1/ 🧭 J.H. Day was a water‑meter company, but only in a specialized sense. Founded in 1887, Cincinnati, Ohio and absorbed by conglomerates by the 1990's.

They did produce a special‑purpose industrial water meter for the baking industry.

Day Perfection Water‑Meter — A hand‑operated, dial‑type meter designed for bakeries to measure water by weight (pounds), not volume as such, manufactured during the 1920-30's.

- Industrial bakery equipment — J.H. Day was already a major supplier of mixers, blenders, sifters, and dough‑processing machinery.

- Process‑control devices — They made dosing, blending, and measuring equipment for food and chemical industries.

This meter fits perfectly into their industrial‑machinery identity — not municipal utilities.

📌 Why this meter is unusual

Most water meters measure volume (gallons, cubic feet, litres). But bakers often measure water by weight, because:

Dough hydration ratios are weight‑based and Temperature control is easier when dosing by weight and Industrial mixers often specify water in pounds. So J.H. Day created a niche water meter that had an automatic cut‑off.

2/ 🧭 Adriance Machine Works — A fully independent manufacturing company based in Poughkeepsie, New York.

They built the Zenith Water Meter in their own factory (shown in a 1928 ad).

Zenith Water Meter — was a brand name and product line created by Adriance.

Thomson–Adriance, Inc. — was the sales and distribution agency headquartered at 253 Broadway, NYC.

They handled marketing, catalogues, and national sales for Adriance products.

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