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Scott & Fetzer “Sanitation System” 1925 |
 (Detail of bag lettering) |
| This is the grandaddy of the modern Kirby vacuum cleaning system, invented by James Kirby; named after his financial backers, Messrs. Scott and Fetzer. Mr. Kirby was quite brilliant and a rather prodigious inventor, having come up with numerous other inventions besides the Sanitation System. |  James Kirby (cir. 1935) |
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Vacuette Non-Electric Cleaner 1925 |
| The Vacuette, another product from the mind of James Kirby and manufactured by the Scott & Fetzer Company, came in electric and non-electric models. (The electric model looks very much like the Sanitation System machine shown above.) Various models of the Vacuette were sold until the mid-1930s. The non-electric Vacuette was heavily advertised for “areas without electricity such as rural homes, farms, etc.” and where “saving money on electric bills is an important consideration for the household.”
This machine uses a worm gear assembly: You know, the sort of action that makes those “push-push” toy cars run across the floor after revving them up by dragging them rapidly against the floor. Pushing the Vacuette briskly along a rug caused the wheel-powered suction fan to revolve at a fairly high rate of speed. |
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Kirby Model 2-C 1935 |
| The Kirby 2-C was the first Scott & Fetzer product to bear the name of the inventor. Designed in an elegant, streamlined fashion, the 2-C not only cleaned efficiently but was also a very beautifully styled machine. |  |
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Kirby Model 505 1945 |
 With hose for dusting |
 Motor-driven floor-polisher attachment |
| The Kirby 505 was a beautiful machine with highly polished aluminum housing, accented with black and red trim and a large black cloth bag. (In these photos, the 505 may appear to be the same machine as the 2-C above. However, various design changes, and a larger and more powerful motor, do distinguish the two.)
The Kirby included many innovative and unique accessories, including a very effective floor-polisher attachment. The Kirby was also the first vacuum cleaner to convert entirely from an upright machine to a hand-carried portable: The long handle was easily detached and in its place a grip-handle and shoulder strap were fastened on, for use with the hose and attachments. (Of course, as pictured above, one did not have to remove the long handle for dusting; indeed, most people did not go to the trouble.) |
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Kirby Model 511 1951 |
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The Complete Model 511 Cleaning System ‹—— |
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Set up as a portable cleaner ‹—— |
| The Kirby 511 was similar in many regards to Models 507 through 512 — grey bag with very ornate red and silver silkscreened logo; grey trim and bumpers; black cord and wheels — there really isn’t any major significance with the 511 over the other “red and grey” series other than, in my case, the fact that this is the most complete example I have.
There was, however, a new feature introduced in the Kirby Model 511: The “Handi-Butler,” a useful device with grinding wheels, wire brushes, sanding disks, knife-sharpener, etc. Along the way, through the various models, other features and devices were added to the Handi-Butler. (Much later, the early-1960s Kirby “Classic” included a Swedish-Massage attachment. Salesmen would sometimes make a “wink-wink, nudge-nudge” joke to the husband [after the sale was closed, of course...] along the lines of “If you wake up in the middle of the night and your wife has locked herself in the bathroom with the new Kirby, she’s probably not using it to shampoo the rug...”) |
