J. I. Case Plow Works
The story of the growth of the J. I. Case Plow Works from a
small, obscure blacksmith shop in the rear of a fanning mill factory
to the present large concern occupying over twenty acres of space,
is a story of constant progress based upon quality and service. From
the beginning the policy of the company has been to make every tool
that bore its trademark a little better than any other similar tool
and to co-operate to the fullest extent with the dealer handling its
products. The business was organized in 1876 by J. I. Case under the
name of the Case-Whiting Company, his partner, Mr. Whiting, being
the inventor of the center draft walking plow. Two years later Mr.
Whiting sold his interest in the concern and the name was changed to
the J. I. Case Plow Company, which remained the firm style until
1884, when the business was reorganized, the capital increased and
the name changed to the J. I. Case Plow Works. In 1890 J. I. Case
withdrew from the business and his son, Jackson I. Case, succeeded
him as president of the company and held that office for two Years.
In 1892, however,
H. M. Wallis, who became general manager of the business in
1885, was made president and treasurer and he is still serving as
chief executive of the corporation. The other officers are:
William Sobey, vice president;
Louis N. Burns, secretary and general sales manager; and
William M. La Venture, treasurer. The company is now one of the
largest independent implement concerns in the world and its products
are sold from the Atlantic to the Pacific, from Canada to the Gulf
of Mexico, throughout the Dominion and in other foreign countries.
The company employs over six hundred men, all of them skilled
mechanics who are expert in their particular work, and there is a
system of rigid inspection which begins when the raw material is
brought into the factory and which is continued until the completed
tool is pronounced worthy of the "Plow in Hand" trademark, which has
become associated in the minds of dealers and farmers with the
highest quality possible in farm implements. If at any stage of the
process of manufacture poor material or faulty workmanship is found
the implement is rejected, for the slogan "Quality goes in before
the name goes on" is the actual standard of work in the company's
factory. Source: Racine, Belle City of the lakes, and Racine County, Wisconsin : a record of settlement, organization, progress and achievement; Chicago: S. J. Clarke Pub. Co., 1916, 1216 pgs. |
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