For the average person, a fan is simple. You turn it on, you turn it off, and when it breaks, you replace it. For local Brett Vaughan, a fan is so much more.
With approximately 315 antique fans in his home currently, Vaughan collects, restores, and improves vintage and historic fans from all over the country. As a previous collector of Lionel Trains, his interest pivoted from one electric motor to another.
Beginning in 1993, while living in Raytown, Vaughan stumbled across an antique refrigerator with an antique fan at a garage sale. This would be the first fan to spark his love for reviving fans.
“All the things he had were the goodies that the American Pickers look for,” said Vaughan. “It was Mathis cooler. And I think it was new in 1935. So, it took some sewing machine oil and a little TLC.”
When repairing and restoring an antique fan, one of the most common challenges faced is trying to find parts that aren’t manufactured anymore. As a member of the Antique Fan Collectors Association, Vaughan has found help and guidance when running into these problems.
“The learning curve was challenging because I was worried that parts weren’t available,” said Vaughan. “But we only have a couple of machinists in the club, two or three, four at the tops, and that’s it for the United States.”
When he’s not busy hunting down scarce parts, Vaughan is busy hunting for rare and notable pieces to add to his collection. One of his most recent additions comes from Union Station in Kansas City, Missouri, and stands nearly eight feet tall.
“These were two four-foot pipes that would rise up out of the marble counter at the Harvey house,” said Vaughan. “But the eight-foot pipes were mounted to the floor and electricity came up through the floor to switch about halfway up. These two fans are fixed at the top and they rotate and spin once they come up to full rpm.”
The fan is currently functional, but Vaughan hopes to repaint and fully restore the piece to increase its value.
While there are many aspects to antique fan restoration that Vaughan enjoys, it’s the hunt that keeps him coming back for more.
“It’s so basic. It’s so primal. It’s hunting for the fan,” said Vaughan. “When you come home with a trophy, it may not be a deer, it may not be an antelope, it may be a 20-pound piece of brass and cast iron that may need an hour’s worth of TLC or a year. It all depends on what you brought home.”
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