Flash Back

National coverage

This photo of James L. Adkins, president and founder of East-West Rental Center, was taken in 1978 and published in the publication of the American Rental Association, Rental Management. "We were the first company in this region to be carrying Bosch tools," says James W. Adkins, vice president of East-West Rental Center and son of James L. Adkins. "My dad was visiting the Bosch facility in San Francisco and Bosch asked him if he'd be a part of that article with the magazine. He agreed, and when they came home they snapped a couple of pictures and sent them in."

The photo was taken at East-West Rental's original location in Maite, in the general area of what is now Faith Bookstore. "There was no professional photographer or anything," says Adkins. "It was just one of the guys at the shop who took it."

The American Rental Association was founded in 1955 and is based in Moline, Ill. Today its membership comprises more than 7,500 rental businesses and more than 1,100 manufacturers and suppliers.