Antique Ge Fan Serial Numbers
Darryl Hudson Antique and Vintage Electric Fan CollectingDarryl HudsonAntique and Vintage Electric Fan CollectingI BUY OLD ELECTRIC FANS, HEATERS, MOTORS,AND ORNATE LAMPSMADE BEFORE WWII WHETHER RUNNING OR NOT.PLEASE CONTACT ME IF YOU HAVE ANYTHING FORSALE.THE OLDER AND MORE UNUSUAL THEBETTER.Hi folks! Thank you for visiting my web site.
I am a collector and restorer of early electric and mechanical fans and vintage electric heaters, lamps, toasters, and motors. I have been collecting and restoring these electro-mechanical wonders for over 35 years now. I like to buy, sell, and trade with others. If you have questions or would like to leave comments, please email me. Check in with me from time to time, I will be making changes and updates periodically.
If you have an old electric fan, heater, motor, lamp or other early electric or mechanical item that you would like to sell, please contact Darryl at the email address below. I am interested in many items from the late 1800s and early 1900s. I also collect early electrical plugs, connectors, and adapters, as well as old machinist tools, tool boxes, and advertising signs and thermometers. Let's not forget the applied color label (acl) soda bottles. Old bottle collecting when I was a child is what got me started in this business.
I've been at it for over 40 years now.Our most recent Antique Fan Show and Swap Meet was a blast. We had over 100 collectors here from over 15 different states.
Literally hundreds of antiqueand vintage fans were on display and on the sales tables. The next annual Antique Fan Show and Swap Meet will be held at our fan shop here in Aiken,South Carolina on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, April 16, 17, and 18, 2020. Anyone with an interest in antique and vintage fans, heaters, and otherold stuff is encouraged to attend.
Hundreds of old fans, heaters, toasters, candy scales, coffee grinders, telephones, cash registers, gum ball machines,and other electrical and mechanical gadgetry will be on display, many of them will be for sale or trade. Not only items from our own collection, but manyother collectors from all over the USA will be here with items from their collections as well. If you missed it last time, be sure to mark your calendarfor this upcoming event. Free admission. Lot's to see and learn. A nearby hotel gives us a block of rooms for attendees at a special discounted ratefor this event.
We also have a limited number of RV sites available on the premises with electric and water hookups and shower house. Contact us forspecifics and details before traveling long distances.My shop click on the photo for larger view.To contact Darryl Hudson click here:Carolina RegionalFan Collectors MeetBiker NamesHudson's Pig PickinBBQ & Bluegrass FestThis is a piston and rod assembly from a Nordberg inline 6 cylinder.These were manufactured in Milwaukee and St. Louis from 1920-1973. Thisparticular piston and rod is from an engine manufactured in 1944 and wasused for marine propulsion (navy battleship). The bore is 21.500' with astroke of 29.00'. This engine runs at 225 rpm and produces approximately1,500kw at 2,000 h.p.
This piston and rod assembly weighs in at a mere 4,000lbs. Yes that's me in the blue coveralls standing next to it. Istand 6' 3' tall and weigh 210 pounds just to give you an idea of the sizeof this piston and rod.Collecting and restoring antique electric fans and heatersis my hobby but machine shop work is my trade. My grandfather was a machinistwho owned a machine shop and I spent much time there as a young boy. Aftergraduating high school I attended Aiken Technical College where I completedthe Machine Tool Technology program and have been doing this type of workever since. After more than 37 years of machining I still enjoy mywork. I thrive on a challenge to recreate a complicated part that isnow obsolete and otherwise unavailable.
Below are some hyperlinksthat you can click on and see some of the fans from my collection. Someof these fans I have restored and some are original 'as found' condition.After viewing the photo from the link you can click your 'back' keyto get back to this page.This fan was patented in 1903.
Beforethe days of gear driven oscillating fans, manufacturers only knew how tomake a fan oscillate back and forth by means of a deflecting vane placedin front of the blade. The vane deflects the air coming off of theblade and causes the motor to push to the opposite side where a return stopis hit by the counterweight on the bottom of the lollipop stem and flipsthe vane over to the other side thereby causing the fan motor to be pushedto the other side. Have you ever held your hand out the car windowpretending to be the wing of an airplane?
