Evolving with the Times
From Street Sprinkling Wagons to Outboard Motors
From the manufacture of street sprinkling wagons to the manufacture of outboard motors is quite a transition, but a South Bend, Indiana, company, through many reorganization, made such a switch in the forty years between 1880 and the early 1920s.
William H. Miller was born August 21, 1838 at Portage Prairie in St. Joseph County, Indiana. He was well educated, having attended Wabash College in Crawfordsville, Indiana and Miami College (now Miami University) in Oxford, Ohio each for a year. He originally intended upon a law career, but became interested in the planing mill business, first as Defrees & Miller, then Miller & Marsh, then as William H. Miller & Company when his father joined him in business in 1873. He then left South Bend for some years, going first to Fon du Lac, Wisconsin and then to St. Louis, Missouri.
In St. Louis he had a contract to do street sprinkling, and developed an improved sprinkler wagon. In 1880 Miller returned to south Bend and is supposed to have engaged in the manufacture of street sprinklers. The location of this business is not known since the city directories only list Millers residence during the 1880s.
In 1889 Miller became associated with John C. Knoblock and his son Otto Knoblock. On July 23, 1890 the Miller-Knoblock Wagon Company was organized. In addition to the Knoblocks and Miller, the fourth organizer was Frederick C. Bowman who signed the Articles of Incorporation in Albany, New York but who is listed in the 1891 city directory as living in South Bend.
The Knoblocks were engaged in a number of manufacturing operations in South Bend. The most important of these was the South Bend Chilled Plow Company, of which the elder Knoblock had been president and his son, Otto, treasurer. They were also associated with the Knoblock-Ginz Milling Company and the St. Joseph Valley Savings Bank. The Knoblocks left the South Bend Chilled Plow Company in 1890.
The Miller-Knoblock Wagon Company shops were located on South High Street at Wenger. The 1891 Sandborn map shows a T-shaped brick building with a two-story front and the woodworking shops and painting shops in the rear of the building. The company manufactured a variety of wagons, in addition to sprinkling wagons, but concentrated on heavy utility wagons. One local newspaper reported that Miller-Knoblock had built the heaviest known wagon to carry cables for the Cleveland City Cable Railway. For the Worlds Columbian Exposition of 1893, Miller-Knoblock exhibited two sprinkling wagons and two beer wagons.
The company appears to have had steady growth through the 1890s. The plant was improved with the addition of electric power and lights by 1899 and two warehouses and a separate paint shop were constructed. One of the original incorporators, Fred Bowman, left the company in 1892 to join Studebakers sprinkler department. Horace Greely Miller, Williams brother, who had been a Studebaker salesman, replaced him.
However, in 1900 the company reorganized, as the Miller-Knoblock Electric Manufacturing Company, and switched to making other products. No real evidence has been found as to why the company switched, but it is believed they sold the sprinkling business to the Studebaker company. The company continued in the same buildings as the old Miller-Knoblock Wagon Company, but instead began producing electric magnetos. It was reported in one source that a Miller-Knoblock magneto was a part of the engine in the Wright brothers first airplane.
George Heideman came to South Bend in 1903 and on October 14, 1904 Miller-Knoblock was reorganized as the Knoblock-Heideman Manufacturing Company. George Heideman had previously worked for a company manufacturing telephone equipment in Chicago.
John C. Knoblock died in 1906 and William Miller died in 1909. Horace Miller had not been active in the business since being named postmaster of South Bend several years earlier. The primary officers of the company were Otto Knoblock and George Heideman.
About 1909, Knoblock-Heideman left the old wagon plant on High Street and moved to the 800 block of East Sample Street near the St. Joseph River. George Heideman invented a flywheel magneto about 1912 that, according to his obituary, achieved wide use on outboard motors and internal combustion engines. Other information about Knoblock-Heideman products has not been found.
Otto Knoblock left South Bend for Chicago, Illinois for three years about 1918 through 1921. George Heideman became a foreman and superintendent at Studebaker for six years, and then went into the insurance business. The Quick Action Ignition Company bought out the Knoblock-Heideman Manufacturing Company. Eventually, the Quick Action Ignition Company became tied with the Johnson Motor Wheel Company that became Johnson Motors, the makers of marine engines.
