H73.303.1

• agriculture

Incubator. Description: Chicken egg incubator: "Victor Incubator Co." Decoto, CA. Wood cabinet, on turned legs, wooden slat top. Has 2 slide-out trays, one with screening, 1 with grooves to hold eggs, glassed panel in front to observe chickens, heated by water cooled kerosene heater. Dimensions: 3/4 meter square; 7/8 meter tall. Three separate parts: A: Incubator cabinet, B: Drawer/tray with grooves, and C: Drawer/tray with screening. From the History Information Station: Object: Wooden incubator for eggs, heated by wood and kerosene, glass door in the front permits viewing of the eggs. Marked "Victor Incubator Co., Decoto, Cal.," ca. 1910. History: California is well known for its varied agricultural economy. Chickens first came to California with the mission padres but they were not raised in large commercial quantities until after 1875, when a Canadian, Lymann C. Ryce, invented an incubator and brooder in Petaluma. Sonoma County began to advertise itself as the "World's Egg Basket." By the 1930s, Petaluma emerged as a world center, with over 1,000 poultry farms.

Used: chicken | Victor Incubator Company ~ Decoto