Published In:
Ypsilanti Gleanings, Fall 2009,
Fall 2009

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Original Images:

Author: Veronica Robinson

Long before Ypsilanti was manufacturing automobile parts, several companies participated in the invention and manufacture of parts for another form of transportation, the carriage. In the late 19th century Ypsilanti manufacturing was booming – from machine shops and flour mills to paper companies and woolen mills to…whip sockets. Some readers may be familiar with this particular item, but if you are wondering what exactly a whip socket is, read on. A whip socket is actually quite simple; it is a cylindrical holder that attaches onto a horse-drawn carriage near the driver’s seat, for the purposes of holding the whip. Ypsilanti, in fact, had two companies dedicated to the manufacture of different designs of the whip socket or whip holder. The Ypsilanti Whip Socket Company made a version patented by Mr. Beach of ‘Beach’s shifting carriage seat’ whose name also ap- peared on another company in Ypsilanti, one that made full carriages and sleighs. The other whip socket company in Ypsilanti was owned by the Worden brothers, called Worden & Brothers Whip Socket Factory according to city directories. The Worden brothers produced a whip socket design patented by another man but whose patent was sold to them in 1867.

Whip socket manufacturing proved to be a very lucrative business in the 1860s and 1870s. Combined, these Ypsilanti companies sold nearly 90,000 whip sockets per year according to the Ypsilanti Commercial of May 23, 1874. Another indication that the business was booming was that in the 1870s the Worden Brothers were sued for patent infringement by Anson Searles of New Jersey. Searles eventually won the case in the lower courts in the 1880s. As a result the Worden brothers were forced to pay fines and a preliminary injunction was filed against the Wordens, barring them from further manufacture of the whip socket while the case was being heard. The facts of the case are actually quite interesting. In 1867, Alva Worden was granted patent number 70,075 for a design of the whip socket. That same year, Erastus W. Scott received a patent for another design, issued under patent number 70,627. From the numbers, one can assume that Worden’s patent was issued before Scott’s as the number is lower. In 1873, Anson Searles and Erastus Scott filed for a reissue of their patent (now jointly owned) which expanded the details of the original patent. The reissue was granted. On the same day the reissue went into effect, Searles filed suit against A. Worden and Brothers for alleged patent infringement. In 1880, a preliminary decree was given by the Circuit Court of the United States for the Eastern District of Michigan in favor of Searles and Scott, claiming their reissued patent was valid and that the manufacture of Worden’s whip sockets was therefore patent infringement. A perpetual injunction then went into effect, barring the Worden Broth- ers Whip Socket Factory from producing any more of their product. In 1882, a final decree was given, ordering the Worden Brothers to award $24,573.91 to the Plaintiffs, Scott and Searles and the Worden Brothers appealed to the United States Supreme Court.

In March of 1887, the case of Worden v. Searles was finally heard by the court and a decree was handed down by the end of the month. The Supreme Court found in favor of the Worden Brothers. The court’s reasoning was that though the two original patents were similar, the mechanism on each whip socket was different, making them different products. The Worden whip socket patent did not infringe upon the original patent given to Erastus Scott in 1867. Additionally, the court found that the reissue of Searles and Scott’s patent was invalid as the aim of the reissue was to cover the Worden patent, making it possible for Searles and Scott to illegally collect penalties from the Worden brothers’ company. Unfortunately for the Worden Brothers, the legal expenses for the seven year battle nearly ruined their finances and they were not able to continue manufacturing the whip sockets. Who would have known that Ypsilanti’s whip socket industry and the business of patents were both full of such intrigue?

(Veronica Robinson is an EMU intern working at the YHS Museum and is a regular contributor to the Gleanings.)

Photo captions:

Photo 1: A wooden whip socket, currently on display at the museum, manufactured in the late 1870s by the Ypsilanti Whip Socket Company.

Photo 2: Alva Worden, owner of the Worden & Brothers Whip Socket Factory.

Photo 3: Letterhead of the Worden & Brothers Whip Socket Factory from the 1870s, showing one of their patented whip socket designs.

Published In:
Ypsilanti Gleanings, Fall 2009,
Fall 2009

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Original Images:

Author: Laura Bien

The current “Cash for Clunkers” program had a Depression-era predecessor called the “Na- tional Used Car Exchange Week.” Created by automakers in 1938, the promotion was meant to ease the glut of used cars clogging dealer- ships. Then, as now, people frightened by the economic climate were hanging on to their old cars, which stifled dealership turnover.

Edsel Ford, GM’s William Knudsen, and Chrysler’s K. T. Keller met with Roosevelt in January of 1938. Afterwards, Ford sales manager John Davis contacted Automobile Manufacturers Association president Alvan Macauley, to say the plan was greenlighted. From Manhattan, Macauley announced that U.S. automakers would spend over a million dollars to promote March 5-12, 1938 as “National Car Exchange Week.” The plan included a one-week campaign of billboard, radio and newspaper ads promoting the exchange of one’s old car for a newer used one.

