A.C.Williams Cast Iron Banks

Friday, May 17, 2013

A.C.Williams Cast Iron Banks

   I found today's topic in the "usual manner". I was searching for something else, and came across an outstanding  cast iron bank. It turned out to have been manufactured by the A.C.Williams company.

   A.C.Williams was founded in 1886 by, Mr. Adam Clark Williams in Chagrin Falls, Ohio, USA. However there was a big fire at the company, and a  decision was made to move to  Ravenna. Ohio. Actual production started there in 1893. Like the other famous  cast iron companies  of the time (Hubley, Dent, Kilgore, Arcade, Kenton), A.C.Williams manufactured cast iron cars and trucks.  THey even produced some tin cars towards the end of the companies relatively long history. However, they closed  their toy production in 1938. 

   The A.C.Williams company is still in business, and their website presents a much better history of the company that I have. I contacted the company, but haven't  yet heard from them.

Their history can be found at:

Please click on this sentence to be redirected to Bertoia's fine website

   What  I found interesting about the banks was their small sizes! Of course, way back then, most people did not earn high salaries, and correspondingly were not able to give their children "discretionary income" to save. At the same time, a penny could buy you a lot. Today, I have to pay 25 cents for 1 gum ball!

   Another interesting observation is that these beautiful banks, like other manufacturers of the time, did not have to be produced to micrometer standards (very fine measurements such as 1/16" or 2mm. If you look closely, you'll see that the 2 halves of some banks do not even close tightly! Yet that's  part  of the "charm" of these antiques. The parts don't fit 100%. Even cars, trucks and airplanes of that era also were made with looser fittings, and that's part of what I like about them. When I recently write about cast iron doorstop, you could see the paint in the back of some of these items. It had been applied very fast, and there was "drippings and runoff down the backs of the toys!

Types of Banks

A.C.Willams and the other cast iron companies of the time, manufactured  thousands of different types of banks. THe banks presented today are called "still banks" that are different from "mechanical banks". A still bank is simple, and you just add the money into a slot. A mechanical bank is "cocked" like the action of a gun, and a movement will occur to the coin. Actions could include magic, tossing a penny from a cannon and so forth. 

1. People

I decided to classify the banks, and so the first division is people. This classification could include specific types of people or children, as well as comic characters.You'll also notice that the banks could simply be painted gold or have multiple colours on them. All of the banks were handpainted!

 Notice the expression of the face, the hands in the pockets, and 1 foot that I assume was not shod, as the toes are showing - simply marvellous! 

Umm, umm, good!

This pair og young childen were modelled after the original cartoon characters from the famous Campbells Soup Company!

This pair of cartoon characters were 1 of the original comics from the newspapers.

THey're called "Mutt and Jeff", and of course, they'd get into all kinds of funny situations and small arguments.

This fine lady is called "Mamie" or more familiarly "aunt Jemima". If you ever ate pancakes in your house, you would have eaten the famous brand named after this most famous lady!

 

2. Animals

The second category of banks is animals. Many of the animals that I selected are from the circus. 

Once upon a time, there were at least 3-4 famous circuses that would travel across Europe and the USA. Initially they travelled by truck caravans, and then by trains. THese circuses would travel both to the larger cities, and even to the smaller towns.  If you're older than 40, you've most likely seen the movie "The greatest Show on earth". and if you're under 25, you most liletysaw the Reese Witherspoon movie "Water for Elephants". Both movies are great viewing!

 3. Buildings and Outdoor Items

My third category is buildings and outdoor items. Buildings such as houses and "banks were common. I was surprised to find several nicely -designed mosques. AS well you can even see an outdoor clock, as well as the Washington monument.

The design of this small mosque is great.  The dome, the different window shapes, and the design on the side below the roof are great characteristics of a mosque.

Look at that space between the 2 halves. Of course, the money fell to the bottom, and I'm sure with the random positioning of the coins as they piled up, the coins did not fall out of the bank!

2 small but nice-looking banks. 

I wonder if bank companies sold or gave away banks at the time. I remember in the 1950's, I had a small bank from 1 bank, and my wife has one as well. Of course, these are plain rectangular banks that are nickel-plated, and have a key to lock the money in!

And last but not least - a standing clock. If you ever look at old movies circa 1920's1940's you'd see these large standing "real" clocks" on the streets. You's also see just the clocks outside large buildings all over the place.

  Of course, "time does not stand still", and today, you'd have to walk a lot to actually find one such item anywhere in Montreal! I've never seen a standing one here, but I saw several over the entranceways of building a long time ago. Of course, there were always a few in the old train stations! I've only "touched the surface" so to speak about banks. If you do a search for cast iron banks, you'll find thousands of different banks from all of the different companies at the time.

  I was going to combine several similar banks and present them side-by-side. However the size of 2 images would have had to been reduced, and you would not have seen the detail as well. So that's why I have so many photos today - each toy deserves it's "fair share" of space and viewing!

Thanks for dropping by for a visit,

and have a great weekend,

Stacey