USA > Massachusetts > Worcester County > Worcester county; a narrative history, Volume II > Part 23
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The wire-working plants of Worcester have been so conspicuous in its industrial history and of New England, that the stories of two other groups in its modern organization are in order. As related by E. Melvin Williams :
"Erastus B. Bigelow, who was born in West Boylston in 1814, invented the first power loom for making counterpanes, coach lace, Brussels and Wilton carpets, this leading to the invention of a loom for weaving wire cloth and the founding of the Clinton Wire Cloth Company in 1856. George F. Wright entered the employ of the Clinton Wire Cloth Company in 1862, and twenty- one years later organized the Palmer Wire Goods Company, which in 1885 became the Wright Wire Cloth Company, and, after removal to Worcester in 1890, became the Wright and Colton Wire Cloth Company, in 1902 chang- ing to the Wright Wire Company. Charles H. Morgan in 1880 organized the Morgan Spring Company, of Worcester. This enterprise developed consid- erably during the next thirty years. Jabez Bigelow began to make meal sieves and sand riddles in 1831 in Rutland. In 1834 he came to Worcester and expanded his line of riddles. In the next year he advertised for two girls 'who could take a loom to their homes.' Soon, he was operating three looms, but in all employed only six operatives, including his sons. However, in the course of three-quarters of a century, the expansion was represented in the consolidation of several firms as the National Manufacturing Company, of which J. H. Bigelow, son of Jabez, was president. These four firms, Clinton Wire Cloth Company, Wright Wire Company, Morgan Spring Company, and the National Manufacturing Company, continued as separate concerns until June, 1919, when they were consolidated under the name of the Clinton- Wright Wire Company.
"Another group of wire companies that were destined to come together and finally be merged with the other group in the recent consolidation, were the Spencer Wire Company and the Wickwire interests. The Spencer Wire Company may be traced back, it seems, to the experiments in fine wire- drawing made by Windsor Hatch and Charles Watson about 1812 in Spencer. The development of the Spencer Wire Company during the lifetime of Rich- ard Sugden has been reviewed in the Spencer chapter. Mr. Sugden died in
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1895, and the next to come prominently into the history of wide-drawing was Harry W. Goddard, who entered the business at Wire Village in 1881 as a boy. In 1899 when it was decided to erect a larger mill at Worcester, Mr. Goddard headed the enterprise. He continued in active charge until September, 1919, when the Spencer Wire Company also was merged in the Clinton-Wright Wire Company. The Wickwire Steel Company, of Buffalo, New York, was organized in March, 1907, by T. H. Wickwire, T. H. Wick- wire, Jr., and Ward A. Wickwire. It blew in a blast furnace in 1907, and another in 1910, and also had other subsidiary companies, insuring its supply of raw materials. In course of time the Wickwire Steel Company also laid down a blooming mill, billet mill, rod mill, wire mills, and nail mills. The last of these was brought into operation in 1918, and all these properties con- stituted a safe and desirable combination, with all its lines secured, from the mining of the ore to the completion of the wire products. It was this consid- eration probably that influenced the Worcester interests to merge with the Buffalo concern in 1920, the Wickwire-Spencer Steel Corporation then absorbing the interests of the Clinton-Wright Company, and the Wickwire Steel Company. In 1922 there was a probability that the 1920 corporation would be merged in a great consolidation of steel companies outside of the United States Steel Corporation. The largest of these outside corporations was the Bethlehem Steel Company, and the movement for consolidation seemed to have been conceived by Charles M. Schwab and his associates. However, it was not consummated, and the Worcester wire companies still operate as the Wickwire-Spencer Steel Corporation."
As has been indicated, textile machinery and parts were over the longest period more than any other industry the source of the largest income from machinery manufactures. It would be interesting to know how many of the "five modern machine shops" of 1827 were the forefathers of the twenty-one establishments of a century later that turned out products valued at more than $12,000,000. One was owned probably by William H. Howard, who, in about 1825, began to construct looms. Since the Revolution some ingenious devices and trade secrets of old England had been introduced into our coun- try and improvements made by native inventors. Francis Cabot Lowell, whose name is perpetuated in the Massachusetts city, and Samuel Slater put the power loom on the textile map shortly after the War of 1812, and the textile industry started to make history when, after the lessons taught by that war, the United States committed itself to the policy of subsidizing home industries through the means of a protective tariff.
