Relive the Early Days of the Electric Appliance
Tuesday, Feb 10, 2009 @09:10pm CST
 Take a look around your kitchen. I bet the appliances you use today look a lot different than those your parents used when you were a child. Electric gadgets and gizmos have come a long way over the last century. But there's a little-known place over in Diamond Missouri where you can relive the early days of the electric appliance. We stopped by for a tour to bring you this week's Oliver's Ozarks report.
Right off Highway 59 in Diamond, JR's Western Store has been selling western wares since 1980. But it's what you'll now find in the back of the store that's catching some customers by surprise.
"I've got coffee pots, toasters, waffle irons, electric shavers, mixers, malt mixers, heaters" says store owner Richard Larrison.
And it's all here in what Richard Larrison calls the world's largest, small appliance museum.
It all started years ago when Richard's brother-in-law challenged him to start collecting old electric fans.
"You know with the brass blades and the brash shrouds. And so I started doing that and I had 125 of them" says Larrison.
From there, Richard's appetite for old electric appliances grew. And he started buying anything and everything.
"Well everybody gets a bang out of the electrocuted hotdog machines" says Larrison.
Don't forget the electric lunch pail, where workers can heat up the grub.
"Well that saved the brown bags. See this is reusable. So that's green technology. I kind of feature myself as a preservationist. Where else can you go in the U.S. or world and see all the electrical appliances from 1900 to the 60's. You can't do it" says Larrison.
Richard has traveled far and wide to add to the collection which consists of about 3500 different items. He buys at flea markets, and sometimes on E-Bay. He says there's no way to estimate how much he's spent on his electrifying hobby.
"I don't drink and I don't smoke so all my money and effort goes into the museum."
What's more Richard says most of this stuff still works.
"95%, yeah. They made them to last" says Larrison.
And since Richard plans to add on more space to house 800 items that are still in storage, you can probably bet the small appliance museum is also made to last.
"makes me feel good when people come in and see it and really enjoy it" says Larrison.
There's no charge to enjoy the small appliance museum. Richard does have a donation jar on a counter to help pay for utility costs. It only opened last October, but he's already had appliance enthusiasts come by from several different states. |
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