Peoria County, Illinois
Genealogy Trails
Manufacturing
Button Manufactory
Source: History of Peoria 1880.
-Hurd & Co., on S. Adams Street, near Elm Street, manufacture all kinds of ivory buttons. They have been in business since 1874, average 35 hands employed the year round, and turn out 150 gross of buttons per day. The buttons are made from a substance called vegetable ivory, which is the fruit of a palm indigenous to South America, and is received at the factory in its natural state, there to undergo the various processes of husking, drying, cutting, etc., necessary to the production of a finished button. The firm have all the work they can do, and the orders ahead are accumulating fast. [Transcribed by: Yvonne! Thanks Yvonne]
Candle and Lard Oil Manufacturers
Source: History of Peoria 1880.- John F. Faber & Co., Commercial Alley, between Fulton and Liberty Streets, have been in business about fourteen years. Manufacture about 500 boxes candles per annum, render a great deal of tallow, and cured about 900 hides in the past year. Has accommodations for making 500 boxes candles per month, and one barrel of lard oil per day. All his goods re made for the local trade. Business last year amounted to about $25,000.
-F.C. Koenig & Co., 107 Clay Street, have been established about twenty-five years, and make about 600 boxes candles a year, all of which are sold in the city. Render about fifty barrels of tallow, and cure 300 hides per month. Did a business last year of about $35,000. [Transcribed by: Yvonne! Thanks Yvonne]
Furniture Manufacturers
Source: History of Peoria 1880.
-The only furniture manufacturers in the county are Comstock & Avery, whose warehouse is at 114 to 120 Main Street. The business was established in 1862, and has been conducted under the present firm name since 1868. They manufacture all kinds of furniture, but make a specialty of parlor furniture, and also manufacture Shaw's Patent Reclining Chair. With the exception of the Reclining Chair, the business is an entirely local one. The warerooms are three stories in height, and are filled with furniture, worth the plant upwards of $50,000. The parlor furniture is manufactured in workshops in rear of the warehouse, and the other articles of furniture at various shops in the city. Twenty-five workmen are steadily employed. The business of the firm last year amounted to about $125,000. [Transcribed by: Yvonne! Thanks Yvonne]
Peoria Starch Manufactory
Source: History of Peoria 1880.
-This institution, which is quite an important feature of the manufacturing interests of the city, went into active operation in the Fall of 1865, with George F. HARDING as president and Mr. E.S. WILCOX superintendent and general manager. The buildings were located near the river, about two miles south of the Courthouse. The factory started with a capacity of 150 bushels of corn per day. January 1, 1878, Mr. Wilcox retired from the management, and Mr. C.A. HARDING succeeded him. He increased the capacity to 600 bushels of corn per day, and at the time of the burning of the factory, November 14, 1879, it was turning out 16,000 pounds of starch daily. Although losing very heavily by the fire, a new building, on a much larger scale, is arising out of the ashes of the old one, and is far advanced in course of construction. When completed it will be a fine brick structure covering an area of more than 30,000 square feet of ground, and will have a capacity of 1,500 bushels of corn per day. Machinery will also be put in for making the boxes used for packing their goods. The factory, when ready for operation, will give employment to 100 hands. The Peoria starch is well known throughout the United States and parts of Europe, and compares favorably with the best starches made in the world.
[Transcribed by: Yvonne! Thanks Yvonne]
Manufacturing Pharmacists
Source: History of Peoria 1880.- Allaire, Woodward & Co., 100 to 106 Hamilton Street, have been engaged in this business since 1873. They manufacture fluid and solid medical extracts, sugar coated pills, and grind, powder, and press all kinds of staple Botanic drugs. Make no patent medicines. They ship their goods to Europe, Australia and to every State and Territory in the Union. About 400,000 pounds of roots and herbs were manipulated by them during last year, and their sales aggregated $70,000. The domestic roots, etc., come from the Southern States, and a great part of them from North Carolina. Their business has increased 43 percent in the past year, and their present factory is becoming too small to keep pace with it. About forty hands are kept steadily employed, and a change to more commodious quarters will soon be made.
[Transcribed by: Yvonne! Thanks Yvonne]
Pump Manufacturers
Source: History of Peoria 1880.-This industry is represented by J.W. Frazee & Co., whose office and factory is on the corner of S. Water and Chestnut Streets. They have been in business about sixteen years, manufacture wood, chain, and rubber bottom pumps, and turned out last year about 10,000 pumps of various kinds, using in their manufacture nearly 750,000 feet of lumber. They also manufacture extensively all kinds of wood tubing, and have the capacity for making 100 pumps in ten hours with ease. An average of twelve hands are employed, and $30,000 is invested in the business. This is the only pump manufactory at present in operation in the city.
[Transcribed by: Yvonne! Thanks Yvonne]
Show Case Manufacturer
Source: History of Peoria 1880.- The only dealer in this class of goods in Peoria is John R. Zeigler, 215 Hamilton Street, who commenced their manufacture in 1864. He also deals extensively in plate glass and keeps a large stock of both crystal and French plate glass. Employs four hands in shop, and during the last year did a business of about $44,000.[Transcribed by: Yvonne! Thanks Yvonne]
Twine and Cordage Manufacturer
Source: History of Peoria 1880.- William BERGNER, 1612 S. Adams Street, has manufactured twine and cordage at this location for four years, and has great facilities for production.[Transcribed by: Yvonne! Thanks Yvonne]
Yeast Manufacturers
Source: History of Peoria 1880.
- A BRANCH OF THE Waterloo Yeast Company of Waterloo, New York, established in 1853, was started in Peoria in the Spring of 1873, for the purpose of more conveniently supplying the western trade with the "Twin Brothers Dry Hop Yeast". The branch is under the charge of Mr. W. A. STRATTON, employs fifteen hands and turns out daily about 5,000 packages of twelve cakes each.
- Whitton & Co., 114 Fulton Street, manufacture "Mrs. Messinger's Dry Hop Yeast", have been in business about a year, keep four hands employed and turn out about 1,000 cakes per day.
[Transcribed by: Yvonne! Thanks Yvonne]
Peoria County, IL Genealogy Trails
County Coordinator: Candi Horton © 2007
Genealogy Trails History Group is a Volunteer Organization Dedicated to
providing FREE access to Historical and Genealogical Data.
© 2006 - 2007 by
Genealogy
Trails - All Rights Reserved - With full rights reserved for original
submitters.