hines supply ( originally the edward hines lumber company ) , based in buffalo grove , illinois , in the united states , is a business firm specializing in lumber , plywood , decking , doors , windows , trim , and other wood products .

it also sells related services such as consultations and cost estimates for building projects .

it has outlets in alsip , grayslake , hampshire , kirkland , montgomery , st. charles , warrenville , wheaton and buffalo grove .

edward hines lumber company

kenneth frank , plaintiff - appellant , v . edward hines lumber company , defendant - appellee .
edward hines , 79 , of northfield , began his career at edward hines lumber co . in 1957 and ultimately led the company for more than 25 years .
edward hines , lumber company president and ceo who died at 79 , “started out at the ground floor . ”
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edward hines , 79 , of northfield , began his career at edward hines lumber co . in 1957 and ultimately led the company for more than 25 years . ( family photo )
the corporate offices of edward hines lumber co . are located in buffalo grove , ill .
edward hines spent more than 50 years working for the family lumber business that his grandfather founded in 1892 .
lumber . long before the current surge sweeping the industry , edward hines , founder of the company that bears his name , was issuing sustainable practices .
hines - fitzgerald retire following distinguished careers with company ,
update : a quarterly newsletter published by the edward hines lumber co . , spring 1979 , p . 1 .
american immigration company business enterprises coal trade commerce conservation of natural resources cutover lands edward hines lumber co foresters forest reserves forestry teachers forests and forestry hines , edward , holmes eureka lumber company homeseekers land company illinois laird , norton co lake michigan land titles logging logging railroads lumber lumbering lumber trade michigan - - harbor beach middle west minnesota minnesota - - winona nevius family north dakota ohio - - cleveland oregon oregon - - hines real estate business real property red river lumber company ships shipwrecks taxation timber timber - - prices united states virginia and rainy lake logging company water - power winona lumber company ( winona , minn . ) wisconsin wisconsin - - douglas county wisconsin - - flambeau river wisconsin - - sawyer county wisconsin - - superior wood
for more information , contact edward hines lumber co . at 847 - 353 - 7700 or visit their website at hineslumber . com .
fsc certified products distributed through hines include dimension lumber , plywood sheathing , exterior treated lumber and plywood , as well as dricon interior fire retardant treated lumber and plywood . sustainable forestry is a natural for hines
other companies represented in the papers are weyerhaeuser timber company ; musser - sauntry and company ; musser sauntry land , logging , and manufacturing company ; st . croix river navigation and improvement company ; st . croix boom corporation ; st . croix log - lifting company ; and e . j . longyear company
50 years ; edward hines lumber co . , commemorating a pioneer in the nation ' s oldest industry , the company which bears his name , and their first half - century of accomplishment
50 years : edward hines lumber co . , commemorating a pioneer in the nation ' s oldest industry , the company which bears his name , and their first half - century of accomplishment
1967 : property at the east end of bridge street in saratoga is one of three properties sold by sheriff ' s auction to edward hines lumber co . , an illinois - based timber company .
pre - cutting land exchange agreement between edward hines lumber co . and secretary of agriculture : covering certain timber lands within malheur national forest , oregon
the o & nw trackage is in red ; edward hines logging railroad trackage is in green . the edward hines system was far more widespread and complex than what i have shown here !
more on the web homepage of edward hines lumber company - now an operator of lumber yards across the upper midwest and no longer directly involved in the manufacturing end of the lumber business . oregon & northwestern page on shortline rosters edward hines # 529 at northwest railway museum northwest railway museum homepage - current owner of edward hines # 529 . san diego railroad museum homepage current owner of o & nw as - 616 # 1 . western pacific railroad museum - current owner of as - 616s # 3 and # 4 .
under mr . hines ' leadership , the company expanded its retail operations to three states .
published booklet commemorating the anniversary of the edward hines lumber co . including extensive photographs of their logging and lumbering operations , some of which took place in wisconsin
schen . 2 - 8 - 0 , c / n 48057 , blt 1910 . drivers 51 inches , tractive effort 28 , 160 lbs . , weight 125 , 000 lbs . built as texas central railroad # 128 ; to missouri , kansas & texas railroad # 691 1911 ; to hyman - michaels ( dealer ) 1924 ; to equitable equipment company ; to edward hines yellow pine company # 9 1925 ; to edward hines western pine company # 5 1930 ; to edward hines lumber company # 5 1934 . conveyed to oregon & northwestern at some undetermined date , the resold to edward hines 4 / 30 / 1947 . scrapped 5 / 1955 , though tender remained stored in seneca until at least 1959 .
edward hines iii pauses in front of a photo of his father and grandfather , pioneers in the industry .
in spirit hines is alive , as some of his third and fourth generation progeny continue his also financially sustainable legacy . grandson edward hines directs as chairman of the board , with his son edward “mac” hines as vice president of new business development , and daughter elizabeth hines bigelow as marketing manager .
the edward hines lumber company became the major force in the lumber industry and economy of harney county in june 1928 , buying the 67 , 400 - acre bear valley timber sale on the malheur national forest . the new hines mill was completed on january 27 , 1930 , with an investment of $ 7 million dollars , just before the great depression . a town named “hines” was born .
hines va hospital was named after edward hines , jr . , son of the land donor for the hospital . 1st lt . edward hines , jr . died while serving in france during world war 1 . edward hines , sr . made the honorary name designation a condition of the land deal for the government ' s new chicago - area veterans hospital for world war 1 veterans .
as president and ceo of edward hines lumber co . for more than 25 years , mr . hines navigated the firm through building booms and busts and — in a risky move that he characterized at the time as making him
an entrepreneur
— taking the company private in 1985 .
there were other sawmills in the area which were the baker white pine mill on crawford creek , the stoddard brothers lumber company , later becoming stoddard lumber company , did a lot of logging in the local area , hauling logs on their own trains in to their mill in baker .
lima 3 - truck shay , c / n 3337 , built 6 / 1929 . drivers 36
, weight 148 , 400 lbs . built as edward hines western pine co . # 4 , seneca , or ; edward hines lumber co . # 4 , seneca , or . retired 1948 and scrapped 1955 .
he started at the sawmill by pulling boards off a rotating chain at the planer when he was 21 , in 1973 , shortly after edward hines lumber co . built the present - day sawmill .
realizing that the supply of northern pine was being depleted at a fast rate , in the early 1900s edward hines began turning his attention to other regions of the country . he established the edward hines yellow pine company , based in mississippi , which became one of the largest southern pine operations in the country . he also bought large tracts of timberland in oregon and built one of the largest mills in the pacific northwest , located in the company - owned town of hines , oregon . these assets formed the basis of the edward hines western pine company . by the end of his career , edward hines owned tracts of timber that stretched from canada to the gulf of mexico and as far west as the pacific . he also owned sawmills , railroads , and entire towns .
principal subsidiaries : hines precision components ; hines precision staining ; muench woodworking , inc .
lima 3 - truck shay , c / n 3255 , built 4 / 1924 . drivers 36
, weight 140 , 000 lbs . built as spring creek lumber co . # 3 ( 1st ) , spring creek , wv ; edward hines western pine co . # 3 , seneca , or ; edward hines lumber co . # 3 , seneca , or . retired 1948 and scrapped 1955 .
plaintiff kenneth frank ( frank ) filed this products liability suit after a wood roof truss system manufactured by defendant edward hines lumber company ( hines ) collapsed during installation . plaintiff was one of three carpenters who were installing the roof when it collapsed . 1 a jury found in favor of defendant and against all three carpenters .
baldwin 2 - 8 - 2 , c / n 45766 , blt 1917 . drivers 63 inches , weight 214 , 050 lbs . , tractive effort 53 , 625 lbs . union pacific # 2261 ; to oregon & northwestern # 2261 february 1947 ; to edward hines lumber company 1955 .
logging in the area began to decline in the 1970 ' s , and the hines company ceased operations of its lumber mills and railroad in 1984 . the town was incorporated as a city in 1970 as lumber company control began to wane . according to the 1980 census , seneca ' s population was 285 . the 2015 census stated the population was 193 .
f . w . wheeler & company ( west bay city , mich . )
bill maniates is manager of hines’ north chicago yard , as well as hines’ commercial division .
the integrity of edward hines lumber co . can never be compromised . honest , fair dealings are essential with our various constituent groups , our customers , our people , our vendors , our communities and our stockholders .
