Difference between revisions of "Argus"

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'''Argus''' Inc. was a camera maker based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA. Before 1939 it was '''International Research Corporation''', a department of ''International Radio Corporation'', Ann Arbor. It was the American company that popularized the modern cartridged [[35mm]] film in the U.S., especially by its characteristically brick-shaped [[rangefinder camera]]s. The first camera of Argus, the [[Argus A]], resulted from a patent that the company received in 1936. Before that time the company had produced radios, among them some [[bakelite]] models.
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'''Argus''' Inc. was a camera maker based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA. Before 1939 it was '''International Research Corporation''', which evolved out of International Radio Corporation, an innovative maker of [[bakelite]] radio sets. It was this American company that brought [[35mm]] film in Kodak's '''135''' cassette to a mass market in the U.S.; especially with its famous brick-shaped [[rangefinder camera]]s, the '''C''' series. The first camera by Argus, the [[Argus A]], resulted from a patent that the company received in 1936, and its surprisingly affordable cost made it a great success.  
  
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Argus became a great name in the Ann Arbor's economy. Several buildings of its heydays are still known as Argus building. One of these pearls of the city's brick architecture has become a modern office building now, with a public area where a permanent exhibition of Argus cameras is shown, the Argus Museum.
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By the 1950s, Argus had became a significant force in Ann Arbor's economy. Several buildings from its heyday still stand. Two are now used by the University of Michigan; but the main original factory is now remodeled as office space, and owned by "C3 Partners."  This building at  includes a public area in an upstairs lobby, where a permanent exhibition of Argus cameras is shown: The Argus Museum<ref>[http://gfoxphoto.blogspot.com/2009/08/blog-post.html "Argus Camera Museum, Ann Arbor "] at [http://gfoxphoto.blogspot.com/ Vintage Cameras | Gregory Fox Photography]</ref>.
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Argus's factory was located in a residential neighborhood west of downtown Ann Arbor, which had traditionally been an enclave of German immigrants—particularly from Swabia in southern Germany<ref>[http://aaobserver.aadl.org/aaobserver/15573 "The Story of the Schwaben Halle"], from the ''Ann Arbor Observer'' column "Then And Now," Dec. 2002, archived at [http://aaobserver.aadl.org/node/18520 Ann Arbor District Library]. The Swabian region of Germany was home to [[Dacora|Dacora Kamerawerk]], founded in Reutlingen south of Stuttgart.</ref>
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In 1957 Argus was purchased by Sylvania Electric Products Co., who believed there would be a synergy with that firm's strong flashbulb sales. A new South Carolina factory was opened to handle good slide projector sales. However by the late 1950s, Argus was struggling to compete against new Japanese camera imports, which offered better features at a lower price point. In 1959 Sylvania was acquired by GTE; and in 1962 Argu's new corporate owners essentially dumped the company onto [[Mansfield|Mansfield Industries]]—a Chicago photographic distributor and a much smaller company.
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In the 1960s, most Argus products became had foreign imports (several from [[Mamiya]]), rebranded with the Argus name. While optics contracts kept some Ann Arbor workers busy, by 1963 camera production had stopped there (a trickle of camera models were made in South Carolina through the 1960s). Starting in 1967 Argus's corporate ownership turned over several more times, with the brand popping up in various guises; but the era of US-designed and -manufactured cameras had ended.
  
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Some Argus products were OEM products made by other makers.
 
 
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* [[Argus Lady Carefree]] and [[Argus Flash Sensor 235x]] ([[Sedic]])
 
* [[Argus Lady Carefree]] and [[Argus Flash Sensor 235x]] ([[Sedic]])
 
* [[Argus V-100]] (German OEM)
 
* [[Argus V-100]] (German OEM)
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==Notes==
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<references/>
  
 
== Sources ==
 
== Sources ==

Revision as of 07:09, 7 March 2011

Argus buildings:

8578374_f33eceb1e5_m.jpg

Argus Building, 535 West William Street,
now an office building, and
home of the Argus Museum

702617486_80cb7731c7_m.jpg

Curved corner of former Argus optics
shop, across 4th Street from factory.
Currently owned by university