When you tilt your hand downthe wind causes your hand to go down, and when you tilt your hand up, thewind causes it to 'lift'. This is exactly how the vane fan works.Mechanical motion is achieved by the wind coming from the blade.Here is the side view of the fan. Noticethe three tab feet on the base and the gold pinstripping. I didn'tnotice the fan was about to fall off the deck with one foot hanging overuntil I came back in and looked at the pictures.
I hate it when youdrop your lollipop on the ground!This is the badge of the lollipop fan.These lollipop fans were available with this badge or the R&M Standardflag badge. I like the Victor badge the best. The fans are otherwiseidentical.1904 Emerson 1610 (View 1)This is a 1904 Emerson 12' fan that I co-restored with fan collector friend Nick Loos. This fan was found about 850 miles from where I am located. The owner contacted me to see if I was interested in purchasing it, and it turned out it was only 9 blocks from Nick's house, so I asked Nick if he would pick it up and let's restore it together.
Nick is one of the best blade and cage men in the business anyway so he did all of the brass work, cleaning/polishing, etc., and sent it to me. My friend Carlton Ward, one of the best painters in the country, did the paint, and I rewired, reinsulated the windings, made some miscellaneous parts and pieces including the switch lever insulating knob, screw-in grommets, new head wire, power cord, etc., etc.
It turned out great and this fan will be on display, and For Sale, at our next annual antique fan show coming up in April. This fan has been sold.1904 Emerson 1610 (View 2)Here's a close up of some of the detail work at front/side view.1904 Emerson 1610 (View 3)Looking down onto top of the fan motor.1904 Emerson 1610 (View 4)Side view. Notice the ornately ribbed 'pie crust' cast iron base and large brass wing nuts that allows the motor to swivel up and down.1904 Emerson 1610 (View 5)Rear view.
Notice the ornate motor castings and embossed Emerson Induction Motor, St. Louis, USA on the back of the motor.
These motors have internal centrifugal starting switches and can run 24 hours a day without even getting warm if properly maintained.1904 Emerson 1610 (View 6)Lastly, a close up view of the base.Below are 5 different types of cloth covered wirethat was used on vintage fans for power cords and 'head wires'. Thehead wire is the short piece of wire that goes from the switch in the baseto the motor windings. I have been fortunate to find plenty of thiswire to use when restoring old fans. This type of wire is getting verydifficult to find. Most wire companies today will not make this clothbraided wire anymore because it will not pass the Underwriter's Laboratoryfire hazard test. I used to be able to find NOS wire that had been fabricatedyears ago and had been sitting on a shelf somewhere in a warehouse, but myselfand other fan collectors as well as radio collectors and toaster collectorshave just about exhausted the supply.
I have a source here in the USAthat is willing to make a special run of cloth covered wire for me.The wire styles shown below(plus several other styles ) I generally have for those of you who may needsome wire for your restoration needs. Please email or call forinfo.This is a very early electric fan made in the late1880s by Crocker & Curtis. Some collectors refer to it as a 'lightsocket' fan. It is a direct current fan. Found stored away andsealed up in a heavy wooden crate in an old barn, this proves that thereare still good fans out there that have yet to surface.
This fan motoris 100% original including the blade.Here is a side view of the C&C fan. Notice the threeclaw feet and large nickel plated oilers that send lubrication to thebearings.Check out the strips of copper that ride against the commutator.These are a primitive form of what is now referred to as brushes whichare now usually carbon material. This fan has seen very little runtime. The commutator and bearings have very little wear.After a little disassembly, cleaning, lubing, and reassembly,I applied power to the C&C motor for the first time in no telling howmany years. She fired right up and ran just as sweetly as the dayshe was first assembled.This is a Model C table top fan offered by The Lake BreezeFan Company of Chicago, IL. This fan is powered by a Sterling engineenclosed in the motor housing just behind the blade. It has a small2 cylinder motor and works by expansion and contraction of air.
Thereis a compression piston and a displacer piston. Model A and Model Bfans are scarce but are more commonly found than the Model C. In a1915 catalog Lake Breeze illustrates a Model A, B, C, and D. I havenever seen a model D. Very few Model C fans were sold and probablyeven fewer Model D fans were sold.This view shows the fan from the back side.
