Fans of the Past

  Here is a brief history of different Vintage Electric Fan Companies.

Air King

The company started in the 1930s in Chicago as Air King Ventilating Company and in the early 40s was bought by Leo Berns. Air King became a household name in the 50s and 60s and produced some of the best and most efficient window fans of the era. With the advent of Air Conditioning the 1970s saw the slow decline of the company and in 1975 Berns Air King closed its doors.

Arctic Aire

            F.A.Smith Manufacturing Company of Rochester, New York started in 1911 making aftermarket parts for automobiles. The year 1933 saw F.A.Smith start to produce an 8 inch model electric fan and by 1937 had a full line of fans from 8 to 16 inch sizes and stationary and oscillating models. They made fans under the brand names of Arctic-Aire, Royal Rochester, Spartan, and Viking. The company changed their name from F.A, Smith MFG. Co. to FASCO in 1948 and moved from Rochester, New York to Fayette, North Carolina in 1955. In 2003 they became part of Tecumseh. The company is still in business making electric motors.

Bersted

Bersted Manufacturing Company was started by wheeler dealer Al Bersted. He was an accountant who in 1920 pooled his money together to start Bersted Manufacturing Co. The late 1930s he bought United Electric and changed the name to Bersted Manufacturing Co which produced small electric appliances for the home and produce electric fans. Bersted started to produce fans at this point. The year 1940 saw him buy Manning Bowman and Edison of Canada LTD. In 1947 the company was sold to Max McGraw who went on to form McGraw-Edison in 1957.

Dayton

            They started making desk fans in 1900 and continued thru the 1920s. In the 1930s they went into the industrial parts and hardware distribution sales. They continued to sell fans manufactured by other companies and sold under their name. They are still around and sell industrial and commercial fans now.

Challenge

The Challenge Fan Manufacturing Company was a little fan company that came and went in the 30s and early 40s and was known back then as a Dime Store Fan. They were small and cheap but would deliver a blast of air to cool you down on a hot summer day.

  Diehl

The fan was manufactured by one of the earliest fan companies to produce electric fans Diehl. It was started in 1887 by Phillip Diehl in Elizabeth, New Jersey. He started out making Ceiling Fans and in around 1904 started making Desk Fans. The year 1918 saw Diehl Manufacturing Company being taken over by The Singer Corporation and becoming a Division of Singer. In the 1930s Diehl came out with its Commandaire and Ribbonaire fan line. The fan line was discontinued around 1960.

Dominion

The Dominion Electrical Manufacturing INC. of Mansfield, Ohio was started in the 1920s and by the 1930s was a household name in small appliances. They were around through the 60s.

Emerson

             The Emerson Electric MFG. Company began when Judge John Wesley Emerson and Alexander & Charles formed the company in St Louis. They started producing desk fans in 1891 and in 1897 marketed their first ceiling fan. The year 1922 saw them introduce the Emerson Jr. which was produced thru the 1930s. While the company phased out the Northwind and Emerson Jr. they introduced The Seagull, Sea Breeze, and the Silver Swan. In the late 1970s Emerson stopped making desk fans. Emerson is still in business today as a Worldwide Manufacturing and Technology Leader.

Fitzgerald

The Fitzgerald Manufacturing Co was started by Patrick J. Fitzgerald in 1906 in Torrington Conn. The Company started out making automobile parts, accessories, and gaskets. In 1918 they started to produce electric fans thru the 1940s. They closed their doors in 1975.

General Electric

The company was founded by inventor Thomas Edison in 1878, and was originally called the, Edison Light Company. In 1892 the company became General Electric and in 1894 produced their first electric desk fan.  They continued to produce electric fans until the mid 1970s. Alive and thriving today they still make appliances and are in the aerospace industry. 

Hartzell

            John Hartzell started a Walnut lumber mill in 1875 in Greenville, Ohio and later moved to Piqua, Ohio. They started making fans in 1927 and still are making fans today. It is still a family owned business.

Hunter

Hunter Fan and Ventilating Company was started James C. Hunter and his father John Hunter who started manufacturing ceiling fans in 1886 in Syracuse New York and later would settle in Fulton New York. In the 1920s whey would become known worldwide and begin producing desk fans.1936 saw Hunter buy out Century Electric Company who was also producing fans. Around 1939 Century would stop making fans and become an industry leader in electric motors. Hunter moved their operations from Fulton New York to Memphis Tenn. In 1946 and in 1949 acquired The Robbins and Meyers Fan Company. Around 1984 Robbins and Meyers bought out Hunter.  The Hunter fan company is still in business and going still going strong making ceiling fans.

Lakewood

  Lakewood Engineering and Manufacturing Co. was started by Carl Kruss in Chicago, Illinois in 1946.By the 50s they had become nationally known as one of the most efficient and quality fans made.  The year 1965 saw the company move to a larger location in Chicago to meet increasing demand.  The 1970s thru early 2000 the company boomed.  Sadly, the 21^st Century was the demise of Lakewood due to cheap inferior fans from overseas; the company couldn’t compete and the last American fan company closed its doors in 2009.  