by february 1981 , harney county unemployment was over 30 percent , and in june the mill equipment was auctioned off . the sawmill was remodeled and , vastly reduced in size , reopened in november with about 400 workers . in 1983 , the edward hines lumber company sold the last of its oregon holdings to snow mountain pine company , thus ending an era that spanned over fifty years .
in june 1930 , edward hines suffered a severe heart attack . although he recovered , his participation in running his business and in other activities was now limited . he contracted a case of pneumonia in november 1931 , and after lapsing into a coma he died on december 1 , 1931 . his sons , charles and ralph hines , took over the edward hines lumber co . an elder son , edward hines , jr . , had died in combat during world war i . charles , the second son , dropped out of yale university because of illness and in 1923 went to work for some of his father ' s companies . ralph , the youngest , earned a degree at yale and also studied at oxford before going to work for the edward hines lumber co .
on september 24 , 1924 , herrick lumber company completed the malheur railroad track to burns but ran into difficulty fulfilling the rest of the contract . soaring real estate prices in burns made finding a suitable mill site difficult , and herrick was unable to meet his deadlines when market slumps caused delays . the sale was re - advertised , and edward hines western pine company in chicago was the successful bidder . in 1928 , the company purchased herrick’s interests in the incomplete railroad and the mill .
the first log had been cut in the new mill on january 27 , 1930 , but the company struggled during the great depression and growth was slow . with the outbreak of world war ii , the mill began supplying lumber products for the war effort . after the war , the company focused on the home market and modernized the plant in the early 1950s . in 1954 , the town of hines constructed a municipal sewer system . in 1955 , the company’s holdings in oregon expanded with the purchase of the oregon lumber company operations at baker , bates , and dee . new residential tracts were constructed in hines during the 1960s .
from there , mr . hines moved around , working in every aspect of the business , including managing the company ' s largest chicago lumberyard .
west suburban edward hines jr . va hospital is named for mr . hines ' uncle , who was killed in action in france during world war i . the land for the hospital was donated by the family .
in 1979 , mr . hines ' father , charles , retired from the company , and mr . hines took over . the housing market slump of the early 1980s hit the firm hard , and with the company ' s stock price sagging , one prominent shareholder soon began agitating for a sale .
the company then moved its headquarters from downtown chicago to itasca , later relocating to buffalo grove .
after a few months’ service overseas lieutenant hines was promoted to a first lieutenancy . in may , 1918 he was taken ill , the sickness later developed into pneumonia . he was transferred to base hospital no . 15 where he steadily grew worse and died on june 4th . he was unmarried . his parents , mr . and mrs . edward hines , of 1456 ridge avenue , evanston , ill . , survive him . his father was president of the edward hines lumber co .
source : international directory of company histories , vol . 68 . st . james press , 2005 .
most everybody in the valley bought lumber that was produced in the mill ,
he said .
in 1981 , the old sawmill was dismantled and a new sawmill was constructed . with many changes implemented , production and profits improved . but after 90 years in the oregon lumber business , the hines company divested itself of all interests in oregon . on may 8 , 1983 , the ponderosa pine division and the oregon & northwest railroad were sold to snow mountain pine company .
the company is constantly working on new showrooms and new product lines , often featuring recycled or recovered wood .
when the sawmill shut its doors in 2003 , howe worked first for a landscaper then another logging company .
baldwin 2 - 6 - 0 , c / n 30215 , built 1917 . originally isthmian canal commission # 324 ( 5 - foot gauge ) ; to equitable equipment company ; to edward hines yellow pine # 324 , rebuilt to standard gauge ; to ehwp 1929 ; to ehlco 1934 . lettered edward hines western pine co during its entire life in oregon . retired 12 / 31 / 1941 and stored in seneca . locomotive scrapped circa 1949 , and tender scrapped circa 1959 .
hines became the driving force among a new generation of lumbermen . in 1896 , he bought out his old firm , martin company . a year later , the company began acquiring mills and tracts of northern pine . in that year , it acquired 200 million feet of wisconsin timber from weyerhaeuser & rutledge . the legendary frederick weyerhaeuser would become a part owner of hines after buying out spalding and another investor . the so - called lumber king , who by the end of the 1800s owned more timberland than any other american , served on the hines board of directors until his death in 1914 . he and edward hines became devoted friends as a result of their business association . in 1898 , hines added another 150 million feet of timber by acquiring wisconsin ' s mccord & company . another 60 million feet of minnesota standing timber was purchased in 1900 from chatfield & company , which a year later sold hines an additional 300 million feet of wisconsin timber . hines bought more forests , as well as a saw mill and a railroad , in a deal with washburn , wisconsin - based bigelow brothers . in 1905 , hines spent what was then the considerable sum of $ 3 million to acquire the white river lumber company in wisconsin , adding vast tracts of timber and the town of mason , wisconsin . over the next 20 years , the company continued to acquire large tracts of northern pine in wisconsin and minnesota . around 1906 , hines purchased a massive tract of southern pine spread across northern minnesota and into canada , containing some three billion feet of timber .
hines raised $ 200 , 000 to launch edward hines lumber co . and recruited two of his former colleagues at the martin company to help him run it : l . l . barth , vice - president , and c . f . wiebe , secretary . in the first year of operation , hines bought the t . r . lyon operation and turned out 98 million feet of lumber . the second year , however , was to prove more difficult , as the united states was gripped in one of the era ' s periodic economic meltdowns : the panic of 1893 . hines held on , due in large part to the help provided by jesse spalding , one of chicago ' s legendary lumbermen .
in some respects , the lumber business had not changed since a teenaged edward hines learned the business traveling throughout the midwest . nevertheless , there were changes in the business . in order to continue to thrive , the company employed a new formula to better serve the professional market , supplementing conveniently located full - service lumberyards with a number of specialty centers offering millworking , cabinets , windows , doors , decking , and staining capabilities .
buffalo grove , ill . –green is not a new color to edward hines lumber co . , a well - established building materials supplier with locations dispersed throughout the greater chicagoland area and central indiana . some of its hues can be traced back to maximum yield principles of the founder . over the years , those tenets have deepened and continue to permeate the values of the family members that govern the various branches of company operations .
baldwin 2 - 8 - 0 , c / n 18718 , built 1901 . ordered by simpson logging company , but delivered instead to phoenix logging company , potlatch , washington , where it carried the name coo - ley ku - i - tan but apparently no number . to bellingham bay & british columbia railroad # 8 ; to chicago , milwaukee , st . paul & pacific # 7564 12 / 1918 ; to fred herrick lumber company # 7564 12 / 22 / 1926 ; to edward hines westerm pine 1928 . used in construction efforts , then set aside and scrapped circa 1930 , though tender remained in seneca dead line at least through 1959 . scrapped .
private company founded : 1892 employees : 100 sales : $ 73 million ( 2003 est . ) naic : 321113 sawmills
when an area was logged out , the lumber camp was dismantled . much of it was loaded onto the flat cars , the track was taken up behind the train and the work proceeded to another area of the forest . in the beginning , until the dry kilns were built , the lumber produced at the bates mill was loaded green onto flat cars and hauled to baker , where it was dried in the kilns at the oregon lumber company mill there .
in 1980 , the population of hines was 1 , 692 . that year the hines lumber company began laying off workers after the loss of a bid for federal timber to a sawmill in prineville . in february , the mill began closing its four divisions , and the stud mill and plywood and veneer plants closed before the end of the year . regional manager gordon wilson linked the shutdown to the plant’s obsolete equipment , which the company estimated would cost more than $ 15 million to renovate .
baldwin 2 - 8 - 2 , c / n 24134 , blt 1910 . cylinders 21x24 inches , drivers 46 inches . built as woodward iron co . # 14 , woodward , al ; to birmingham rail & locomotive company ; to cosden & company , west tulsa , oklahoma , 2 / 7 / 1917 ; to equitable equipment company ; to mississippi southern ( edward hines yellow pine trustees ) # 14 , lumberton , mississippi ; to onw # 27 1929 . received a new boiler ( boiler # xo - 9650 ) prior to delivery . scrapped 1 / 1946 .
we stock a wide variety of top quality lumber and sheet goods for any project . . . big or small .
the town of austin was started by a man named newton . in the late 1800s , minot and linda austin arrived and purchased the town site , and renamed it austin . minot ran a stage line between sumpter and canyon city . linda ran the general store , hotel and boarding house . at one time , austin boasted a population of approximately 500 people . in about 1917 , the oregon lumber company built a new double - sided sawmill about a mile down the middle fork of the john day river from austin . a company owned town was built for the mill workers and was named batesville . later , the name was shortened to bates . this mill remained in full operation until october 1975 , when a new mill was put into operation in john day by edward hines lumber company , the owners at that time .