You can see themotor housing where the crankshaft and piston rods are located. Also noticethe fancy wrought iron stand and alcohol burner at the bottom of the stand.This fan has a blade span of 16'.Take a look inside the motor housing. Here you can seethe crankshaft and roller bearings. Below (out of view) are the pistonswhich are located in the neck section of the fan.This is the alcohol burner that fits inside the standat table level. Heat from this burner causes air to expand thereby causingcompression on the piston above.The Westinghouse Tank motor was produced around1906 - 1910 and many survive today, but most are the 4 blade models. The6 bladed models are more uncommon, especially in a 16' size.I found this fan in an old building in Montana.The motor retains it's original finish but I did have to repaint thebase.This is what is known among collectors as a partnersdesk fan or a double head fan.
You've seen the Partners Desks wheretwo people sit at the same desk facing each other and each have a set ofdrawers that pull open from his own side. Well this is a fan that wouldsit in the center of the desk and cool each occupant. Cool!This is another of the 6 blade variety (well 12 bladein this case). The 6 blade fans were introduced and commonly called'residential fans' in those days. The six blade residential fan motorsdid not turn as many rpms as their four bladed counterparts yet moved thesame amount of air due to having more blades. This was pleasing tohome owners who liked to sleep under the cool breezes of a fan because thesefans did not make much noise when running.I found this fan in Knoxville, Tennessee. Itran but had been neglected and was very rusty.
It needed much cleaningand called out for fresh paint. I restored this one in 1997.Here you can see the lettering I painted on by hand atthe switch. Also notice the finish on the base. I applied sixcoats of gloss black lacquer, sanding between each application and bakingeach application at 175 degrees. When restoring fans it is especiallyimportant that the humidity be below 70%. Here in South Carolina it'stough to get a good day to paint in the summertime because humidity levelstypically run 80% to 100% on a daily basis.
Baking the freshly appliedfinish in an oven helps but does not always cure all of the problems associatedwith too much humidity.a nice side view.Here is the motor tag in it's original merely polishedcondition.Above is a Hamilton Beach fan motor. These are fairly scarce.This particular example has a Western Electric motor tag making itthat much more scarcer than the examples with the normal Hamilton Beach tag.I restored this fan and replated all parts that were plated originally.It's a nice looking fan, especially from the side view. I likethe way the blade and cage hangs way out front. Notice the blade has a verydeep pitch to it. The square cast iron base is attractive too.
I'll show this fan's side view below.This is the side view I mentioned above. Cool looking isn'tit!Rear view.This is the motor tag.
Most of these examples have a regular HamiltonBeach motor tag. This example was made and sold to Western Electricfor them to market.This is a nice original example of an ornate tabbase Diehl Universal 12' fan. It retains it's original black japanfinish as well as gold pinstripping and switch lettering. This is exactlyhow I found it. I have not even cleaned it.This is what is referred to among collectors asa 'toilet bowl oscillator'.
The gearbox on the back of the motor housingis shaped somewhat like a toilet bowl and is a clamp on gearbox. Thefan is very massive and heavy. It has a triangular porcelain switchin the base and a brass switch lever with cross hatching on the end of thelever where most fans used a black bakelite knob. This is a very attractivefan.
I restored this one in 1993.The use of the word 'rare' when referring to collectiblesis, more often than not, misused. However, I think this fan falls intothe rare or at least 'scarce' category. There are only three knownexamples of the Emerson 19044. This is an 8' yoke mount fan with a'bullwinkle' one piece blade and operates on 110 V DC. Mostexamples of this fan are the alternating current type, designated as Type19644, and are fairly common. This one however, operates on directcurrent only and is designated Type 19044.Notice the small compact motor. This fan retainsit's original finish on the motor but I did have to repaint the base dueto a lot of paint flaking and chipping around the edge of the base.
Thepaint matches very nicely I think!A view of the motor tag. (I guess I could havecleaned the polish out of the numbers on the tag before I took thephoto.)This is an early 12' ball motorfan that runs on 110 V DC current. A nice example with it's originalfinish.The stencil cut out badge with$Dollar Sign$ logo in the center is one of the most attractive of all fanbadges.Here is a chrome Aristocrat model manufactured byA.C. Gilbert, the erector set people. This fan dates from about 1934.I restored this one in 1996. These were available in two differentfinishes; the green base with green background in the badge as seen here,and the more commonly found black wrinkle finish model.This is the Gilbert chrome Aristocrat as seen from theback view.Side view of the Gilbert Aristocrat.Close up of the badge of the Gilbert Aristocrat. Theother model that was available had a black background in the badge.Below are replacement heater elements for the copper dish type heaters.Some are NOS having never been used and still in the original box.These elements are getting much more difficult to find.