“National Car Exchange Week” first appears in the February 28, 1938 Ypsilanti Daily Press, with the headline, “Advertising to Break Auto Jam.” The article says, “The American automobile industry moved as a unit for the first time in history today in an effort to beat the business recession with one of the great- est advertising campaigns of all time. The industry … announced Sunday that it will spend $1,250,000 [almost 19 million dollars in today’s money] in a single week to break the used car jam that has been blamed for the collapse of the market for 1938 model cars.”

On March 1, another story appeared. “Edsel Ford, William Knudsen, and K. T. Keller today threw the weight of the motor industry’s ‘big three’ behind the $1,250,000 advertising campaign to end the business recession by breaking the jam of used cars in the stocks of dealers. . . Ford, a “second generation” man of a motor family that has been known for its independent action, spoke of the industry as a whole, saying: “The one great contribution the automobile industry made to the nation in its efforts to throw off the last Depression was its demonstration of courage in the face of adversity. That same fearlessness is evident today as a united industry moves forward to start the wheels rolling again.”

By March 2, the Ypsilanti community had made plans. “Local Car Dealers Take Part in National Drive,” read one Press headline. “Yp- silanti auto dealers meeting at the Huron Ho- tel Thursday unanimously agreed to cooperate with manufacturers and 46,000 other dealers throughout the United States in a campaign to break the used car jam and to aid in sound recovery from the current business recession.” A parade was planned, and the Daily Press printed a mayoral proclamation:

“Whereas, a concerted movement to stimulate used car sales and pave the way for a resumption of automobile manu- facturing and employment on a normal basis has been inaugurated by the Ameri- can automobile industry, and, Whereas, the business interests of Ypsilanti have pledged their enthusiastic cooperation to this campaign, and, Whereas, the “Drive- A-Better-Car” movement will make an important contribution to motoring safety in Ypsilanti, now, Therefore, I hereby proclaim the week of March 5 to 12 National Used Car Exchange Week and urge the cooperation of all citizens in insuring its success. Witness my Hand and Seal, Ray H. Burrell, Mayor.”

In the same paper, a cartoon titled “AN- CHORS OR WINGS?” boosted the pro- gram. In the first panel, an antiquated old car is dragging a ship’s anchor. “Holy smoke, Myrt,” says the driver, “what’s got into this moss-grown tub? We’re shovelin’ out the price of a summer trip for gas, oil, and repairs!” In the next panel, a sleek new car appears. “Baby, what National Used Car Exchange Week did for us! More room—steel body—safety brakes—big tires—smooth engine. Looks like we’re in the dough, but most of the dough is still in my pocket!”

Ypsi’s E. G. Wiedman Auto Company, at 212 Pearl St and 15 E. Michigan, ran an ad touting used car bargains. Prices ranged from $275 for a Ford DeLuxe Tudor Sedan to $795 for a Lincoln-Zephyr Fordor Sedan (these prices, in 2009 dollars, would be $4,000 and $12,000 respectively).

On Saturday, the campaign’s opening day, the city woke up to ice and snow. Nevertheless, the parade went on as planned, featuring the Girls’ Drum and Bugle Corps and the Ypsilanti High School Band, along with a procession of some sample used cars, washed and polished, from dealerships across town. Despite the weather, the day was a success: $10,000 (about $151,000 today) in sales at Ypsi dealerships was reported.

By Tuesday, “first reports indicated marked increases in the sales of used cars,” said the Daily Press. “H. H. Shuart, manager of the Detroit Auto Dealers Association said dealers had reported last weekend’s business as the best in six months and that sales showed increases of 100 to 300 per cent. He said similar reports had “Cash for Clunkers” in the 1930s! continued from page 6 been received from dealers in other cities.”

The Wednesday paper quoted John Lonskey, president of Ypsi metalworking firm the Central Specialty Company. “In Ypsilanti alone, this will directly affect six factories with increased orders, meaning more employment and more money circulating in the city.

The paper continued, “In illustration of this Mr. Lonskey explained that in the case of the Central Specialty Co. there has been a drop in employment of 365 workers since the peak employment of last year when 850 men and women were employed. The emergency purchase of used cars throughout the country will result in putting automobile factories and related industries in operation everywhere with, in some cases, a 60 per cent or greater increase in demand for parts and equipment, he estimated. Many of these parts are made in this city.”

By the end of the week, National Used Car Exchange Week was deemed a success. Fifty- five old cars had been turned in by those who purchased newer ones, and a total of $18,000 worth of newer used cars had been sold. Ypsilanti dealers were so pleased with the results they planned to petition the state to mount another sales campaign in the future, this time by declaring 1932 model year cars as “marginal.” In the meantime, the 55 Ypsilanti drivers behind the wheels of their new used cars had done their part to help get the local economy moving again.

(Laura Bien is a volunteer in the YHS Archives, author of the Daily Diary Blog, and a regular contributor to the Gleanings.)

Photo captions:

Photo 1: Ford Dealer newspaper ad for “National Used Car Exchange Week” in 1938.

Photo 2: E. G. Wiedman Auto Company newspaper ad was part of the 1938 “National Used Car Exchange Week.”

Photo 3: 1938 “Exchange Week” ad sponsored by the Automobile Dealers and Manufacturers of the United States.

