A.B. Dick Company
Encyclopedia
The A. B. Dick Company was a major American manufacturer of copy machines and office supplies in the late 19th Century and the 20th Century.
The company was founded in 1883 in Chicago
as a lumber company by Albert Blake Dick (1856 – 1934). It soon expanded into office supplies and, after licensing key autographic printing patents from Thomas Edison
, became the world's largest manufacturer of mimeograph equipment (Albert Dick coined the word "mimeograph"). The company introduced the Model 0 Flatbed Duplicator in 1887. Later on, the flatbed duplicators were replaced by devices using a rotating cylinder with automatic ink feed. Basic models were hand-cranked while more elaborate machines used an electric motor.
The company had a new headquarters built in 1926, the building at 728 West Jackson now called Haberdasher Square Lofts, and remained there until their move to suburban Niles
in 1949.
The company virtually created the business of "quick printing" via storefront shops that printed from disposable plates on duplicators. Tens of thousands of its Model 350 and 360 duplicator were sold, many of which are still in use. Starting in the 1960s, xerography
began to overtake A. B, Dick's older mimeograph technology.
John Stetson
was president of A. B. Dick when he was appointed
Secretary of the Air Force
in 1978.
In 1979 the company was acquired by the General Electric Company (a British firm, not to be confused with the American company General Electric).
In 1988 the company acquired Itek Graphix
, a leading manufacturer of plate-makers for duplicators (small format offset presses
). By the late 1990s it was a division of the Nesco company of Cleveland.
In the 1980s, A. B. Dick was involved with GEC Computers
in the production of the ill-fated GEC Series 63
minicomputer
.
The company filed for bankruptcy in 2004 and many of its assets now belong to Presstek
, a manufacturer of prepress
products.
The company was founded in 1883 in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
as a lumber company by Albert Blake Dick (1856 – 1934). It soon expanded into office supplies and, after licensing key autographic printing patents from Thomas Edison
Thomas Edison
Thomas Alva Edison was an American inventor and businessman. He developed many devices that greatly influenced life around the world, including the phonograph, the motion picture camera, and a long-lasting, practical electric light bulb. In addition, he created the world’s first industrial...
, became the world's largest manufacturer of mimeograph equipment (Albert Dick coined the word "mimeograph"). The company introduced the Model 0 Flatbed Duplicator in 1887. Later on, the flatbed duplicators were replaced by devices using a rotating cylinder with automatic ink feed. Basic models were hand-cranked while more elaborate machines used an electric motor.
The company had a new headquarters built in 1926, the building at 728 West Jackson now called Haberdasher Square Lofts, and remained there until their move to suburban Niles
Niles, Illinois
Niles is a village in Maine and Niles Townships, Cook County, Illinois, United States. The 2010 population from the U.S. Census Bureau is 29,803.The current mayor of Niles is Robert M. Callero.-History:Niles was first settled in 1827....
in 1949.
The company virtually created the business of "quick printing" via storefront shops that printed from disposable plates on duplicators. Tens of thousands of its Model 350 and 360 duplicator were sold, many of which are still in use. Starting in the 1960s, xerography
Xerography
Xerography is a dry photocopying technique invented by Chester Carlson in 1938, for which he was awarded on October 6, 1942. Carlson originally called his invention electrophotography...
began to overtake A. B, Dick's older mimeograph technology.
John Stetson
John Charles Stetson
John Charles Stetson was a U.S. administrator. He served as the Secretary of the Air Force between 1977 and 1979.-References:**...
was president of A. B. Dick when he was appointed
Secretary of the Air Force
United States Secretary of the Air Force
The Secretary of the Air Force is the Head of the Department of the Air Force, a component organization within the Department of Defense of the United States of America. The Secretary of the Air Force is appointed from civilian life by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate...
in 1978.
In 1979 the company was acquired by the General Electric Company (a British firm, not to be confused with the American company General Electric).
In 1988 the company acquired Itek Graphix
Itek
Itek Corporation was a US defense contractor that initially specialized in the field of camera systems for spy satellites. In the early 1960s they built a conglomerate in a fashion similar to LTV or Litton, during which time they developed the first CAD system and explored optical disk technology...
, a leading manufacturer of plate-makers for duplicators (small format offset presses
Offset printing
Offset printing is a commonly used printing technique in which the inked image is transferred from a plate to a rubber blanket, then to the printing surface...
). By the late 1990s it was a division of the Nesco company of Cleveland.
In the 1980s, A. B. Dick was involved with GEC Computers
GEC Computers
GEC Computers Limited was the computer manufacturing company under the GEC holding company.-History:Starting life as Elliott Automation, the data processing computer products were transferred to ICT/ICL and non-computing products to English Electric as part of a reorganisation of the parent company...
in the production of the ill-fated GEC Series 63
GEC Series 63
The GEC Series 63 was a 32-bit minicomputer produced by GEC Computers Limited of the UK during the 1980s in conjunction with A.B. Dick in USA. During development, the computer was known as the R Project. The hardware development was done in Scottsdale, Arizona whilst the software was the...
minicomputer
Minicomputer
A minicomputer is a class of multi-user computers that lies in the middle range of the computing spectrum, in between the largest multi-user systems and the smallest single-user systems...
.
The company filed for bankruptcy in 2004 and many of its assets now belong to Presstek
Presstek
Presstek manufactures and markets digital offset printing solutions. Headquartered in Hudson, New Hampshire, Presstek sells offset presses, computer-to-plate systems, and chemistry-free printing plates, as well as prepress consumables. In 2004, Presstek purchased the financially troubled A.B. Dick...
, a manufacturer of prepress
Prepress
Prepress is the term used in the printing and publishing industries for the processes and procedures that occur between the creation of a print layout and the final printing...
products.
External Links
- A. B. Dick Company history at Funding Universe (mirrored at answers.com)
Further reading
- Glen Buck. Fifty Years 1884-1934, A.B. Dick Company. (Chicago, IL: A.B. Dick Company, c1934). (Written by Glen Buck, with drawings by Rockwell KentRockwell KentRockwell Kent was an American painter, printmaker, illustrator, and writer.- Biography :Rockwell Kent was born in Tarrytown, New York, the same year as fellow American artists George Bellows and Edward Hopper...
and photographs by Torkel Korling. Printed at Lakeside Press, Chicago, 1934)