Letme know if you need a replacement element for your heater. There are thecone style and straight cylindrical shape.I also collect early electric heaters. Hereis an example of an early 3 bulb model by GE. The bulbs have a patentdate of 1903 but I think this heater is a little closer to 1910.This is an example of the round top version LuminousHeater that was offered by G.E. I assume this model is earlier thanthe flat top model shown above, and probably was not made in as many quantitiesas the flat top example, since these round tops are rarely seen. Ionly know of 3 or 4 of them in existence, but the flat top version oftenshows up at flea markets, antique shops, and internet auctions.This is a simpler and more affordable examplethan the 3 bulb model.
There is no switch. It is a 'plug-in' heaterand both bulbs burn when the heater is plugged in. The 3 bulb modelhas a switch that allows the user to heat with only one, two, or all threebulbs.This three bulb heater is veryornate and heavy (cast iron). It was purchased from a dealer in Canada.I estimate this heater to be from the 1900 to 1910 period. Anyonewho may have information on this company please contact me and I will beglad to listen. Also I would like any literature or printed informationthat may be available.This view shows the cut out ventsof the top section of the heater just a bit better than the previousview. This is probably my most favorite of all of the bulb heaters.The claw feet are just awesome as well as all of the other intricatedetails of this item.
I would really like to find out more about thiscompany and other models that may have been available.This is a rarely seen2 bulb heater offered by Westinghouse Electric. The entire base andreflector shield is nickel plated.
A very attractive heater indeed.This is the back sideof the heater shown above. Very beautiful.This view shows thefront base section of the heater.
The Westinghouse company name isengraved into the base with the words 'Cozy Glow'.I recently acquired this heater but it hasno manufacturer's name on it. The entire case is made of hammered copperand has a nice patina.
I have examined the switches, sockets, and wiringand have determined that this heater is probably from the 1910 period. Itappears to be factory made but I see no evidence of it ever having amanufacturer's tag referencing voltage, model number, or location of themaker. This is the only example I have ever seen of this type heater.Notice it has three bulbs but only two switches. The left switchoperates the center bulb and the right switch operates the two outer bulbs.With this combination the operator can burn one, two, or all threebulbs, which ever is desired. This unit is wired both series and parallelto achive this combination.This is a closer view of the front of the heater.Notice the finish.
I'd like to know how this finish was applied.I'm guessing it was done chemically or with heat. This is a smoothtexture but there are areas that are 'hammered' on the heater. Seenext view of this heater for a closer look at the hammered feature.This is the handle which is located on topof the heater. Notice the hammered copper. The feet of this heaterare also hammered.This heater was made in England.It is very ornate and rare.Thisis one of my favorite bulb type heaters. I like the ornate castingsand the overall look of this heater. These are rather difficult tofind.
I must see at least a dozen of the General Electric 3 bulb heatersfor every one of the American heaters. I was glad to be able to addthis one to the collection and be the caretaker of it for a while.
Onecan also find these same exact heaters with the word 'Detroit' at the toprather than 'American'.Here on the right you will see an original (tarnished)brass oiler for a GE Pancake fan. The oiler on the left is one thatI made using the original as a 'pattern'.
I carefully measure eachattribute of the original oiler and draw a blueprint of it, then go to thelathe with a piece of brass stock and machine away everything that doesn'tlook like the original to make a perfect reproduction. Compare the two sideby side.The top oiler is an original. Here you cansee the detail of each section.Again the original oiler on the right and the oneI made on the left.
Latest update: 3-20-19Emerson fans are one of the most widely collected, and regarded by many as the best fans ever made. I, for one, have always had a hard time remembering the dates that different models were made. Here I have compiled a list of all of the 60 cycle AC brass blade fans that Emerson made from the earliest 1892 'Meston' until the last of the brass blade models, the 29646 and 71666 models. I have also added the earlier steel blade models that replaced brass in 1931.A few early models, c.1901, that you are not likely to encounter and which I have never seen have been omitted until I get more information. (Those omitted Types turned out to be 133 cycle motors). The dates given are believed to be accurate but some errors may have crept in.