From Street Sprinkling Wagons to Outboard Motors
From the manufacture of street sprinkling wagons to the manufacture of outboard motors is quite a transition, but a South Bend, Indiana, company, through many reorganization, made such a switch in the forty years between 1880 and the early 1920s.
William H. Miller was born August 21, 1838 at Portage Prairie in St. Joseph County, Indiana. He was well educated, having attended Wabash College in Crawfordsville, Indiana and Miami College (now Miami University) in Oxford, Ohio each for a year. He originally intended upon a law career, but became interested in the planing mill business, first as Defrees & Miller, then Miller & Marsh, then as William H. Miller & Company when his father joined him in business in 1873. He then left South Bend for some years, going first to Fon du Lac, Wisconsin and then to St. Louis, Missouri.
In St. Louis he had a contract to do street sprinkling, and developed an improved sprinkler wagon. In 1880 Miller returned to south Bend and is supposed to have engaged in the manufacture of street sprinklers. The location of this business is not known since the city directories only list Millers residence during the 1880s.
In 1889 Miller became associated with John C. Knoblock and his son Otto Knoblock. On July 23, 1890 the Miller-Knoblock Wagon Company was organized. In addition to the Knoblocks and Miller, the fourth organizer was Frederick C. Bowman who signed the Articles of Incorporation in Albany, New York but who is listed in the 1891 city directory as living in South Bend.
The Knoblocks were engaged in a number of manufacturing operations in South Bend. The most important of these was the South Bend Chilled Plow Company, of which the elder Knoblock had been president and his son, Otto, treasurer. They were also associated with the Knoblock-Ginz Milling Company and the St. Joseph Valley Savings Bank. The Knoblocks left the South Bend Chilled Plow Company in 1890.
The Miller-Knoblock Wagon Company shops were located on South High Street at Wenger. The 1891 Sandborn map shows a T-shaped brick building with a two-story front and the woodworking shops and painting shops in the rear of the building. The company manufactured a variety of wagons, in addition to sprinkling wagons, but concentrated on heavy utility wagons. One local newspaper reported that Miller-Knoblock had built the heaviest known wagon to carry cables for the Cleveland City Cable Railway. For the Worlds Columbian Exposition of 1893, Miller-Knoblock exhibited two sprinkling wagons and two beer wagons.
The company appears to have had steady growth through the 1890s. The plant was improved with the addition of electric power and lights by 1899 and two warehouses and a separate paint shop were constructed. One of the original incorporators, Fred Bowman, left the company in 1892 to join Studebakers sprinkler department. Horace Greely Miller, Williams brother, who had been a Studebaker salesman, replaced him.
However, in 1900 the company reorganized, as the Miller-Knoblock Electric Manufacturing Company, and switched to making other products. No real evidence has been found as to why the company switched, but it is believed they sold the sprinkling business to the Studebaker company. The company continued in the same buildings as the old Miller-Knoblock Wagon Company, but instead began producing electric magnetos. It was reported in one source that a Miller-Knoblock magneto was a part of the engine in the Wright brothers first airplane.
George Heideman came to South Bend in 1903 and on October 14, 1904 Miller-Knoblock was reorganized as the Knoblock-Heideman Manufacturing Company. George Heideman had previously worked for a company manufacturing telephone equipment in Chicago.
John C. Knoblock died in 1906 and William Miller died in 1909. Horace Miller had not been active in the business since being named postmaster of South Bend several years earlier. The primary officers of the company were Otto Knoblock and George Heideman.
About 1909, Knoblock-Heideman left the old wagon plant on High Street and moved to the 800 block of East Sample Street near the St. Joseph River. George Heideman invented a flywheel magneto about 1912 that, according to his obituary, achieved wide use on outboard motors and internal combustion engines. Other information about Knoblock-Heideman products has not been found.
Otto Knoblock left South Bend for Chicago, Illinois for three years about 1918 through 1921. George Heideman became a foreman and superintendent at Studebaker for six years, and then went into the insurance business. The Quick Action Ignition Company bought out the Knoblock-Heideman Manufacturing Company. Eventually, the Quick Action Ignition Company became tied with the Johnson Motor Wheel Company that became Johnson Motors, the makers of marine engines.
