Moore Motor Semaphore Motometer, circa 1925
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Artifact Overview
Automobiles often came without temperature gauges before the early 1930s, so enterprising manufacturers sold aftermarket motometers. Mounted on a car's radiator, these devices measured and displayed coolant water vapor temperature, notifying drivers if their automobiles were in danger of overheating. Chicago's Semaphoric Indicator Company produced this motometer intended for vehicles made by Buick, a division of the General Motors Corporation.
Artifact Details
Artifact
Motometer
Date Made
circa 1925
Creators
Place of Creation
Location
On Loan - Shanghai Auto Museum (Anting, Shanghai, China)
Object ID
81.99.5
Credit
From the Collections of The Henry Ford.
Material
Metal
Glass (Material)
Dimensions
Height: 5.75 in
Width: 3.75 in
Depth: 1.25 in
Inscriptions
On obverse of insert: MOORE / MOTOR SEMAPHORE / BUICK / SEMAPHORIC INDICATOR CO. / CHICAGO, ILL.
On reverse of insert: DANGER / AVERAGE / COOL
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Related Content
Set
Motor Mascots
- 18 Artifacts
Hood ornaments -- formally called mascots -- are among the most prominent decorative elements on an automobile's exterior. Manufacturers designed mascots that communicated speed, power, or prestige. Some motorists replaced factory ornaments with aftermarket pieces that conveyed wealth and taste. More practical drivers capped their radiators with functional motometers to measure engine temperature. In any form, mascots made a statement.