34} 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



ing for packing contrivances that will catch 

 the public. Hence we find in every first- 

 class wooden dishmaking establishment a 

 room in which special packages are modeled 

 for the patent medicine man or the dealer 

 in articles which require attractive packing 

 for the retail market. Often trifles are pur- 

 chased for the sake of getting the package. 

 A certain candy is selling very freely 

 throughout the country just now because 

 many children want the handy, little barrel 

 used for packing. 



In Fig. 8 is shown one of the heavy dislies 



turned out of hardwood and finely polished. 

 Some of the walnut and cherry dishes of this 

 order are very pleasing to look upon; they 

 are used as bread or salad dishes on dining 

 tables. Fig. 9 is one of the little wooden 

 tubes of which many are made every year. 

 There are a few stand-dishes like that e.\- 

 hibitcd in Fig. 10 manufactured, also drink- 

 ing cups, as shown in Fig. 11, and covered 

 devices of the class shown in Fig. 12. The 

 field is unlimited, and many manufacturers 

 are making money from the production of 

 wooden dishes and packages. 



How Shoe Lasts and Last 'Blocks 



Are Made. 



We were all born barefootcil, but ii(-:irly 

 every man, w-oman and child in the United 

 States wears shoes. There may be a few 

 in this country who do not; some of the 

 southern darkies go barefooted and some of 

 the Indians in the South and Southwest still 

 cling to their moccasins; but the civilized 

 citizens of the United States, and we might 

 say of the world, wear shoes. They are 

 nearly all made over lasts and the manufac- 

 ture of these lasts is a comprehensive busi- 

 ness and one of the large manufaeturiug in- 

 terests of the "country. 



Most lasts are turned from maple last 

 blocks — a few from persimmon — but in com- 

 parison with the number of shoes woru few 

 lasts are needed. The reason is that while 

 many millions of shoes are made every jear 

 in the United States, it requires less than 

 three million pairs of lasts to take care of 

 the enormous shoe business, because many 

 pairs of shoes are made over the same last. 



The finest and most select hard maple is 

 required. It must be straight-grained, free 



I'vciiii knots, clic'cks and irnjifrtoctioiis. To 

 make lasts, a last block is first required, and 

 this article will treat more especially of 



though all do not nave the improved and up- 

 to-date machinery and use the special meth- 

 ods in the drying and handling of the blocks. 



This business was established in 1S83 at 

 Manton, Jlich., by George F. Williams; later 

 taking in his brothers, Walter S. and .\lbert 

 E., and nephew, William .\. Hall, and incor- 

 j)orating. Still later the business and capital 

 stock were increased and Clarence F., son of 

 George F.,' and Mart L., son of Walter S., 

 Bruce Green and Henry M. Billings were 

 taken in. The members of this eompauj-, 

 jiortraits of whom are shown in connection 

 with this ai-ticle, are all active, practical men 

 in their different lines of work. 



The three Williams brothers and William 

 A. Hall are last block experts. This is their 

 distinct specialty and the house has a repu- 

 tation among users of producing the best 

 last blocks made. 



lU.OCK.S OV V.MilOrS SIZES. FROM 

 WHICH THE EIMSHED L.^STS 

 AHE TURNED. 



last blocks, and the way they are manufac- 

 tured by the Williams Brothers Company, 

 whose factories are located at Manton and 

 Cadillac, Mich., and who are among the larg- 

 est manufacturers of last blocks in the world. 

 Their method of manufacture is followed 

 in a general way by other nmnufacturers. 



rP.IXCIPALS OF WILLIAMS BROS. CO., OF MA.XTON, MICH. 



Top Row, Reading from Left to Right — Bruce Green, William. A. Hall, Henry XL Billings. 

 Second Row — Walter S. Williams, George F, Williams, Albert A. Williams. 

 Third Riiw — Clarence F. and Mart L. Williams. 



The timber after being cut into logs li! to 

 14 or 16 feet long, in the woods, is taken on 

 sleighs in the winter direct to the block fac- 

 tory or to the railroad, thence on ears to the 

 factories and is there sawed into the required 

 lengths for the last blocks by steam drag- 

 saws or heavy circular cutoff saws of spe- 

 cial design made for this purpose. They are 

 then split out into blocks and rough turned 

 into the different sizes and shapes on com- 

 plicated machines of special design and pat- 

 ented. 



After the blocks are turned they are taken 

 out into air-drying racks and sheds and sea- 

 .soned. Tliis air drying requires at least one 

 year and they are racked and rehandled many 

 times in this process of seasoning. After this 

 several methods are required in the secret 

 process of kiln drying, which takes from three 

 to four months' time. 



Large drying houses are required in well 

 equipped last block factories. After going 

 through dr^- kilns the blocks are sorted, in- 

 spected, counted into cars and shipped to 

 the finishing last factories as required by 

 them, where they are turned into the dif- 

 ferent styles of lasts and furnished to the 

 shoe factories. 



The percentage of waste is heavy as all 

 knots, shake, checks and other defects make 

 the blocks worthless. One night of neglect 

 on the part of the one responsible for the 

 drying kilns will ruin thousands of dollars' 

 worth of last blocks. 



This is a business requiring a great deal 

 of care and attention and can only be con- 

 ducted successfully by those who have made 



