meet his expectations. Instead, it turns out to be Tesla's 'no distractions' attitude allowing him to focus his energy on inventing (solutions to a problem), improvements, and , most importantly, the documentation.

 

"I don't think that you can name many great inventions that have been made by a married man." ─ Nikola Tesla.

Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D.

People's Pure Ice Company, Chicago, Illinois. Founded 1901.

People's Pure Ice Company started in the 1890s and originally consisted of four buildings at 34 Clybourn Place. Today's location would be Cortland Street at Winchester Avenue. 

The plant was built on one floor and was the first plant in the United States to utilize the "closed system" throughout. Nowhere within the buildings or about the plant is any escaping steam visible or is any water to be seen. All the machinery and apparatus, steam condensers, ammonia condensers, reboilers, water filters, etc., are all enclosed, and the steam passes in a continuous course, absolutely unexposed, from the boilers to the cans in the freezing tanks.

The model plant where all this was satisfactorily accomplished was known as the ice factory of the People's Pure Ice Company, Chicago, which was erected in 1901.

The "Ice and Refrigeration" Newsletter,  March 1, 1904 (pdf), an 11-page article, with lots of pictures. 

Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D.

The First Elongated Coin Souvenirs in America were at Chicago's 1893 World's Columbian Exposition.

Modern Example with
Four Different Stamps

It's generally accepted that the first elongated coins in the United States were sold at Chicago's 1893 World's Columbian Exposition. A commemoration of the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's discovery of America. 

Coins were rolled through a hand-cranked machine with two die rollers with a reverse-engraved image cut into one of the steel rollers. Regular coins are run between the rollers with over 20 TONS of pressure, causing the "elongated" shape of the coin. Elongated coins came in all denominations, including blank tokens and foreign coins. In the U. S. the 1¢ penny was the most common coin and was sold as souvenirs.

The penny roller takes a different approach, with a purpose-built machine that 'eats' a coin, usually of a small or inexpensive denomination and then 'presses' the coin out between two rollers, engaged by a set of large gears. The rollers are engraved with a design pressed into the elongated metal. This way, the inserted coin is both 'drawn out' while being imprinted. 

The rolling of elongated coins seemed to be rather popular for the first 23 years of their existence, and a large amount was rolled between 1893 and 1916. Then for some unknown reason, there was a slack period between 1916 and 1932. After 1932 momentum seemed to regenerate, and the number of coins rolled had steadily increased. In the 1970s, there was a resurgence of penny rolling innovation, with automated penny rolling machines appearing in popular amusement parks, zoos, and museums. 

In recent times, many of us have watched or personally placed a penny on a train track, watched the train go by, then search for the flattened penny beside the track. In this case, the penny gets stretched and elongated into random shapes. Still fun.

Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D.

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Buy Souvenir Coins at the Fair.

We'll Stamp Any Coin You Present.

The 1893 World's Fair Electrical Subway.

1893 Chicago World's Columbian Exposition Electrical Subway.

When plans were first formulated for the lighting of the grounds of the World's Columbian Exposition, it was decided that all electric wires and conductors, not only for arc and incandescent lighting but for power transmission, police signals, fire alarm, telephones and telegraph lines should be placed underground out of danger to the public and yet be accessible. For this purpose, the electric subway was designed and constructed. The original plan was to build such a subway of solid brick, but as this was found unnecessary for temporary service and expensive, the plans were changed to a wooden framework lined with cement, plaster and concrete floors. The approved and executed projects called for a subway connecting the electrical plant in Machinery Hall with Mines and Mining, Electricity, manufacturing, Government and Fisheries buildings.

The main subway starting from Machinery Hall was 15 ft. 8 in. wide by 8 ft. 4 in. high and was divided in the center by a fireproof partition, making two divisions 6 ft. 6 in. square on the insides. This subway was run to within 50 feet of the Electricity building where, from the west division, extended two branches 8 ft. 4 in. high by 6 ft. 1 in. broad—one to Mines and Mining and the other to the Electricity building. These were so arranged that all the wires on the west wall turned west to Mines and Mining, and those on the east wall were run directly into the Electricity building without crossing. The east division at the 50-foot point turned east to the bridge at the southwest corner of the Manufactures building, where it widened out into a fan shape the width of the bridge, and the wires were carried across on supports placed between the bridge girders. From the bridge, the subway extended 100 feet east to the western loggia of the Manufactures building, where it turned north, going the entire building length. Still, since all the wires on the east wall turned into the building at branches near the southwest corner and center, the size of the subway changed just north of the west center to a section the same size as the branch to the Mines and Mining building. At the northwest corner of the Manufactures building, the subway turned east to the north center, where it changed to a section 5 ft. 9 in. wide by 6 ft. high, reducing the capacity by one-third. From this point, it turned north, running under the Government building and across the north inlet bridge to the Fisheries building, where the subway ended. In Machinery Hall, there was a large double subway opposite the Thomson-Houston switchboard of the power plant and running 825 feet east under the south aisle, where it connected at the east entrance with the main subway and the west end with a duct trunk line. The general construction of all the subways consisted of a framework of 3 inches by 8-inches material placed 1-foot centers and covered on top, bottom and sides with 2-inch matched planking.

