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Aiw
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Username: Aiw

Post Number: 5617
Registered: 10-2003
Posted From: 64.228.197.51
Posted on Wednesday, June 14, 2006 - 7:08 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Parducci's on the Southwest side - P.D.J.
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Bvos
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Username: Bvos

Post Number: 1506
Registered: 10-2003
Posted From: 66.238.170.51
Posted on Wednesday, June 14, 2006 - 8:49 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Electrograph (def):

-Electrical device used for etching by electrolytic means

-An apparatus for the electrical transmission of pictures.

http://www.wordreference.com/d efinition/electrograph


http://www.answers.com/topic/e lectrograph
-An electrically produced graph or tracing.

-Equipment used to produce such a graph or tracing in facsimile transmission


There's an Electro-Graph company founded in 1979. I don't quite understand what they do but here's the company's website:

http://www.egraph.com/co_info/ co_info.html


There's also another company called Electrograph that sells plasma TVs and other electronics, but that was founded in 1982.

http://www.electrograph.com/de fault.aspx?id=000&hid=9FA5486E 4602C3B63C4313BD1DC4C18E

The state shows an Electrograph company, but it's a foreign company. So likely it was bought out a while ago by some Japanese or Chinese electronics maker.

http://www.dleg.state.mi.us/bc s_corp/dt_corp.asp?id_nbr=6214 04&name_entity=ELECTROGRAPHIC% 20CORPORATION
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Rustic
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Username: Rustic

Post Number: 2545
Registered: 10-2003
Posted From: 130.132.177.245
Posted on Wednesday, June 14, 2006 - 8:54 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I suspect the Electrograph Company made a precursor to the FAX machine.
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Rustic
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Username: Rustic

Post Number: 2546
Registered: 10-2003
Posted From: 130.132.177.245
Posted on Wednesday, June 14, 2006 - 8:59 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

A cursory google search didn't turn anything up but I am fairly certain of it. These machines were used not only for sending images by wire, but they were also used as copy machines and as machines to make mimeograph masters. They were also used for making quick copies of blueprints back in the olden days.
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Bvos
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Username: Bvos

Post Number: 1507
Registered: 10-2003
Posted From: 66.238.170.51
Posted on Wednesday, June 14, 2006 - 9:04 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

You mean to tell me you didn't rumage around in the basement of this building back in the day Rustic? I'm shocked!! I thought you'd have some story about how the crusty old guys behind the counter who founded company helped crack the German code and win the Atlantic theater in WWII. Since the guys wanted to make sure the US kept its technological advantage, they let you have free reign of the place. From those adventures you built several crystal radio sets as well as a primitive fax machine of your own.

Again, highly disappointed Rustic!
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Rustic
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Username: Rustic

Post Number: 2547
Registered: 10-2003
Posted From: 130.132.177.245
Posted on Wednesday, June 14, 2006 - 9:18 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

No BV, if I couldn't ride my bike there and return loaded with goodies it was outside my world as a kid. Ahhh if ONLY my parents bought a house in Delray, imagine all the exploring I coulda done ...

BV, but I DID take apart a few of these machines back in my youth.

If you have a sharp electrode held close to a piece of paper with a metal plate underneath, a spark will burn a small hole in the paper. by carefully moving the electrode you can burn patterns into the paper. There were various versions of this. The most common was a rotating drum holding the paper and the sharp electrode moved laterally (picture how edison's record player at Henry ford museum worked). The spark pattern was determined by a similar arragnement except instead of a sharp electrode there was a photodetector which sent a digital signal to the electrode to spark or not. Pretty clever ... not as elegant as Xerography by MUCH more readily digitized since it is a linear scan.

Back the the olden tymes this sort of machine was used by Police to send fascimille photos by wire (maybe Ray1936 used one back in the 70s sometime you seen them in cop tv shows of that era).

Then again I may be wrong, perhaps the company did some sorta electro "engraving" of metal plates, but I don't think so.

