My History of Galesburg series is a spinoff of Varofharkens Hidden History series.
Congrats to Varofharken and KatzQueen for FTF
"Galesburg attempts to become another Detroit"
Written by Tom Wilson.
In the early 1900s, Galesburg made a short-lived attempt to become the Detroit of Illinois. The story unfolds back in 1904 when D.W. Cook a machinist in Chicago made a somewhat feeble endeavor to put together an automobile from scratch.
Unfortunately, Cook struggled initially to finish putting the auto together. Fortunately, John Hayden and George Clark, who were with the Chicago Crane Company, spied the project and agreed to buy in financially.
Due to high production costs Hayden and Clark convinced Joe Rosenthal, who was in management with Sears-Roebuck, to join the growing partnership. Percy Robson, who lived in Galesburg, persuaded the group to produce the auto in his hometown to keep the production costs lower. They opened the Western Tool Works on South Kellogg Street in the downtown area and began production. The facility had previously been the location of the Brown Corn Planter Works.
The first Gale automobile rolled off the assembly line in July 1905 and was sold to a Dr. Baird. Soon word of the auto spread around the globe and two were delivered to New Zealand. The initial production included a one-cylinder, chain drive motor under the seat with single tube tires, delivered for $650; the price excluded a top, windshield and lights.
D.W. Cook who started the affair in the first place became what was described as a “Barnum-like promoter” to market the Gale auto. His exploits included winning an auto race in Davenport, Iowa, and runner-up honors in a hill climb near Chicago.
Cook topped it off by linking with the O.T. Johnson Big Store in Galesburg, including an outlandish promotional stunt in the Public Square. Cook drove a Gale auto through a large crowd of spectators at the Public Square with a live lion sitting beside him. A large sign on the front of the car read, “The Gale Car Is Fit For The King Of The Beasts.”
Unfortunately, Cook accidently rolled over the lion’s tail as it dangled and swished from the auto. The lion became bent out of shape and attempted to take over the driver’s seat. Next the snarling and very confused lion actually bit a young girl and the adventure came to a sudden close.
Three years and 740 cars later the factory folded in financial difficulty. The short run was full of thrills and only a few spills like occurred on the Public Square.
Source: https://www.galesburg.com/story/opinion/columns/2014/06/14/galesburg-attempts-to-become-another/37022882007/
A small history of Brown Corn Planter Works which occupied the site of Western Tool Work.
Brown Corn-Planter
George W. Brown was a farmer and carpenter by trade. In 1848 he conceived the idea of turning a cultivator into a corn-planter. After several years of experimenting with different designs, he used his invention in 1852 to plant 16 acres of corn for himself and 8 acres for a neighbor.
Brown sold everything he had to secure patents for his invention and started building planters by hand. In 1853, he completed 12 machines, one that planted 300 acres of corn that season. His business grew rapidly, with 100 machines made in 1854 and 300 made in 1855.
He moved his business to Galesburg, where by 1878, he was manufacturing 8,000 machines per year. As others tried to infringe on his patents, he filed suit and in May 1874, the Supreme Court of the United States declared him the inventor of the corn-planter. This gave him the right to collect royalties on all machines manufactured and in July 1878 he won $200,000 in a suit against Keystone Manufacturing Company in Rock Island, IL.
Brown's Corn-Planter Works employed from 130 to 230 men in the 1870s. Wages paid out per year were between $50,000 and $100,000. The company used 2,000 tons of coal, 500 tons of castings, 250 tons of wrought iron and steel, 15 tons of paints and oils and 500,000 feet of lumber per year.
Source: https://www.kville.org/kchistory/Planter.html