Collection Underscores Pump's Importance to Early Farms
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Biggest pump
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People collect things for many reasons. But for Bob Emery, who collects pumps, the motivation for his collection is, simply, function.
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'In their times, these pumps were really important,' he says. 'Every farm and every home had one.'
The Emery household in rural Carlinville, Ill., is a pump showcase, starting at the front yard. The family's mailbox is attached to a pump, and a pump is used as a lawn ornament.
Bob, a carpenter, started collecting pumps about four years ago. He's an avid collector.
'Lots of pumps are in pieces, and I always give away duplicates,' he says. 'I buy and restore them.'
His collection consists of 20 big pumps and a dozen smaller ones. Most were made during the 1920s. All have been restored and repainted.
The collection is displayed in a basement museum that consists of a work area, study and display area. The piece that started the collection is also the most unusual, Bob says. Manufactured by the Peters company, it has two cylinders. His collection includes pieces made by Blue Star, Wistrand, Hayes Pump and Planter, F.E. Meyers Brothers (Ashland, Ohio), and several Red Jackets.
Different styles of pumps were popular in different parts of the country. The selection available at the local hardware store had a lot to do with it.
'They pushed what they had good luck with,' he says.
Differing geography also played a role.
The rocky terrain in Arkansas led to development of a unique model that Bob refers to as an 'Arkansas bucket.' Because it's difficult to dig a well in that rocky land, early settlers just sank a pipe into the ground. The Arkansas bucket looks like a stove pipe. Dropped into the pipe, the metal tube holds about the equivalent of a traditional bucket.
Bob's oldest pump - a 'post pump' -was originally used by pioneers on the prairie. The post pump was made from a hollowed-out post. The pump's handle and spout are made of metal.
Another pump in his collection - a chain pump (or water elevator) - came from Missouri. That pump was used mostly on cisterns, he says. The transfer pump was used to pump water from creeks into steam tractors. Although many early-day threshing machines depended on water wagons, the transfer pump provided an alternative water source.
Several of the pumps in his collection are multi-functional. The upright bar could be hooked to a windmill or a pump jack.
'The windmills would pump the water,' he says. 'They were engaged by a lever used to pump water into the tank.'
Force pumps were used in homes to force water up the pipe connected to the water closet. The 'full body' pump is one that doesn't have exposed pipe, like a pump made by the Monitor company, for instance. The smallest pumps in his collection are the pitcher pumps.