Chicago - Buenos Aires Connection

During the past holidays, My Missus and I spelled our gauchos so they could spend time with their families.  That meant that we would have to assume a few of their duties ...one of which was to ride the range and ensure that all the cowies had lots of water to drink during the worst heat wave in 40 years.

While making our rounds, I grabbed the binoculars and looked up at one of our OLD Aermotor windmills to read some 100 year old lettering on the vane (the flag-like tail of the beast.)

It said, "AGAR, CROSS & CO., LTD."

I thought that was kinda weird because on the other side I knew that it said "The Aermotor Co., Chicago."  So I punched "agar cross" into my smartphone.  As there was no internet in that section, I left it until we got back to el casco (the ranch house.)

Once I got my connectivity juju back, I read an astonishing story about my Chicago windmills and how they got to Argentina ...and how they got BACK to the good ol' USofA.

"Honey, have you ever heard of Agar, Cross & Co.?"

"O!  Por supuesto!  Agar Cross!  It was the deluxe provider of any kind of agricultural machinery.  I remember it from when I was a kid with my mom."

"Well, listen to this," and I began to read from the results of my Google search.

"In 1892, only four years after the establishment of the Aermotor Company in Chicago, the American Firm had begun exporting its products to Argentina, one of the largest windmill makers in the world. In that year, the Aermotor firm signed an agreement with Agar, Cross and Company of Buenos Aires to become exclusive agents in the South American country for the sale of the Chicago made mills. Founded in 1884, Agar, Cross and Company became one of the most important distributors of farm and ranch equipment in Argentina, a distinction which it held for many years.

During the peak of export trade, one to three railway car loads of Aermotor windmills left the Chicago factory each week bound for Argentina."

Wow.  This was great stuff on a number of levels.

One, all of this was occurring at a time when the US and Argentina were roughly considered equal economic power houses.

Two, this was a time in which the US domestic market was so huge that there weren't a lot of technological exports (strange to think of windmills as high-tech ...but they were then!)

Three, the British during this time agressively dominated South American trade and yanqui salesmen here in Argentina were derided for their "take it or leave it" attitude toward customers.  The Brits were much more established and more culturally sensitive to the market.

Aparently though, in the case of Chicago windmills, the US tech could not be beat at that time.

Also at that time, Argentina was a British colony in everything but name.  Agar, Cross & Co. were basically a company of Brits and famous for selling their empire's manufactures all over the world but especially in Argentina.  Their headquarters here was awsome...

...and still is:

Even as late as 1964, the Glasgow Herald was complimenting them on their merchandising efforts deep in the Argentine:

Knowing a little bit about the commercial climate of the early 20th century here, I could imagine that an established British retailer in Argentina with unequaled yanqui techno could be a match made in heaven.

Little did I know how right I was.

From their spacious building on Paseo Colon in downtown Buenos Aires, Agar, Cross & Co. Ltd. sold the shit out of the Chicago windmills.  They dot the landscape here to this day.

In fact, once Aermotor Co. had saturated the North American market...

"In 1958, the turned over their licensed manufacture to another firm, Metalurgica Tandil S.A., and the mills were sold under several trade names. Tandil made the mills until its acquisition by Fiat, the Italian auto maker, in 1962, and then Fiat sold the entire windmill manufacturing facility to yet another firm, Fabrica de Implementos Agricolas S.A. (FIASA)."

...and you can buy the original Model 702 to this day ...from FIASA ...even in the US.

Yep.  The original Model 702 is still selling strong in the US (if windmills can be considered strong sellers) and in Argentina.

In fact, although Aermotor Co. morphed it's way from Chicago to Broken Arrow OK, to Conway, AR, to San Angelo, TX ...and eventually developed a Model 802 which is made in the US ...you can still buy both models in the US.  The "original" comes from Argentina, that's all.

 Also a fact, Aermotor AND Fiasa are the last manufacturers of windmills in the New World.

Wow.  Chicago to Buenos Aires and back again ...over 100 years later.

Although they seem to work forever, my molinero (windmill expert) tells me that mine are all so worn-out that I shouldn't allow anyone to touch them.  "They could work for another 100 years or they could breakdown tomorrow," he says.

If money was no object, I think it would be cool to bring an 802 from The States, in that case.

But what's really cool is that I can get an "original" right here.