BulbCollector Forums
BULB DISCUSSION BOARDS => Antique Bulb Discussion => Topic started by: Bill Nelson on August 28, 2000, 05:37:00 pm
-
Hi, Everyone! Does anybody know when General Electric first used the script GE letters in a circle logo? I'm doing a bit of research and would like to know when it first appeared. I read a date somewhere of 1926, but that cannot possibly be correct. Any help would be appreciated! Thanks.
-
Bill, company records show that the GE logo was first used on an electric ceiling fan in 1898. The trademark was registered on September 18, 1900. The application had been filed a year earlier.
-
I think I can add a bit to that. As far as the actual individual who created the logo, no one person can be credited. G.E. has attempted to learn who the actual individual was that created the logo and never was able to pinpoint the actual source within their organization. They gave up.
Still, it's a household "Logo" now !
-
Do you know anything about how the origins of the GE monogram relate to that of BTH (British Thomson-Houston) in the UK? I have never been able to find any documentation as to which of them was used first. If my attached image has worked correctly you will see how similar they are and it seems likely that one is based on the other.
(http://albums.photopoint.com/j/View?u=1148573&a=8437387&p=27275316)
Since BTH was formed from American T-H, later to become GE, it's perhaps not surprising that they used to work together very closely and had access to each other's patents, trade marks (eg. Mazda) so it is possible one company adopted the other's logo. Even the casting numbers on old BTH machines in the UK are identical on American machines still running in some old GE plants so there was clearly a lot of collaboration back then.
The plant I did my college placement at is a GE factory today, but originally it was a BTH lamp works. Many employees and retired staff who have worked their whole lives there firmly state that the BTH logo pre-dates that of GE, having been first used in 1896, but I have never found any written proof of this. The main story there is that someone in GE's fan division produced the GE script while bending up a piece of wire to decorate the centre of a fan guard, and that it was used as the plain letters for many years but later they adopted the ring from BTH logo, added a fourth 'tail' and placed it around the GE script. So maybe the GE script in the centre predates BTH but the present circular GE logo was a later development?
Anyway if you know anything about the history of this I'd be very interested to hear your comments!
FYI you can find an excellent clarification covering much of the highly complex series of mergers that took place in the history of UK lighting firms on GEC's website at http://www.gec.com/about_marconi/heritage/ (http://www.gec.com/about_marconi/heritage/)
It includes the amalgamations and takeovers involving famous lamp brands such as BTH-Mazda, AEI, GEC, English Electric, Robertson, Metropolitan-Vickers, Siemens-Edison-Swan, Ediswan, Ekco, Ensign, Atlas and Thorn Lighting. Today the light source divisions of all of these have through various routes ended up in the hands of GE and Osram and this site makes a good attempt to document the main changes. There are some slight differences though as the timeline charts the history of the core businesses and in some cases, the lighting divisions changed hands separately.
-
Thank's for all of your help, everyone! I sincerely appreciate it. I'll put the information you provided on my new website at www.oldchristmaslights.com (http://www.oldchristmaslights.com)
Warm regards,
Bill
-
Bill-
I know this is off-topic but anyway- I thought I`d say how much I enjoyed your new website, there`s loads of great new info there and I can`t wait for it to be completely finished.
Incidentally I`ve just included a new link to it on my "My-Ebay" page as well as the link to your old one which I`ve left there for now (you can find this page by clicking on my "profile" icon above on the left, and it`s listed under "home page").
-chris
-
Bravo Bill!
------------------
-Tim