[missouri massey man]

My wife recently lost an uncle that lived in the same house he was born in. Purchasing the house from his mothers estate, all the original home furnishings stayed with the home . There are some neat facets to the story, my own father had a milk route in the late 20's and early 30's and delivered milk to my mother-in-laws front door when she was just a little girl right in this very house. Of course, the uncle in the story was just a little boy at that time. He grew up to join the Army during WW II and was one of the surviving members of the second wave to land on Normandy beach.

Never marrying, staying in his childhood home and of course being extremely frugal from living through the Great Depression he never threw anything away that may have a use someday and never wasted money on many new appliances.

In the bright sunlight the original decal can be read: GENEVA VACUUM WASHER Manufactured in Ste. Genevieve, Mo. Very faded though.

The old Geneva was replaced with this new Maytag probably sometime in the 50's (?) and was still in use up to his recent death.

The rear panel slides straight up allowing access to the entire mechanical end to the machine.

Easily seen is the copper wash tub, oval in design. A closer look reveals a counterweight hanging from the top shaft, almost like a pendelum...The counterweight is about 15 pounds of solid brass.

Looking a tad bit closer, you can see that every component in the underbelly is solid brass...The gears, the shafts and the transmission housing. Even the large pipe that houses a vertical steel driveshaft that drives the wringer is brass. Not brass tubing, brass pipe that's 1/4" thick !! The springs are steel, enclosed in the brass turnbuckle.

Still having the copper lid after all these years, it has protected the stainless steel components inside the wash tub very well.

This rocker arm holds the inverted bells that churn up and down trapping air if the level was a little low and creating the "suction" actions that gave it the name of "VACUUM WASHER". This would be engaged by moving the brass lever on the side of the machine forward or backwards.

Putting it in neutral, the one side is just pushed down to show its action...

Then raised to show the other side in operation. The motor bearings are a bit tight, so for now it won't run but that will change sooner or later.
The mechanical arm and the rollers move quite easily by rotating the arm on the lower shaft by hand, but with water and clothing in the tub I'm sure there is a great deal more resistance. It's a little loud with the bells banging on the sides of the washtub while empty too.

Now, you know you can rarely have something sit in one spot for 60 years without a vagabond setting up residence somewhere within....This little fellow looks a "little washed up"....don't you agree? :lol: :lol:

I can say never have I ever seen a washing machine like this one...anyone remember these or have a similar one?

 

[BigDaveinKY]

Mom had a Maytag, that I was "persuaded" to help with the manual ringer from time to time, as a youngin'.
I've never seen one like that Geneva, and with a motor driven ringer as well.

 

[JJ. in B.C.]

If they were built out of those materials today
scrap thieves would be breaking into homes to steal them

 

[bettyp]

Wendell I came up in 30's when my Mom wash on wash board and rung out my hand and used her own homemade lye soap .
I see simalar washer but never a Geneva , My mom ended with a magtag . we have came a long way, :shock: :shock:

 

[missouri massey man]

Wendell I came up in 30's when my Mom wash on wash board and rung out my hand and used her own homemade lye soap .
I see simalar waser but never a Geneva , My mom ended with a magtag . we have came a long way, :shock: :shock:

I was hoping you would like this thing, MissBetty...now my problem, it ain't a tractor or a sawmill, so what do I do with it now ?? It was going to the junk yard if I didn't take it home

JJ, BigDave we also had an old one similar to but older than the Maytag in the picture, may have been a Montgomery Ward...Never saw one of these either. Ours wasn't built mainly out of copper and brass either...

 

[bettyp]

Wendell I came up in 30's when my Mom wash on wash board and rung out my hand and used her own homemade lye soap .
I see simalar waser but never a Geneva , My mom ended with a magtag . we have came a long way, :shock: :shock:

I was hoping you would like this thing, MissBetty...now my problem, it ain't a tractor or a sawmill, so what do I do with it now ?? It was going to the junk yard if I didn't take it home

JJ, BigDave we also had an old one similar to but older than the Maytag in the picture, may have been a Montgomery Ward...Never saw one of these either. Ours wasn't built mainly out of copper and brass either...

Wendell make sure each one try it out just to see how hard we older women had it . My mom had this Maytag that had aMaytag gas motor on it and she cranked it by her foot . The smell was bad and some times the peddle she put her foot on would kick her back when she was trying to get it started. That was in 1949I had just married and went and washed with my Mom .My Mom would not let me start it was afraid I would get hurt. You bring back a lot of memories . Thanks a lot . Guess after all that I feel blessed now.

