The Sprague Electric Company's Long Goodbye - Part 4

Thanks so much for your thoughtful comment, taejonkwando. After writing the first three parts of this story, I was beginning to wonder if anyone would engage my "industrial folktale" in a meaningful way. The Sprague stories have had a fair number of views, but yours is the first comment.

Someday - and I hope that "someday" comes sooner than later - I'd like to write a book that tells the story of Sprague Electric and it's "sub histories", as you aptly term them. It's encouraging to know that there are readers out there who see value in these stories, and will argue that they're worth remembering.

Moose

I'd buy that book if you'd write it. Sprague was more than a name, it was a reputation, a dependability, a quality one could employ without question.

I used many Sprague components in my early teenage years as I learned about the mysteries of radio. I unhesitatingly put my very limited funds and trust into their products.

I was never disappointed. Oh yes, some components failed but that was always because of something I had done wrong in using the part, such as reversing the polarity on an electrolytic capacitor. That was an explosive lesson of which Mr. Sprague, were he alive, would have looked on with amusement.

I'll let you know when I write that book, taejonkwando! And I may just ask you for an interview. Your impressions about what the name "Sprague" signified would certainly add depth to the story.

I'd be honored to contribute to this project. Sprague failed to evolve for reasons yet unknown (to me, at least). Had we been able to overview history from WW II to today I would have bet on seeing the Sprague logo in millions of today's computers and other electronic devices.

Possibly the failure of once near invincible companies such as Sprague remind us there is little inertia in the marketplace to sustain a company ignorant of the competitive forces which shape the future.

Companies must be diligent in forecasting, planning, investing in research and development and finally, critically evaulating their own relevance in the marketplace. As to the latter; those in the horsecollar business who said to the infant auto industry "get a horse", comes to mind.

I grew up in North Adams and my Dad worked there all his working life. When Marshall Street closed in 1985, he was transfered to Mansfield, MA. He then moved to the Samford, ME plant and finally to the Statesville, NC facility. He retired in 2003 after working 42 years at Sprague. I went off to college in 1985, but remember visiting my Dad's office in North Adams many times as a kid. The big Guard house. The full service cafe that was as good as any diner around. All my friends folks worked there too in some capacity. It was a great place and allowed for a great childhood in NA. I am sad that my kids could not experience it. I live North of Boston now. We live on the ocean and have access to the city when ever we want. Nothing beats,however, the small town, no worries way of life I had as a kid in NA. Sprague made that possible.

I worked for Sprague from 1960 thru 1985 mostly at the Marshall St. facility so probably knew your father. I visited North Adams about a year and a half ago and went into the building where I used to work which is now occupied by some small companies. The big change is that the Brown St. plant is completely gone.

I worked the Sprague Ceramic capacitor facility in Wichita Falls, TX for the last years of its life. After the facility closed I went to work for a competitor, whom I shall refer to as "the evil empire". Even though the evil empire was 10 times bigger, Sprague's products were 5 years ahead.

I used to get to travel to North Adams and worked with Tom Prokopowicz and the PhD Lebanese guy there. Got a parking ticket in front of Jack's Hot Dogs.

Does any one know if Romney's Bain Capital had anything to do with Sprague augering in? I remember Sprague was held by a railroad which was in turn held by someone named Lindner(?). Lindner's son got into some weird trouble for shooting someone else's horses. Somehow there was a cause and effect/coincidence with this chain of events.

Thanks!

Ralph,

No, Bain capital had nothing to do with Sprague. You are right re Carl Lindner who controlled the residual shell of Penn Central which in turn controlled Sprague. You can read about him at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carl_Lindner,_Jr. .

The main reason for its collapse was its diverting resources from capacitors into its failed attempt to become a major factor in chips. Even John Sprague who was mainly responsible for this decision has admitted it was a mistake.

I was in the paper/film capacitor division from 1960 through 1985 and did know Tom.