Published In:
Ypsilanti Gleanings, Spring 2009,
Spring 2009

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Original Images:

Author: Pamela German and Veronica Robinson

Early in Ypsilanti’s history, many families kept cows to furnish their families with milk and butter. As the Midwest began the process of industrialization and more citizens went to work in specialized labor, Ypsilanti’s dairies came to the fore, delivering milk in horse-drawn wagons. In 1851 Ypsilanti dairies produced over 40,000 pounds of butter.

By 1892, a group of farmers founded the Ypsilanti Dairy Association in order to cooperatively improve both their products and their marketing strategies. The Association was located on Spring and Race Street, southeast of downtown Ypsilanti. These farmers sold most of their products locally, and according to a 1942 newspaper, any surplus was sent to Detroit and cities on the east coast.

Joseph Warner, an employee of the Ypsilanti Dairy Association from 1897 to 1898, owned about a half-dozen cows of his own and in 1914 founded the Warner Dairy. In 1934 Warner’s business was worth about two million dollars and by 1942, they had absorbed another area dairy – the Lewis Creamery.

1930 saw the founding of the Ypsilanti Dairy by Fredrick J. Peters Sr., who originally trained as a plumber. His two sons, Fred Jr., and Art as well as his daughter, Bernadine helped run the dairy, performing office and delivery duties. Eventually, the dairy began producing ice cream products in addition to milk, coffee cream, buttermilk and chocolate milk.

According to the 1923 Washtenaw Post, 42 different milk dealers supplied Ypsilanti with butter, milk, cottage cheese and various other dairy products.

In the 1950s and 1960s, it became more and more difficult for small dairies to sustain their business due to competition with larger corporations, increasing suburbanization of the U.S. population and rising land values. Many of the Ypsilanti dairy owners found other employment including Fred Peters of the Ypsilanti Dairy which closed in 1965. Though these icons of another era no longer exist in great quantity, they continue to exist in the collective memory of Ypsilanti as a large part of our heritage.

Gone But Not Forgotten - Spotlight on Bella Vista Dairy: Bella Vista Farms was founded in 1922 by Ferdinand “Fred” Palma Sr. It was located at 1084 South Huron Street in Ypsilanti. His son, Fred Palma Jr., ran the farm after his father became ill in 1934 and continued after his father’s death in 1938.

According to a 1954 advertisement in the Ypsilanti Courier, Bella Vista Farms covered 465 acres. It was a certified dairy, and also had one of only three certified herds in the state of Michigan. At the time of the article, the herd at Bella Vista numbered 150 strong. In order to operate the farm there were twelve buildings on the land set aside for dairy production including four cow barns for the herd. The dairy had twelve employees whose work was dedicated to caring for the herd. The employees lived on the land in one of the five buildings reserved exclusively for them.

Bella Vista produced a variety of goods for sale and delivery in the local community. During World War II, the dairy delivered to Willow Run Village. Some of the products available for purchase included: homogenized vitamin D milk, pasteurized milk, chocolate milk, coffee cream, whipping cream, cottage cheese, buttermilk, yogurt, skimmed milk and an orange drink.

By 1981, the dairy and the remainder of its land were sold off to Morgan-Mitsubishi Corporation, a New York state developer. The dairy had already been parceled off, and the developer purchased the remaining 130 acres. The buildings that remained were set afire on September 14, 1981 in a controlled burn managed by several local fire departments. Today where Bella Vista Farms once stood, modern development now resides. As you drive by the McDonald’s and the nearby stores, you can imagine the once proud dairy that operated on site. It may be gone, but it is not forgotten.

(Pamela German and Veronica Robinson are graduate students in the Historical Preservation Program at Eastern Michigan University and serve as interns in the YHS Museum and Archives.)

Photo Captions:

Photo 1: The Ypsilanti Dairy Association barn.
Photo 2: The Warner Dairy in 1928, located at 1024 W. Michigan Avenue.
Photo 3: A Parade float for the Lewis Creamery.
Photo 4: Bella Vista Farms used to occupy 465 acres along South Huron.
Photo 5: Bella Vista Dairy delivery trucks covered the region in the 1940s.
Photo 6: A Bella Vista Dairy milk bottling line in 1948.

Published In:
Ypsilanti Gleanings, Fall 2008,
Fall 2008

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Original Images:

Author: Alvin Rudisill

The Peninsular Paper Company was organized on April 3, 1867 with capital stock of $50,000. The original stockholders were Samuel Barnard, Lambert A. Barnes, William H. Myers and Daniel L. Quirk. Lambert Barnes served as the first president until 1870 when Daniel L. Quirk became President. Quirk’s son Daniel joined the firm in 1890 and became President at the turn of the century. The Quirk family then controlled and operated the mill for more than 100 years until it was sold in 1974 to the James River Corporation of Richmond, Virginia.

Construction on the mill began in 1867 and the first paper was produced in 1868. The March 13, 1869 issue of the Ypsilanti Commercial indicated that “…The company called The Peninsular Paper Company have build a dam probably unequaled in the Northwest. The mill is built of brick, main building 40 x 106, three stories high, and an attic, Machine room 30 x 86, Finishing room 28 x 30. In addition wheel room, boiler room and shed. Every part of the building is complete.”

