LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Rototiller history correction
I am not sure where you got the information for the "Roots of the Rototiller" in the SIMAR article (Farm Collector, February 2003), but according to Gardening Beyond the Plow, by Garden Way, it is flawed.
H.B. Hiller, of Siemens, came to the U.S. and offered a distributorship to C.W. Kelsey around 1930. Kelsey accepted and rented office space on Broadway in New York and started the Rototiller Co. In 1932, Kelsey took on a SIMAR distributor-ship, moved to a warehouse in Long Island City, N.Y., and incorporated his business as Rototiller.
- Charlie Zuck, 478 Prospect Road, Elizabethtown, PA 17022
Threshing machine question
-Gary Bailey, Box 301, La Veta, CO 81055
Corn sheller/ burr mill query
I would like information about what company manufactured this combination corn sheller and burr mill. It is of cast iron construction throughout the structure. I am also looking for the inside burr, which is missing.
-Quentin Oase, P.O. Box 97, Reeder, ND 58649; e-mail: oase@ctctel.com
Studebaker heirlooms
We enjoyed reading Sam Moore's stories on the Studebaker firm, in part because we have two family heirlooms associated with that company. One is an elegant, 100-year-old lap robe, in perfect condition, that was made by Studebaker. It's about 4 by 5 feet in size, weighs a ton and is made of what looks like thick mohair. It's all black on one side and has a very intricate design on the other side. I can't even describe the design, it's so unusual, but it's mottled and makes me think of an animal. In addition to the design, the Studebaker logo is sewn right into the mohair. The robe was given to my mother, who passed it on to me, by a very dear, old neighbor who had a trading post and saddle shop in Spokane, Wash., in the early days of that city.
Our other Studebaker treasure is a photograph of John Mohler Studebaker, who was the youngest of the firm's founding brothers and the most long-lived. The photo belonged to my father. He had it for as long as I can remember, and I am 71, but I don't know where he got it.
Both items are displayed every year at the Spokane Interstate Fair held in September. Thanks for a great story!