I would like to update the list where possible if readers will let me know any additional or corrected information. 1892-1898 'MESTON' Alternating Current Fan Motor desk fans with bronze motor case and switch on top front of motor, infinitely variable speeds with commutator and brushes:M1 (Meston) 12' desk fan 16,000 alternations (133 cycles)M2 (Meston) 16' desk fan, 16,000 alts1895-96 'Emerson Electric' Alternating Induction Fan Motor (not a Meston but motor is so marked) with rear switch, no brushes or commutator (mostly bronze motor cases)1897 'Emerson Electric' Induction with cast iron motor case and rear switch1898-1901 style tripod desk fans. 2210, 2220 (1909) 12' & 16', Emerson's first oscillator, two bearing motor with set screw blade(For fans listed below the first two digits are the series, the middle digit is the frequency (0 for DC, 2 for 25 cycles, 3/30 cycles, 4/40, 5/50, 6/60 cycles), the fourth number is the number of blades and the last number is half of the diameter of the blade (5 is a 9' blade on brass models but a 10' fan on later models, probably that use steel blades). Note: only 60 cycle models are listed below but other frequencies were made in most Types. Note the three voltages that each fan was offered in. In the days before the fans were convertible from desk to bracket fans beginning with the Type 1510 a separate bracket Type model was offered differing only in the base of the fan motor.Click on page to enlarge.Emerson had a design advantage over their competitors in their use of a long, single 1/2' hardened steel bearing in place of the usual two bearings, front and rear of the motor. While some other fans used a single bearing it was not of the same size nor hardened steel as Emerson used.
The long term advantage of the Emerson design was a very long life for the bearing. The less expensive line of Trojan fans did not use this single bearing but, instead, used two bearings, front and rear, in the motor. Thank you Fred for your comments and wanting to order some of our fine Type 1310 Emerson fans. Due to unprecedented demand we are sold out of that model. May I offer you the same cost for 10 each of our current models?
They are greatly improved with colorful plastic blades, a revised guard that meets the current OSHA safety standards, a stamped steel motor housing with permanently lubricated bushings, and a molded plastic line cord and plug. I'm sure you will find the changes a great improvement. I do have a lot of information that I would like to add to this blog; I shouldn't delay making additions any longer and do have some updated information for the existing blogs.Steve. Ben, it is difficult to date many R&M fans due to there not being much in the way of catalogs and other information about them. Emerson, Westinghouse and GE made it much easier when it comes to dating. Your List 3000 is probably around 1920. I think R&M fans used a 'wrapped' cage construction through 1918, possibly a year later then went to welded cage construction.
The 3000 that I had was welded and the oscillating version is the List 3600, both 9' fans (I think but I see some listed in the AFCA gallery as 10' fans). I would go with early 1920s and that is probably as close as we can get. Nice fans they are. Hi Jeff, I have been following your posts about your Emerson on the AFCA forum.
It's very simple, you have a 50 cycle 'version' of the common Emerson 73648. 50 cycle fans are not too rare but not seen very often either.
They will run ok on our 60 cycle current although you may want to raise the voltage some. A variac will usually put out about 135-140 volts plugged into a 120/125 volt circuit. That additional voltage should help your ran run a little better but give it a try if you have a variac and see if the motor gets warmer at the higher voltage.
Running at 120/125 volts will not harm your 50 cycle fan. The reason you don't see your fan in my blog is because I only included 60 cycle Emerson fan motors being as how they are, by far, the most common frequency. The middle number in Emerson's TYPE designation tells us the frequency; 0 for DC, 2 for 25 cycles, 3 for 30, 5 for 50, 6 for 60, etc. There may be some special frequency Emersons made. Hi Rod, the 16' 14648 is a nice fan from 1912 and probably 1913. As to the value I can't help you there due to the broken base and not having seen your fan.
Condition and originality or quality of a restoration plays a large part in value so photos are a must. Even then I am not very good on values. Watching similar fans on eBay or checking SOLD LISTINGS can be a good way to find values. For the base I would suggest you place a wanted ad for a replacement base on the Antique Fan Collectors Association website on the Buy-Sell-Trade forum. No charge to do that and adding a photo of your broken base and fan would be helpful.
Some fan collectors have successfully repaired broken bases from those Emersons that, not infrequently, have a crescent shaped piece broken out of the base due to improper packing. Yes, cast iron is very fragile.