The decision to build the mill at this time was probably made because a contract was obtained from the Chicago Tribune to take the output of the mill in newsprint. At the time newsprint was made from rags and the newsprint contract was for 17 cents per pound. However, after the mill was in operation the Chicago Tribune insisted that the Peninsular Paper Company build another mill far enough away from the first mill to safeguard the newspaper’s supply of paper in case of fire. Therefore, in May of 1876 the capitalization of the company was increased from $50,000 to $100,000 and another one-machine mill was erected on the north side of the Huron River. This second mill was operated for 22 years until 1898 when it was destroyed by fire. The salvaged machinery was then moved to the original building on the south side of the Huron River which was enlarged to accommodate two paper machines and the additional equipment necessary for the increased output.

The original Peninsular Dam was replaced in c1914 but on March 14, 1918 a sudden deluge of rain washed away the dam. The waters of the Huron River rose over 12 feet in 10 minutes causing considerable other damage to bridges along the Huron River chain. Plans for replacing the dam were drawn up by Gardner Williams, one of the most outstanding engineering innovators in the state whose reputation reached far beyond the state and even the country. Williams acted as a designer and consultant to a number of great engineering projects, including a lock on the Great Lakes, steam and diesel powered electric plants, hydro-electric plants in several Midwestern states, and a dam in Siberia that at the time was the longest multiple-arch dam in the world.

The March 8, 1915 issue of the Daily Ypsilanti Press included an article titled “The Story of Ypsilanti’s Successful Fight for Gas Plant.” The article included a picture with the caption “Municipal Water and Electric Light Plant, Ypsilanti, Formerly a Paper Mill with Fine Water Power.” The picture appears to be the north side of the Huron River prior to the construction of the power plant that currently exists on the site.

The Eastern Michigan Edison Company (a subsidiary of Detroit Edison) called on Williams to design a series of nine dams on a 50 mile stretch of the Huron River between Dexter and Belleville. The first of the dams, Barton Dam, was finished in 1912, followed by Argo Dam in 1913, Geddes Dam in 1919, Superior Dam and the Papermill Dam in 1920 and French Landing Dam in Belleville in 1925. Plans on the drawing board for Dexter and Delhi were cancelled because of the depression as were several lakeside villa communities planned as part of the dam developments. Only Barton Hills was completed.

According to a 2001 Dam Inspection Report by Ayres, Lewis, Norris & May, Inc. “…The abandoned powerhouse was constructed in 1918, and was outfitted at that time with two vertical Francis turbines. Power production from the facility was abandoned in 1970. At the time of decommissioning activities, all generators and related electrical equipment were removed. Other decommissioning activities included closure of the head gates, and filling of the vertical turbine pits with earth to prevent passage of water through the structure. That same report indicated problems with dam safety. “…In 1979 the Dam was rated unsafe in a report by the National Dam Safety Program (NDSP) by Ayres, Lewis, Norris & May, Inc. due to severe deterioration and spalling of the left concrete abutment pier between the fixed crest spillway and the radial gate spillway (since replaced with stop-logs). This abutment pier was repaired after the report was issued, and the unsafe rating of the Dam was noted as “removed” in the 1992 MDEQ Dam Inspection Report.”

The January 25, 1983 issue of the Ypsilanti Press indicated the Ypsilanti City Council was interested in looking into the feasibility of getting into the hydro-power business through the use of the Peninsular Dam. The Council voted unanimously to support in principle acquiring the dam and nine acres of adjacent park land that the paper company had proposed donating to the city. The consulting firm of Ayres, Lewis, Norris & May, Inc. advised the Council that installing a turbine generator and power station could feed electricity into Detroit Edison’s lines would cost approximately $570,000. However, the firm further advised that the city could turn a profit of $400,000 in 12 years time by selling the electricity to Detroit Edison, which under state law at the time was required to buy the power, at a price of 6 cents per kilowatt hour.

The Council resolution at the time gave the city administration the authority to inspect more closely the possibility of installing the equipment. The council was informed that the construction could be supported by either voter-approved general obligation bonds or by revenue bonds, which would not have to go on the ballot. However, the consulting firm indicated the power house adjacent to the dam would have to be demolished and rebuilt which drew strong objections from Mayor Pro Tem Thomas Dodd who strongly objected to destroying the power house which supports a large sign advertising the Peninsular Paper Company. Dodd indicated the power house structure “…is a good example of classical revival architecture and was a city landmark.”

Finally, after years of discussion the city approved the purchase of the property. At the City Council meeting on August 25, 1986 “…The $1 acquisition from the James River Corporation includes 6.2 acres on the north side of the Huron River, west of LeForge Road, and an abandoned dam and power station. James River, the Richmond, VA-based firm that owns Peninsular Paper, offered the property as a gesture to the community…The city and James River first discussed the donation of the land six years ago and the corporation approved the deal a year ago.” (Ypsilanti Press – August 27, 1986).

