Cribben & Sexton

Sometimes you see something every day and for whatever reason you look at it but you never SEE it. You never think about how it got created? Who was behind it? What is the story that goes with the object?

The object of today's curiosity is the Cribben & Sexton Universal gas stove that sits above our pantry. When I completed cleaning the basket and quilt area I was directed to work on the area shown above. I  have seen that stove hundreds of  times. It sat in the kitchen in the picnic area behind our house since I was in grade school in the 1960's. It didn't seem like anything special and maybe it isn't. Cribben & Sexton well that folks is another story.

 

 

Henry Cribben came to America in 1838 when his family relocated to Rochester, New York from the Isle of Man. Both his parents died within a few years of their arrival in America. By the age of 12 Henry was supporting himself work at a number of manfacturing jobs in the Rochester area. By the time he was 17 he was learning the trade of iron molding. He would remain at the work for about 10 years until the outbreak of the Civil War. He enlisted as a Sergeant in the 114th regiment of New York and would eventually be promoted to Captain due to his exemplary record. This was not a record on the back lines. He fought at Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, the Wilderness, and Bethesda Church. He was taken prisoner by confederate forces in June 1864 at Bethesda Church. He spent eight months as a prisoner of war spending time at seven different confederate prison camps. On February 11, 1865 he escaped near Charlotte, North Carolina. He spent the next 37 days in the wilds of North Carolina and Tennessee until he reached Union lines at Knoxville, Tennessee on March 17, 1865. He rejoined his regiment and returned to the fight. After the Civil War ended he established his own company in Rochester. The Rochester Cooperative Foundry Company.

 

 

James A. Sexton was born in Chicago, Illinois in 1844 and spent his formative years there. He lost his parents at the age of 17 when both passed away. Shortly after their funeral he joined the Union army as a private. He would become a decorated Civil War veteran. He took part in seven battles including The Battle of Spanish Fort in Alabama where his left leg was broken by shrapnel. James Sexton left the army after the war as a Colonel.

 

Just after the Chicago Fire in 1871 Henry Cribben made his way to Chicago and realized it had advantages in distribution that Rochester did not. He started a new company there with James Sexton who had been working for him as a salesman in Rochester. Cribben and Sexton was founded in 1873. By 1880 the business was manufacturing steel and cast iron parlor stoves, cooking stoves and heating stoves for both wood and coal. The annual output was 40,000 units per year. Both men became prominent in the Chicago scene. James Sexton was appointed Postmaster of Chicago by President Harrison and held the post for five years. Henry Cribben became the first president of the stove manufacturer's association. They broke ground for the Universal Building at 700 Sacramento in 1898. Sexton fell into ill health that year and sold his portion of the company to Cribben's son and died in Washington, D.C. later that year at age 54. By 1900 the firm employed 500 people. Cribben transitioned control of the company to his son and died in 1911.  In 1913 Cribben and Sexton Company begin producing the first gas powered stoves in the country. In the late 1930's stove production is shut down and the factory supports the war effort by producting cannons and mortor shells. It is closed following the war.The Universal Building went through several owners and fell into disrepair. By the 1990's it was ready for the wrecking ball. New owners stepped in and repaired the building. It now houses offices and is located about 10 minutes away from the Chicago Loop.

So it wasn't just a stove was it? A truly American story. War heroes, businessmen, public servants. Men who claimed the American dream. Rising from humble beginnings to leave a legacy that continues today in the building they had constructed in Chicago. Take a minute today and look around, maybe you will see something you never noticed before.