Evolving with the Times
From Street Sprinkling Wagons to Outboard Motors
From the manufacture of street sprinkling wagons to the manufacture of outboard motors is quite a transition, but a South Bend, Indiana, company, through many reorganization, made such a switch in the forty years between 1880 and the early 1920s.
William H. Miller was born August 21, 1838 at Portage Prairie in St. Joseph County, Indiana. He was well educated, having attended Wabash College in Crawfordsville, Indiana and Miami College (now Miami University) in Oxford, Ohio each for a year. He originally intended upon a law career, but became interested in the planing mill business, first as Defrees & Miller, then Miller & Marsh, then as William H. Miller & Company when his father joined him in business in 1873. He then left South Bend for some years, going first to Fon du Lac, Wisconsin and then to St. Louis, Missouri.
In St. Louis he had a contract to do street sprinkling, and developed an improved sprinkler wagon. In 1880 Miller returned to south Bend and is supposed to have engaged in the manufacture of street sprinklers. The location of this business is not known since the city directories only list Millers residence during the 1880s.
In 1889 Miller became associated with John C. Knoblock and his son Otto Knoblock. On July 23, 1890 the Miller-Knoblock Wagon Company was organized. In addition to the Knoblocks and Miller, the fourth organizer was Frederick C. Bowman who signed the Articles of Incorporation in Albany, New York but who is listed in the 1891 city directory as living in South Bend.
The Knoblocks were engaged in a number of manufacturing operations in South Bend. The most important of these was the South Bend Chilled Plow Company, of which the elder Knoblock had been president and his son, Otto, treasurer. They were also associated with the Knoblock-Ginz Milling Company and the St. Joseph Valley Savings Bank. The Knoblocks left the South Bend Chilled Plow Company in 1890.
The Miller-Knoblock Wagon Company shops were located on South High Street at Wenger. The 1891 Sandborn map shows a T-shaped brick building with a two-story front and the woodworking shops and painting shops in the rear of the building. The company manufactured a variety of wagons, in addition to sprinkling wagons, but concentrated on heavy utility wagons. One local newspaper reported that Miller-Knoblock had built the heaviest known wagon to carry cables for the Cleveland City Cable Railway. For the Worlds Columbian Exposition of 1893, Miller-Knoblock exhibited two sprinkling wagons and two beer wagons.
The company appears to have had steady growth through the 1890s. The plant was improved with the addition of electric power and lights by 1899 and two warehouses and a separate paint shop were constructed. One of the original incorporators, Fred Bowman, left the company in 1892 to join Studebakers sprinkler department. Horace Greely Miller, Williams brother, who had been a Studebaker salesman, replaced him.
However, in 1900 the company reorganized, as the Miller-Knoblock Electric Manufacturing Company, and switched to making other products. No real evidence has been found as to why the company switched, but it is believed they sold the sprinkling business to the Studebaker company. The company continued in the same buildings as the old Miller-Knoblock Wagon Company, but instead began producing electric magnetos. It was reported in one source that a Miller-Knoblock magneto was a part of the engine in the Wright brothers first airplane.
George Heideman came to South Bend in 1903 and on October 14, 1904 Miller-Knoblock was reorganized as the Knoblock-Heideman Manufacturing Company. George Heideman had previously worked for a company manufacturing telephone equipment in Chicago.
John C. Knoblock died in 1906 and William Miller died in 1909. Horace Miller had not been active in the business since being named postmaster of South Bend several years earlier. The primary officers of the company were Otto Knoblock and George Heideman.
About 1909, Knoblock-Heideman left the old wagon plant on High Street and moved to the 800 block of East Sample Street near the St. Joseph River. George Heideman invented a flywheel magneto about 1912 that, according to his obituary, achieved wide use on outboard motors and internal combustion engines. Other information about Knoblock-Heideman products has not been found.
Otto Knoblock left South Bend for Chicago, Illinois for three years about 1918 through 1921. George Heideman became a foreman and superintendent at Studebaker for six years, and then went into the insurance business. The Quick Action Ignition Company bought out the Knoblock-Heideman Manufacturing Company. Eventually, the Quick Action Ignition Company became tied with the Johnson Motor Wheel Company that became Johnson Motors, the makers of marine engines.