Since Worcester lacked the water power, then and still important in weav- ing textiles, she went ahead in the making of the machinery required by the
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industry. Howard's machine shop paved the way to such later establishments as those of George Crompton and the later Knowles, L. J., and F. B., inven- tors, and the tremendous Crompton and Knowles Loom Works. One has but to think of the Curtis and Marble Machine Company, Johnson and Bas- sett, the Draper Corporation of Hopedale and the Whitinsville plants to realize why Worcester County is the greatest textile machinery center in the world. Other machinery companies are playing conspicuous rôles in their field of manufacturing, such as the Rice, Barton and Fales Machine and Iron Company, founded in 1836, makers of paper mill machinery, in which three generations of the Barton family have been heads; the production of machine tools, a species of production requiring the skilled artisans of the finest train- ing, with such representatives as the Reed-Prentice Company, which was originally the F. E. Reed Company, the Whitcomb-Blaisdell Machine Tool Company, and the Prentice Brothers Company, of older formation. Nor must one overlook John E. Snyder and Son and the Woodward and Powell Planer Company, the Morgan Construction Company, and a half dozen others of age and note. Worcester has stood out for many years in the fabrication of devices for making envelopes, a business which seems unimportant unless one realizes what enormous amounts of these simple articles are used. Rus- sell L. Hawes, of Worcester, was the first to invent a successful machine for turning out envelopes. He began utilizing his invention in 1858, since which time many companies interested in this feature have been organized in the city. Ten of these concerns consolidated as the United States Envelope Company, of Worcester, with a capitalization of $5,000,000, than which there is no larger concern in this business.
The story of the Norton Emery Wheel Company, which in 1934 cele- brates its fiftieth birthday, has its novel features and is one of the several large manufacturing corporations of the later period in Worcester industrial annals. Emery wheels were made and used in Civil War times. Various materials and binders were used in the endeavor to perfect this line of grind- ing device. The first Norton emery wheel was made in 1783, and in 1885 the Norton Emery Wheel Company was incorporated, although the number of men then employed was but thirteen. Its resultant preëminence sprang from the work of a brilliant group of inventors, especially Charles H. Norton "father of cylinderical grinding." In 1922 the Norton Company, in addition to its immense plant in Worcester had factories in France and Canada. "There is hardly an article, tool, instrument, conveyance or appliance of any kind, made of metal, in the manufacture of which these abrasive products do not have some part," and the plant of the Norton Company grew by leaps and bounds into first position, for size, among the city's machine tool shops, and
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first in the world as a builder of cylindrical grinding machines. These machines grind anything up to many tons in weight to a degree of accuracy measured in a small fraction of the thousandth of an inch. The Heald Machine Company of Worcester, supplements the Norton field with machines to grind internally, an absolute necessity in the automobile engine. Other local companies in the same industry are the O. S. Walker Company and the Leland-Gifford Company.
The mere chronology of the minutiæ of manufacturing annals somehow fails to bring into the light the forces that shaped the development of industry or even reveal glimpses of the splendid men and work that motivated this development. One writes a decade ago, that Matthew J. Whittall conducts the largest carpet mill in the world operated by an individual, and recalls that Whittall carpets have been much used floor coverings for half a century. Of the Royal Worcester Corset Company it can be recorded that it is one of the greatest concentrations of its type of business known. There is also the very large Massachusetts Corset Company, which dates from 1907, which took over the also large United States Corset Company. The founder of this par- ticular activity in Worcester was David Hale Fanning, who was thirty-one years of age when, rejected for physical disabilities at the beginning of the Civil War, he returned to the city and began his business life. For more than six decades thereafter he "gave to his projects his entire time, thought, energy, and the best he possessed," to paraphrase his own words. His first project was the making of hoop skirts, only to see them lose their popularity. In the meanwhile he had designed and sewed with his hands a corset which he put upon the market. Changing fashions were met with scientific improvements in his product, and in more recent years altered the proportions of the prod- ucts his concern turned out, but he kept pace with the whims of fashion. At times the Royal Worcester Corporation gave employment to two thousand people, and gave them work in some of the most modern factories in the Commonwealth.
The Wheelock steam engine was famous for a third of a century. The rise of the automobile led to the rise of such corporations as the Wyman- Gordon Company, and others. Second only to the Pullman Company in size, the works of the Osgood-Bradley Car Company have turned out steam rail- road and street railway cars, and automobile bodies during its long and important career. Among the numerous manufactured products of Worces- ter companies are such things as: Valentines by the George C. Whitney Company ; skates by the Samuel Winslow Skate Manufacturing Company ; vacuum cleaners, by the M. S. Wright concern; firearms of the Harrington and Richardson Arms Company ; wall paper by the Allen-Higgins Company ; belts that go "round the world" of the Graton and Knight Manufacturing and
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other corporations; power-transmission chain by the Baldwin Chain and Manufacturing Company ; the blowers of the Coppus Engineering and Equip- ment concern ; shoe specialties of the Heywood Boot and Shoe Company, J. E., and W. G. Wesson and other manufacturers ; the automatic sprinklers of the Rockwood Company, and a large number of other concerns. The strength of Worcester industrially lies not alone in its great corporations but the num- ber of its factories and the variety of their productions.
Worcester celebrated its two hundredth anniversary in 1922, and at that time the claim was made that more than three thousand different articles were made in the city, and further that it had: the largest grinding wheel industry in the world; the largest concern in the country for the manu- facture of wire novelties, wire springs and wire; the largest plant in the world devoted exclusively to the manufacture of vacuum cleaners; one of the largest corset manufactories in the world; one of the largest steel and wire plants in the United States, if not in the world; one of the largest wall paper factories in the world; one of the largest muslin underwear factories in the world; one of the largest car-building plants in the world ; one of the largest loom manufacturing plants in the world; the largest valentine factory in the world; also the largest skate factory; one of the largest leather belting businesses in the world; and also that Worcester is one of the greatest machine tool centers in the New World. Whether these statements can be substantiated after careful comparison with other great manufacturing centers of the Old and New World or not, it is quite certain that Worcester stands well among the important manufacturing cities of the United States. Worcester, it is said, "has a plant that turns out seventy-five per cent. of all the automobile and bicycle chains made in the United States," and "has a plant that manufactures ninety per cent. of the automobile crank shafts made in America." Its main industries are boots and shoes, clothing, copper, tin and sheet iron products, corsets, cultery and tools, electrical machinery, foundry and machine shop products, machine tools, musical instruments, textile machinery, wirework, grinding machinery, carpets, razors, wall paper, envelopes, valentines.
The greatest test ever given Worcester industries and the genius and training of its workers came when war eventually involved the United States and most of the world. Hon. Charles G. Washburn reviews, in 1919, the Activities of Worcester Manufacturers in the Great War. From a greatly abbreviated compilation from the article, which was published in the Worcester Telegram of July 31, 1919, the following is reprinted :
"Herein the compiler can only touch the headlines, but that perhaps will be sufficient to show the magnitude of the production in Worcester plants, and of the important part the city played in proving to the German High
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Command that, far from becoming exhausted as the war proceeded, the Allies were becoming stronger and stronger every day, in supplies as well as men, thanks to the great American effort. Worcester manufacturers expanded their efforts almost incredibly, in war work. The Norton Company had more than 4,000 employees engaged on government contracts day and night, and had increased acreage of floor space of its Worcester plants alone from 13,737 feet in 1914 to 30,809 in 1917; and its tool grinding machines went to munition plants all over the United States, for 'the government, recognizing the great importance of the grinding industry, gave the Norton Company the highest classification in its Priority List, among concerns manufacturing simi- lar products.' The Mills Woven Cartridge Belt Company increased their production from 6,000 to 50,000 belts a week. The Harrington and Richard- son Arms Company made the metal parts for 300,000 scabbards, and also made signal pistols. The entire plant of the Osgood Bradley Car Company was used, from October, 1917, to make gun carriages for the French Govern- ment, the initial contract being for goods to approximate value of $15,000,000. Later the company undertook an order for eleven miles of anchor chain. Not more than five per cent. of the product of the Whitcomb-Blaisdell Machine Tool Company during the war period was for other than war pur- poses ; Charles E. Hildreth, its president, became one of the industrial advisors to the government at Washington. The Reed-Prentice Company devoted its entire energies to war work. The Reed and Prince Manufactur- ing Company supplied its screws and rivets to shipbuilders during the great shipbuilding effort, using on war contracts 2,000,000 pounds of brass alone. The Rockwood Sprinkler Company designed a method of making booster casing for American three-inch high explosive shells, patented the process, and presented it free to the United States Government, which soon had a dozen plants manufacturing the casing. The Worcester company received orders for more than 200,000,000 of casings, and spent $400,000 in enlarging its plant, which, as the war ended was employing six hundred operatives, and was working night and day. The Rice, Barton and Fales Machine and Iron Company did considerable work for the Emergency Fleet Corporation. The Washburn shops of the W. P. I. began as early as 1915 to supply machine tools to the Allies, and later equipped many American plants for the United States Government. The Morgan Construction Company sent their machines to many points. The war product of the American Steel and Wire Company included one hundred and eighty-nine articles of manufacture, each one of which was put to a number of uses. The special effort which met the urgent need of the United States Navy for wire rope for the North Sea mine fields brought to the American Steel and Wire Company a special letter of thanks
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and appreciation from the Paymaster General of the Navy. The company was called on to furnish several thousands of miles of strand and finished wire for use on the French Front. Washington wiring: 'The Army cannot advance without it.' The local company made all the springs for the Lewis Machine Gun, and also made magazine springs for the Browning Gun. The product of the Spencer Wire Company was of vital importance to the innum- erable textile mills of the country during their period of high pressure on government contracts. Innumerable other war uses were found for the spe- cialties of the Spencer Company. 'When the tanks made their appearance on Flanders and their operators were suffocated at the moment of victory by the fumes within the tanks, this company helped to answer General Pershing's urgent cable for relief, and by much overtime work furnished the wire parts which went into the construction of the belts made by the Graton and Knight Company to overcome the deadly gasses.' The Wright Wire Company fur- nished wire rope for many war purposes, as well as for use in the mine bar- rage in the North Sea. The Graton and Knight Manufacturing Company made very many articles for war purposes, among them: bayonet scabbards, gun slips, holsters, bridles, sabre straps, gun slings, helmet chinstraps, and other articles cut out of leather. The company produced a special tannage of leather, and made recoil packings for 75mm. and 155mm. guns. These had never been made in this country before, and was a product developed through cooperation with the Engineering Division of the Ordnance Department. The local company was the only producer of link 'U' belts for tanks, and had some remarkable records of prompt execution of government orders. The products of the Crompton and Knowles Loom Works were in demand for very important textile plants operating on war contracts. The Curtis and Marble Machine Company also produced textile machinery. The immense Whittall Carpet Mills were operating largely on government and other orders for war material. The Sanford Riley Stoker Company's produce played an important part in the conservation of coal-a very scarce article at one time- during the war, enabling many plants to continue in operation that would otherwise have had to cease their work on vital war needs because of shortage of coal. The Baldwin Chain and Manufacturing Company produced a spe- cial chain for heavy ordnance howitzers, and also chains for tank trucks. The Johnson and Bassett Company were working at full capacity, producing spinning machinery for the plants making army overcoats, blankets, and so forth. The Worcester Machine Screw Company produced parts for the Browning Gun, Liberty motors, and tank motors. The Worcester Gaslight Company produced Toluol, Benzol, Naphthalene, and other by-products of gas-making. G. L. Brownell produced shoe machinery. The Coes Wrench
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Company operated for many months solely on war contracts. The Stewart Boiler Works had some orders direct from the War Department; the J. R. Torrey Razor Company produced necessary equipment. Sleeper and Hartley invented, built and supplied to the arsenals and munition plants of the Allies a wide range of machinery for making springs and wire forms for small arms, automatic pistols, and other guns. 'They built what was probably the largest cold coiler ever produced, for the Renault people in France, for mak- ing springs not only for tractors and tanks, but for the famous heavy artil- lery of the French Army. There was scarcely a shell fired by the Allies on any front, which did not contain springs made up on these machines.' The United States Envelope Company greatly increased their production during war time, demand coming from government departments, and welfare organi- zations in particular. The Worcester Pressed Steel Company made millions of howitzer cases, also large numbers of steel scabbards, cartridge cases, steel helmets, booster casing for gas shells, heel plates for shoes, and many other army needs, the value of its production for war purposes increasing from $5,000 in 1914 to more than $2,250,000 in 1917. This volume was main- tained throughout 1917 and 1918. The Boston Pressed Metal Company began to make Enfield scabbards for the British Government, in October, 1914, through the Remington Small Arms Company, other Worcester plants cooperating in parts of the work being the Gratan and Knight Manufacturing Company, and the Harrington-Richardson Arms Company. Altogether the Boston Pressed Metal Company had part in the making of 2,844,000 sets for scabbards. In 1916 it produced 600,000 nose pieces for rifles, and received many subsequent orders. They also made nose pieces for shells and grenades in millions. The variety and stupendous volume of production of other army material by this company are bewildering. The Morgan Spring Company made fencing masks and articles for trench warfare. This company 'was the only spring manufacturer to attempt and carry to a successful conclusion the entirely original and difficult problem of spring construction for the recoil mechanism of the French 75mm. gun.' The Woodward and Powell Planer Company supplied its specialty to arsenals, navy yards and ship yards under the control of the Emergency Fleet Corporation. About ninety per cent. of the card cloth and wire heddles from the Howard Brothers' Manufacturing plant went to government contractors. The William H. Bird Company manu- factured mosquito bars and other hospital supplies. The Culver-Stearns Manufacturing Company furnished instrument lamps for aeroplanes ; Moore and Company made pharmaceutical supplies; the Warren Leather Goods Company worked on orders for the Ordnance Department, Aircraft and Navy departments ; the Wyman-Gordon Company were producing shell forg- ings in large quantities for the British Government quite early in the war
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period, and later had important aircraft work, producing crankshafts. The Arcade Malleable Iron Company was running on war contracts, though indi- rectly, to the extent of perhaps ninety-five per cent. The Simple Player Action Company produced balancing machines for aeroplane propellors. J. A. Snyder and Sons were working wholly on war contracts for almost four years ; the Sterling Worsted Mills operated night and day for eighteen months on soldiers' uniforms; the Coppus Engineering and Equipment Company produced blowers, also bronze casting for Browning guns; the business of the Cranska Thread Company was considerably swelled by war orders; the Standard Plunfer Elevator Company made lifts for the mine-laying vessels ; on Heald Grinding Machines made in Worcester 'practically all cylinders for aviation motors, not only in this country, but in England, France and Italy, were finished,' the Heald Machine Company increasing their working forces from about two hundred to seven hundred and fifty during the war period. The Wiley-Bickford Sweet Company made wool-lined moccasins and other Red Cross supplies. The Leland-Gifford Company, which in normal times employed about six hundred men, had to very much increase its force during the war. They employed many women in the making of crankshafts, and other specialties. The Parker Wire Goods Company made wire reels, and chain attachments for Browning guns; the Powell Machine Company sup- plied tools for submarine repair shops ; John Bath and Company, Inc., made gun parts day and night for three years, for Allied and home governments; the Worcester Brush and Scraper Company made cannon cleaners ; the R. B. Phillips Manufacturing Company made fuse brushes, booster casings, and small conponent parts for fuses for the British Government; the Hobbs Manufacturing Company made a great variety of parts used in assembling howitzer carriages; the Eastern Bridge and Structural Company delivered material to the American Ordnance Base Depot in France Division, and the Wire Goods Company supplied a variety of hooks and eyes, hitching rings, wire garment hangers, steel door mats and similar hardware, also equipment for field kitchens. Later it supplied the Airplane Department with cotter pins, and the Medical Department with pot chains.
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