DEEDS BARN
and the
SELF-STARTER
The 1912 Cadillac, equipped with self-starter,is the central exhibit in Deeds Barn.
Deeds Barn is symbolic of one of the most important developmentsin the automotive field. It was here that the modern ignition systemfor automobiles and the self-starter were born and the foundationlaid for one of Dayton’s most important industries. The barn itself andone of the 1912 Cadillac cars, first to be commercially equipped with aself-starter, represent this important invention. Also included in the barnare several other exhibits which should be of interest to any visitor andmost certainly to every Daytonian.
The original Deeds Barn was erected at 319 Central Avenue, Dayton.An exact replica stands in Carillon Park.
The Story of the Self-Starter
C. F. KETTERING
E. A. DEEDS
These photos were taken about the time the Delco firm was incorporated.
In industrial production, as in so many other activities, large oaksfrom little acorns grow. The cash register and the electric self-starterare instances in point. The first factory of The National Cash RegisterCompany under the presidency of John H. Patterson, was a room inthe Callahan Power Building, forty feet wide and eighty feet long, withthirteen people on the payroll. From it emerged a business on whichthe sun never sets.
More humble in environment was the invention of the self-starterwhich had its birth in a barn. Almost before a decade passed, it hadmade the use of the automobile universal. Such were the beginnings oftwo enterprises which, to a degree greater than any others, enhancedthe industrial prestige and prosperity of Dayton. Each contributed achapter to the romance of American Industry.
Dayton people, and for that matter, a considerable portion of theoutside world, are familiar with the story of John H. Patterson’s industrialgenius that made his name synonymous with cash register productionand distribution. They are not so well acquainted with the origin ofthe self-starter and particularly the historic barn in which it was created.A replica of that barn stands today in Carillon Park.
The Drama of the Barn, as it may well be called, evolved about twomen—Edward A. Deeds and Charles F. Kettering. Both were born andreared on the farm, that rugged nursery in which so many of our nationalleaders were nurtured; both worked their way through college;2both began their careers near the bottom of the ladder at The NationalCash Register Company. Their business alma mater served them well.