1893 Chicago World's Columbian Exposition Electrical Subway.

The inside was lined with standard metal lath and Acme cement mortar on top and sides, and the bottom was covered with 4 inches of sand and 6 inches of concrete. The cross-section of the main subway at Machinery Hall showed two bodies of wires in each of the two divisions, supported by arms projecting from the wall. These cross-arms, twelve in number, two feet two inches long, were held in position by cast iron uprights, lagged to the framework of the subway. Each cross arm supported five pins and insulators, making a total capacity of 240 insulators in a cross-section. These uprights were placed at about 30 feet apart through the entire subway and consisted of six different types, known as types 4, 6, S, 8 a, 12 and 12 a; the number indicating the number of cross arms each supported. Types 8 and 8 a, 12 and 12 a, were used around the corners. The cross arms projected into the subway 2 ft. 2 in. from either side, giving a clear passageway of 2 feet in the center. About 6,000 cross arms and 30,000 pins were used throughout the subway. For access to the subway and for convenience in pulling in wires, manholes were placed at distances of about 150 feet apart. These consisted of a round cast-iron box 20 in. in diameter and 20 in. high, resting on the framework of the subway and supplied with a cast-iron cover.

The first contract, which called for the construction of the central part of the subway, was awarded on January 23rd, 1892, to T. C. Brooks & Co., of Jackson, Michigan, for the sum of $35,094.49. Work began the first day of February 1892 and was to have been completed by April 15th, 1892. It was considerably delayed due to frozen ground and rainy weather. The bottom of the subway was only a little above datum, so considerable difficulty was experienced in putting in the concrete and flooring on account of water, but this was overcome by using a portable electrical pump. This contract did not include the subway running east and west under Machinery Hall, the portion under the Government building, the branches under Manufactures, nor the bridge approaches. This work was done by the Exposition Company, except for the plastering on the subway under the Government building, which was done by Wm. Pickland & Co., for the sum of $1,010.00. The east and west subway under Machinery Hall was difficult, chiefly because of the necessity to follow the building aisles and steam and water pipes. The total length of the subway, including the east and west subway under Machinery Hall, all the branches and approaches to the bridges, was 6,195 feet. The subway's wiring began in February 1893 and continued for about six weeks. It was found that there were so many arc wires for Manufactures building that had to be placed on the east wall of the east subway that it was necessary to run two wires on one insulator. For that purpose, a special two-wire insulator was designed and laid the glass insulation between the two wires. Wires were also arranged so that no two wires of different potential would come on the same insulator. The wiring of the subway required 4,000 of the special two-wire insulators and 20,000 of the regular single glass insulators. The subway contained 25 2-10 miles of power, 28 7-10 miles of incandescent and 51 miles of arc wires, making a total of 104 5-10 miles of wire for lighting and power transmission. Besides these were telephone and telegraph cables, fire alarms and police signal wires.

1893 Chicago World's Columbian Exposition Electrical Subway.

For the convenience of drainage, the profile of the floor of the subway was arranged so that all water that might collect would flow to four points, namely, north of Machinery Hall, south of the Electricity building, and west end of the north railroad bridge and north center of Manufactures building. At the bridge, an opening was made into the lagoon so the water would flow out, but marine pumps were installed at the other three places, and the water was pumped to the nearest catch basin. In this way, the subway was kept comparatively dry except on one or two occasions when a water pipe burst, completely flooding everything.

The subway was lighted with 225 110-volt 16-c.p. Edison incandescent lamps placed at distances of about 30 feet apart throughout the entire length. The lamps were placed five in series and supplied with current from the 500-volt power circuit. The lights of different circuits alternated in location so that in case one lamp burned out, it did not leave the subway in total darkness. For the convenience of keeping a meticulous record of every wire's position throughout the entire subway course, they used a card cataloging system. The cards were printed showing the exact position of all the cross arms and insulators supported by one set of uprights. Each insulator on a cross arm was numbered, and each cross arm was also numbered. On each card was marked the position of the wire on the insulator, and the circuit number of every wire, at any given point of uprights. The uprights were also numbered; a card was made for every set of cross arms and arranged consecutively in a file. By this means, it was always possible to tell the exact position of any wire at any point in the subway. Wires that ran north from the Fisheries building were carried from the subway into a duct trunk line that ran east to the Intramural railroad and thence north, following the road line around the Montana State building. This trunk line was 2,250 feet long and contained 15,270 feet of pump logs. 

