Stove Capitol of the World Traditional Cache
-allenite-: As there's been no response from the cache owner to my previous note, I'm archiving it to keep it from continually showing up in search lists and to prevent it from blocking other cache placements.
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Stove Capitol of the World
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At one time Dowagiac produced more wood stoves and furnaces than any other city in the world. It all started with the Round Oak company that was housed in the buildings near this site.
The Round Oak Stove Company was founded in Dowagiac, Michigan in 1871 by P.D. Beckwith. Beckwith cast his first stove around 1867 to heat his struggling foundry and shortly after, the Michigan Central Railroad ordered the heaters for its depots between Detroit and Chicago. By 1871, Beckwith was mainly producing heating stoves, and thus founded the company.
Round Oak was considered the finest heating stove money could buy because of the quality of its durable heating stove and by the late 1890s there were many “oak” imitators on the market. The company expanded rapidly and at its height in the 1910s, employed 1200 of the 5000 residents in Dowagiac, Michigan. Round Oak’s influence on Dowagiac went far beyond its factory grounds. The company sponsored a semi-professional baseball team and the Round Oak Band. Dances were held in Round Oak Hall.
The complex of Round Oak buildings on Spaulding Street now house Ameriwood Furniture. Today, a small collection of Round Oak Stoves is displayed within the offices of the Greater Dowagiac Chamber of Commerce and Downtown Development Authority, located within the historic Dowagiac train depot. The Estate of P.D. Beckwith Inc. and Round Oak Stove & Furnace Company artifacts are collected worldwide today. The Museum at Southwestern Michigan College has the largest public collection of Round Oak heating stoves in the world. Southwestern Michigan College’s vast collection includes (in addition to stoves) artifacts related to P.D. Beckwith’s grain drill and early stove business, advertising, company ledgers and papers, workers’ implements and many one-of-a kind pieces.
In 1915, the Rudy Furnace Company became the first of three Round Oak competitors to open in Dowagiac, followed by Premier in 1920 and Dowagiac Steel Furnace in 1929.
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