When ‘Wash Day’ and Maytag Were Synonymous

By Clell G. Ballard
Published on April 3, 2017
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Early Maytags had a simple clutch rod on the right front leg.
Early Maytags had a simple clutch rod on the right front leg.
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All Maytag washers had a serial number clearly stamped on the top front corner of the tub. The lowest number on the washers I found was 528,169; the highest was 844,249.
All Maytag washers had a serial number clearly stamped on the top front corner of the tub. The lowest number on the washers I found was 528,169; the highest was 844,249.
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Later models had a clutch rod with a knob and indicator on the left front leg.
Later models had a clutch rod with a knob and indicator on the left front leg.
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The vaned agitator was the heart of the washer. This one was apparently used for target practice on an abandoned farm site.
The vaned agitator was the heart of the washer. This one was apparently used for target practice on an abandoned farm site.
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If you are looking for an old Maytag washer, you might find one like this in a tumble-down farm outbuilding.
If you are looking for an old Maytag washer, you might find one like this in a tumble-down farm outbuilding.
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We prepared this breakfast recently on a Maytag washing machine lid over a campfire.
We prepared this breakfast recently on a Maytag washing machine lid over a campfire.

The one name that immediately comes to mind when there is a discussion about washing clothes in the early days is Maytag. Through the years there were many, many attempts to mechanize the home laundry process, but it wasn’t until the second decade of the 1900s that one washing machine basically became the standard.

In 1924, one of every five washing machines sold in the U.S. was the square aluminum Maytag with its revolutionary vaned agitator and powered wringer.

There are probably hundreds of people who know more about early Maytag washing machines than I do. However, only a few have spent more time actually using one. Raised in a family with two older brothers, we “youngsters” were expected to step in and do jobs as soon as we were old enough. We often complained we were the only boys in our small town with dishpan hands. We took our turns in front of the sink as soon as we were tall enough to see over it while standing on a stool made specially for that purpose.

You have to be at least 50 years old to know that Monday was washday. Ask younger people what Mondays were special for and they will look at you with blank stares. Every Monday, the washing machine and two galvanized washing tubs took center stage in our kitchen. All were filled with water and the weekly laundry process commenced, aided by reluctant small male helpers.

Old Maytag still on the job in the 1980s

When my parents got married in the 1930s, they bought a white porcelain Kenmore washer. By the time I came along, that had worn out and my mother reverted to the square Maytag washer that had been used on the farm where she grew up. Originally it had a gasoline engine (electricity had not yet arrived on the farm). It was later converted to an electric engine so it could be used in the kitchen instead of outside on the porch, where it was originally used. (If there is a guard over the drive belt, it was manufactured with an electric engine. If the drive belt is exposed – like on ours – it had been converted from the original gasoline engine.)

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