Museum

In the first year or so – about 25 visits and twice as many total hours – I have retrieved a number of artifacts and relics from the coke plant. Here is a quick list of most of them. (Also: see my post about random bits and pieces I have found on the internet).

• Item: Ovens department training video (VHS tape)
• Date Found: March 13 2021
• Place Found: Coal bunker; area manager’s office
• Approx. Age: 1995
• Notes: 15 minute video. Unlabeled tape was extremely dirty and damaged, tape was removed and transplanted into a new cassette. Related documentation was located separately months before. What seems to be a very rough draft of the voice over script can be found here.

• Item: “Venturi Port Inspection” VHS tape
• Date Found: December 2020
• Place Found: Coal bunker; area manager’s office
• Approx. Age: February 1996
• Notes: approx. 45 min tape, no audio. Watch here.

• Item: “Railroad Personnel” sign
• Date Found: January 9th 2022
• Place Found: Gate on west fence line, due west of coal bunker
• Approx. Age: unknown
• Notes: Sign under went full restoration

• Item: “Reserved for B.P. Supervisor” parking sign
• Date Found: July 4 2020
• Place Found: By-Product Plant office, east wall
• Approx. Age: unknown
• Notes: Sign was removed from wall, held with two screws/anchors. Bent back to flat, mounted on wood, covered with acrylic

• Item: Fire Alarm Box locations framed sign
• Date Found: January 26 2021
• Place Found: Main office, assistant division manager’s office
• Approx. Age: pre-1964 (due to “Interlake Iron” as opposed to “Interlake Steel” noted on sign)
• Notes: Found in original cardboard box, had never been hung or used

Item: Oven marker B25
Date Found: October 3 2021
Place Found: Battery #1 basement
Approx. Age: unknown
Notes: removed from battery #1 (coke side)

• Item: ‘Do not cross runs” sign
• Date Found: May 1 2022
• Place Found: Gate house
• Approx. Age: unknown
• Notes: This sign would have come from the furnace plant, which closed shortly after the coke plant. At some point someone moved it to the coke plant.

• Item: Arc Welding Danger sign
• Date Found: May 1 2022
• Place Found: Gate House
• Approx. Age: unknown
• Notes: Fitted for custom mount, covered with acrylic

• Item: Phone handset with ‘Coke Plant Emergency’ decal
• Date Found: Summer 2021
• Place Found: By-Product Plant office
• Approx. Age: unknown
• Notes: Buried in a pile of refuse. Handset was coated in dirt such that decal could not be read. Required disassembly and cleaning. Left cord and base behind.

• Item: Storehouse inventory microfilm
• Date Found: October 3 2021
• Place Found: storehouse, room on east side of building
• Approx. Age: post-1986
• Notes: Full size scans available here

• Item: Standing desk
• Date Found: February 2021
• Place Found: By-Product Plant office
• Approx. Age: unknown
• Notes: underwent full restoration

• Item: Certificate of Title for a Vehicle (State of Illinois)
• Date Found: February 28 2021
• Place Found: Main office, assistant division manager’s office
• Approx. Age: December 1999
• Notes: Title for an unknown vehicle, research on the VIN was inconclusive.

• Item: Acme Steel Company flashlight
• Date Found: March 21 2021
• Place Found: Coal bunker, area manager’s office
• Approx. Age: unknown
• Notes:

• Item: Suggestion box
• Date Found: April 30 2021
• Place Found: Electrical shop
• Approx. Age: unknown
• Notes: Item underwent restoration. Recovered second unit from coal bunker and also restored.

• Item: TQI Bulletin board
• Date Found: Jan 15 2022
• Place Found: Coal Bunker
• Approx. Age: unknown
• Notes: Item underwent restoration. Recovered second unit from BP office and also restored.

• Item: Spud wrench
• Date Found: January 3 2021
• Place Found: Battery #1 basement
• Approx. Age: unknown
• Notes: item underwent restoration, later found photographs of same/similar item in use on coke wharf

• Item: Acme strapping tool
• Date Found: January 18 2021
• Place Found: Found outside the coal handling office by an associate
• Approx. Age: unknown
• Notes: Item made of steel produced by Acme, fabricated at Riverdale (Acme Packaging). Item underwent partial restoration.

• Item: “Complete Systems Backup” 3M 600A data cartridge
• Date Found: 2001
• Place Found: By-Product Plant office
• Approx. Age: possibly 1993, difficult to read
• Notes: as of yet unable to find a way to retrieve data from tape, research only yielded exorbitant cost to attempt to do so. Had some moisture inside cartridge which evaporated when moved indoors. Writing on label disappeared from minimal handling. If you have means to access the data on this tape please contact me.

• Item: “Blend Analysis” 5.25″ floppy disk
• Date Found: 2001
• Place Found: Main office, plant petrographer’s office
• Approx. Age: unknown
• Notes: likely related to coal analysis program. If you have means to access the data on this diskette, please contact me.