Davenport, IA: 1904 French & Hecht Wheel Co./Davenport Wagon Co. Building

(Satellite, it is not the same building. The building and parking lot reuses the land of the first image.)

Yet another manufacturer in the Quad Cities that supported the farmer.

Retro Quad Cities posted
A vintage postcard of the Davenport Wagon Company, later becoming the French & Hecht Wheel Company. The site is now the Quad City Times building.

Davenport Iowa History posted
Davenport Wagon Co. and Red Jacket Pump Mfg. Co.
This photograph, taken from the Mississippi River shows the Davenport Wagon Co. (northwest corner of 3rd and Farnam streets) as well as the Red Jacket Mfg. Co. (northeast corner of 3rd and Farnam streets). The Davenport Wagon Co. was established in 1904 by partners Nathaniel French, G. Watson French and J. L. Hecht. It produced the steel wheel and hub farm wagon with roller bearings, which was quite an improvement over ordinary wooden wheel wagons. The Davenport wagon provided a 30-50% lighter draft and the wheels didn’t cake with mud after the rains like wagons with ordinary wooden wheels. The Red Jacket Mfg. Co. was established in 1887. Their well water pumps were of high quality and easy to repair. It gets its name from “Red Jacket,” a Seneca Indian chief and famed orator. He was decorated with the first Congressional Medal of Honor by George Washington for his help to American patriots during the Revolutionary War. The company, which was owned by S. P. Lafferty, was previously called the Davenport Pump and Pipe Co. and occupied the same location.
Thomas Cassidy: My father worked at the French and Hecht company and I believe they made tractor wheels. I could be wrong about the wheels.
Davenport Iowa History: You are right Thomas. Joseph L. Hecht, of the French & Hecht metal wheel manufacturing company, served as president and treasurer of the Davenport Wagon Co. Deere & Co. purchased the plant in June 1911, then sold it to French & Hecht in December 1914 for the purpose of manufacturing metal wheels. The Davenport Wagon Co. would simply adopt the name of French & Hecht Co. by 1923 and continue to make wheels for John Deere products.

 

Davenport Iowa History posted
This photo, circa 1909, shows the Davenport Wagon Co., located on the northwest corner of 3rd and Farnam streets. The company was famous for its Davenport Roller-Bearing Steel Wagons. Joseph L. Hecht, of the French & Hecht metal wheel manufacturing company, served as president and treasurer. Deere & Co. purchased the plant in June 1911, then sold it to French & Hecht in December 1914 for the purpose of manufacturing metal wheels. The Davenport Wagon Co. would simply adopt the name of French & Hecht Co. by 1923.

Martin Johnson: I don't think that description is quite accurate.

The Davenport Wagon Company was acquired by Deere and Company, and became a part of the John Deere Wagon Works.

Another separate company, owned by the Bettendorf Brothers, and French Brothers, the Bettendorf Metal Wheel Company would become French & Hecht in 1909.

The Bettendorf's also owned the Bettendorf Axle Company.

 

Davenport Iowa History commented on the above post
The Davenport Roller Bearing Steel Wagon.

Adding steel rolling bearings would be a significant technology development. In fact, the entire undercarriage including the wheels were made with steel back when wood was the norm.

invaluable

ebay
RPPC Davenport Iowa Davenport Wagon Company Ruins from Fire early 1900s

John Deere purchased multiple wagon manufactures, allowed them to keep their original brand name, and allowed them to advertise against each other. The Davenport wagon brand ceased production in 1971. [WheelsThatWonTheWest] But a comment above indicates the plant continued to make steel wheels for John Deere.

I think 1917 is when products produced by this plant were stamped with the John Deere brand rather than the Davenport Wagon brand. [smithsonian]

1938 Aerial Photo via ILHAP

I added a red circle at 3rd and Farnam. When they built on the cleared land shown in the 1909 photo above, they built over Farnam as well. In the top photo, the street on the left was Farnam and the street on the right was 4th.

Arial plus Paint

Retro Quad Cities posted
1975 Davenport Riverfront.
Christopher Smith: You can see where the remains of the flour plant are... I remember French and Hecht being down there too because of the huge stack. Our company is in the West end so we'd drive through town a lot as kids. I was one when this was taken.
Retro Quad Cities: This record is from the Upper Mississippi Valley Digital Image Archive, http://www.umvphotoarchive.org, a collaborative project of cultural heritage organizations in the Iowa-Illinois Mississippi River region.
Retro Quad Cities shared
Michael Scheel: Be nice to see a current aerial shot to compare.

Dennis DeBruler commented on Michael's comment
 https://maps.app.goo.gl/tavhiqcq8P15WCLc8