In 1989 the city requested funding from the state to have an “interpretive museum” inside the power house related to hydro-electric activities. However, the funding did not materialize. City Manager Matt Hennessee indicated that “…We still want to do it and the city may want in the future to generate power (from the dam) with Detroit Edison.” (Ypsilanti Press – March 15, 1989).

In June of 2004 the Peninsular Paper Mill buildings on the south side of the Huron River were demolished to make way for two large u-shaped residential buildings called “Peninsular Place,” one of the buildings houses 99 apartments and the other houses 88 apartments. The old paper mill smokestack was preserved as part of the new housing complex.

According to current Ypsilanti City Council Bill Nickels, the city is again interested in exploring uses for the power house and dam. Current thinking, according to Nickels, is that modern power generating equipment will fit in the basement of the power house thereby leaving the first floor open for other uses such as a museum, restaurant, bar or retail shop.

(Al Rudisill is the President of the Ypsilanti Historical Society and the Editor of The Gleanings.)

Photo Captions:

Photo 1: Peninsular Paper plant #2 was constructed on the north side of the Huron River in 1873.
Photo 2: Peninsular Paper plant #2 burned down in 1898 just 25 years after it was constructed.
Photo 3: Peninsular Dam as it looked in 1900.
Photo 4: The rebuilding of the Peninsular Dam in July of 1918.
Photo 5: Dam being rebuilt after a sudden deluge of rain wiped out the old dam on March 14, 1918.
Photo 6: Peninsular Paper Company in 1916 (looking south across the Huron River).
Photo 7: Peninsular Paper Company including the dam and power plant in the early 1900s.
Photo 8: Peninsular Paper Company sign on top of the power plant in 2008.
Photo 9: Peninsular Place Apartments now occupy the space on the south side of the Huron River where the Peninsular Paper Company was located.

Published In:
Ypsilanti Gleanings, November 1987,
November 1987

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Original Images:

Author: Rev. Laurence N. Woodruff

In his walking around the City, Rev. Laurence N. Woodruff has noted and become interested in some of the old buildings. He has submitted the following material about the brick building in the City's storage yard on West Forest Avenue. We are pleased to have this building's one hundredth anniversary commemorated by Rev. Woodruff.

Street Light Centennial

Exactly one hundred years ago, Ypsilanti took a giant stride forward into the new world of technology and turned on its first electric street lights. In 1887 the little village of about 5,000 residents installed are lamps on top of five seventy-five foot towers, one in each ward. A number of “arm lights” were installed at major inter-sections. These are lamps mounted on their tall towers provided a soft, bluish-white light, suggesting moon light, and people joked about the romantic atmosphere, which had been created in our community.

By our standards the five arc lamps on their high spires and the “arm lamps” would not have provided very much light. Nevertheless for people who knew only the night's natural darkness or the soft glow of a few gas lamps, these electric lights must have seemed like a magnificent advance into the future.

Where did the city get its electric power for these wonderful new street lights? The city produced its own power. After much debate the city council decided to build a power plant on West Forest Avenue. A red brick building housed a boiler, a steam engine and a generator which produced all of the power for the city's electric light system. The puffing steam engine and the whirl of of the generator producing electric current was the marvel of the community. It was reported that boys like to come to watch the steam engine and to magnetize their pocket knives with the powerful magnet of the generator.

In 1896 the city built a water works plant near where the Ford Plant is now located and moved its steam generator to the same location. By 1905 Detroit Edison had taken over this and all the other little power plants, public and private, in the county.

Although a hundred years have come and gone, the building, in which the electric power for Ypsilanti's first street lights was produced, still stand on West Forest Avenue in the Department of Public Works Yard. Inscribed in a stone plaque near the top of the front wall are the words, “Ypsilanti Electric Light, 1887.” This little red brick building ushered our community into the modern world of electric light and power.

(With gratitude to Doris Milliman, City Historian, who provided the research for this article)

Published In:
Ypsilanti Gleanings, May 1999,
May 1999

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Original Images:

Author: Jack M. Wiltse

My first memories of Willow Run was Camp Legion a produce farm established by Henry Ford to give young boys a place to spend their summer in some type of productive endeavor. The Martha Mary Chapel was the church where these young boys attended worship. This chapel became a very prestigious place to be married. When the construction of the Willow Run Bomber plant started the chapel was moved to Greenfield Village in Dearborn, Michigan.

In the early 1940's the Willow Run Bomber Plant was started. Henry Ford had accepted the challenge to build airplanes much in the same manner as auto production. This would not only facilitate faster production but interchangeable parts. This type of airplane manufacturing was unheard of at the time. The Bomber Plant was to be the largest factory under one roof in the world and it was until they built the Dodge Plant in Chicago where eventually Preston Tucker tried to build his car. I was impressed that the Bomber Plant had to be built in sections for the purpose of expansion and contraction and the floors were made out of wood blocks. During Sunday drives with my parents we would go down Ecorse Road to check the progress of the plant. It seemed like the continuous flow of cement trucks through Ypsilanti was the most impressive to me about the plant construction.

