Von Duprin Commercial Door Hardware

The Trio that became “Von Duprin”

“The screams of the children for their mothers and mothers for their children I shall carry in my memory until my dying day.”                                         

– Frank Slosson, Secretary-Treasurer of the Bain Wagon Works, Iroquois Theater Fire survivor

Firefighters work to extinguish the last of the smoke from the Iroquois Theater fire. Students in the Northwestern University building across the alley extended ladders (pictured in the background) from their windows to theater windows in an attempt to rescue patrons trapped inside. Dozens were saved thanks to their efforts, while others perished or were injured when they fell to the ground below.

It’s a common misconception among consumers that “Von Duprin” is the name of a single person, the creator of the Von Duprin line of products.  In reality, Von Duprin reflects a three-way partnership that brought the brand name into existence with its first invention: the exit device.

Carl Prinzler was the key member in the Von Duprin business triangle.  Though the smoke from the Iroquois Theater fire had dissipated, Prinzler couldn’t dismiss the idea that the fire was a senseless tragedy that could have been prevented with a relatively simple hardware innovation. 

Prinzler, a long-time hardware salesman had the motivation, but lacked the means with which to bring his idea to fruition alone.  And so he worked his own personal contact list and pitched his idea of the “exit device,” or “panic/crash bar” to his neighbor and trusted friend, Henry DuPont.

DuPont had a background in architectural engineering.  Prinzler described the problems with the exits in the Iroquois Theater to DuPont, and his idea for a device which, when applied to a door, would allow it to be locked from the outside.  This would prevent any unauthorized entry.  From the inside, the door could be unlocked easily and quickly, allowing for a fast escape during an emergency.

Using Prinzler’s ideas, DuPont set his engineering skills to work and created the world’s first exit device.  When applied to a door, it would remain locked on the exterior.  The only way to open the door was with a key.  Inside, however, the locking mechanism could be released by pushing on a large bar mounted across the width of the door.  In fact, in a panic situation all that is necessary is for a body to hurl against it for an escape that takes mere seconds.  This is where the term “crash” or “panic” bar originated.

Had the exits doors in the Iroquois Theater been outfitted with such devices, it is likely that hundreds of lives could have been saved.  It most certainly would have saved those people who perished because they hurled themselves at locked doors in an attempt to escape, only to be trampled or suffocated by others subsequently hurling themselves at the same door.

Once the first exit device had been designed, it was time for the duo to look for a third “partner.”  For though the two were able to come up with a working model, neither had the finances or platform to market their ingenious invention.  And so the third partner was added to the network.  Prinzler looked to his own employer, the Vonnegut Hardware Company, to help him produce and market his exit device.

Vonnegut Hardware became the world’s first distributor of Prinzler’s exit device.  It was sold under the name “Von Duprin” to reflect the participation of all three members of the team: Vonnegut, DuPont and Prinzler.  It’s original “88 Series Crossbar” panic bar is still on the market today, though numerous design and manufacturing improvements have been made since the first version went on sale 100 years ago.

In just a few short decades Prinzler’s life-saving device became mandatory on every public building in America.  Today panic bars are mandatory on most public buildings in most every developed country in the world.  If not for Prinzler’s outrage at the loss of some 600 lives, the world may not have such a mechanism today.

The Von Duprin exit device is available today in dozens of styles suitable for every application.  They meet federal regulations for both safety and fire security.  The Von Duprin brand name is now a brand of the Ingersoll Rand Company.

The Partnership that Changed the Way the World Looked at Commercial Security

PART TWO: Prinzler’s Panic Bar Revolutionizes Commercial Security

The inside of the Iroquois Theater after the inferno that took the lives of over 600 people.

Carl Prinzler was moved beyond mere emotions at the news of the Iroquois Theater Fire. Realizing that he barely escaped his own demise, Prinzler vowed that he would do whatever was in his power to ensure that a similar tragedy never occurred again.  Though Prinzler was little more than a hardware salesman, his outrage along with his knowledge of tools and knack for design led him to invent the world’s first panic bar.

The panic bar, also known as the crash bar, is an exit device.  When applied to a door, it allows a door to remain locked to anyone outside.  Inside though, the door is easily opened by simply pushing on the bar (i.e. crashing into it with bodily force.)  This device was a respectful balance between a building owner’s right to keep non-paying customers or would-be thieves out while still ensuring that patrons already inside could exit the premises quickly in an emergency.

A big part of the problem with the Iroquois Theater rested within the design of its door locks.  Most of the doors had been outfitted with bascule locks.  They are virtually obsolete today.  Though they were popular in European theaters in the early 1900’s, they were relatively unheard of and infrequently used in North America.

Further complicating the matter was the fact that many of the fire exit doors were hidden.  In deference to aesthetics, they had been covered by facades or curtains to maintain a pristine and uniform appearance.  For the few patrons who were able to locate the doors, fewer still were able to work the unfamiliar bascule locks, resulting in dozens being trapped inside the burning theater.

Patrons in the balcony fared worst.  They had been locked in to prevent anyone from sneaking into the more expensive seats on the floor.  Only a handful of visitors were able to escape the balcony before a backdraft caused a fireball to instantly incinerate the upstairs seating area and all who remained there.

Had Prinzler’s panic bar been available, the death toll would most certainly have been much less than the 602 who perished that day.  Not only would patrons have been able to escape the locked theater, panic bars would likely have prevented the deaths of those who didn’t succumb to the smoke or flames but were killed from being crushed against doors and other people.

Prinzler, the humble hardware salesman-turned-activist/inventor had the know-how and wherewithal to design the panic bar.  What he lacked was engineering expertise and financial backing.  Thus Prinzler entered what would become a most historical partnership which led to the formation of the Von Duprin brand.

Next Week

PART THREE: The Trio that Became Von Duprin