Bissell Carpet Sweepers

This post was inspired by my small collection of Bissell memorabilia.  First is my carpet sweeper, the Bissell Grand Rapids, previously featured in my post on Winegar's.  It works really well in picking up cat hair and dirt from the floor and carpets, despite its age.

Next is my kiddie model carpet sweeper.  I wish I had the handle for this, too.

Next is something you don't know how you lived without before you got it.

Here's the box it came in.

And the instructions.

I'm not going to attempt to write a history of the Bissell company, as others have done a fine job of it, such as Kent County GenWeb, and its most famous CEO, Anna Sutherland Bissell, has a comprehensive biography in Wikipedia.

Isn't this a cool picture?  The factory was built on the east side canal to use the water power.  The following was taken from Robert H Baker's, The City of Grand Rapids, Manufacturing Advantages, Commercial Importance, 1889.

The following is from a trade publication of November 1898, The House Furnishing Review.  Take note of the prices of the various models and then compare to what they are selling for today.  I'm glad I bought my Bissell Grand Rapids years ago!

If you want to read more about Bissell's history as a company, their website has a condensed version that's very informative.


Melville's father was Alpheus Bissell.

From the National Cyclopedia of American Biography, Vol 7, from 1897, p 163.

A nice photograph of Melville from Richard Howell.

Interestingly, although Anna Bissell had been running the company for 8 years when this was written, she did not get her own entry in the book.  She did get her own park in her hometown, however.