New Businesses by Pete Zizka 4-27-2024

It doesn’t take a lot of searching on the Internet to find a wealth of information about the history of the Willimantic-Windham area. An amazing amount of printed material is available and can be downloaded and used freely since the copyrights have long since expired. One book I came across recently was published in 1890 and was filled with lengthy advertisements for local businesses in Willimantic and Colchester. What is especially intriguing about the book is to see what types of businesses prevailed at that time compared to today and to see what was being said about things we take for granted today but were very new to folks living in 1890. For example, the ad for the Willimantic Electric Light Company provides some interesting information about electricity use at the time. “Scientific men predict that cooking and heating will be done by gas in the future…” Electricity was being used only for lighting since appliances hadn’t yet been thought of.  “After the introduction of the electric light, it soon became manifest that … incandescent lighting was peculiarly fitted for interior use.” In 1890, most homes were still lit by candles or gaslight. By 1910 only about 15% of homes had electricity and those that had it were wired only for lighting. In 1890, the number of customers in Willimantic was rapidly increasing and the city itself now had 50 street lights and 32 lights being used for “commercial lighting”. The “dynamos” for producing electricity were located in the Morrison Machine Company building but a new station was “being contemplated”. The company claimed that its service was “uniformly reliable” and would give excellent satisfaction to its users.   “Since electricity was first put to regular commercial use for illuminating purposes in this country, the public have become thoroughly familiar with its most prominent characteristics, and are favorably impressed by them”. In 1890, radiators, steam heating and indoor plumbing were not yet common  and so the Vanderman Company advertised its goods and services.. “It is far better to have no plumbing at all in a house than to have what plumbing there is improperly done, and the same thing may be said concerning steam heating or hot water apparatus”. The ad went on to let people know how fortunate they were to have the Vanderman Company. “He makes a specialty of first-class plumbing and low-pressure steam and hot water heating, and those wishing proof of his ability to satisfy the most critical in this kind of work are respectfully referred to Vanderman's work”. In 1890, Vanderman was located on Church Street and had about 15 employees. In 1892, he built a new three story workshop and factory at 152 Valley Street and in 1899 expanded his business by adding another foundry to Mansfield Avenue. He also maintained a shop in Putnam. Yet another fairly new concept was the commercial laundry. People did their washing at home and hung their clothes outside to dry. The Maverick Laundry began a year before the ad book was published and its ad attempted to dispel what must have been a popular belief. “The public has long since discovered that the cock-and-bull stories circulated by certain interested parties, calculated to convey the impression that goods entrusted to a public laundry would be soon destroyed, was entirely unworthy of credence for however it may be with other concerns the Maverick Steam Laundry employs no agents nor machines that could possibly harm the articles laundried (sic) by them.” Maverick, though, must have been doing well because after only a year, “(T)he fine character of the work turned out became known, and it was learned that the prices were as reasonable as the work was satisfactory, a large patronage was accorded the proprietor”. Maverick provided both free pickup and delivery and, “orders by postal card, or otherwise, delivered, will receive prompt attention. Finally, although the business was nothing new, the concept of its all-woman ownership must have been since the ad was entitled “Ladies Store” and started off by saying the name was a double meaning. The store itself was, “devoted expressly to the handling of goods for ladies' use, (and) the proprietors are all ladies.” The actual name of the business was Chase, Barker & Co., “consisting of Mrs. A. H. Chase, Miss A. E. Barker and the Misses Chase, there being four partners altogether.” It was said to have been very popular with the ladies in the area  “so lady patrons may depend upon being served by ladies —an advantage the importance of which our readers will readily understand”.

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