schenectany 2 - 8 - 0 , c / n 48058 , built 1910 . weight of 125 , 000 lbs . originally texas central railroad # 129 ; to missouri , kansas & texas railroad # 692 1911 ; to hyman - michaels ( dealer ) 1924 ; to equitable equipment company ; to edward hines yellow pine company # 10 1925 ; to ehwp # 1 1930 ; to ehlco # 1 1934 ; retired 12 / 1948 and cannibalized for parts until scrapped .
charles hines retired in 1979 , and a year later the company went public . although the company had a float of just 1 . 8 million shares , traded on an over - the - counter basis , hines began to attract the attention of major investors by 1984 , due in large part to the value of its underlying assets . from the sale of timber properties and sawmills , the company had nearly $ 12 million cash in the bank . it was also overly conservative in the reserves it held as well as owning a louisiana gas exploration and drilling company and a 34 . 5 percent interest in southern mineral corp . , a firm that leased oil - and - gas drilling right . finally , hines operated ten chicago wholesale lumber yards , another 15 do - it - yourself stores , and 11 warehouses spread throughout the midwest and southwest .
mr . hines retired as president and ceo in late 2007 , handing the reins to longtime lieutenant gerald wille . mr . hines remained as chairman until 2013 . the company struggled in the most recent housing crisis and was sold to a private - equity firm in 2010 .
company founder edward hines was born in buffalo , new york , in 1863 , the son of a ship carpenter and eldest of seven children . when he was only two years old , the family moved to chicago , where he would attend public school . however , like many children during that period , he left school early to begin working . he was a grocer ' s errand boy for a spell , but soon found a position as tally boy for a chicago lumber commission firm . then , at the age of 14 , he became an office boy for s . k . martin & company , a prominent chicago wholesale lumber firm . he now learned the lumber business , mostly on the road as a traveling salesman , before returning to the home office to become a bookkeeper and general office man . he was a natural salesman and possessed the potential to become an outstanding executive . he was 21 years old when he was named secretary - treasurer of s . k . martin , and over the next eight years he assisted martin in the running of the firm . in 1892 , hines decided to strike on his own and start his own lumber company .
on january 31 , 1963 , the burns times herald reported : “1962 sees hines breaking record . ” the mill had shipped 134 , 250 , 000 board feet of lumber from the hines plant , and payroll had reached an all - time high . in the late 1960s , however , union strikes interrupted work at the mills with three strikes in two years . in the 1970s , the company again modernized the operation , but problems developed in the late 1970s with rising timber prices , high wages , and a deteriorating lumber market .
fanizza ' s building plans called for prefabricated roof trusses . fanizza accepted a bid from hines for a wood roof truss system . according to the terms of their contract , hines was to manufacture , design , build , deliver , and provide instructions for the erection of the trusses . hines included lumber to be used as temporary bracing with the package .
lumber production in wyoming could be headed toward its best year since the industry hit rock bottom in 2010 . university of montana researcher…
he just loved the business ,
said retired tribune co . chairman and ceo john w . madigan , a longtime friend who also served for a time on the board of edward hines lumber .
he was close to all his contractor customers . he was born into it , and he carried on the traditions of his father and grandfather .
all time locomotive roster underlined numbers indicate a link to a page of pictures of that locomotive . oregon & northwestern railroad steam locomotives # 5 - schen . 2 - 8 - 0 , c / n 48057 , blt 1910 . drivers 51 inches , tractive effort 28 , 160 lbs . , weight 125 , 000 lbs . purchased from edward hines lumber on undetermined date , then sold back to hines 4 / 30 / 1947 . # 26
world war ii created a need for an increase in lumber products . many hines employees joined the armed forces and the women left at home filled the positions . they also planted victory gardens and purchased war bonds .
he also pioneered selection logging . ships from wisconsin and the upper peninsula en route to the distribution centers hines established in chicago , bore loads of whatever lumber the mills produced that day , not what the customer wanted , noted maniates , so no one knew what they’d be getting . “edward hines employed common sense , helping to establish unified grade rules to shipping . if he were alive today , he’d be an advocate of green building and fsc certification . ”
hines partnered with andersen windows on a habitat for humanity project in fairdale , illinois .
hines—chicagoland ' s leading resource for new home builders , remodeling and commercial building projects .
a northfield resident since 1967 , mr . hines , 79 , died thursday , feb . 5 , at evanston hospital following neurosurgery , said his son , mac hines .
at the same time , hines also closed some of its operations as it faced increased competition from national big - box do - it - yourself retailers like lowe ' s and home depot . hines instituted a restructuring plan in 1997 . four stores were closed while two others were expanded . the commercial division was also expanded and relocated , and the company decided to focus on its core lumber business , targeting contractors with its remaining 16 stores and eliminating plumbing and electrical supplies . by the close of the decade , hines would be reduced to 13 units .
the oregon lumber company built a large white hotel at the side of the track close to the mill . there was a dance hall near the hotel , ( later a truck barn was built on the sight of the dance hall , after it had burned down ) , where many dances were attended by all . oregon lumber company built logging tracks down the middle fork and had branches up the draws and creeks to supply logs to the new mill . the lumber was then shipped on the sumpter valley railroad to baker . the rails were pulled in the late 1940s . at this time off - highway logging trucks began hauling logs in to the mill . they had 12 foot wide bunks and were stacked close to 20 feet from the ground .
after starting as an office boy at age 14 , hines quickly moved up the ranks to secretary - treasurer of the lumber company , and 15 years later , in 1892 , started his own business . he built up considerable timber holdings through consolidations and in 1928 acquired a tract of public timber in oregon where he cooperated with the malheur national forest in sustainable yield forestry . he stated , “there is no good reason why reforestation cannot be undertaken and the lumber business be made as perpetual in america as the growing of wheat . ”
the sumpter valley railroad arrived in austin during 1905 . in the beginning , the rails stopped at the former stagecoach stop of austin station . a large sawmill owned by oregon lumber company was built beside the tracks at austin . this mill was in operation during the decade preceding world war i . the passenger trains from baker stopped at the austin house ( austin station ) for lunch which “ma” austin served at her board house . the meals were served “family style” in ample proportions . from austin , the oregon lumber company laid their own tracks into the timber and brought logs to the big double - sided mill .
baldwin 2 - 8 - 0 , c / n 21627 , built 1903 . oregon short line # 969 ; oregon short line # 529 ; edward hines # 529 1948 . donated 1965 to northwest railway museum , snoqualmie , wa . on display in the museum .
1934 : logging company r . r . crow and co . reportedly started a milling operation at a site near to saratoga ' s present - day sawmill .
1 . in a related case filed by another plaintiff , we upheld the trial court ' s summary dismissal of the counts filed against the truss plate institute , a construction trade association . we found tpi owed no duty to the plaintiff . bailey v . edward hines lumber co . , 308 ill . app . 3d 58 , 241 ill . dec . 317 , 719 n . e . 2d 178 ( 1999 ) .
homes were needed for the new employees of the mill , and developers began to lay out a town about two miles southwest of burns . edward hines ordered the first 150 homes built in 1929 and assisted in the design of the new town , which was advertised as
oregon’s first made - to - order community and one of the first scientifically planned cities undertaken in america . ” loretta hines , edward hines’s wife , helped design the homes and stipulated sixty - eight different architectural plans . no two homes of the same design or color were built next to each other . the heart of the town was a large circular park .
in the early 1960s , the operation at baker was phased out and many employees transferred to the hines plant . lumber was trucked from bates to hines and a dry sorter was revised to handle the additional volume . in 1965 , a new plywood plant and stud mill were built for increasing volume of douglas fir , white fir and larch .