McGraw-Edison

The company was started in 1907 by wheeler dealer Max McGraw, who establishes Interstate Electric Manufacturing Company. In 1912 the name was changed to McGraw Electric Company. 1926 saw Max acquire Waters Genters Company (makers of the Toastmaster Toaster) and in that same period buy Bersted Manufacturing Company. The year 1930 see’s Max selling Bersted Manufacturing back to Al Bersted. Moving along to 1948 again McGraw buys Bersted Manufacturing Company back from Al Bersted who also was a wheeler dealer had acquired Eskimo, Everhott, Manning Bowman, Tip Tow, and Edison of Canada LTD. These companies were also under Bersted MFG. The 1950s saw McGraw buying Speed Queen, Ingrham Time Products and Thomas A. Edison Industries. In 1957 the company name was changed from McGraw Electric to McGraw-Edison. The Company was bought by Magic Chef in 1980.

ILG 

. The Ilg Electric Ventilating Company was started in 1908 by Robert Ilg in Chicago. After a few years in business they became the Industry Leader in ventilation. During WWI and WWII they received the Battle E from the military for their wartime efforts. They built fans from6 inch to72 inch sizes and were the only one in the industry to do this. No one could match their quality. In the late 1960s a merger with Carrier Corp. spelled disaster for Ilg. By 1977 the company was driven into Bankruptcy. A group of Ilg and Carrier engineers bought the company and changed the name to Ilg Industries. Again in the early 1980s the company was sold to a private owner. When the new owner suddenly died and no one to run the company the bank called the loan and Ilg Industries was abruptly shut down in September of 1991. This fan is a fine example of their high quality standards.  

Made Rite

 Made-rite was a division of Dominion Electrical Manufacturing Company in Mansfield, Ohio. Made-Rite made fans from the1930s thru the late 50s.

Memominee Electric

            The company was founded in 1892 by Henry Tideman and in 1915 the introduced the clamshell style type 150 fan. 1918 saw the company produce the Type 164 model. This was the only model in the series that had an On/Off switch. This fan saw very low production numbers. The company was sold to the Henes Brothers in 1919 and they went on to manufacture the Signal Electric Fan starting in 1925.

Peerless

The company was founded by Elmer Gillmer in Warren, Ohio in 1893 as Warren Electric & Specialty Company. In 1902 the name was changed to Peerless Electric Company. They were known for their high quality motors and still are today and they are still in Warren.

Polar Cub

Polar Cub Electric Fan made by one of the great American Businessmen A.C. Gilbert. Alfred Carlton Gilbert first claim to fame was winning a Gold Medal in the 1908 Olympics and in 1913 opened the A.C. Gilbert Company in New Haven, Conn. He started out making toys which included the famous Erector Set and in 1915 produced his first electric fan along with other small appliances. The company made fans thru the 1940’s. Mr. Gilbert died in 1962

Robbins & Myers  

            The company was started in1878 by Chandler Robbins and James Myers in Springfield, Ohio. In 1893 they started to manufacture electric motors and parts. 1897 saw them produce their first Ceiling Fan and in 1899 their first Desk Fan. With the 1920s the companies motor and fan business had huge growth along with starting a crane and hoist division in 1929. In 1936 they started to produce Progressive Cavity Pumps and in 1948 they bought the Hunter Fan and Ventilating Company. The company is still in business today. 

Signal

The Company started as Menominee Electric. In 1919 the company reorganized as Signal Electric Company and made their first fan in 1926. The year 1952 saw them get bought out by King-Seeley Thermos Company and by 1960 the electric fan line was gone. 1964 King- Seeley shut down Signal. While they were in business they made High Quality Fans.

Superior/Superletric

The company was founded in 1922 by Edmond Lawrence Hass in St Louis, Mo. and shortly after moved to Cape Girardeau, Mo. The year 1968 they were sold to United Industry Syndicate of New York. The plant in Cape Girardeau closed in 1982 and the operations were moved to Canada. 

Trico

The company that started the car fan Trico was founded in 1917 by R.J. Oshiethe as the Tri-Continental Corp. and was later renamed Trico. In 1929 they developed the first steering column mounted vacuum powered fan for Ford to defog windows. In the early 1940s Trico revamped their fan to use rubber blades. They sold these fans thru to 1960s.Trico is still in business and is the largest producer of windshield wipers.

Knapp Monarch

            The Knapp-Monarch was started in 1929 thru a merger of A.S. Knapp & Company on St Louis and The Monarch Company of Webster City, Iowa. The company was acquired in 1969 By the Hoover Company.

Westinghouse

George Westinghouse with the help of Nikola Tesla (Who perfected AC Current) began to produce desk fans in 1889.Westinghouse was one of the big three (Emerson& GE) who produced high quality fans from the 1890s thru the early 1970s.