(Message edited by rustic on June 14, 2006)
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1953
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Username: 1953

Post Number: 869
Registered: 12-2004
Posted From: 209.104.146.146
Posted on Wednesday, June 14, 2006 - 9:25 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Great building and great photo.
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Rustic
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Username: Rustic

Post Number: 2548
Registered: 10-2003
Posted From: 130.132.177.245
Posted on Wednesday, June 14, 2006 - 9:31 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

BV, Detroit used to be a real hotbed of techno entrepreneureal innovation well beyond the Auto biz. And even tho it dried up significantly postwar as the Auto biz ossified, it didn't die out completely. For example, if you dropped by this last weekends Estate sale at the nice house on the SW corner of Gainsborough and Warwick you mighta noticed the basement had a full machine shop and some of the machines were 480V (don't ask)! The guy that lived there was a selfemployed serial entrepruneur, he amassed a few dozen patents and maybe a dozen or so start up companies from the 60's-80's. Not bad.

Yay Detroit!
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Aiw
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Username: Aiw

Post Number: 5618
Registered: 10-2003
Posted From: 209.216.150.127
Posted on Wednesday, June 14, 2006 - 10:38 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Rustic,

Wasn't the rotating drum machine a Mimeograph?
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Mallory
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Username: Mallory

Post Number: 20
Registered: 05-2006
Posted From: 207.230.140.240
Posted on Wednesday, June 14, 2006 - 11:02 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Some of your best photos, Aiw!
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Rustic
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Username: Rustic

Post Number: 2549
Registered: 10-2003
Posted From: 128.36.14.154
Posted on Wednesday, June 14, 2006 - 12:34 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

AIW yes the mimeograph was arotating drum machine where the ink was inside the drum and squirted through a stencil master on the outside of the drum onto paper (I believe it was invented by Tomas Edison, tho I might be wrong about that.) Mimeographs along with alcohol based "ditto" machines (if you are over 30 you can remember smelling the ether-ial smell of freshly printed school handouts) for small batch print jobs were rendered obsolete as xerographic printing became more and more commonplace and nowadays with inexpensive personal laserjets and inkjets and scanners, small batch Xerography itself is becoming obsolete.

The electrograph I described above is much different. The spark was used to burn holes for mimeograph masters (stencils) (more commonly mimeograph masters were cut by typewriter keys, but anyway). It could also be used to print onto paper using a variation on thermal printing. This was used to send faxes decades before fax machines became commonplace. I believe it was also used to make onsite copies of blueprint sheets too back in the olden tymes.
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Aiw
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Username: Aiw

Post Number: 5620
Registered: 10-2003
Posted From: 209.216.150.127
Posted on Wednesday, June 14, 2006 - 1:00 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Right, the ditto machine, I remeber those from my early school days... I guess I'm dating my self... :-(

Thanks Rustic.
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Rustic
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Username: Rustic

Post Number: 2550
Registered: 10-2003
Posted From: 128.36.14.154
Posted on Wednesday, June 14, 2006 - 1:35 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

AIW, np. Thanks for sharing the photo. Maybe someone else knows for sure what the company did. I think that Ray1936 said he walked a fort street beat as a cop maybe he knows. Also there are plenty of other Hubbard/Richard saavy forumers who might know more. Also you dangled Parducci bait, unless carptrash is too busy fightin' off hordes of illegal immigrants down in Karl Kuntry he is bond to chime in soon too.
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Aiw
Member
Username: Aiw

Post Number: 5621
Registered: 10-2003
Posted From: 209.216.150.127
Posted on Wednesday, June 14, 2006 - 1:39 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

He's the one who made the positive ID for me.

I heard from Ray the other day, and he's in the middle of moving, and has limited internet access right now. Also this is just West of the Boulevard, so I'm not sure if his beat went that far.