Either the existing piece broken from the base cane be brazed or welded back on then finishing done to blend it into the base or the missing piece can be filled in with epoxy or JB Weld. That takes time and some knowledge but the results can made a broken part look nearly good as new. Search the 'pre-1950 forum' for any posts that have been made on fixing broken bases.
I know that there have been several posts over the years. Good luck with your big old Emerson. Hi Larry, the Emerson 12646 is a scarce and very nice earlier Emerson and I wish you luck on your restoration. I have little experience in working deeply into fans but this thread should be of some help to you:will need to remove the rotor to get at the centrifugal start switch. There is a nut of sorts on the front of the rotor bearing after you get the fan blade off which, in itself, can be quite a chore. If you don't know how to do that get back to me; better yet use the CONTACT ME form near the top right of this blog and I will get back to you. Once the rotor is removed you'll see the switch in the back of the motor held to the motor housing with three screws.
Remove them as a first step. The switch itself with the red fiber insulator discs may be hard to remove. I think it kind of gets 'glued' to the motor and has to be carefully persuaded or pried out. The switch leads are attached to the stator (motor windings) and can be unsoldered or removed along with the stator. I hope this helps and let me know via the Contact Form if you have other problems or questions. The AFCA website has a search function that should give you some more info.
The bearing shaft, by the way, is pressed into the motor housing and should not be removed.Steve. Thank you for making this information available. Before I found this site I was taking apart my sister's Emerson 73648 using the 'look at it and figure it out' method. I thought the fan blade had a welch plug covering the nut holding it to the shaft which could be removed with hammer and chisel.
It was a surprise when the fan blade come off leaving the hub on but it did open up new methods for getting the hub off. Without the blade the front cover comes right off. There are 2 holes in the armature which will accept a pin wrench or homemade holding tool.
With the armature properly held a vise grip or pipe wrench should remove the hub as long as I remember about the LEFT HAND THREADS. I am not sure exactly what you did when you say that the fan blade came off leaving the hub on as the blade is permanently attached to the hub (of the blade). Maybe you meant by HUB what is the front part of the rotor. I hope you got it all ok. Emerson blade removal can be tricky and, at time, extremely difficult. Emersons are great fans with some unique construction.
If you want you can contact me via the CONTACT ME at the top of this blog. I will send you my email so you can send photos if I can be of help. A good question Eddie and it's sometimes possible to accurately date Emersons.
From 1929 Emerson started to include what we call a 'date code' on the motor tag of seemingly all of their fans and continued into the 1950s. Look for a small two digit (1929 was a single digit) in the lower right corner (or in other locations on other models) and add 20 to that date code number. The first date code on the larger fans, 12 and 16', was '9' so that would have been made in 1929. So how do you date an Emerson made before 1929? Their JUNIOR models had a date code earlier starting maybe with a '1' but I have seen a '3' which would be 1923. The larger fans had no date code. In 1925 or 26 the new 'Built to Last' cage badge was introduced so that will get you closer.
Before that I don't know of a way to closely date the larger Emerson fans. Other changes over the years such as the change from the low 'screen door' carrying handle to a higher handle are hard to impossible to date. Again, an educated guess after looking at a number of Emerson catalogs posted on the AFCA website (for members only). The 73646 was a successor in 1937 that replaced the old 29646 last offered in 1936.
Antique Ge Fan Serial Numbers Number
The 73646 gained the force feed lubrication feature that the 16' 63648 had had for a few years. The 73646 AK continued through at least 1939 (don't have access to a 1940 catalog) and that seems to be the end of that model other than a chrome plated version in 1914, also 73646 AK. The replacement for the 73646 was the 79646 AQ in 1942. The best I can tell is that the 73646 kept the old Parker blades from the later 29646s but the 79646 had a very different style of blade. The catalogs don't mention that I saw what the AK or AQ or other letters were for but it could be various changes in specifications and, on some models, possibly the color variant.
Good workhouse fans of the later 1930s. Hi kristinafina. 2631 only means 'Name Plate # 2631' and is the part number I would say for the name plate itself but not anything meaningful. You should be able to date your fan to a particular year. Look on the motor tag in the lower right hand corner for a very small two digit 'date code'. Add 20 to that number to get the year your fan was made. Hopefully the date code will be visible.
Vintage Ge Fan Date Codes
I have a 79646-AT with a '28' date code making the fan from 1948. I like these fans, very well built. I can't tell you what the 'BB' means on the Type number but it's probably specific to the government model which has some differences from the civilian models.