Elkhart Rubber Company 1928 Portraits

About this collection

These photos (gallery at the bottom of this page) were preserved together in a box belonging to Thomas K. Burton, who worked at the Elkhart Rubber Company for most of his life and later served as president of the Elkhart Rubber Works Union, Local 32.

This page brings together nine group portrait photographs taken inside the Elkhart Rubber Company in August 1928, based on handwritten captions visible on the original prints. Each photograph shows a different department or work area, with workers posed at or near their machines. Photographed by John Inbody, an early Elkhart photographer.

The photographs were found together in a single box and appear to have been intentionally grouped. The box also contained images of factory interiors, exteriors, machine parts, gaskets, and materials, suggesting a broader effort to document the workplace rather than a single event.

Related photos

In addition to the 1928 department portraits, the same box included:

• Two earlier large-format photographs dated 1913 showing a building labeled Elkhart Rubber Works

• Exterior and interior photographs of the Anchor Packing Company, apparently taken during or shortly after construction

• Promotional or documentary materials connected to Lyndon Adams and the Anchor Packing Company.

See building construction.

These photos are not yet fully organized or interpreted and are presented separately as additional context rather than as part of a single narrative. See the main page for more images. 

You can email me at corkylorenz@gmail.com