It certainly is out of place architecturally.
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Ravine
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Username: Ravine

Post Number: 152
Registered: 01-2006
Posted From: 69.220.62.66
Posted on Wednesday, June 14, 2006 - 1:49 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Great photos, Aiw. What a building!! How in the hell can it look so good after all this time? I work on Fort. I'm going to have to take a short trip from downtown to check this out. 'Bout how far from downtown?
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Aiw
Member
Username: Aiw

Post Number: 5622
Registered: 10-2003
Posted From: 209.216.150.127
Posted on Wednesday, June 14, 2006 - 2:05 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

It's in the first block west of Grand Boulevard. From downtown, it's probably a 10 minute ride. Heading west, it will be on the south side.

It's well cared for, and taken care of by the Latino Family Services.
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Southwestmap
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Username: Southwestmap

Post Number: 496
Registered: 01-2005
Posted From: 70.229.231.102
Posted on Wednesday, June 14, 2006 - 2:18 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Just around the corner from this building is a beautiful little house with a slate roof in the English style. It seems to be a remnant of high-class times on West Grand Blvd. Does anyone know anything about that house? Also, the little motel on the corner of West Grand and Fort St - seems to be a fairly reputable palce. The owners appear to take pride in the landscaping. etc. Anyone know more about that?
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Ravine
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Username: Ravine

Post Number: 154
Registered: 01-2006
Posted From: 69.220.62.66
Posted on Wednesday, June 14, 2006 - 2:27 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Yeah, well, there goes the unfortunate, unfounded stereotype about Mexicans and Puerto Ricans. That building looks like you could make a sandwich on it, with no fear of microbes of any kind. You know, some of the most fascinating and nice areas I've seen in Detroit are just a stone's throw SW of say, Tiger Stadium. The Unknown Detroit, I suppose we could call it... I'm sure the residents would prefer if it stayed unknown.
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Southwestmap
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Username: Southwestmap

Post Number: 497
Registered: 01-2005
Posted From: 70.229.231.102
Posted on Wednesday, June 14, 2006 - 2:35 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Ravine: speaking of this - I saw a sad thing on Sunday: some African American guys were in a car parked next to a little market on Porter and Junction on Sunday. While I was approaching in my car, the guys threw a lot of trash out of their car onto the (just power-swept) street. A Mexican guy was coming out of the apartment building also on the corner carrying his laundry to the laundromat. He reacted unhappily and said something to the guys in the car about leaving that trash. The guys in the car said something so bad that the Mexican guy stepped back into his building and the car sped away with more trash defiantly spinning out. The Mexican guy came out and picked stuff up. He was probably illegal and so not wanted by us Americans.

The whole thing was a commentary on what our City is and and on what it could become.
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Jjaba
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Username: Jjaba

Post Number: 3893
Registered: 11-2003
Posted From: 67.171.136.201
Posted on Wednesday, June 14, 2006 - 4:05 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Andrew, heading East on Fort St., your building is STILL on the South side of the street.

Why is the bldg. out of place? We have 1930s art deco all over Detroit. This city is one of the Art Deco treasures and books are written about it.

Thanks Andrew. Wonderful pictures and great stewardship and adaptive reuse of a fine bldg. (Other than that huge awful "Latino" sign pasted on the facade.)

jjaba, running his mimeograph machine in the basement for his mother's B'nai Brith Chapter. (1950)
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56packman
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Username: 56packman

Post Number: 365
Registered: 12-2005
Posted From: 65.185.132.134
Posted on Wednesday, June 14, 2006 - 8:43 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Aiw--great shots. You also understand what a true art deco building is, unlike the AIA website
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Islandman
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Username: Islandman

Post Number: 206
Registered: 08-2004
Posted From: 68.42.171.59
Posted on Wednesday, June 14, 2006 - 9:18 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I'm at that building a lot for volunteer work. Most of the building is not used. The top floor is completely empty except for storage. While the outside looks great, some of other areas of the building are in bad shape. Solid as rock though with foot thick concrete walls.

That house around right behind it (going towards the river) that southwestmap mentioned has to be seen to be believed. Amazing architecture, baby white grand piano in the front room, very English to be sure. Love that house, but it definitely looks out of place there.

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