Davenport Democrat Davenport, Scott, Iowa July 20, 1924 OLD GLUCOSE PLANT PRIDE OF DAVENPORT Employed 600 Men and 50 Girls When at Heighth in Operation. From a manufacturing enterprise that was Davenport's largest in its day to a pile of junk that is being cleared away for salvage, is the history of the old Glucose form the time it was constructed to the present day. In Davenport's manufacturing circles its history is a yarn chock full of interesting incidents. At one time during the last administration of Theodore Roosevelt, it was the target of the anti-trust interest in politics. It was that, probably, that caused the "trust" to leave the great factory slowly decay away, to become the victim of time and devastating fires. A great many of the early Davenporters watched with interest the construction of the factory, its rapid growth-and with sorrow they watched its slow destruction in which time played a prominent part. The history of the old Glucose, could it be told in whole, would be one of vast interest; in which, small capital thru clever manipulation turned out as its finished product a city's finest manufacturing enterprise. Its story, too, deals with the big interests of the east, Wall Street, and of John D. himself. The earliest history of the Glucose is a story of civic unity in which the people of Davenport were the builders-the capital furnishers. As the story is told, it was a sort of socialistic plan in which all of the workers owned a part of the company they were working for. Even when the Glucose was bought over by the "trust" in 1904, some of the employes had stock. Old Plant Heads. When the plant became the property of the Corn Produce Refining company in 1904, Mr. L.P. Best was said to be the chief stock holder. A rather young man in the starch and syrup game by the name of A.W.H. Lenders came here and took charge in 1900, Prior to its coming, the Glucose was a mecca for workers. It was considered one of the best places in the city to work-that is, the workmen were allowed to have one of their companions go to a neighboring saloon and bring them a pail of "suds". This practice, wit heating a lunch nine or ten times a day, was thought to be the usual thing. With the coming of Lenders also came a change in the manner in which the plant was managed. It was only when they could put something over on the new superintendent that it was possible to smuggle in the pail of "suds." Lenders proved to be a success. He stayed at the plant two years and then went to the Roby street plant in Chicago, where he was made superintendent. At the present time MR. Lenders is a vice president of the Penick and Ford interests of Cedar Rapids and New Orleans, one of he largest concerns of its kind in the world. Such reads the biographies of many of the superintendents of the Glucose. It was P.R. King who became the manager of the plant after Lenders left. He was in charge one year and then entered in the printing business in Davenport. Henry Siegle was the chief superintendent of the Glucose under the supervision of the Corn Products interests. He stayed at the plant about two years and then went to Pekin, Ill. as superintendent. Pekin is the plant that had the terrible explosion some 12 months ago. Mr. Siegle has been dead for eight years. In 1905 after Mr. Siegle left, Clarence Soverign was superintendent for about three months. After he left Mr. Harrison, acting manager of the Corn Products interests, came here for a time as superintendent. Ground 14,000 Bu. Day In those early days the ubiquitous reporter had a hard time in worming a story out of the Glucose officials. Many of the members of the Fourth Estate who had the Glucose on their "beat" and who are with us today, remember with what secrecy the news was guarded. But such was the habit over the entire United States, and with all other kinds of businesses. It wasn't until a later date that news from the largest manufacturing plants were given for publication. The Glucose when it was running full capacity ground from 12,000 o 14,000 bushels of corn every 24 hours. The last seven years that it was operated it turned all of its raw starch into table syrup-Karo. It was also during the later years that the hull and fiber of the corn was utilized by turning it into one of the most expensive feeds on the market today. Prior to this the wet hulls and fibers were hauled to the river bank and dumped-some was sold in the wet state to local farmers. Excellent corn oils, too, were an unthought of thing when the plant was in its infancy. Even when it was shut down in 1913, the manufacturing of corn oils was not regarded as a success. During the last years of the plant the oil was used for soap making. It is true that Davenport lost one of its finest interests when it lost the Glucose. It proved to be a fine place of employment for 600 men and about 50 girls. Altho the wages were not of the highest, as untrained labor was able to do the bulk of the work, it was only on the harder and more disagreeable jobs that the foremen were at times seeking new help. Tom Lund. One of the best superintendents in the corn products game today, Charles Ebert, was here from 1906 to '09. While here, he rebuilt the entire plant into one of the most modern in the country. He is now one of the officials of the Corn Products company, the inventor of several new methods in the way of manufacturing starches, syrups and oils. After Mr. Ebert left in 1909, H.B. Lawton took charge until the plant was shut down in 1913. Mr. Lawton is still in the game. A factory superintendent who started at the Glucose in 1903 and stayed until 1911, serving under the superintendents who were here from one to three years, was T.M. Lund, known to the factory men as "Tom." He served in nearly every capacity from a starch shoveler to foreman of various departments. It was during the time when Lenders came to the plant that Mr. Lund started and when Mr. Lawton, the last superintendent was in charge that he left. At the present time he is with the Corn Products interests at Argo, Ill. And such writes one of the old time employes of the Glucose: "The old time gang of roremen that used to work at the plant are scattered over the entire earth. Some are dead, some in another kind of business, some are unable to leave the 'game.' Among the old time foremen is T.B. Willhoft, once grain elevator foreman and now night superintendent of the Argo plant, the largest in the world. A well known Davenporter, who is with us today and who at one time was in charge of the pipe fitters, is Mike Lamb. In a starch and syrup plant a pipe fitter is about as essential as powder to an army. Other Old Timers. Others that will be remembered are Jim Dudicker, who had charge of the syrup refinery for many years; John Clare, syrup mixer; Herman Wiese, chief miller; James McConwell, chief millwright; and Carson Jacobs, wet starch foreman. Old timers will remember that Clare was the oldest employe of the Glucose-not in years. How surprised some of the old Glucose men would be could they step into a modern corn products manufacturing plant. The methods have changed from manual labor to machines that do the work much more rapidly with a great savings of money. One of the most talked of jobs at the Glucose was starch shoveling. It took men of real strength to man the shovels and hoist the wet starch from the tables into the carts. Now, however, the starch is either shoveled from the tables by machines, they resembled snow plows, or is flushed and put thru presses. The method of syrup making has changed till now it is one of the most sanitary food products on the market. Not so, in the early days, if all the stories we hear are to be believed. The manufacturing of by-products has made the manufacturing of corn products a dividend payer. Starches, sugars, syrups, oils, soaps, rubber, grease, acids, feeds, flours and even gun powder are some of the products made from corn today. [Transcriber note: According to 1900 Federal Census my husband's great grandfather, James H. Petersen was a laborer at the Davenport Glucose Factory.] Cathy Joynt Labath Scott Co, IA USGenWeb Project http://www.celticcousins.net/scott/index.htm Iowa Old Press http://www.IowaOldPress.com/