Letters to the Editor
Reprinted from "INSULATORS - Crown Jewels of the Wire", February 1985, page 26
Dora,
I just recently picked up a very interesting item that I thought you and the
readers might be interested in. Am enclosing a photo copy for you. It's a neat
little Hemingray trade card, and probably dates from the turn of the century.
A few years back I saw another Hemingray trade card, but can't remember
exactly what it looked like.
Finding old catalogs, letterheads, envelopes, and other related material from
insulator manufacturers is pretty tough, and I thought this one, with the
illustration, was especially nice. The guy I got this one from said it was found
with several others in a bookstore. Apparently they belonged to a salesman or
representative and were never used. Needless to say, I purchased a number of
them, as I felt certain other collectors would want them, especially to go with
displays at shows.
I have a fairly large collection of insulator, glass company, and telegraph
related paper, and have copies of items in other collections, so I'll be sending
a couple articles on collecting these items in the near future for the enjoyment
of the readers.
Trying to assemble a collection of insulators embossed with a name on them
with a matching trade card, letterhead or other paper collectible is a real
challenge, and I think would make an interesting display at a show. There are
lots of possibilities, matching glass with paper from glass companies, telegraph
supply houses, or the telegraph, telephone and electric companies themselves.
Will be sending more to you shortly. Happy collecting to all in insulator
land.
Ray Klingensmith
Dear Dora,
Found this old picture I took in North China in 1945. Notice the
eight crossarms with the insulators. Wood of any kind was rare at that time. The
poles were steel reinforced concrete and the crossarms were metal. The Chinese
lineman I saw climbing this pole later was using two small platforms with a rope
loop. Sure did look funny, but he was just as fast as we were on wooden poles
and standard climbers.
George J. Welch
Cincinnati, Ohio
Dear Dora,
It was a great honour as well as a great pleasure to have a
visit from Marilyn and Bill Albers. What a wonderful and charming couple they
are. With such people as that in the insulator collecting world I count myself
lucky to "belong". I look forward to my copy of Crown Jewels
and I think you do a very find job. I enclose a few photographs of mine never
published, which may be of use to you some time.
Yours sincerely,
W. Keith Neal
Editor's note: See picture below entitled "Langdons are
Where You Find Them!". Keith says these were still around near
Stoke-on-Trent in 1960. Also see cover photo. Thank you, Keith.
Cover photo by W. Keith Neal -- largest size Langdon, triple shed of
porcelain, made
around 1900 by Taylor, Tunnicliff & Co., blackened by smoke of passing
locomotives.
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