Item Description
Original Item. Only One Available. This is a gorgeous piece of Wild West Era Americana, a Blasting Machine. No.3 grade blasting machines were typically used by quarrymen and railroad contractors in the late 19th century. The Aetna Powder Company was well known for manufacturing blasting machines as well as the dynamite itself.
This example is in fair shape with some damage and cracking to the wood, and it’s missing one of the two securing rivets on top. The leather carrying strap is still completely intact but it is imperative that you do not carry it by this strap, as it’s very old and will break. The plunger still works very well as intended. The maker’s plate is still completely intact and reads:
LION NO. 3
THE AETNA POWDER COMPANY
CHICAGO, ILL. U.S.A.
BLASTING MACHINE
The machine measures 5½ x 8 x 14” without the plunger, with the plunger sticking out 3 inches when stationary and 12½” when fully pulled upwards. A fantastic iconic piece of history, ready for further research and display!
On April 3, 1880, three men from Chicago incorporated the Aetna Powder Company in Indiana to make high explosive powder, the newly invented dynamite. James Parker and Horace Pratt, coal salesmen, and Michael Tierney, a politician had little idea of how to build or run a dynamite factory. Their initial attempts to build on a spot near Schererville came to naught and Parker wisely turned to his old friend Addison O. Fay, president and owner of the Miami Powder Company in Xenia, Ohio. Fay was an old hand at the business of making powder, having owned mills in Massachusetts with his father, and having bought out Joseph King’s Miami Powder Company in 1877, enlarging it and operating it with electricity, the first mill in the country to do so. Dynamite was used not only in mining, quarry blasting, but also in tree stump removal as American farmers continued to clear land.
- This product is not available for international shipping.
- Totally inert, cannot be converted to an explosive devise, not available for export.
- Not eligible for payment with Paypal or Amazon
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