Jerry Kowalsky

I also no longer trust our government to make wise decisions. We have lost our way. At one time we seemed to be filled with noble purpose. An amazing country which conquered its enemies and then restored them to near equal power. A country filled with national pride, respect for life, honesty, and a belief in God.

Sadly we have become like starving dogs eating our young, destroying the futures of the innocent and unborn. Where are the Churchhills, the Roosevelts? Where are successors to these great leaders of yesterday? Shouldn't the system have made us better, given us even greater leaders? That was the promise, the hope for our children to live in a better world.

Unfortunately we are left with the ruins of what could have been, promises unfulfilled, goals unacheived and the acceptance of less than ideal standards. Our remembered "way of life" has disintegrated into materialistic consumerism, corruption and human behavior regulated not by pride, loyalty and honesty but by something called "situational ethics".

We have also become hardened to the plight of humanity. Where once the Peace Corps, Project Hope, UNICEF, and numerous other venues attracted our youth to join in noble purpose, now there are gangs, drugs and other manipulative forces which control their destinies.

Our allies once loved us. We were welcomed in their world. Now they view us with caution. We no longer hold their confidence as a wise friend. We seem more like a brash teenager, full of rebellion, no longer guided by the precepts of our founding fathers.

Therefore it is no surprise that any of our various levels of government are capable of the canabilistic annihilation of the very entities which feed them. We should all be aware of the old adage "there comes a time when governments and treachery are synonymous".

Thanks for your kind words and personal anecdotes, Del! If you have .jpg's of your watercolors of Harlow's Glass Works, I'd be willing to showcase them here. We'd just need to come up with some content or commentary to surround them.

Drop me a line if you're interested.

Moose

I'd like to see them too.

Cheers,

Dunno how well they would photograph...I'll see, mind I do have a nice sketch of a small foundry which was being bulldozed opposite where I worked... If I can get some decent shots I'll submit 'em...Ive got one glorious photo of sunset over the glass works (how romantic, lol)...but it's pre digital...and I'm afraid my watercolour abstract taken from it hasn't been executed with sufficient skill .

<rant>

There is an acquaintence that buys in every service that is needed around the home and does very little him/herself. Ooooohhhhhhh!

</rant>

Glad to have you as part of this conversation, PWSlack. I suspect that those wood and metal-working classes that you mentioned have all been replaced by an "introduction to computers" class!

Yeh, I used to get back from school and set the fire... At one point we had a gas poker (pre light sabre ... but to a 10yr old the effect was much the same).

Mmm the guilt pleasure of throwing small amounts of 'stuff' on the fire to see what it did.... sugar is quite good.... salt gives a bit of colour...oh dear I'm learning chemistry.

I'd also use the coal fire for case hardening crossbow trigger mechanisms... my folks were pretty understanding!

"They cut down all the trees

Put them in a tree museum

Then they charged all the people a dollar and a half just to see them

Oh, Lord! Look what they've done

You don't know what you've got till it's gone....."

with apologies to Joni Mitchell

If you are serious about writing a history of Sprague, there are a few of us still around who toiled there. I was in Eng. and Mkt from 1955 to 1968 These were probably the halcyon years for the Company. John Sprague, RC's son should still be in Williamsown. I'm sure that there are others and I know for certain we can answer many of your questions.

I've always felt that a small portion of the art Museum should be devoted to the history of the development of Electronics. It is a fascinating story. Give me your thoughts.

Hello, haphazzard! And welcome to CR4. Yes, I am still serious about writing a history of Sprague. I'll send you a private message via CR4's messaging service to talk some more.

Best,

Moose

Welcome to CR4, jerrkowa! And thanks for commenting on this story. I'd like to talk to you some more about your experiences at Sprague, and will send you a private message to do so. Best - Moose

Just a few remarks about the Worchester Semiconductors factory. They did fairly well against the big boys with nitch products in motor driver IC's and other power devices, Hall cells etc. The factory was sold to a number of employees and the name changed to Allegro. Bobz

Hi Moose. It's exciting to discover potential contributors such as Seantor 46, Jerrkowa and Haphazzard, who are intimately familiar with the internal workings of Sprague. Perhaps with inputs from RC's son Sprague's beginnings and evolution up through WW II can be told.