“green’s always been a lucky color for us , ” said north chicago lumberyard operations manager , bill maniates , referring to the anniversary date of the company’s inception . hines celebrated their 116th year in business on march 17 , 2008 , st . patrick’s day .
i look forward to being an entrepreneur ,
mr . hines told the tribune in 1985 .
chicago had emerged as a major wholesale lumber market shortly after the civil war in the 1860s because it possessed a number of natural and manmade advantages . because it was located on lake michigan , it could receive raw material by boat from the region ' s teeming forests . in chicago , the lumber would be milled and then delivered by train to the major eastern cities , as well as to minneapolis and the dakotas and as far west as denver . as the railroad expanded into the treeless prairie states , the chicago lumbermen were able to serve these growing populations with the building materials they needed . trainloads of chicago lumber were also delivered to such growing texas cities as san antonio and houston . while hines served his apprenticeship at martin company , there were approximately 125 lumberyards in chicago , most of which were involved in the wholesale shipping business . as a result of its lake location and excellent railroad facilities , chicago became the largest lumber receiving and shipping center of the world .
as a result , several employees have remained with the company well over 20 years . maniates joined the hines team 35 years ago right out of college , and began to cultivate a rounded background in purchasing , sales and management of five different yards to the commercial division management for 14 years . branch manager james carollo has 38 years with the company ; general manager john drake , 38 years ; and assistant manager dawn weber , 35 years . walter baumgartner’s 52 - year tenure surpasses chairman of the board hines by two years and john vetter , senior vice president , by three .
in 1985 , mr . hines proposed a buyout that effectively split up the company . he acquired the firm ' s chicago - area retail outlets and a plant in st . charles . other assets , such as a distribution network and a lumberyard on the south side , were sold off .
after hines designed and manufactured the trusses , they were delivered on a flatbed truck . hines provided instructions for erecting the trusses , referred to during trial as the “green sheet . ” hines also provided structural drawings bearing a structural engineer seal . both the green sheet and the structural drawings were admitted as exhibits at trial .
through difficult and changing times , with the right practices , said drake , hines lumber is here to stay . “as in the past during a downturn , we just work harder . our overall approach in everything we do is to make sure it’s done right and that attracts business . ”
oregon native gary ervin started a company , saratoga forest management , to take over operations at the mill , a mainstay in the platte river valley ' s industrial fabric fallen silent nearly 10 years before .
hines ' defense centered around its claim that the truss system was not defective and provided adequate instructions and warnings to frank . hines claimed the accident occurred because the contractors did not read the instructions and warnings before attempting to assemble the roof truss system .
anniversary promo woos customers for hines ' 2nd century ,
building supply home centers , april 1992 , p . 32 .
at the beginning of the 21st century , hines turned to the internet to boost business . it launched a web - enabled procurement program that was able to track job quotes and accept orders . the internet hardly revolutionized the lumber business , however , but was just another tool to communicate with customers , who were still just ordering material from a lumberyard . the company ' s online purchasing system was slow to catch on with customers , bringing in only a modest amount of sales , and few of the customers that logged on took advantage of the system ' s full capabilities .
in 1945 , the hines mill experienced its first strike , but 10 years later , expanded to baker , bates and dee , oregon , adding to the hines and seneca operations . usfs contracts required roads and bridges be built on timber sales , and cattle guards installed where needed . referred to as “hines logging roads” , they have historically provided access for the public into camping , fishing and hunting sites .
frank filed a products liability suit against hines . in his complaint , frank included a count alleging violation of the structural work act . the trial court summarily dismissed this count , finding plaintiff could not show hines was in charge of the work within the meaning of the act .
“we’ve always been interested in the environment and outdoors , ” said edward hines , whose father worked closely with his founder - father . “it’s said my grandfather was a risk - taker who worked up until the day he died . he was a great salesman and lumberman and we try to carry on that tradition . we value and have great respect for sales people . that aspect is fun , spirited and entertaining . ” hines is intrigued by the business . “it’s fascinating and the builders , the users , are very individualistic , creative , and interesting . ”
workers struck three times in two years , during the late 1960s . the hines mill continued to modernize and add computerization to the process . the oregon & northwest railroad hauled the finished products . the seneca shops to the north were closed and all woods repair work moved to hines .
mcdonald ' s corp . chairman andy mckenna , a longtime friend and neighbor , recalled mr . hines as
just a remarkable guy .
mill operations in hines have ceased and the railroad tracks were removed . many of the historic buildings have been dismantled or converted to other uses .
these factors focus on the amount of control the defendant actually exerted , or retained the right to exert , over the work that resulted in the injury . plaintiff failed to establish that hines took any steps to take actual charge of the work . whether hines could have exerted some control over the work is insignificant . plaintiff may recover only where hines actually exerted control , or was supposed to exert control and failed to do so .
o & nw caboose # 300 and some of the railroad ' s modern 50 - foot double door boxcars await their fate in the hines yard after the end of operations . the caboose would stay in hines for another 7 years , and the boxcars would be trucked out to crane .
my father felt strongly that there were hundreds and hundreds of jobs at stake and that this move would save jobs ,
mac hines said .
in 2010 , hines had a population of 1 , 380 and included the city park , post office , and city government offices . the emigrant creek ranger district office , the bureau of land management , oregon fish & wildlife , and harney soil & water conservation district are within hines’s town limits .
austin was quite a town in its day , with several saloons , stores and even a jail . the buildings had false fronts ( there was still one of these false fronted buildings standing as late as 1997 ) . it boasted a board sidewalk also . the railroad facilities included a four - stall engine house , yard trackage and a water tank . there was a mill called the eccles mill near austin . this mill was owned and operated by bill eccles , a brother to david eccles , owner of oregon lumber company .
hines ' witnesses testified the builder was responsible for erection and bracing of the trusses . the bracing materials were provided to the builder along with the trusses .
plaintiff contends the trial court failed to consider the extent to which hines provided instructions for the erection of the trusses . plaintiff points to deposition testimony indicating the reason hines delivered the green sheet to the job site was to “show how to erect trusses and the correct way to pick them up with the crane . ” plaintiff notes hines ' engineering department was available for consultation and “would have” affirmatively performed work to insure workers ' safety , had it been asked to do so .
mr . hines also is survived by his wife of more than 50 years , marcia ; two daughters , elizabeth bigelow and heather clessuras ; and 10 grandchildren .
eighty percent of the lumber processed through the custom millwork operation is solid hardwood , said john drake , general manager of hines custom millwork . in species ranging from african mahogany , sapele , iroko , cherry , walnut , maple , jatoba , various alders , oaks and mahoganies , to aromatic red cedar and an occasional cypress or other unusual wood , all are premium grade , in standard 4 / 4 to 10 / 4 sizes .
soaring timber prices , high wages and a deteriorating market in the late 1970s led to a depression in the lumber industry . continued depressed conditions in 1980 caused a complete shut - down of operations . the plywood and factory operations were discontinued and a new sawmill was built .
here , the trial court found plaintiff could not establish a material issue of fact regarding whether hines “had charge of” the work which resulted in plaintiff ' s injuries .
hines ' contract with fanizza was for the manufacture and delivery of the trusses . though hines included instructions for the erection of the trusses with the product , the erection of the trusses was performed by sub - contractors hired by artech . a review of the record establishes hines did not take charge of erection of the trusses once they were delivered , nor did the parties anticipate that it would . we affirm the trial court ' s decision granting summary judgment in defendant ' s favor on this issue .
mr . hines served for one term on the board of northfield ' s sunset ridge school district 29 , from 1979 until 1983 . the board hired howard bultinck as an assistant superintendent in 1980 , and as he exited the board in 1983 , mr . hines urged his fellow board members to promote bultinck to superintendent , which they did .
the color green assumed a formalized connotation for hines in 2007 when the north chicago location became a chain of custody carrier of forest stewardship council certified products . that designation assures contractors and homeowners that the lumber was assessed and stamped with the seal of a sustainable yield forest , trackable to its source as environmentally responsible , socially beneficial , economically viable and legally harvestable . “that’s reason enough to get certification , ” said maniates . “just knowing it’s done right and that we’re conserving energy properly . ”
from material estimating to product recommendations , hines is ready to do the number crunching for you and make sure your project is completed as affordably as possible with limited material underages or overages .
lieutenant hines was born in chicago , ill on july 24 , 1896 . he was educated in the public schools and graduated from philips academy . he then entered yale university , taking up the sheffield scientific course , and was in his second year when he entered first officers’ training camp at fort sheridan , where he was assigned to the third company . upon receiving a commission as second lieutenant he was ordered to the 4th machine gun battalion , gettysburg , pa . , sailing with that outfit for france on december 24 , 1917 .
on october 24 , 1921 , treasury secretary andrew mellon issued the official order that renamed public health hospital no . 76 as the edward hines , jr . hospital . the public health service ( part of treasury ) was tasked by congress in 1918 with providing hospitals , sanitariums , and medical care to world war 1 veterans . the first consolidation of government veterans services resulted in the transfer of public health service veterans hospitals to the newly created veterans bureau in 1922 . in 1930 , those hospitals became part of the veterans administration when the second consolidation of government veterans services took place .
