Von Duprin
Encyclopedia
Von Duprin is a brand of security products. It was the producer of the first "panic bar" style door mechanism that allows a door to a public building to be locked from the outside but still easy to exit from the inside.
In 1903 the tragic Iroquois Theatre Fire
in Chicago
claimed the lives of almost 600 people. Carl Prinzler
was supposed to attend a show at the theatre that fateful night, however, other business dealings called him elsewhere. During this time-period it was not uncommon for theatres and the like to lock interior and exterior doors thereby disallowing non-paying persons from entering the facility. This also inhibited persons on the inside from exiting. As was the case during the Iroquois Theatre Fire, all doors were locked and/or bolted which prevented patrons from exiting the theatre causing most to be burned alive or succoming to smoke inhalation. Prinzler was astounded at the enormous and senseless loss of life at the Theatre that night. He set out to devise a way for doors into public facilities locked from the outside to allow egress from the inside with minimal effort during an emergency situation. Prinzler tapped into the architectural engineering abilities of Henry H. DuPont to develop a product. In 1908 the first model of a "panic bar" style egress device was released and Vonnegut Hardware Company
was utilized to market it. As a result of the joint effort to develop and sell the product it was sold under the name Von Duprin, which is a combination of the names Vonnegut, DuPont and Prinzler.
The popular 88 Series crossbar exit devices still manufactured by Von Duprin have similar appearance characteristics to the original design, although significant engineering changes have been made.
Von Duprin continues to manufacture security related products and is a brand of Ingersoll Rand
.
In 1903 the tragic Iroquois Theatre Fire
Iroquois Theater Fire
The Iroquois Theatre fire occurred on December 30, 1903, in Chicago, Illinois. It is the deadliest theater fire and the deadliest single-building fire in United States history...
in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
claimed the lives of almost 600 people. Carl Prinzler
Carl Prinzler
Carl Prinzler was the Manager of the Builders Hardware Department at the Vonnegut Hardware Company in 1903. Prinzler, along with his neighbor Henry DuPont, developed the first "panic bar" device for doors which can be opened from the inside despite being locked on the outside. This idea and...
was supposed to attend a show at the theatre that fateful night, however, other business dealings called him elsewhere. During this time-period it was not uncommon for theatres and the like to lock interior and exterior doors thereby disallowing non-paying persons from entering the facility. This also inhibited persons on the inside from exiting. As was the case during the Iroquois Theatre Fire, all doors were locked and/or bolted which prevented patrons from exiting the theatre causing most to be burned alive or succoming to smoke inhalation. Prinzler was astounded at the enormous and senseless loss of life at the Theatre that night. He set out to devise a way for doors into public facilities locked from the outside to allow egress from the inside with minimal effort during an emergency situation. Prinzler tapped into the architectural engineering abilities of Henry H. DuPont to develop a product. In 1908 the first model of a "panic bar" style egress device was released and Vonnegut Hardware Company
Vonnegut Hardware Company
Clemens Vonnegut, Sr., a German former textile salesman in Amsterdam, arrived in Indianapolis in 1850 and entered into a partnership with fellow German Charles Vollmer shortly thereafter. Their merchandising store was called Vollmer & Vonnegut...
was utilized to market it. As a result of the joint effort to develop and sell the product it was sold under the name Von Duprin, which is a combination of the names Vonnegut, DuPont and Prinzler.
The popular 88 Series crossbar exit devices still manufactured by Von Duprin have similar appearance characteristics to the original design, although significant engineering changes have been made.
Von Duprin continues to manufacture security related products and is a brand of Ingersoll Rand
Ingersoll Rand
Ingersoll-Rand plc is a $13 billion global diversified industrial company founded in 1871. The Ingersoll Rand name came into use in 1905 through the combination of Ingersoll-Sergeant Drill Company and Rand Drill Company...
.