San
Joaquin County
Biographies
SUPERIOR MANUFACTURING COMPANY
(Walter R.,
Herbert J., & Eric M. Woock)
A thriving concern with one of the
most up-to-date plants in the state, the Superior Manufacturing Company of Lodi
has built up a reputation for its pumps and pumping machinery that has gone far
and wide. The plant was first
established in 1914 by the three Woock brothers, Walter R., Herbert J., and
Eric M., and was incorporated on August 1, 1919. The new, modern factory was completed May 1,
1920 at a cost of $150,000. It is finely
appointed, equipped with special machinery to facilitate its economic
operation. It comprises the following
departments: Pattern department,
drafting room, manufacturing department, machine shop, testing department, and
show room.
The brothers are endowed with
unusual mechanical ability and inventive genius, and the Superior pumps are the
result of the new ideas in construction which they have developed, the design
having been worked out by constant study and experimentation on their part. Applying the knowledge gained by their years
of experience in the design and manufacture of high-grade pumps, they can
assure their customers of a superior article, made of the best of materials and
correctly finished. The great demands
for their products from every locality where they have once been used, and the
long list of repeated orders from satisfied customers, are the best references
as to their quality and efficiency. One
of their leaders is the shaftless deep-well pump,
patented by them. Among its marked
advantages are the following: No
overhead power; no shafting; no pump packing; no priming; no end thrust; no
pump bearings; less horse power than any other deep-well pump; can be installed
at any angle; impervious to sand and grit, which put many pumps out of
commission. They have also patented
their twin pump, packless pump, and elbow check pump,
all of which have special features; and among other articles manufactured are
single centrifugal pumps, combined elbow check valves, flap valves, and large
pipe fittings. The sizes of their pumps
run from one and a half to twelve inches, designed to discharge from sixty to
4,500 gallons per minute. They also make
special pumps to order, and have installed plants on many of the large ranches
of San Joaquin County, where they are giving complete satisfaction.
The Superior Manufacturing Company
has agencies in Kern, Kings, San Joaquin, Tulare, Madera, Sacramento and Placer
counties; and with the growth of their business, they will doubtless maintain branches
all over the state and in the adjoining territory. With the reclamation of waste lands through
irrigation, these deep-well pumps will play no small part, thus adding to the
natural wealth and productivity of every locality in which they are installed. The business of the company is in the hands
of the following efficient personnel:
Walter R. Woock, president; Herbert J. Woock, vice-president; Eric M.
Woock, treasurer; H. T. Bailey, secretary; while the other members of the board
of directors are H. C. Beckman, Otto Spenker and
Percy S. Webster. The company has just
been reincorporated as The Superior Iron Works, and the manufacturing will be
continued and gradually increased.
Transcribed by V. Gerald Iaquinta.
Source: Tinkham, George H., History of San
Joaquin County, California , Pages
1340-1343. Los Angeles, Calif.: Historic
Record Co., 1923.
© 2012 V. Gerald Iaquinta.
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