At the same time the plant was being built several roads were under construction to facilitate traffic flow in and out of the plant. The divided highway that went west from the plant ended at Michigan Avenue at the West Side of Ypsilanti. I also recall these special highways had no reinforced steel in them so they were very thick cement. Many of these roads are still in use today with very little maintenance.

My brother, Norris G. Wiltse, Jr., worked on the first bomber built at Willow Run before he went into the Air Force. One night at Ernie's, a malt shop on the north east corner of Michigan Avenue and Adams Street in Ypsilanti, my brother was telling a group about how the hydraulic lines were being bent over the foreman's knee until they fit where they were suppose to go. One of the group spoke up and said it was not right and he was with the FBI and that situation would be investigated. From that point on I always wondered how many government people they had in the area just listening.

There was such an influx of people from the south to work building bombers Willow Run Village was built. This village provided everything: theaters, recreation halls, stores, gas stations, barber shops, the works. The flat top apartments were built first. These units had coal stoves for cooking and a side arm heater for hot water. A small circular coal furnace in the middle of the unit was used for heat. The walls in these units were paper-thin. Most units had a kitchen unit you entered from the front door and the attached living room area had the back door. The bathroom and bedroom were at one end of the apartment and matched these areas of the next door apartment. There was a small open closet opposite the bathroom. There were four of these units in each building. In the front yard of each unit was a good-sized coal box and beside it were the garbage cans. Usually two buildings were in a group and they angled off the street to form a triangular parking area in front of the units. Later peaked roof units were built which were much nicer; they had hard wood floors.

The dorms were large two story buildings with small cubicle rooms. The dorms had both male and female residents, which was almost unheard of at the time. Often times these rooms were shared by people on different shifts so when one occupant worked the other slept. The saying was that most of these beds never got cold.

Ford paid the workers at the plant with cash. The plant worked three shifts. People had more money than things to buy because of the shortages of the war and government rationing of everything from gasoline, several types of food to shoes. Because of all this money the recreational areas of Willow Run Village, which I already mentioned, were crowded with workers looking for something to do twenty-four hours a day. These places were so busy it is a wonder the cement sidewalks didn't wear through from people walking on them. The busiest recreation area of the village is where Willow Run High School now stands.

I remember well that all the lady workers had to wear a special uniform. The uniforms were dark blue and consisted of slacks and a jacket worn with a blouse. They had to wear a baseball type cap which had a fine net attached to hold their hair. Once in a while you would see a worker wearing a pretty contrasting hankie to give the outfit a little femininity. Even the little midgets that worked in the wings of the airplanes had to wear these outfits.

My mother, Hazel C. Wiltse, a true housewife, went to work everyday in her uniform to help the war effort. Everybody car-pooled and my mother rode to work everyday in a green 1940 Hudson sedan driven by Ruth Krause who lived next door to us. We lived at 603 Washtenaw Avenue in Ypsilanti and it was five blocks from the High School. My father, Norris, was principal of Ypsilanti High School and each noon the kids and dad would walk the five blocks and prepare lunch during our noon hour. Macaroni and tomatoes got to be very boring. The evening meal was usually prepared by my father because he would get home sooner than my mother would. I guess this was all OK when you consider the pay envelope, with the cash, my mother brought home each week from her job as a file clerk at the great Bomber Plant.

The merchants of Ypsilanti were happy to have the trade of the Bomber Plant employees because all they had was money to spend and would buy almost anything because of this excess money, the businessmen all prospered. The USO was always packed with servicemen, they spent money too. The USO was located in the building on the north side of Michigan Avenue just west of the Huron River where Materials Unlimited is located today. These servicemen came from the Army camp located on the East Side of Willow Run Airport on Beck Road. The local belles of the area would prepare shows and go out to the camp to entertain the troops. My wife, Mar Lou Miller Wiltse, was one of those belles and did her Rosie The Riveter dance for the boys. Also located at this military station was a German Prisoner of War Camp. I knew the camp was there but it never made a big impression on me.

My memories of the actual B24 Bombers were the constant sound of the planes revving up the engines on the ground day and night. The sounds of these planes could be heard all over the community. Of coarse the B24's were in the sky all the time. If you saw a vapor trail way up in the sky people said it was Charles Lindbergh testing one of the planes. I understand testing the B24 was Lindbergh's job. The most dramatic incident I can remember is when the older brother of my classmate Paul Tower called his mother to say he would be bringing his B24 from England to California and he would pass over the family house and wiggle his wings to let her know it was him. The Tower family lived across from the Water Tower on the south side of Washtenaw Avenue. The plane was to go over late in the afternoon and needless to say Paul and all his buddies were there waiting. The B24 came as scheduled and we heard it flying in low from the east, all of the sudden it appeared flying on the south side of the Water Tower lower than the black roof on the tower, the plane clipped the leaves out of the tops of the trees and shortly was gone. I guess Pilot Tower figured we might miss him if he only wiggled his wings. To this day I am impressed with the freedom of expression and the piloting skills of that event.