hines has nine locations throughout chicagoland . please feel free to contact us with any questions about your remodeling , home or commercial building needs . we look forward to helping you with a successful build !
my father and grandfather thought it would be best if he started out at the ground floor , so he began working in a warehouse in skokie ,
mr . hines ' son said .
individuals , not an assembly line , build the pieces . after the architects’ drawing is interpreted in the tech shop , the lumber is machined and assembled using a variety of equipment pieces , including a shoda cnc router . small groups engage in entry door and case work . the only production facet of the plant regards the prehung doors and even there , the individual subcomponents change the setup . up to 80 percent of the door components might be unique , yet hines’ integrated sticking detail method ties them all together into one consistent theme .
the customization process that transforms rough lumber into finished product accounts in large part , for the low turnover of the 50 mill employees . “it’s a real pleasure to watch it reach completion , ” drake said . “everyone enjoys the new challenges and not punching out the same thing every day , so they don’t fall into a rut . ”
the commitment to environmental responsibility is a driving force . subcommittees discuss operating more efficiently , selling products and educating customers within a market that can be very complicated . frequent sales training sessions on green products are held at the corporate office , where a recycling program was recently instituted . over the years , the company has supplied trees to customers to replant , preserving the founding hines’ stance on maintaining maximum yields and reforestation . “we’ve launched the green initiative because we really believe in it and want to leave the world a better place , ” said bigelow .
globe corp . chairman bert getz , a friend since grammar school , remembered mr . hines as
the type of person that everybody enjoys being with , with always a smile on his face .
plaintiff ' s witnesses testified the trusses were bowed upon delivery . fanizza testified he contacted hines about the bowing and was told it was not a problem . plaintiff ' s witnesses said the bowing made installation difficult .
alco s - 3 , c / n 79538 , blt 5 / 1952 . 660 horsepower , weight 199 , 000 lbs . brooks - scanlon # 101 , bend , or ; to oregon & northwestern # 101 1956 ; to longview fibre company # 7001 circa 1965 ; to battle ground , yacolt & chelatchie prairie railroad association 2002 . stored in the vicinity of yacolt , wa .
plaintiff argues “the core” of hines ' defense was “that it manufactured a truss which itself contained no defects and * * * provided [ warnings and instructions ] which told the installer all he needed to know * * * . ” this defense , plaintiff says , “embraced the concept that [ hines ] ‘exercised due care . ’ ” plaintiff misconstrues the type of argument that a defendant must advance before the trial court is required to give ipi civil no . 400 . 10 .
the robust family stock generates enthusiasm for the trade among employees , too . bigelow described the company as one that fosters an entrepreneurial spirit , continuously expanding leadership into employee responsibilities . “we value each individual and their input . the management team is very customer driven and allotted a great deal of decision making flexibility . they know their customers very well , our customers know them , and managers make decisions on their own . ”
craftsman john schnepf builds custom cabinets from cherry at hines’ custom millwork division in south chicago heights . the cabinets were used in the fsc house last year that was part of the greenbuild seminar & expo , held at mccormick place in chicago .
born in chicago and raised in winnetka ' s hubbard woods area , mr . hines attended north shore country day school in winnetka for grade school and high school . he earned a bachelor ' s degree in 1957 from williams college in williamstown , mass .
this case is factually similar to lukwinski . there , the plaintiff was employed as a truck driver for a delivery carrier company ( fab ) . defendant ( stone ) was a cardboard box manufacturer . fab contracted with stone to deliver the boxes to buyers . plaintiff was injured while delivering the boxes to a buyer . he claimed section 2 - 318 covered him as a third - party beneficiary of the ucc warranty between stone and the buyer . we disagreed :
on june 24 , 1991 , three carpenters installing a wood roof truss system at the evergreen plaza shopping center in vernon hills were injured when several trusses collapsed . hines designed , built , and furnished the truss system to comply with the architect ' s plans .
the sixth amended complaint , filed after the court granted summary judgment in defendant ' s favor on the structural work act count , alleged the roof truss system was defective in its design and engineering . plaintiff also alleged the truss was improperly packaged , stacked , and delivered and was given to frank in a deformed , bowed and unsafe condition . the complaint alleged hines failed to give frank adequate instructions for erecting the roof and that hines did not provide adequate warnings of the dangers posed by the product . plaintiff also included counts alleging breach of ucc warranties .


pratt-read is an american manufacturing company based in sycamore , illinois , that produces screwdrivers .

it is a subsidiary of ideal industries .

it is one of the oldest companies in the united states , having been founded in 1798 .

pratt - read

re : america ' s favourite screwdriver co . ; the fate of pratt read
pratt read - 46900 - 6 pc . screwdriver set , insulated | sears outlet
donated by pratt , read corporation in 1989 . in addition to the papers donated by the company , several individuals donated pratt , read materials in their possession .
pratt , read and co . closed its doors in deep river as a piano manufacturer
deep river historical society , inc . a history of pratt read & co . 1973 .
america ' s favourite screwdriver co . ; the fate of pratt read - the garage journal board
pratt , read corporation records , 1839 - 1990 , archives center , national museum of american history .
louis e . pratt , master ivory cutter for pratt , read & co . , shows off eight ivory tusks , april 1 , 1955 . courtesy of deep river historical society hide caption
( left ) ivory tusks at pratt , read , imported from portuguese east africa , now mozambique , 1950 . ( right ) a pratt , read worker uses a five - bladed circular saw to cut ivory for a piano keyboard in the 1920s . ivoryton library association hide caption
pratt , read & company . pratt , read & company is one of the oldest companies in the state of connecticut . the firm traces its origins to 1798 , when an essex goldsmith and clockmaker named phineas pratt invented a circular saw to cut the teeth on ivory combs . in 1809 , george read and his brother in law , phineas pratt ii , dammed the deep river in the nearby town of deep river and constructed a waterwheel to power ivory cutting machinery . read left the partnership in 1816 , and phineas pratt ii joined with alfred worthington to manufacture ivory combs under the name of pratt worthington & company . when worthington died in 1830 , two of phineas pratt ii ' s sons , ulysses and alexis , took over the business , operating as u & a pratt . the name was changed in 1844 to pratt spencer & company , when a new partner was added , and changed again in 1850 , to pratt brothers & company . in 1856 the company erected a much larger factory in deep river .
but there was an inner conflict arising in george read , who besides being a founding partner of the ivory manufacturer pratt , read & co . was also a local deacon and founder of the deep river baptist church .
view of an industrial building complex . caption at top left reads :
pratt , read & co . deep river , conn .

records documenting pratt , read and company ; its early competitor and later partner , comstock , cheney and company ; and a number of predecessor , subsidiary and related companies . other topics include the late 19th century african ivory trade and pratt , read ' s production of troop - carrying gliders during world war ii .
in january , ideal took over colorado - based western forge , which was the nation ' s largest domestic producer of screwdrivers , ahead of pratt - read .
at its peak , pratt - read was the second - largest maker of screwdrivers in the united states . the company filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection last year .
the museum ' s pratt - read , now on display in the great gallery , is painted to represent the u . s . navy lne - 1 variant .
in 1863 , the firms of george read & company , julius pratt & company , and pratt brothers & company , were merged to form pratt , read & company . the new company further enlarged its factory in deep river in 1866 . in 1871 , the old julius pratt & company factory in meriden was closed and its operations moved to deep river . though this factory was destroyed by fire in 1881 , a larger factory was quickly rebuilt and the company was back in business early in 1882 .
johnson , curtiss s .
from ivory combs to carnegie hall and today : the history of the pratt read corporation .
[ unpublished history in the collection . ]
records relating to pratt , read and to comstock , cheney can be found in a number of other collections , both within the archives center and in other repositories . the wood & brooks company records ( archives center coll . # 457 ) contain significant information on pratt , read ' s operations and an important record of production statistics gathered by george wood while he was factory superintendent and taken with him when he set up a rival firm in buffalo . while the ernst moore collection ( archives center coll . # 321 ) primarily documents the purchase of ivory in africa ( much of which was ultimately used by pratt , read ) , it also includes a history of pratt , read written by moore while he was employed by them . the sohmer & company records ( archives center coll . # 349 ) document the piano manufacturing firm that pratt read acquired in 1982 .
moore , ernst d .
history of pratt , read & company .
