Heidenheimer, Texas |
This website IS STILL UNDER RECONSTRUCTION!!!
First of all, although I didn't start out with it in mind, I would like to dedicate this entire work to the CURRENT AND PAST EMPLOYEES OF DR. GRABOW, BOTH IN CHICAGO AND SPARTA. I can only hope my feeble attempt at capturing and recording just some of the colorful history of this American icon will help tell their story and honor them.
Second, I would like to thank my good friend and partner in this for over three years, David Bridges (DRB), for his friendship, knowledge, research and patience, not to mention his inspiration! His contributions are enormous and largely uncredited. I also would like to thank a more recent addition to the "team", Tom Martin (TM), for not only being a "mover and shaker" that gets many things done at once, like the Dr. Grabow Collector's Forum, but for also being a big inspiration to me and above all, a motivator that prodded me off my lazy butt to get some things going that had long stalled! In just a few hours, Tom did things I have tried to do for years and some things I never even dreamed of!
Finally, my thanks (or more properly OUR thanks) go to several Dr. Grabow employees who devoted their time and knowledge as well as their patience when they were interviewed for information. My personal, heartfelt thanks goes to one Dr. Grabow employee in particular (TED) who has not only shared vast knowledge in employment spanning almost THIRTY YEARS, but had become as good a friend as can be had without meeting someone face to face, AND HAS BECOME A EVEN GREATER FRIEND SINCE WE HAVE MET IN PERSON! An INCREDIBLY WONDERFUL person, who at the moment shall remain anonymous, but certainly will know who it is when these words are read. If you find information on this website that is factual and accurate, there is a high probability it came from this employee -- any errors would be mine in misunderstanding or misquoting it! The greatness of this person is shown in a simple but concise statement he made to me, "I'm not going to write a book. You are doing what I wish I could. Remembering Grabow. The employees deserve this rememberance. They were the finest ever!" {emphasis mine}
The information that will eventually be placed on this page will be primarily the results of research done by fellow Texan and Dr. Grabow collector/enthusiast, David Bridges, and myself. We were both amazed at just how little information there was available about such an American icon as "Dr. Grabow" and actually shocked at how much well-intended misinformation there was out there. Of course, we are always trying to learn more about the history of the pipes, their manufacture and the men behind them. Fellow fans, EMPLOYEES of Linkman's and Dr. Grabow, FAMILY of the principals behind the company at various stages of its history, please contact us and share what you know.
This site IS NOT AN OFFICIAL COMPANY RELATED DR. GRABOW SITE. It is simply a labor of love from a Dr. Grabow pipe fan. This site is not an endorsement of pipe smoking (though it's the ONLY classy way to smoke tobacco other than perhaps, the cigar), nor an endorsement of tobacco products or their use (although I see no problem whatsoever with the MODERATE enjoyment of said products in pipes and cigars, and neither does my Doctor). If you must know, I HATE cigarettes -- especially ready-rolled -- and I despise chain smoking. Moderation is due in ALL things, whether it be smoking, drinking or eating.
Austin & Northwestern Railroad Photos
Bozo Texino -- Have you ever wondered?
Missouri-Kansas-Texas (MKT, Katy) in Texas Photos
Rockdale, Sandow & Southern Railroad
On the email link below, you will manually have to replace the three X's (xxx) with the usual @ symbol -- I have had to do this in order to thwart idiots who think they need to steal email addresses for spam purposes. Sorry for the inconvience.
Thanks so much for dropping by and visiting my site. I appreciate links leading to this site and welcome any comments or criticisms. I am a novice at Web publishing, but with your help and feedback, we can only hope that it will get better.