While I was in the Navy things at Willow Run changed. My next recall was the plant was used to build twin-boon flying boxcars and Kaiser Frazer was getting ready to build cars. Both my wife and I worked for Kaiser-Frazer. Mar Lou was in Export Billing up on the L balcony on the north side of the plant. I had three different summer jobs while attending college, the front end merry-go-round on the balcony on the south side of the plant, window cleanup on the body assembly line and bicycle messenger for the Administration Building which took me all over the plant. My brother, Norris Jr., the one that worked on the first B24 worked for the Kaiser-Frazer Service Department and went on to Toledo, Ohio with Kaiser-Frazer Jeep to become Service Manager of the whole operation.

During the boom time of Kaiser-Frazer I would go with my friend, Dick McElroy to pick up Kaiser-Frazer cars out of the storage lot. These cars would be lined up single file row upon row, hundreds and hundreds of cars. The first car in each line would have the keys under the left front fender and the rest of the cars in line would have the keys in the ignition. Move the first car and the rest of the line was available to anyone. I always felt this was a poor system but I guess it never caused any problems. Dick's mother was a pilot and ferried B24's to England during the war, she made several trips. Dick's father was in the Air Force. Dick and his sister Sherrill were pretty independent during this time and took care of themselves. They were not the only family that had to change their life style during the war.

My next impression is the Hydra-matic Plant in Livonia burned and the plant was moved to Willow Run after many modifications were made to accommodate a new production. The Willow Run situation today is the Hydramatic Plant, the commercial Willow Run Airport and the Yankee Air Force and all of these fifty years from now will once again be interesting history.

View the following images from the Gleanings image gallery:

President Roosevelt's visit to Willow Run, September 1942
the Willow Run Machine Shop, ca. 1942

Published In:
Ypsilanti Gleanings, October 1995,
October 1995

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Original Images:

Something NEW under the HOOD!
Of the ACE is a new type automobile power plant. Read the complete story and description of this marvelous motor on page three.

The Greatest Advancement Made in Internal Combustion Engine Design in Recent Years

PASSE! “Indications are that the streamline, straight-side body is passing out.” So stated a writer in a recent issue of a well-known motor journal.

What more fitting and proper than that a car, bearing the name ACE, and powered by a motor incorporating the greatest forward step in engine design, should set the style and fashion in new body designs.

In the mad race for quantity production, style and appearance were secondary considerations. For proof, observe the marked degree of sameness common to most cars. Style, always a big factor in the choice of a motor car, now influences to a greater degree than ever the selection of this or that car.

NEW! The ACE in four new, handsome body styles establishes a new standard in motor car fashions. There is an air of smartness and originality in their makeup that is as welcome as it is refreshing. Each of these four bodies portrays true grace and beauty in every line and curve and offers a pleasing change in appearance to the man and woman who have grown tired of, a style which has lost its attraction.

Compatible with its distinction and good taste in body improvement are mechanical features which lift the ACE from the ranks of the commonplace and identify it as a truly great and extraordinary motor vehicle.

APEX · MOTOR · CORPORATION · YPSILANTI · MICH.

Commerce SD-11 Roadbuilder

Published In:
Ypsilanti Gleanings, October 1995,
October 1995

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Original Images:

The Ypsilanti Auto Heritage Collection is focused on presenting and preserving the auto heritage of Ypsilanti. The idea for this project came from Peter B. Fletcher, Jack Miller and Paul “Skip” Ungrodt Jr. The facility and its contents are located at 112 East Cross Street, just east of the railroad in Depot Town. The building and its contents are now the property of the Ypsilanti Historical Society. Private donations will maintain and add to the collection at no cost to the Ypsilanti Historical Society.

Featured are Apex Motors, maker of the ACE car, The Kaiser Frazer Corporation, Preston Tucker and the Tucker car, the COVAIR and the other General Motors models made at Willow Run. Also included is the HUDSON dealer which opened in 1933 and the COMMERCE truck and SAXON DUPLEX car which were made in the Apex Motor plant. Also featured are the automotive parts suppliers such as Central Specialty, Ford Motor Company, Hydramatic Division, Motor State Products, Motor Wheel Corporation. Many Ypsilanti automobile dealers are also featured in photos and promotion material. Seven cars are presently displayed including a 1969 Corvair (with 529 actual miles) which is the last year it was built and a 1953 Kaiser Dragon with a Bamboo Vinyl top which was one of the last Kaisers built at Willow Run.

Museum Hours are Saturdays 10A.M.-4P.M. and Sundays 1P.M-5P.M.

Published In:
Ypsilanti Gleanings, December 1991,
December 1991

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Original Images:

Author: Herb Cornish

Early American clocks made from about 1700 to 1725 included grandfather clocks and tower clocks, as found in the towers of public buildings. The grandfather clock cases were hand made to fit the particular clock movement. Later grandfather clocks also reflected the furniture period in which they were made. Regional styles also developed and experts can distinguish fine clok cases made in Philadelphia, Boston or New York.

