Edwin Rutenber
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Edwin A. Rutenber (August 10, 1876–September 1962) was an
inventor An invention is a unique or novel device, method, composition, idea, or process. An invention may be an improvement upon a machine, product, or process for increasing efficiency or lowering cost. It may also be an entirely new concept. If an ...
and businessman. He achieved distinction in the design and manufacture of the first
four-cylinder The engine configuration describes the fundamental operating principles by which internal combustion engines are categorized. Piston engines are often categorized by their cylinder layout, valves and camshafts. Wankel engines are often categoriz ...
gasoline engine produced in America. He later was an electric appliance manufacturer and inventor. Born at Sadorus, Illinois, the youngest of five children. Rutenber had German ancestry. His father Darwin Rutenber was a
carriage A carriage is a two- or four-wheeled horse-drawn vehicle for passengers. In Europe they were a common mode of transport for the wealthy during the Roman Empire, and then again from around 1600 until they were replaced by the motor car around 1 ...
maker by trade. Edwin A. Rutenber attended the public schools and college. He learned
carpentry Carpentry is a skilled trade and a craft in which the primary work performed is the cutting, shaping and installation of building materials during the construction of buildings, Shipbuilding, ships, timber bridges, concrete formwork, etc. C ...
from his grandfather and carriage making from his father, and inherited a taste for
mechanics Mechanics () is the area of physics concerned with the relationships between force, matter, and motion among Physical object, physical objects. Forces applied to objects may result in Displacement (vector), displacements, which are changes of ...
from both. He made a study of mechanics, learning the
machinist A machinist is a tradesperson or trained professional who operates machine tools, and has the ability to set up tools such as milling machines, grinders, lathes, and drilling machines. A competent machinist will generally have a strong mechan ...
trade thoroughly, and in 1892 invented a single cylinder engine. For a number of years he worked to devise a four-cylinder motor of commercial value. In 1898, he produced his first four-cylinder gasoline motor, establishing the Rutenber Manufacturing Company in Chicago to manufacture his new engines, the first four-cylinder engines to be manufactured in the United States. The fame of the design spread and the "Rutenber" motor was used in many early automobiles and attained a worldwide reputation. On October 3, 1900, Rutenber was married to Miss Edna L. Rolley, of
Morris, Illinois Morris is a city in and the county seat of Grundy County, Illinois, Grundy County, Illinois, United States and part of the southwest Chicago metropolitan area. The population was 14,163 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. A team of ...
. They had three children. His son Bradley Rutenber (1907–1979) was also an inventor of electric appliances. In June, 1902, the company was moved from Chicago to
Logansport, Indiana Logansport is a city in and the county seat of Cass County, Indiana, United States. The population was 18,366 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. Logansport is located in northern Indiana at the junction of the Wabash River, Wabash an ...
and renamed
Rutenber Motor Company The Rutenber Motor Company was established as the Rutenber Manufacturing Company in Chicago, Illinois, United States, to manufacture a four-cylinder engine to the design of Edwin Rutenber. History Rutenber studied the trade of mechanics and, ...
and from that time E. A. Rutenber resided there. In July 1912, Rutenber disposed of his holdings in the engine manufacturing company, then called the Western Motor Company. Rutenber then devoted his energies to the manufacture of electric appliances. The Rutenber Electric Company, using the brand name RECO, was formed for that purpose in September 1912. Rutenber invented many of the devices the company manufactured, including the Marion Flip Flop Toaster which he patented in 1914 and was followed by the Marion Giant Flip Flop Toaster. In 1916 the company needed to increase its production capacity, but was constrained at the Logansport site. An agreement to relocate the company to
Marion, Indiana Marion is a city in and the county seat of Grant County, Indiana, United States, along the Mississinewa River. The population was 28,310 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is named for Francis Marion, a brigadier general from ...
and appliances including ranges, irons, grills, toasters, fans and more were manufactured there. By 1919, Rutenber had relocated his residence to Marion. In February 1921, Rutenber was elected president of the new Marion Fence Machinery Company, and from that time it appears his active participation in the management of the appliance company was severed. In the 1930s, Rutenber continued to invent new appliances. He assigned some of his electrical appliance patents to the A J Lindeman and Hoverson Company, a cooling equipment and heating system manufacturer in Milwaukee, Wisconsin that built commercial-scale baking and cooking equipment. In the 1940s, Rutenber was associated with the Gibson Refrigerator Company in
Greenville, Michigan Greenville is a city in the Lower Peninsula of Michigan, Lower Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan. With a population 8,816 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the most populous city in Montcalm County, Michigan, Montcalm Co ...
, assigning several patents to them. Rutenber died in Greenville, Michigan. After his death, some of his surviving family moved to the
Nogales, Arizona Nogales (; English: or ) is a city in and the county seat of Santa Cruz County, Arizona. The population was 20,837 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census and estimated 20,103 in 2019. Nogales forms part of the larger Tucson–Nogales L ...
area. In 1973, one of his descendants donated a Rutenber engine to the
Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums, Education center, education and Research institute, research centers, created by the Federal government of the United States, U.S. government "for the increase a ...
. The manufacturing facilities of Rutenber Electric Company were acquired in 1958 by Active Products Corp. and Rutenber Electric ceased to be.


Patents

* Electrical Appliance (toaster) * Electric Range * Electric Range * Deep Well Cooker


References

* Powell, Jehu Z., ed. History of Cass County, Indiana. Chicago: Lewis Pub. Co., 1913, 1300 pgs.


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rutenber, Edwin A. 1876 births 1962 deaths American automotive pioneers American automotive engineers People from Logansport, Indiana People from Marion, Indiana People from Champaign County, Illinois People from Greenville, Michigan