Old Calendars Now Now Coveted by Collectors, Plainfield Historians Say

Tim and Michelle Smith will discuss the appeal of calendars manufactured by the Gerlach Barlow Co. at a Plainfield Historical Society presentation.

Calendars produced by the Gerlach Barklow Co. were once among the most mass-produced in the country. The women who graced some of them were sometimes called "Gerlach girls" and the Joliet factory in which they were produced took up a city block. Today, the calendars have mostly been relegated to history. The company closed in 1971, after 64 years in business, and the huge building in which it was located burned to the ground in 1992. The calendar prints and original artwork, however, remain popular among collectors, two of whom are Tim and Michelle Smith, of Plainfield. The couple's collection was featured in their book Joliet’s Gerlach Barklow Calendar Company (Arcadia, 2009) and will be on display when the Smiths speak at a Plainfield …

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