And speaking of the Dr. Grabow Pipe Factory Tour, clicking on the link below will take you to most of the photos that I took that day. Like this entire website, it needs some work and editing, but at least you'll be able to see a lot of interesting stuff right away! I CANNOT SAY ENOUGH GOOD THINGS about the folks of Sparta and the Dr. Grabow employees. I HIGHLY recommend a visit to the factory if you are in the area, or a diversion to Sparta if you are not in the area. For one thing, they have some pipes there on display in the lobby that will knock your socks off -- AND THEY ARE FOR SALE! They are some of the best looking pipes I have ever seen, no matter of the brand -- I sure bought some of them myself.
Anyway, please take a look at the photos:
M. LINKMAN CO., CHICAGO
The factory, built in 1922, as it looked in a 1937 catalog:
The factory, having been used by another company, before remodeling around 1995:
An artist's rendering of what factory was to look like after remodeling:
The Factory after remodeling, which inlcuded a new main entrance:
Arial map view as provided by De Paul University:
The "M. Linkman & Co." name was nicely restored after the remodeling:
HL&T, SPARTA
The factory in Sparta, North Carolina as of March 1953 during HL&T startup:
The old Dr. Grabow factory as it looked in my July 2009 visit, along with water tank:
The new Sparta factory as it appeared in a real estate ad, circa 2006:
Pictures I took at the new factory in 2009:
