Rexx Battery Co

The history of Rexx Battery Company began in 1959 with one man, 22 years of age, searching for a way to provide for his young family.

Rex Curtsinger learned of rebuilt batteries when he went in search of a battery for his own car. With little money to spend, the rebuilt battery was the solution to a dependable battery on his very limited budget. Rex learned that the separators between lead plates in batteries were very often the cause of failure. The tar top on batteries could be melted to gain access to the inside of batteries, and the separators could be replaced when the lead plates were still healthy. The batteries were then re-tarred and ready for further service. Rex took this knowledge and started his own small battery rebuilding business and a short time later partnered with his cousin Dale Schwitsch and opened D&R Batteries in Decatur, IL. As the business grew they also incorporated a line of new batteries.

Six years later, Rex and his wife Carol sold their half of D& R Battery to Dale and moved their daughters Tracee and Laurie to Rochester, Illinois where they purchased half of a battery rebuilding business named Ed’s Battery Shop, which was owned by Rex’s sister and husband Fran and Ed Alsop.