A clause in the contract of the Intramural railroad reserved the right for the Exposition Company to carry light and power lines along the structure underneath the roadbed on extension insulators, and lines were run this way wherever they were desired along the route of the road.

Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D.

The Darche Manufacturing Company, Chicago, Illinois. (1882-1929)

The Darche Manufacturing Company opened at 1824 West Grand Avenue, Chicago in 1882.

In 1909, Chicago renamed and renumbered many streets because Chicago's annexations caused multiple streets with the same name, making mail delivery a nightmare. 

Darche Manufacturing Company's address became 599 West Grand Avenue, Chicago.

The address became 599 West Grand Avenue, Chicago.

George C. Darche had several relatives in the business. In 1882, Theodore Darche, a carpenter, and Eugene Darche, a box-maker, were the only persons listed in the company records. George, a plater, first came upon the scene in 1883. That same year, Theodore changed hats from carpenter to contractor.

By 1884, Joseph Darche, a millwright, joined the group, and Theodore became the T. Darche & Co. CEO on South State Street in Chicago. From 1885 through 1888, George opened up at 31 South Clark Street and later at 35 South Clark Street as an electrical supply business. Theodore was listed as a locksmith and carpenter in 1887. Edward, another Darche, appeared in 1888 as an electrician at 416 South State Street. The only other Darche to appear was Ephraim, a teamster.

Here, we have the nucleus of an excellent electric clock. A millwright to create the fancy wood designs, a carpenter to construct the case, an electrician to do the wiring, a locksmith to tidy up the case and keep the door shut, a contractor to make sure everyone did what they were supposed to do and a teamster to settle disputes in case they didn’t.

The Darche Electric Co. shows up in 1889 at 37 South Clark Street, and in 1891, George C. is listed as President, and Edward T. is Secretary. By 1895, George was listed as a jeweler at 648 W. 12th Street, and, at last, in 1896, the Darche Clock Co. at the 648 W. 12th address was born. From 1897 through 1902, the Darche Clock Co. showed George C. Darche as President of the company at locations at 618 West 12th Street (12th Street was renamed Roosevelt Road on May 25, 1919) and then at 830 South Halsted Street.

The first mention of the Darche Electric Clock Company was in 1903 at the 2117 South Halsted address, and in 1904, we saw someone other than George as President of the company. Don Evans was President, taking over when George died in 1904. His presidency didn’t last long. In 1905, Frank Jansen became President and remained so through 1909.

Then, a wonderful thing happened. In 1909, the company underwent yet another name change, this time to Darche Manufacturing Co., with Augusta Y. Darche as President, a woman revolutionary for that time. Augusta held the position until 1928, when E. J. Heilman became President.

Going back to the early part of 1904, perhaps while George was sick, Augusta applied for a patent for a "Stand for an electric alarm clock," which the patent was granted in August of that year.

In June of 1904, Augusta applied for another patent for an Electric Alarm Clock, which was granted in March 1906. She had invented: "an alarm, i.e., the combination of a clock alarm mechanism and an arm adapted to be moved thereby, of an electric signal, a circuit for said signal in the path of movement of said arm and an insulating sleeve movably mounted on the said stationary electrode and adapted to be positioned between said arm and stationary electrode for preventing contact therebetween and thus maintaining the open circuit."

1910 Frank Jansen, President of the Darche Manufacturing Co., registered the trademark "Searchlight," the F. W. Jansen name appeared on the "Darche" clock.

The Searchlight Model

The Searchlight model had a button at the end of a bulb (not shown), and when pressed, it would sound the alarm bell to call someone (a nurse) into your sick room. Squeezing the bulb would turn on the light below the dial to illuminate the dial if the room was dark.

$8.35 in 1910 is worth $270.00 in 2024.

The "Medical Clock" was patented in 1910 and measures about 8" tall, and the base is approximately 12.75" x 5.75". The patent date on the base is 1910. The clock is an Eight-Day windup clock. 

The "Medical Clock" was patented in 1910.

It also has several additional features, which would have been powered by two batteries, one in each of the columns on the sides of the clock. The features could be selected using the toggle switch on the base of the clock and are as follows:

• Medical Battery - Using wires connected to the medical battery ports on the left side of the base, small electric shocks could be applied to the body for electrical stimulation, advertised as "beneficial for the treatment of numerous illnesses." 
• Surgical Set - a battery-powered "surgical lamp" with a tongue depressor for examination of eyes, ears, mouth, throat, and nose.
• Neutral - Off
• Night Light - the light bulb above the clock would light up, illuminating the clock and serving as a night light.
• Call Bell - the bell could be rung with a press of the call button on a cord with a wooden handle with the button. 

There is also a battery-powered alarm feature, which can be turned on and off using the switch on the right of the base.

The company survived until the Great Depression in 1929. While short-lived, the company produced multiple patents and became a real innovator in battery-powered alarm clocks. 

Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D.