Wahl Powersage Electric Massage Vibrator
date: label: Date made
content: 1950 - 1952
label: date made
content: ca. 1960
label: date made
content: early 1950s
notes: label: Description
content: Leo J. Wahl (ca. 1893-1857) began experimenting with vibrating motors while he was still in high school. Later, as an engineering student at the University of Illinois, he designed a vibrating massager that his uncle, J. Frank Wahl, began manufacturing in his small plant in Sterling, Illinois. That firm began manufacturing electrical hair clippers designed by the younger Wahl in 1919, and became the Wahl Clipper Corp. in 1921.
label: Description
content: The inscription on this vibrator reads “MODEL / POWERSAGE / WAHL / CLI. CORP / STERLING, ILL. U.S.A. / PATENT 1818287 1832437 / 2054690 / 14 WA” AND “110 V. N.C. / 60 CYC.” The term “Powersage” was introduced to commerce in 1959.
label: Description
content: Ref: Leo J. Wahl, “Vibrator Attachment,” U.S. Patent 1,818,287 (Aug. 11, 1931), assigned to the Wahl Clipper Corporation.
label: Description
content: Leo J. Wahl, “Vibrator,” U.S. Patent 1,832,437 (Nov. 17, 1931).
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
place: label: place made
content: United States: Illinois, Sterling
setName: label: See more items in
content: Medicine and Science: Medicine
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Betty B. Ross
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: 1991.0111.02
label: catalog number
content: 1991.0111.02
label: accession number
content: 1991.0111
objectType: label: Object Name
content: Vibrator
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: plastic (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: rubber (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: paper (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: metal (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: black (overall color)
label: Physical Description
content: red (overall color)
label: Physical Description
content: maroon (overall color)
label: Physical Description
content: green (overall color)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 9 cm x 15.2 cm x 20.4 cm; 3 17/32 in x 5 31/32 in x 8 1/32 in