Museum Artifact: Kitchen Scale, c. 1900s
Made by: American Cutlery Co., 732-764 Mather St. (W Lexington St.), Chicago, IL
If it seems like this turn-of-the-century kitchen scale reveals just a little bit more grace and attention-to-detail than the other dozen or so scales in our museum collection, consider it a lasting testament to the high standards of the American Cutlery Company.
As the name suggests,
Chicago Electric MFG, Co., 6333 W. 65th Street., Chicago, IL
This impressive looking mid-century coil space heater is one of two items in our collection made by the Chicago Electric Manufacturing Company. You can read the full epic tale of Chicago Electric and its most famous president, Errett Lobban Cord, on our page for the heat lamp’s summertime sister, the Sterling Desk Fan.
Read the Full Company History of the Chicago Electric MFG Co.
Pelouze Scale & Manufacturing Co., 232 E. Ohio St., Chicago, IL
There’s no getting around it. Kitchen scales, aka “family scales,” take up a lot of the real estate in the Made-in-Chicago Museum. This mint green beaut is one of several scales in our collection made by the Pelouze Manufacturing Company, maybe the best known of the many Chicago based spring scale companies of the early 20th century.
Pelouze Manufacturing Company, 232 E. Ohio St., Chicago, IL
Here it is. The one that started it all.
This was the faded green Pelouze “Family Scale” that caught my eye at a junk shop in the first week of 2015. As explained on the About Us page, for whatever reason, this finding lit the proverbial fuse of discovery / obsessive compulsiveness within me, and eventually laid the imaginary foundation for my imaginary museum.
