Champion is an American brand of

spark plug A spark plug (sometimes, in British English, a sparking plug, and, colloquially, a plug) is a device for delivering electric current from an ignition system to the combustion chamber of a spark-ignition engine to ignite the compressed fuel/air ...

History

Founding and early history

Albert Champion Company was founded by Albert Champion in June 1905 in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the capital city, state capital and List of municipalities in Massachusetts, most populous city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financ ...

's South End, in the landmark Cyclorama Building, to import French electrical parts, including Nieuport components. Champion presided as president of the Albert Champion Company with partners Frank D. Stranahan as treasurer and younger brother Spencer Stranahan as clerk. By 1907, The Albert Champion Company was manufacturing porcelain spark plugs with the name Champion stamped on the side, Robert Stranahan, the youngest of the Stranahan brothers, finished his classes at Harvard, ahead of his class of 1908, and went to work in the stockroom. Champion spark plugs ad in 1947 - E O Shoemaker Hudson - Matchbook Cover - Allentown PA (cropped)

Champion spark plugs ad in 1947 - E O Shoemaker Hudson - Matchbook Cover - Allentown PA (cropped)

Champion was not happy in his job because he had no control over his work. In 1908, he went to see William C. Durant of the Buick Motor Co. Durant asked to see some of his prototypes. Buick at that time was using Rajah spark plugs. Durant thought they could manufacture spark plugs to Champion's design cheaper than buying them from Rajah, and set Champion up in a workshop in Flint, Michigan. Champion went to work producing spark plugs to be used in Buick automobiles. Champion and Durant formed another company with the Champion name, "Champion Ignition Co." that very shortly later, the Stranahan brothers from ("Champion Spark Plug Co.") informed them they could not use the name "Champion" as they had it trademarked. Later that year, the name of second company founded by Durant and Champion was changed to "AC Spark Plug" to reflect Albert Champion's initials. In 1910, the company moved to Toledo, Ohio to be close to the Willys-Overland Auto Company. In 1931, Champion introduced its first suppressor-type spark plugs. It used a carbon-based resistor to reduce the effects of ignition noise on radio waves.2015 Champion Master Catalog, p. 826. http://www.fme-cat.com/catalogs.aspx

"Coso artifact" discovery

On February 13th, 1961 two geode

prospectors Prospecting is the first stage of the geological analysis (followed by Mining engineering#Pre-mining, exploration) of a territory. It is the search for minerals, fossils, precious metals, or mineral specimens. It is also known as fossicking. ...

discovered a metal artifact encased in hard clay near the town of

Olancha Olancha (Timbisha: ''Pakwa' si'') is a census designated place in Inyo County of the U.S. state of California. Olancha is located on U.S. Route 395 in California, south-southeast of Independence, at an elevation of 3658 feet (1115 m). As of the ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the ...

. The artifact was dubbed " Coso artifact" due to alleged claims that there were fossils in the clay that were 500,000 years old, which would make the item an out-of-place artifact. The object turned out to be a Champion spark plug from the 1920s.

Following acquisition by Cooper Industries

In 1989, Champion was purchased by Cooper Industries and is now a wholly owned brand of

Federal-Mogul Corporation Federal-Mogul Corporation is an American developer, manufacturer and supplier of products for automotive, commercial, aerospace, marine, rail and off-road vehicles; and industrial, agricultural and power-generation applications. It was acquire ...

. Its main products are a line of spark plugs for a wide range of cars, trucks, SUVs, racing and marine applications. Also included in the brand, depending on the regional market and brand history, are spark plug wires, wiper blades, batteries, oil filters, lighting, and glow plugs. Champion is also a longtime sponsor of various racing events, cars, and series including two series run under sanctioning by IMSA.

Gallery

File:Champion Spark Plugs, Toledo, Ohio. - DPLA - 56e6c37db07cb71eac3ca90ac0145924 (page 1).jpg, Champion Spark Plug Advertisement, 1914 File:Block Card 900 Upton Avenue - DPLA - 66d4bce3c573a929e7cbe84946dd6472.jpg, Champion Spark Plug Factory at 900 Upton Avenue, 1937 File:Block Card 900 Upton Avenue - DPLA - d88b07787749073015079b7b29af173b.jpg, Champion Spark Plug Factory at 900 Upton Avenue, 1937 File:Block Card 900 Upton Avenue - DPLA - 198036811a2c653a83de17a0ec2c9f2a.jpg, Champion Spark Plug Factory at 900 Upton Avenue, 1937 File:Block Card 900 Upton Avenue - DPLA - 50ec0bb2d40068a316d7d560adf366c8.jpg, Champion Spark Plug Factory at 900 Upton Avenue, 1937

Popular culture

A character, Cliff Booth, portrayed by Brad Pitt in Quentin Tarantino's 2019 film ''

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood ''Once Upon a Time in Hollywood'' is a 2019 comedy-drama film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino. Produced by Columbia Pictures, Bona Film Group, Heyday Films, and Visiona Romantica and distributed by Sony Pictures Releasing, it is a ...

'' wore a champion shirt, briefly causing it to become a fashion statement in 2019.

References

External links

* {{Toledo 1908 establishments in Ohio Auto parts suppliers of the United States Companies based in Toledo, Ohio Manufacturing companies based in Ohio Manufacturing companies established in 1908 Spark plugs