Of interest is also PW Slack and Del's observations of lost skills, techniques and views of the past from 'across the pond'. Your desire to document the history of Sprague has also provided us with a glimpse into a larger history of some of the consequences of evolving technology. PW SLack mentions such memories as he takes us briefly into his childhood world of tossing various things into the fire to see the colors they produce and he reminds us of a more difficult time where skill was required to accomplish what pushing a button will accomplish now.

Del paints with a sensitivity, a restrained yearning to portray deteriorating and abandoned enterprises with the vitality and energy they once possessed. They now stand true in Del's muted watercolors, faintly glowing like ageing cinema queens of years gone by, somewhat respected but no longer desired and left abandoned to be remembered by a dwindling few who still remember the glory.

My memories of Sprague can be chronicled by noting my progress from my first (of many) crystal sets to the final complexities of building my Heathkit 6 meter transciever. Mr. Sprague was involved in every success and failure, every test, every venture into CQ's across the night skies to exchange QSLcards with someone unseen yet whose personality clicked with a rapid Morse code cadence through my headphones.

I now miss that camaraderie, the knowing that we were special, distinct from our brethren who slept during those communicative E layer times. I often went to school sleepy eyed, yawning in those overly warm classrooms, remembering a joke told much earlier that morning in dit-dah clicks. Now email has removed the need for me to load the antenna, wait for the CQ response, tune with critical precision to separate the faint signal from the background of static hash. There is no excitement in cyberspace as there was in creating your own airwaves in the ether, casting your message outward in your handmade electronic bottle hoping someone would find it and respond in kind.

Mr Sprague enabled me to stretch my thoughts across unimaginable distances to places so far away as to be almost imaginary in my young mind. From a little west Texas town of 504 people I was able to communicate with Mr. Mwangota in Dar es Salaam who later became the bodyguard for Mr. Joseph Mubutu, the President of Tanzinia and Mr. Colin R.G. Pierce in Bombay India who serviced the Queen's Rolls Royce so that if she were ever to visit, it would be ready, impeccably ready.

Such international friendships were hard to establish and much harder to maintain because of weather, politics, and the questionable reliability of our equipment but our desire to accomplish the difficult was always coupled with the desire to advance the technology. Little did we know we would be lose our own past in the fallen and faded buildings of our mentors.

Does anyone know where to find specifications for obsolete Hammond transformers? I'm trying to help another CR4er (lindenbachw@shaw.ca) who has been unable to get a satisfactory answer from the manufacturer. Many of the people who've commented on this thread know a bit about the history of electronic components (and their manufacturers), so I'm appealing to you for assistance. Mr. Lindenbach posted his original question last week, but has yet to receive any comments from the larger user community.

Thank you!

FYI - I just finished a brief biography about Carroll Killen, a Sprague engineer who played an important role in the company's success. Many thanks to jerrkowa for bringing Killen's career to my attention. Click here for the bio.

Great article that I found trying to identify a Sprague part number. I worked for Sprague for 6 years in their hay day but in the Cherry Hill NJ sales office. Visited Brown Street twice but spent most of my visits to MA in the Semiconductor factorys in Worchester, or Nashua and Concord NH. Bobz

Hi! I just found your blog and I wanted to contribute. My father was a salesman for Sprague Electric....I was always curious about my fathers work and this company. I am very excited and happy to learn of the MASS MoCA and want to visit! When I was in high school in 1986 I won a scholarship from Sprague Electric. My father was very proud. It was a sad day when they closed his office near Chicago. Many years later I'm a teacher and very grateful for that scholarship. I would love to talk to and meet other people touched by the Sprague Electric Company.

Thank you!

Ms. Christine DeMonte

Christine, I was in the marketing department at Sprague from 1960 thru 1985 and did deal with Sprague's Chicago office. What was your father's full name?

My father's name was Lester DeMonte.