1229208061_1874ff6a0f_m.jpg

The entrance of
that building

1325538975_1ea0ae9169_m.jpg

East side of Argus factory building,
facing parking lot

2416006868_e150e2f728_m.jpg
C3 and C3 Matchmatic

Argus Inc. was a camera maker based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA. Before 1939 it was International Research Corporation, which evolved out of International Radio Corporation, an innovative maker of bakelite radio sets. It was this American company that brought 35mm film in Kodak's 135 cassette to a mass market in the U.S.; especially with its famous brick-shaped rangefinder cameras, the C series. The first camera by Argus, the Argus A, resulted from a patent that the company received in 1936, and its surprisingly affordable cost made it a great success.

By the 1950s, Argus had became a significant force in Ann Arbor's economy. Several buildings from its heyday still stand. Two are now used by the University of Michigan; but the main original factory is now remodeled as office space, and owned by "C3 Partners." This building at includes a public area in an upstairs lobby, where a permanent exhibition of Argus cameras is shown: The Argus Museum[1].

Argus's factory was located in a residential neighborhood west of downtown Ann Arbor, which had traditionally been an enclave of German immigrants—particularly from Swabia in southern Germany[2]

In 1957 Argus was purchased by Sylvania Electric Products Co., who believed there would be a synergy with that firm's strong flashbulb sales. A new South Carolina factory was opened to handle good slide projector sales. However by the late 1950s, Argus was struggling to compete against new Japanese camera imports, which offered better features at a lower price point. In 1959 Sylvania was acquired by GTE; and in 1962 Argu's new corporate owners essentially dumped the company onto Mansfield Industries—a Chicago photographic distributor and a much smaller company.

In the 1960s, most Argus products became had foreign imports (several from Mamiya), rebranded with the Argus name. While optics contracts kept some Ann Arbor workers busy, by 1963 camera production had stopped there (a trickle of camera models were made in South Carolina through the 1960s). Starting in 1967 Argus's corporate ownership turned over several more times, with the brand popping up in various guises; but the era of US-designed and -manufactured cameras had ended.

4371505879_9f49e3f194.jpg
image 1940's, by Charles Dunlap


List of Argus Cameras

A-series

20759011_434e5266cd_m.jpg

A-series Links

C-series

20759012_cda909e729_m.jpg

Autronic Series

TLR

886431013_edf6263042_m.jpg

Other

2810503738_4836d0f266_m.jpg

Notes

  1. ↑ "Argus Camera Museum, Ann Arbor " at Vintage Cameras | Gregory Fox Photography
  2. ↑ "The Story of the Schwaben Halle", from the Ann Arbor Observer column "Then And Now," Dec. 2002, archived at Ann Arbor District Library. The Swabian region of Germany was home to Dacora Kamerawerk, founded in Reutlingen south of Stuttgart.

Sources

Links

Manuals

Books

  • DESCHIN, Jacob. Picture making with the Argus C3, C4, A4: A working manual. Camera Craft Pub. Co., San Francisco, 1954. Library of Congress 54012589.
  • GAMBINO, Henry J. Argomania: A look at Argus cameras and the company that made them. Aeone Communications, Doylestown (Pennsylvania), 2005. ISBN 0-9770507-0-X.
  • KUZYK, Hrad. 35mm for the proletariat: A modern user's guide to the Argus A/A2 camera. Hrad Kuzyk, 2007. ISBN 0615144888.
  • LAHUE, Kalton C. and BAILEY, Joseph A. Collecting vintage cameras, vol. 1: The American 35mm. American Photographic Book Publishing Company, New York, 1972. ISBN 081740547X.
  • LAHUE, Kalton C. and BAILEY, Joseph. Glass, brass, & chrome. University of Oklahoma Press, Oklahoma, 1972. ISBN 0-8061-0968-8. 2002: ISBN 0-8061-3434-8.
  • MURPHY, Burt. Argus 35mm photography. Verlan Books, New York, 1959. Library of Congress 59015881.
  • TYDINGS, Kenneth. The Argus 35mm guide and reference book. Greenburg, New York, 1952. Library of Congress 52008125.
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