[ unpublished history in the ernst d . moore collection , archives center collection # 321 . ]
e . d . moore , ivory buyer for pratt , read , reclines atop zanzibar ' s largest shipment of tusks — 355 tusks weighing 22 , 000 pounds , circa 1890 - 1910 .
in the meantime , julius pratt , another of phineas pratt i ' s sons , had joined with thomas howard to set up an ivory comb factory in the town of meriden . this firm was known as howard , pratt & company . after howard ' s death in 1822 , it became julius pratt & company . in 1854 , the firm began to produce wooden piano keyboards , which then were fitted with keys of ivory . one half interest in this firm was owned by george read .
the old bridgeport home of pratt - read tool co . on railroad avenue still bears the name and elephant trademark of the company that finally closed in the state after more than 200 years in business .
during world war ii , the pratt read company applied its wood - working skills to constructing waco cg - 4 troop gliders under contract for the war department . this design was utilised during the invasion of festung europa .
though the company pratt , read and co . still exists , it was bought out by the great , great grandson of their chief competitor , samuel comstock who now specializes in the first product samuel comstock ever sold…screw drivers .
e . d . moore , ivory buyer for pratt , read , reclines atop zanzibar ' s largest shipment of tusks — 355 tusks weighing 22 , 000 pounds , circa 1890 - 1910 . courtesy of deep river historical society hide caption
a petition for federal trade act benefits , filed by the company on behalf of workers , is still under investigation , according to the labor department ' s website . in march , ideal industries of illinois bought pratt - read ' s assets .
when read left his original partnership with phineas pratt ii in 1816 , he joined with essex comb maker ezra williams to set up a new ivory working factory in deep river . this new firm was known as ezra williams & company . in 1829 , read became the senior partner and the company ' s name was changed to george read & company . this company later secured a very important contract to supply ivory keys for the first american manufacturer of pianos , chickering & sons of boston .
the issue facing the former workers of pratt - read is whether they will qualify for trade act benefits . generally , to qualify , imports from countries with whom the united states has trade agreements must be shown to have taken market share from the company .
interesting . . . . good read . now let ' s get back to blaming china and harbor freight for everything . .
largest ivory haul ever in zanzibar 1890 - 1910 ( white buyer for pratt lounging on top of the pile ) . ( photo :
the factories and distribution centers are idle and empty , and the last moments in the more than 200 years of history of the pratt - read co . in connecticut have been reduced to shuffling papers at the u . s . labor department over aid to workers .
pratt , read & company , located in the essex area of connecticut , was once the world ' s largest producer of ivory products . beginning with the manufacture of combs , collar buttons , and toothpicks , the company moved on to the production of piano and organ key veneers , and soon dominated the field . eventually , it began to produce complete piano and organ keyboards and actions , becoming the major supplier to the american piano industry . the records in this collection document pratt , read & company ; its early competitor and later partner , comstock , cheney & company ; and a number of predecessor , subsidiary , and related companies . other topics of interest dealt with in this collection include the late nineteenth century african ivory trade and pratt , read ' s production of troop carrying gliders during world war ii .
however , george cheney , read’s main competitor , lived in zanzibar for over 10 years and raised at least two of his children there .
pratt - read was one of the oldest manufacturing companies in the state . the business , which started in 1798 in ivoryton , first made buttons and other objects from ivory . it grew into a piano keyboard manufacturer in the 1830s and also started making screwdrivers in that same decade .
with the election of george l . cheney as president in 1892 , pratt , read & company began a period of continued expansion . in december of that year the company joined with another connecticut piano component manufacturer , comstock , cheney & company , to organize a midwestern manufacturing branch , under the name of the piano & organ supply company . this firm was to serve the territory west of toledo , ohio , operating in competition with its parent companies . in 1929 pratt , read and comstock , cheney combined to buy out the piano & organ supply company and it was dissolved .
i travel up a road that winds from a landing on the connecticut river into town , with marta daniels at the wheel . she ' s a freelance writer by trade , a historian by avocation .
i have always thought of this road as the road of tears ,
she says . between 1840 and 1940 , the wagons of pratt , read & co . traveled this same route , carrying hundreds of thousands of elephant tusks from ships up to the company ' s factories and workshops . pratt , read was the biggest importer of ivory in the world at the time .
in 1958 , the pratt read company , a distinguished maker of piano parts , and recognized as the largest producer of keyboards and piano actions in the world as of the 1970s , moved its piano action division to central , south carolina from ivorytown , connecticut . the home plant continued to produce the keyboards .
most of these records were housed in the pratt read corporation ' s ivory museum , located at corporate headquarters in their factory in ivoryton , conn . the museum material was assembled by peter h . comstock , beginning in 1977 , and had been looked after with loving care by edith m . deforest since 1982 . the remaining records were stored elsewhere in the ivoryton factory . the bulk of the records were donated directly to the archives center by the pratt read corporation on january 6 , 1989 . the corporation made a second , very generous donation to the archives center on june 25 , 1992 , consisting primarily of minute books and ledgers .
though exactly what george read knew of the vast numbers of slaves being captured in zanzibar decades after the emancipation proclamation in 1863 , no one really knows . there is no record of him ever visiting africa but many wonder how it could even have been possible that he didn’t know at least something of the atrocities his company was creating . after all , thirty years after the civil war and slavery was made illegal in the united states the two companies ( pratt , read and comstock , cheney ) were still profiting enormously from it .
the first post - war club was the washington soaring club , formed around 3 pratt - reads and a laister - kauffmann . this group operated in 1946 - 1948 at the old schrom airport at greenbelt , and present m - asa members who were members of that club are bill ebert and jack perine . there were about 8 active members , and when the club disbanded after a few years , one pratt - read , ng0745 , was sold to a newly forming group called the district of columbia soaring club . nate frank was one of its members .
( world’s fair ) with piano keys as white as snow , supplied by none other than pratt , read and co . overnight , the two became the world’s top piano makers and were conveniently located within miles of the ivory manufacturers . orders for pristine white piano keys shot through the roof . if ivory combs had made them thousands piano keys were about to make them millions .
i don ' t know if this has already been discussed here , but i just found out that back in march 09 ' , pratt read filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection . a company that has been making screwdriver from around 1830 could close its doors shut . . . . . or move manufacturing to china or taiwan ? here ' s an article for those interested : urltoken
1936 merger . on december 31 , l936 , pratt , read & company of deep river was consolidated and merged with comstock , cheney & company of ivoryton . the resulting corporation was titled pratt , read & company , inc . by l938 , all manufacturing operations had been consolidated in ivoryton and the deep river factory closed . during world war ii , both the deep river factory and the ivoryton factory were used to produce cg 4a
waco
troop carrying gliders for the u . s . army air forces , along with lne 1 training gliders and the glomb experimental plane for the u . s . navy . production of piano keyboards and actions was sharply curtailed for the duration of the war , and was slow to resume afterward . in l946 the deep river factory was sold .
note : this section borrows heavily from jack perine ' s previously referenced work . a complete copy of his history of m - asa , which includes the clubs that preceded it , can be read on the internet .
the importance of this cannot be over - emphasized . this availability of two - place high performance sailplanes at a price that many could afford , even in those money - scarce postwar days made it possible for many clubs on a limited budget to form and successfully operate . it may be of interest in view of today ' s $ 18 , 000 sailplanes that the surplus pratt - read , brand new and on trailer , sold for $ 350 .
in the mid to late 1800s the part of connecticut referred to as the queen of the valley had risen to become the largest manufacturer of ivory in the world . pratt , read and co . was set up in deep river with their main competitor comstock , cheney & co . in full swing just a few short miles away in the town called ivoryton . as the middle class continued to flourish in the united states so did their appetite for ivory .
the pratt read corporation also donated a number of objects to the national museum of american history at the same time as their 1988 donation of archival records . included were combs and letter openers and other examples of products made from ivory ; piano components , such as gauge boards , key actions , and keys ; and such diverse items as tools used in the factory , world war ii employee i . d . badges , and a uniform from the company sponsored basketball team .
i find pratt reads at the local ace hardware and at northern tool . to me i think they ' re moderately priced and affordable . if you look hard enough you ' ll still find some old pr made craftsman at sears too .
in any case , it is sad to see yet another connecticut tool company dying . i was at a northern store over christmas break and saw some pr drivers i hadn ' t seen before . they were quite nice and a good departure from the old handles ( which i don ' t like so much ) . they were also the first pratt - read labeled drivers i had ever seen ( as opposed to made for some other brand ) - i thought the company was doing better !