 

[BigDaveinKY]

....now my problem, it ain't a tractor or a sawmill, so what do I do with it now ?? It was going to the junk yard if I didn't take it home....

Had to show this to me bride, she loved it. She said you'd be crazy to get rid of it and I agree....but,
If it's not something you want to keep..... :? ..... and, I bet lots of folks haven't seen a washer like that.
Do you have a county museum, maybe, ... :idea: ... that would like to have it :?: :?: :?:
Get ya a "donated by" on the plaque in the exhibit.

 

[missouri massey man]

....now my problem, it ain't a tractor or a sawmill, so what do I do with it now ?? It was going to the junk yard if I didn't take it home....

Had to show this to me bride, she loved it. She said you'd be crazy to get rid of it and I agree....but,
If it's not something you want to keep..... :? ..... and, I bet lots of folks haven't seen a washer like that.
Do you have a county museum, maybe, ... :idea: ... that would like to have it :?: :?: :?:
Get ya a "donated by" on the plaque in the exhibit.

The school's still out on this piece of equipment yet...I may be able to find a corner to stick it in for a while BigDave. Rest assured it ain't going to the junk yard... as long as I have it anyway. It's so different than most and deserves to be preserved.

I agree with MissBetty, the womenfolk are surely spoiled today with the fancy automatics...but then even the Geneva and Maytag gassers were an improvement over the washboards and tubs in the past.

 

[gordon1121]

I remember the old ringer Matag's well but aint never seen one lke that one. That one had to be a high dollar machine in its day. I caught the end of the restoration show the guy in Las Vegas does on the history chanel the other night and a guy was picking up a old washer that had the bells in it like that but I don't remember all the works being brass or all the copper. I'd do some research on that one and try and get it going.

 

[missouri massey man]

I remember the old ringer Matag's well but aint never seen one lke that one. That one had to be a high dollar machine in its day. I caught the end of the restoration show the guy in Las Vegas does on the history chanel the other night and a guy was picking up a old washer that had the bells in it like that but I don't remember all the works being brass or all the copper. I'd do some research on that one and try and get it going.

I haven't dedicated the time to search it out yet Gordon, but it would certainly be interesting to see what the interest would be on the old gal. There is an inherent value to us just it being owned by the wife's Grandmother, then uncle and her own mother having used it as a young lady. So I guess now I have to expand my interest from old tractors, motorcycles and farm machinery to include washing machines too.... :shock: :shock: :? :?

You know, Gordon, if MissBetty gets her "Sunday best" too dirty wrestling around our sandbags for the next project while simultaneously roasting a pig for all of us to enjoy after sandblasting is done, we can fire up this old washing machine so she could demonstrate that on film for the forum !!!!! I bet you'd love to get THAT on film..... :lol: :lol: :lol:

 

[bettyp]

I remember the old ringer Matag's well but aint never seen one lke that one. That one had to be a high dollar machine in its day. I caught the end of the restoration show the guy in Las Vegas does on the history chanel the other night and a guy was picking up a old washer that had the bells in it like that but I don't remember all the works being brass or all the copper. I'd do some research on that one and try and get it going.

I haven't dedicated the time to search it out yet Gordon, but it would certainly be interesting to see what the interest would be on the old gal. There is an inherent value to us just it being owned by the wife's Grandmother, then uncle and her own mother having used it as a young lady. So I guess now I have to expand my interest from old tractors, motorcycles and farm machinery to include washing machines too.... :shock: :shock: :? :?

You know, Gordon, if MissBetty gets her "Sunday best" too dirty wrestling around our sandbags for the next project while simultaneously roasting a pig for all of us to enjoy after sandblasting is done, we can fire up this old washing machine so she could demonstrate that on film for the forum !!!!! I bet you'd love to get THAT on film..... :lol: :lol: :lol:

Wendell,I think that that would be a great demonstration to put on at any tractor show .Chain saws draw people away from those tractors a while so bet a demonstration of washing machine like that one would really draw a crowd. I think you should try it Wendell. Gordan could get lots of pics. :lol: :lol: :lol:

 

[missouri massey man]

Wendell,I think that that would be a great demonstration to put on at any tractor show .Chain saws draw people away from those tractors a while so bet a demonstration of washing machine like that one would really draw a crowd. I think you should try it Wendell. Gordan could get lots of pics. :lol: :lol: :lol:

Well MissBetty if I could just find someone to make me an old time ankle length dress out of flour sacks like granny used to wear, I could slip into my old army boots and an old bonnet and really put on a show. :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: Don't you think that'd be a good idea? I guess I could borrow some bloomers too !!!!