Vokar

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A Voigt Junior (1946) image by Dirk HR Spennemann (Image rights)

History

In the mid 1930s, businessman Charles Albert Verschoor led an Ann Arbor, Michigan company that built radio sets in Bakelite cases. But somehow he had also become fascinated with the Leica A 35mm camera, then still a new and exciting product.

Putting these two thoughts together, Verschoor saw a business opportunity to build a simple Bakelite camera for 35mm film. The new model was the Argus A, and its runaway success eventually transformed the firm into Argus Camera. Despite this, Verschoor clashed with the company's stockholders over his management performance, and by the end of 1938 he had been ousted as president.

Verschoor landed only 1/3rd of a mile away, at Electronics Products Manufacturing Corp, located at 208 W. Washington St.

By late 1939, this company began marketing photographic products using the brand name Vokar . Verschoor had named his earliest radio company "Cavac," based on his initials; the sound of "Vokar" suggests this was Verschoor's inspiration too (with perhaps a bit of George Eastman's famous nonsense word "Kodak" thrown in).

The basic Vokar camera was a simple folder for 6x6 exposures on 120 film. This appeared with different lenses & shutters and in slightly different styles. In an interesting twist, it was manufactured cheaply enough that Wirgin in Germany imported a few variants to sell under its own branding. Electronic Products also introduced a "streamlined" slide projector. Despite the grandiose name, it used an inexpensive folded-steel case. This was also sold by the Sears chain under their Tower brand, and was apparently one of the firm's more successful products.

Verschoor had more ambitious plans, however. Along with renaming Electronic Products Mfg. as "Verschoor Corporation" in 1942, and the company relocated to more rural environs outside Dexter, Michigan (a move of about 8 miles west). Verschoor engaged Richard H. Bills to design a completely new and highly sophisticated 35mm rangefinder camera. Development costs for the camera were said to run to some $250,000, but the design was to leap well ahead of the blocky C3 rangefinder that Argus was now manufacturing.

Unfortunately, World War II and the September, 1943 death of Charles Verschoor interrupted these plans. Verschoor Corporation became involved in defense contracts, making parts for proximity fuses, and by 1945 reverted to the name Electronic Products Manufacturing.

In 1945 the company turned its attentions back to the photography market; and in its December magazine advertisements, it now carried the name "Vokar Corporation" The ads also included a tantalizing note: "Watch for Announcement of the New and Finer Vokar Camera." This was the long-awaited Vokar I rangefinder, which was finally advertised in January 1946—only to disappear for another 9 months, again replaced by the teaser "watch for announcement… ". Finally, in the fall of 1946, advertising for the Vokar re-appeared, and now quoting a price—suggesting the camera was at last available.

The ambitious camera had its share of teething troubles, and the undercapitalized firm failed to make much of a dent in the US camera market. Despite a quick revision to a Vokar II, the company quickly sank, and by the early 1950s it was gone

Cameras

• Vokar A (1940–)
• Vokar B (1946-) also sold as the Vokar I (advertised 1946 and 1947)
• Voigt Junior (1946-)
• Wirgin Junior (a Voigt Junior Variant) (1946-)
• Wirgin Deluxe (1946–) an Art Deco encased version of the Voigt Junior
• Vokar I (1946-)
• Vokar II (1948-)