in 1913 , harry j . sohmer took over the company and turned it into incorporation in the year 1940 . he was succeeded by his sons , harry j . sohmer , jr . , president , and robert h . sohmer , secretary and treasurer in 1971 . in 1982 , the sohmer brothers sold the rights and assets of the company to pratt , read & co . , then , the largest american manufacturer of piano actions and keyboards , and moved to their facilities in ivoryton , connecticut .
one of the connecticut buyers who sailed to zanzibar was ernst moore , who worked for pratt , read . moore spent years in the trade , and it made him wealthy , but he grew to hate it . he wrote a book called ivory : scourge of africa . yet , says conniff , quoting moore ' s book ,
he is the one who also said , ' our lives were so crammed with our business and adventure that we were perfectly content to take what we had and make the best of it . '
several individuals also contributed pratt , read material to the archives center . hugo nickse , pharmacist in ivoryton , donated a number of photographs of the town , the factory , and the company ' s facilities , in september 1990 . henry z . steinway , who served as one of the company ' s directors in the 1970s and 1980s , donated financial statements , board papers , and reports from that period in august 1992 . hanford johnson , postmaster of ivoryton , donated two letters dating from 1890 in august 1992 . jack spangler of deep river provided a photocopy of the company ' s
west factory
time book , which is on loan to him from the deep river historical society .
or maybe george read had the knowledge but didn’t feel that he could do anything to stop the monster he had helped to create . whichever it was one thing was clear : the cloak of consciousness was whispering down on the deep river valley . whatever wrongs they had directly or inadvertently participated in , the fact that the town of deep river is named as one of the many historical stops along the infamous underground railroad suggests
jeff hostetler , president of the deep river historical society , says it was one machine in particular that brought ivory to this town and this factory .
what happened is phineas pratt , a very good mechanic and inventor , developed an ivory lathe to cut the teeth in ivory combs ,
he explains .
and , of course , all of phineas ' relatives bought one of phineas ' machines and went into the comb business .
then came the piano . in the mid - 1800s , a piano in the parlor became a symbol of middle - class cultivation . pratt ' s efficient , mechanized cutting lathes were modified to make ivory piano keys . piano keys required extra labor , and soon the business sprawled all over town .
pianists liked white ,
hostetler says of the piano keys .
so the way to get a good , uniform white color is to take these thin wafers of ivory and just bleach them in the sun .
billy winters and many of his family members settled into their own homes along main street in deep river . the street would later be renamed winter avenue , ( as it stands today ) after its most famous inhabitant . billy went on to become a successful farmer and a permanent resident of deep river and george read’s church . the two remained close friends until the day they died . so close in fact that their families are buried next to one another in a deep river cemetery called fountain hill ( 1 ) .
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john breunig : look , up in the sky , it’s . . . nothing
final moments : machines were assets , employees were not , as second - largest u . s . manufacturer of screwdrivers shuts its doors , cuts local ties
the company expanded over the years , making pianos and screwdrivers , and at one point had 12 factories , including the one on railroad avenue in bridgeport . in the early 1990s , the company dropped the piano business and dedicated itself to screwdriver manufacturing , and employment in bridgeport was as high as 170 in 2004 , when workers there made 100 , 000 screwdrivers a day . the company moved into the old atrium window facility in shelton in 2007 .
we bought only the assets of pr ,
roberta mcquade , an ideal industries spokeswoman , said in an e - mail .
we never operated the shelton facility . we took the equipment and integrated it into our existing operations . . . . we are making the pr line of screwdrivers today out of our existing facilities .
ed deak , a professor of economics at fairfield university , said any u . s . manufacturer of tools , such as screwdrivers , is facing stiff competition from china because of currency manipulation and low wages across the ocean . some u . s . companies have embraced china and have their products made there and shipped here .
it ' s a difficult situation for u . s . factories to navigate , he said , because the low - cost of chinese goods make products affordable here .
you and i as consumers are better off , but you and i as workers are not ,
he said .
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i am very sad to hear this news i like their screwdrivers ; i wish them all the best and hope that they can keep their doors open for another 100 years .
this is really dissapointing , i wonder if it was bad management that got them to this point ? it seems to me that there screwdriver line is very competitively priced compared to other usa brands , so it makes me think it was just bad business decisions .
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ im currently not taking any orders or shipping kits / parts . it ' s always best to patronize local business ' s when possible , if not available there are numerous online suppliers . i would advise that you price check , as there is a wide range of prices across the board . need a seal kit ? contact hydraulic parts supply at 620 - 594 - 2247
they certainly cant sell them any cheaper . the craftsman sets are always priced so low it astounds me .
no big deal we can get screwdrivers from gearwrench and harbor freight , plus those people working there can just sell their homes , move into section 8 housing , go on welfare and collect food stamps . keep buying those asian tools .
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ . cheap tools are for chumps . . . . the wealthy can currently accumulate many millions of dollars in these accounts , substantially more than is needed to fund reasonable levels of retirement saving .
it * is * possible to let one or two threads go every so often .
one word - walmart the us consumer is addicted to low priced imported goods . all we have to do is pass a law . any good imported into the us must be certified to have been made under the same environmental regulations , worker minimum wage and safety regulations as in effect here . end of story . of course , virtually every consumer good would go up in price 25 % to 50 % overnight .
i ' ve been to china and the third - world hell - holes flooding our markets with low - priced goods and driving our manufacturers out of business . you wouldn ' t want to live there , but by trading short term savings for long - term security , we are headed down to their level sooner rather than later .
that in itself is a clue - - they may have lost a contract , but decided to keep the factory running for as long as they could .
sure i could let it go , sure i could look the other way and move on when i see an elderly person slip on the ice and fall , plenty do . maybe when i walk up to a door to enter a building and there is a person a little ways behind me with their arms full i should rush in , let the door close and let them stumble to open the door rather than hold it open for them , i see plenty of people do it . but thats not my ' style ' , i do something , i say something . should i change my ways to appease you and other people that buy asian imports , to save a few dollars , to make you and them happy ? ain ' t going to happen . to suggest i shouldn ' t say anything as i watch this country fall to pieces when some peoples biggest concern is saving 50 cants rather than helping out there fellow citizens . there ' s an ignore feature on the board i ' m sure someone can explain to you how to use it , that or you could just whine about it , everybody loves a whiner .
keep doing what your doing mickey o . every time i think about buying a chaiwanese tool , i think about you and put it down .
no , they do not . they have the american consumer to thank for that . china isn ' t forcing anything down our throat . we are all willing participants .
and when i write we , above , i mean we as in the citizens of the usa . most members of gj notwithstanding .
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no , they do not . they have the american consumer to thank for that . china isn ' t forcing anything down our throat . we are all willing participants . and when i write we , above , i mean we as in the citizens of the usa . most members of gj notwithstanding .
yes , but the american consumer gets tempted by cheaper prices . there is so much chinese stuff flooding the market that in many instances we don ' t even have the opportunity to choose american . it has seriously become an effort to find something us made nowadays .
jesus , pump your brakes . . . im sure the demise of this company is related to harbor freight . . . . we all get it , you dont like asian imports . . hopefully you live by that with everything you purchase in your life .
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nutdriver with cushioned grip . premium chrome plated for smooth feel .
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phillips screwdriver ( # 2 ) with cushion grip . black oxide coating for corrosion resistance .
slotted screwdriver ( 1 / 4” ) with cushion grip . black oxide coating for corrosion resistance .
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fully insulated against electric shock , certified to 1000 volts ac . chromoly alloy steel driver blades for durability . precision machined tips for accurate fastener contact , tight tolerance , sure fit .
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comstock , cheney & company . meanwhile , other manufacturers of ivory products had been at work in the essex area . chief among these was the firm of comstock , cheney & company of ivoryton . the dominant figure in this company was samuel m . comstock . he had learned the ivory cutting trade while working in his older brother ' s saybrook area ivory cutting shop , known as joseph a . comstock & company . by 1838 , samuel had left his brother ' s shop and joined with edwin griswold to set up comstock & griswold company further west up the falls river in centerbrook . in 1848 , the company moved its operations to a new factory in the ivoryton area , where combs , toothpicks , and other ivory products were made . at the same time , the firm ' s name was changed to s . m . comstock & company , reflecting samuel ' s sole ownership .
in 1860 , samuel comstock allied his firm with george a . cheney to form comstock , cheney & company . cheney had invested in comstock ' s firm and was one of the principals in the important new york based ivory importing firm of arnold , cheney & company . the new firm began production of thin slices of ivory for mounting on wooden piano keys . it also had its own agents buying ivory in africa , most of which went toward production of piano keys . the company was formally incorporated in 1872 and in 1873 it opened an even larger factory in ivoryton .
