A Digital Collection of Rockford, Illinois History
Source: Hess and Hopkins Leather Co., 1909 Catalog, page 35
The Hess and Hopkins Leather Co., 1909 Catalog, 240 pages, has 86 pages of harness varieties, 2 per page. The products were known and sold worldwide. Established 1862. They were out of business in 1960 sold in 1961 to Hess and Hopkins Center, a newly formed storage company. 1101 Acorn St.
Fairground Housing Project was located on the property from 1969.
Source: Rockford Republic January 31, 1914
Rockford Industrial Athletic Association
Factories include: Andrews, Free Sewing, Barber-Colman, Trahern Pump, Hess and Hopkins, Kurtz Action
(Trahern Pump was replaced in 1914 by Haddorff Piano)
Commercial Loop includes: Clark Manufacturing, Rockford Watch, Rockford Malleable, Burson’s Knitting, Central Union Telegraph, Rockford Printers
(Rockford Printers was succeeded in 1914 by Woodward Governor)
Hal Carlson went on to play for the Chicago Cubs, and Fred Schulte went on to play for the Pittsburgh Pirates (Both were from the Free Sewing Machine Company)
“Turk” Skurski of Amerock was a top player, and Lou Coletta and Tony Vella of Barber-Colman were minor leagers
Source: Rockford Register, 12/24/1955
Rockford Industrial Athletic Association – R. I. A. A.
In the 1913 Factory League: Andrews Wire, Kurtz Action, Free Sewing Machine Company, Hess and Hopkins, Barber-Colman, and Trahern Pump Company
In the 1913 Commercial League: Rockford Malleable, Clark Manufacturing Company, Rockford Watch Company, Central Union Telephone, Printers, and Burson Knitting Company
Source: Rockford Morning Star, 08/13/1913, also in Rockford Public Library’s “Rockfordiana” files, “R. I. A. A.”
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