From Street Sprinkling Wagons to Outboard Motors
From the manufacture of street sprinkling wagons to the manufacture of outboard motors is quite a transition, but a South Bend, Indiana, company, through many reorganization, made such a switch in the forty years between 1880 and the early 1920s.
William H. Miller was born August 21, 1838 at Portage Prairie in St. Joseph County, Indiana. He was well educated, having attended Wabash College in Crawfordsville, Indiana and Miami College (now Miami University) in Oxford, Ohio each for a year. He originally intended upon a law career, but became interested in the planing mill business, first as Defrees & Miller, then Miller & Marsh, then as William H. Miller & Company when his father joined him in business in 1873. He then left South Bend for some years, going first to Fon du Lac, Wisconsin and then to St. Louis, Missouri.
In St. Louis he had a contract to do street sprinkling, and developed an improved sprinkler wagon. In 1880 Miller returned to south Bend and is supposed to have engaged in the manufacture of street sprinklers. The location of this business is not known since the city directories only list Millers residence during the 1880s.
In 1889 Miller became associated with John C. Knoblock and his son Otto Knoblock. On July 23, 1890 the Miller-Knoblock Wagon Company was organized. In addition to the Knoblocks and Miller, the fourth organizer was Frederick C. Bowman who signed the Articles of Incorporation in Albany, New York but who is listed in the 1891 city directory as living in South Bend.
The Knoblocks were engaged in a number of manufacturing operations in South Bend. The most important of these was the South Bend Chilled Plow Company, of which the elder Knoblock had been president and his son, Otto, treasurer. They were also associated with the Knoblock-Ginz Milling Company and the St. Joseph Valley Savings Bank. The Knoblocks left the South Bend Chilled Plow Company in 1890.
The Miller-Knoblock Wagon Company shops were located on South High Street at Wenger. The 1891 Sandborn map shows a T-shaped brick building with a two-story front and the woodworking shops and painting shops in the rear of the building. The company manufactured a variety of wagons, in addition to sprinkling wagons, but concentrated on heavy utility wagons. One local newspaper reported that Miller-Knoblock had built the heaviest known wagon to carry cables for the Cleveland City Cable Railway. For the Worlds Columbian Exposition of 1893, Miller-Knoblock exhibited two sprinkling wagons and two beer wagons.
The company appears to have had steady growth through the 1890s. The plant was improved with the addition of electric power and lights by 1899 and two warehouses and a separate paint shop were constructed. One of the original incorporators, Fred Bowman, left the company in 1892 to join Studebakers sprinkler department. Horace Greely Miller, Williams brother, who had been a Studebaker salesman, replaced him.
However, in 1900 the company reorganized, as the Miller-Knoblock Electric Manufacturing Company, and switched to making other products. No real evidence has been found as to why the company switched, but it is believed they sold the sprinkling business to the Studebaker company. The company continued in the same buildings as the old Miller-Knoblock Wagon Company, but instead began producing electric magnetos. It was reported in one source that a Miller-Knoblock magneto was a part of the engine in the Wright brothers first airplane.
George Heideman came to South Bend in 1903 and on October 14, 1904 Miller-Knoblock was reorganized as the Knoblock-Heideman Manufacturing Company. George Heideman had previously worked for a company manufacturing telephone equipment in Chicago.
John C. Knoblock died in 1906 and William Miller died in 1909. Horace Miller had not been active in the business since being named postmaster of South Bend several years earlier. The primary officers of the company were Otto Knoblock and George Heideman.
About 1909, Knoblock-Heideman left the old wagon plant on High Street and moved to the 800 block of East Sample Street near the St. Joseph River. George Heideman invented a flywheel magneto about 1912 that, according to his obituary, achieved wide use on outboard motors and internal combustion engines. Other information about Knoblock-Heideman products has not been found.
Otto Knoblock left South Bend for Chicago, Illinois for three years about 1918 through 1921. George Heideman became a foreman and superintendent at Studebaker for six years, and then went into the insurance business. The Quick Action Ignition Company bought out the Knoblock-Heideman Manufacturing Company. Eventually, the Quick Action Ignition Company became tied with the Johnson Motor Wheel Company that became Johnson Motors, the makers of marine engines.
Family Members
Sponsored by Ancestry
Advertisement
Advertisement
