Color illustration of a wagon pulled by two white horses on a farm with black text.

The New Idea Spreader Company, formerly known as New Idea Spreader Works, was founded by Joseph Oppenheim in 1899, with the help of his son B.C. Oppenheim. The senior Oppenheim was a schoolmaster and came up with the idea to modify the manure spreaders after watching his students play tom ball. During the game, he noticed that the person handling the bat could control which direction the ball went by angling the bat differently. He felt the same could be done with the spreaders. After trial runs with the help of his son, their idea worked, and they were able to sell some of their early models to neighbors. Later, they expanded the New Idea Manure Spreaders and produced them in a factory, which produced a machine about every three minutes. In 1930, New Idea purchased the Sandwich Company, which provided them with new farming designs like fine corn shellers and hay loaders. After being sold several times, New Idea was closed and liquidated in 1999. 

Illustration of a hero sandwich and brown text on a white background.

A deli sandwich served on a long bun with hot or cold meat and veggies, cheese, or toppings is known by several names, each with its own distinctions: submarine/sub, grinder, hoagie, and hero. In 1936, New York Herald columnist Clementine Paddleworth described thick sandwiches in New York City as "hero sandwiches" because "you had to be a hero to eat it," which is likely the origin of the moniker. A hero sandwich could be a hot or a cold sandwich, including cold cuts, meatballs, or chicken parmesan, unlike the sub, which is traditionally cold. Hoagies, or hoggies, were distinguished by their piles of meat, which are often also a trait of hero sandwiches. A grinder is a New England term for a hero sandwich, likely derived from having to grind your teeth to eat it and more commonly eaten by dockworkers where the slang term gets its origin.

My Hero Submarine Sandwich Shoppes, established in 1964, was located in Chicago on Western Avenue. Only cold sandwiches were served, and, without seating in the shop, customers took their sandwiches to go. One family owned the shop for several generations before being bought by Denise Mitchell. Denise bought the shop because her mother worked there for twenty-five years. The place held a lot of nostalgia for both Denise and the many locals who frequented the shop. My Hero Submarine Sandwich Shoppes closed in 2017.

Green text on a white background.

The first examples of mobile homes can be traced to roaming bands of Roma who traveled the countryside in horse-drawn homes as far back as the 1500s. The modern version of the mobile home became popular in America before the Depression as an inexpensive way to travel. However, in the 1930s, these traveling homes became a more permanent solution for many who had lost jobs.  Although they were never originally intended as a permanent dwelling, manufacturers picked up on the trend.  Mobile homes became increasingly popular during WWII when hundreds of war industries needed housing for workers, and portable trailers were seen as a convenient and economical answer. 

After the war, mobile homes became popular due to limited housing for returning soldiers and their families.  Over time, average square footage and amenities in mobile homes increased, and mobile home parks sprouted up all over the country.  Miss South Carolina shocked audiences when she introduced herself at the Miss America Pageant in 2013 by proclaiming, "From the state where 20% of our homes are mobile 'cause that's how we roll, I'm Brooke Mosteller, Miss South Carolina." The Recreational Vehicle/Manufactured Housing (RV/MH) Hall of Fame is located in Elkhart, Indiana.

Blue illustration of a foot in an ice cube with blue text on a white background

"Cool it!" was the slogan for Mennen Company's leading athlete's foot treatment, Quinsana. The foot powder debuted in 1939 and became a staple for soldiers fighting in World War II. Post-war, Quinsana remained a popular over-the-counter treatment for athlete's foot and is still sold in drugstores today. 

White text on a red background

Melorol was an ice cream novelty produced by Borden Dairy and its subsidiaries from the 1930s through the 1960s. Melorol consisted of an individually wrapped, cylindrical serving of vanilla ice cream and was distributed throughout the US and Canada. Spokespeople for the treat included Slim Timblin, the Dionne Quintuplets, and Borden’s mascot, Elsie the Cow. 

Illustration of a hotel building with black text on a white background

The Marion Hotel was located in Little Rock, Arkansas, and at eight stories, it was the tallest building from its opening in 1907 until 1911. As a luxury hotel, The Marion hosted many famous visitors over the years, including President Harry Truman, Eleanor Roosevelt, Douglas MacArthur, and Helen Keller. Pulitzer Prize winning author, Richard Ford, spent his childhood and adolescent summers at the hotel visiting his grandparents, who lived on the premises. The Marion Hotel was demolished in 1980 to make way for a new hotel and convention center.

Illustration of a woman in a yellow outfit with a hat  and a red and white scarf and white gloves on a blue and white background with red text

Have info on this button? Contact us here.

White text on a red background

Mack Trucks is one of the largest manufacturers of heavy duty Class 8 trucks. Their semi-trucks are U.S. manufactured and assembled. Although the company name of Mack Trucks did not make its debut until 1922, it began as a small carriage and wagon business by the Mack brothers from Brooklyn in 1893. It wasn’t until 1900 that they made the move to motorized vehicles with the construction of a bus that could haul large groups of people. The slogan, “Built like a Mack Truck,” entered the American lexicon as early as 1957 with print ads drawn by Woodi Ishmael.

Illustration of a yellow chick with wheels and blue text on a white background

Long-Lewis Hardware Company began selling cars after being given a Ford franchise from Henry Ford in 1915. To solidify their intent to be in the automotive industry, a two-story addition was added to their existing building to store the new cars. The Ford Division of the Long-Lewis Hardware Company was then moved to a different location. In 1982, the location of the hardware division was closed, and ownership changed hands when GM Vaughn Burrell bought out the owner William Long. Burrell entered into a partnership with Todd Ouellette, who then bought out Burrell to become the current owner and CEO of the Long-Lewis Automotive Group.

White text on an orange background

Life magazine was an American periodical that ran weekly from 1883 to 1972. Time founder Henry Luce bought the magazine in 1936 and shifted its focus to a news magazine with a strong emphasis on photojournalism. It became the first all photography news magazine with work by photographers like Alfred Eisenstaedt, Margaret Bourke-White, and Henri Cartier-Bresson.

Life was published weekly until 1972, as special issues until 1978, and then monthly from 1978 to 2002. It now exists as a website that features classic and unpublished photos from LIFE magazine.