Smaller shelf clocks were made in the United States beginning around 1750. These too, were individually made clocks and thus were quite expensive. In 1807 Eli Terry, a clockmaker in Connecticut accepted an order for 4000 wood clock movements. Brass was very expensive and hardwood was a cheap alternative for clock gears. The production of 4000 clockworks obviously led to the development of interchangeable parts for these clocks since similarly cut gears could then be quickly put together in the final assembly. Among the early employees of Eli Terry were Seth Thomas, Silas Hoadley and Chauncey Jerome all of whom went on to set up their own factories in Connecticut to fill the demand for these new, relatively cheap clocks. Water power or steam was often used to produce power for wood and metalworking machinery. It is surprising how often factories burned to the ground and many bankruptcies occurred for this reason as well as for poor business practices. However, most of these companies started new businesses, often buying clockworks or clock cases from a former competitor. Thus many clocks are found with so-called mixed parts often with one makers name pasted over the original label in the clockcase purchased from another maker. These early clocks were mostly weight driven thus had clockcases several feet tall.

Steel springs became available between 1830 and 1840 and this further stimulated the clock business. Clocks could now be made much smaller and clock cases more varied in design and construction. New England became the clockmaking center of the United States and to some extent the world. Clockworks as well as completed clocks were shipped all over the world. Millions of clocks were produced. For example in 1853 and 1854 Jerome Mfg. Co. produced around 440,000 clocks a year, J.C. Brown 100,000 per yr. and Ansonia Clock Co. 150,000 per year. By 1867 the New Haven Clock Co. was producing 200,000 clocks annually and several other nearby companies combined produced over 300,000 per year. Quite a production, but remember these clocks were now quite cheap and most homes had never had a clock before. Hundreds of new clockmakers were in the business and clocks were made in smaller quantities all over the United States. During the period from 1840 to 1870 the American Clock Book lists 6153 U.S. Clockmakers in business. Many of these would be companies changing names, adding partners or selling out to someone else. Many old clocks from England, Japan and other countries of the world when opened up are found to contain clockworks stamped with makers names from Connecticut, U.S.A. How times have changed. The production of these key-wind clocks rapidly declined with the advent of the electric clock beginning in the early 1920's. Most clocks are now foreign made and few, if any, U.S. clockmakers survive. Even the reproductions of old U.S. clocks are now made in the far East, not in the United States. In fact, few clockmakers or repair shops are willing to repair these old clocks. If they do, the job is very time consuming and costs are high.

If you are looking at old key-wind shelf clocks check on some of the following items to determine age and value.

1. Is it weight or spring driven. If weight driven most likely before 1840–1850.

2. Makers name. Often in center of clock face or in fine print around the bottom edge. Many clockworks are marked and can be seen if the clock has a door on the back that can be opened. Marked clocks are more desirable.

3. Check number of keyholes in the face.

One keyhole: clock runs but does not strike.

Two keyholes: clock runs, usually strikes hour and half-hour.

Three keyholes: Clock runs, strikes hour and half-hour and usually has a chime of some sort.

4. Does the clock have its original face and glass or glasses in the doors or are they replacements.

5. Is there a makers paper on the inside or on the back. These usually had the makers name and address and often had instructions on using the clock as well as decorative eagles, flags etc. The paper adds considerable value.

6. Check condition of case and original finish, Most old clocks were veneer not solid wood, although both types are found.

Most old clocks will show considerable signs of wear. Many authentic looking well-made reproduction clocks are now on the market and may be hanging in antique shops. Some dealers have such clocks marked as reproductions, others do not.

Herb Cornish

Published In:
Ypsilanti Gleanings, November 1990,
November 1990

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Original Images:

Author: Doris Milliman

From Mr. Webb Harwood, we have received a copy of the daily account book of the Huron Mill, a description of the Mill as found in the Archives is as follows:
The Huron Mill was built by Wm. Webb Harwood, one of the three proprietors of the original plat of Ypsilanti village in 1829.

The dam was erected by Mark Norris and Mr. Harwood. In 1835, the water power passed into the hands of John Gilbert, who in 1839, gave a half interest to his son-in-law, Abel Goddard. Mr. Goddard was the second president of Ypsilanti village in 1834-5, his father-in-law having been the first. Gilbert & Goddard soon sold the Alfred D. Hunter. The Mill then passed into the hands of assignees and was run by lessees until 1854 when it was sold to Nathan Follett and Alexander Ross: Nathan Follett was the father of Benjamin Follett and had recently moved from Batavia, New York. He was one of the principals in the Morgan anti-Masonic trouble at Batavia in 1826. He died October 14, 1975 in Ypsilanti and was buried at Batavia. April 10, 1873, Wm. H. and James P. Deubel, sons of Wm. Deubel, bought the mill from Mr. follett for $19,000 cash. The Deubels were experienced and energetic millers and soon instituted a new system of selling direct to jobbers, thus eliminating the middleman's profit. They were the first millers in the state to adopt this system. The building was 44 × 70 feet, 4 1/2 stores high with a warehouse 40 × 30 feet. The mill burned aobut 1915.

Some antries that show prices of the year, 1830.

November 28th
to cash
$3.00

December
to corn 1 bu
.69

January
5th
to cash paid Norris
6.07

to corn 1 bu
.75

to cash
.50

18th
to wheat 2 bu
2.25

to 1 bushel feed
.69

to drawing 10 cords of wood
2.88

Another entry as it is written in the ledger is: (see image)