The Cardinal Cabinet Company was a cabinet-building company founded in 1914 on Chestnut Street in Wabash, Indiana. They manufactured phonograph and radio cabinets and also period furniture in Louis XVI, Renaissance, and Queen Anne styles. Later in 1927, Cardinal Cabinet Company in Wabash and Spencer Table and Chair in Marion, Indiana, merged but retained all three plant locations, becoming known as the Spencer-Cardinal Corporation. Their slogan was, “Makers of fine cabinets since 1906”. In 1929, they discontinued making furniture but upped their production of radio cabinets.
According to the Indianapolis Times in 1934, the corporation hired both men and women in all three plants and kept on four employees that had been with the company since the business' inception.
At night on October 13, 1952, the Spencer-Cardinal Corporation plant in Wabash caught on fire and according to the Wabash Plain Dealer this fire was one of the worst fires in many years in respect to 'dollars-and-cents' loss.
It took help from neighboring cities to put out the fire but were helpless because of low water pressure. The damage was first estimated at $750,000 ($8,400,226 in 2022) but the estimate was scaled down later. The corporation built a smaller building that is still located in Wabash today.
Visit the Wabash County Museum to check our "Businesses That Built" exhibit to learn the history of several other businesses from Wabash County.
Citations:
“Cabinets Made for Radios in Three Plants.” Indianapolis Times, September 19, 1934.
“Specncer-Cardinal Blaze Rated Top Local Story During Year.” Wabash Plain Dealer, 1952.
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