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Samuel Cupples Wooden Ware Co., c. 1910, 14 1/2". I consider this to be the second in a series of 3 vendors that are similar in heritage, style, and construction but---according to Silent Salesmen Too---differ in patent dates and manufacturers. The other two in the series are the Safety Match Vending Co. match vendor and the Specialty Model D. According to Silent Salesmen Too, the heritage starts with John Krcma, who used "Krema" in his company's name since no one could pronounce his real name. Silent Salesmen Too implicitly attributes this model's origin to Krema in the description and then explicitly attributes it to the Samuel Cupples Wooden Ware Co. below the description. Was Samuel Cupples Wooden Ware Co. the manufacturer, or was it the Krema Mfg. Co., and who really made the other 2 models in the series? I've quit trying to figure it out; it seems that Krema was involved in several companies and the borders between these companies are pretty blurry to me. The differences between this and the other 2 models in the series are superficial. The mechanism design and function are the same.
Like the Specialty Model D, I've also seen the case on this machine made of wood, and believe those to be earlier. I always thought I preferred wood, but when I got this one I was quite happy with the overall look even though it's an all-metal version. I probably still prefer wood, but I'm satisfied with the metal case. The look of the Cupples is more ornate than that of the Krema, but it's not as detailed as that of the Safety Match Vending Co. vendor.
The example above is 100% original.
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