1899 souvenir of essex , connecticut . rpt . , the ivoryton public library , 1979 .
collection items available for reproduction , but the archives center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions . other intellectual property rights may apply . archives center cost - recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions .
additional news clippings and information on related collections were gathered by the archivist while processing the collection .
situated on a large tract of land on the western edge of town , the plant employed many central residents . in 1963 , an addition to the plant was added for construction of the newly developed electronics organ components division , occupying the new space in 1964 .
allen , mattie may morgan ,
central yesterday and today
, faith printing company , taylors , south carolina , 1973 , no library of congress card number , no isbn number , page 71 .
this page was last modified on 26 august 2009 , at 17 : 38 .
elephant slaughter , african slavery and america ' s pianos two new england towns dominated the world ' s ivory market from 1840 to 1940 — transforming imported tusks from african elephants into piano keys and combs . today ' s residents grapple with a dark past .
the illegal trade in ivory from african elephants has tripled in the past 15 years , to the extent that biologists fear for the creatures ' future existence .
most of the ivory is sold in china and vietnam , and these days the u . s . government and international conservation groups urge those countries to arrest the traffickers . but for the better part of a century , from 1840 to around 1940 , the u . s . was the world ' s biggest buyer of ivory . hunters killed hundreds of thousands of elephants , and uncounted numbers of africans were enslaved to carry the tusks to ships bound for america .
most of that ivory went to a tiny town in connecticut — a town that ' s now grappling with this dark part of its past .
deep river is old new england , and its residents take their history seriously . driving into town , i pass a fife and drum corps practicing for a performance on the village green . stone barns from the 18th century , riverside mills and newly painted victorian mansions line the highways .
people called deep river
the queen of the valley
150 years ago . mills and factories and timber made the town well - to - do . but it was ivory that made deep river rich .
stephen beale drives a wagonload of ivory tusks to town from deep river landing . ( date unknown . ) courtesy of deep river historical society hide caption
the big brick factory at the top of the road — it ' s longer than a city block — is now a condominium called piano works . water still cascades through a nearby sluice that ran the factory ' s machines .
and then into making billiard balls , cutlery handles , shirt buttons — all manner of ivory knickknacks .
acres of bleaching houses sprang up — huge greenhouses containing blocks of ivory instead of plants . people fertilized gardens with ivory dust . kids swimming in local ponds came out of the water coated in it . soon , a rival company , comstock , cheney & co . , emerged and built a whole new town nearby for its workers , called ivoryton .
the two towns dominated the piano key business for decades . fortunes were made and spent on grand houses that still stand . one of them is now headquarters of the deep river historical society and home to a startling assortment of the artifacts that made deep river rich . curator rhonda forristall shows me around .
you ' ve got needles ; you ' ve got crochet hooks , toothpicks , buttonhooks ,
she says . handles for straight razors . buttons for corsets . for piano keys , the ivory was sliced thin , into laminates that were secured to wooden keys .
three pieces go into making a key ,
she explains .
you could get 45 keyboards out of one tusk .
pianists liked the feel of ivory , and it wasn ' t until the 1950s that cheaper plastic keys completely replaced those made of ivory .
in deep river , these artifacts are a source of civic pride , but pride that ' s also tinged with shame , especially as the world condemns the current slaughter of elephants to make trinkets . daniels , for one , says if americans are going to condemn others for trading in ivory , they should at least know their own history .
we were the largest importer of tusks anywhere in the world ,
she says passionately .
so we have a special responsibility and we have a unique opportunity to say , ' we are sorry we have done this , but we want in some way to help stop the slaughter now . '
citizens have formed the deep river elephant tusk force to publicize the ivory history here , both its good and bad sides . they organized a conference last year with speakers from the u . s . fish and wildlife service to talk about the u . s . ivory trade . they speak in schools , and they ' re lobbying for a law banning the import of existing ivory into the state . they raised money to buy an elephant statue that sits in front of the town hall .
those efforts aren ' t likely to resonate in china and vietnam . but peter howard , trustee of the historical society and a tusk force founder , says at least deep river residents are now confronting the town ' s past .
there ' s a lot of debt that ' s owed the elephant here ,
he says ,
and a lot of awareness . but it was kind of in the back of peoples ' minds .
dick smith — as first selectman of the town , he ' s essentially the mayor — says he knew about deep river ' s ivory history , but not about the current trade in asia . he says he ' d tell ivory buyers now to stop , even though americans once were just as guilty .
we learn from our experiences ,
he says .
it wasn ' t right .
deep river ' s john guy laplante is more sympathetic to the town ' s forebears . attitudes were different 150 years ago .
you know , we deplore what happened to the elephant . it was brutal , there ' s no doubt about it . but we have to put it in context . these men . . . who ran this industry , were upstanding , moral , high - minded people who didn ' t think they were doing anything wrong .
but there was another ugly fact about this trade that many americans either didn ' t know about or simply chose not to see — ivory slavery . ivory traders needed ivory bearers . so they captured africans and enslaved them to transport the tusks to the ships .
richard conniff has investigated the african end of the trade . he ' s a writer who bought a house in deep river and then discovered its past . he found historical accounts from africa and from deep river ' s ivory barons . they tell of ships from connecticut that sailed to zanzibar , an island off the east coast of africa . americans arrived with cloth , gunpowder and weapons to trade . the ivory came from central africa , brought to zanzibar by arab slavers .
they would seize slaves , seize ivory , and then use the slaves to carry the ivory back to the coast ,
says conniff .
and the descriptions that missionaries gave of those caravans were particularly brutal . . . slaves bound by a log , basically , around the neck to the person behind them , and then carrying a tusk on one shoulder .
often , only 1 in 4 slaves survived the journey , according to british explorer dr . david livingstone , who observed and wrote about them .
conniff , sitting in a gazebo on the deep river landing where the ships once arrived with ivory from africa , says that ' s likely the attitude of people who are buying illegal ivory now .
what they need to realize is what this town has discovered ,
he says ,
that our involvement in that kind of thing is ultimately a source of shame , and that the grandchildren of those people who are buying that ivory are going to look at them with the kind of horror with which we now regard the ivory trade that happened here .
the status - maker of the 19th century with bleach - white ivory keys . “antique chickering piano , stanley hotel” by ajmexico licensed under cc by 2 . 0 via commons .
by leaving them under the new england sun . this made them pristinely white , unlike anything anyone had ever seen before . he soon filed the first us patent on a bleaching house , which was nothing more than a greenhouse , filled with thin wafers of yellowish , bone - colored ivory laid out to bleach white in the sun ( 2 ) .
. a single ivory tusk could make enough keys to fit 45 pianos and yet there still wasn’t enough ivory to accommodate all of the orders ( 2 ) . the white american hunting firm in africa , arnold , hines & co . , was killing elephants by the thousands and still they could not keep up with demand . the slave brokers were raiding more villages in zanzibar ( modern - day tanzania ) to meet the supply the slave trains now required to carry all of the tusks from the elephants they were killing to the coast . any slaves who lived long enough to make it that far were sold to the ships waiting underneath the red flag that signified the main slave market . they too , were shipped out to america making double the profits for the ivory traders . the industrial revolution was still well underway on the east coast of the united states .
. he proved just how deeply he felt about the issue when a runaway slave showed up on his doorstep by the name of daniel fisher .
daniel had escaped from a plantation in south carolina where he had recently been sold . the rest of his family remained slaves on a farm in virginia where he had been born . after nearly being captured several times along his journey north he finally found protection in a quaker community in philadelphia , which directed him to safety .
billy winters lived into his 80’s as a freed slave in deep river . ( photo copyright by
using a large network of safe homes and contacts . many of deep river’s townspeople were in on “the secret” and there were escaped slaves holed up in houses all across the valley . whenever an outsider would visit deep river the black residents would hide and none of the white ones let their precious secret out ; even though ‘slave catchers’ were willing to pay large sums of money for any escaped slaves .
and wear a wig in an effort to throw the slave catchers off his trail when they came looking for him , which they did for years ( 1 ) .
identified stops along the underground railroad . the blue dots represent sites along the valley that were safe houses for runaway slaves . ( photo : courtesy of
. it was his wife’s uncles after all , ( who formed the elephant hunting firm arnold , hines & co . ) who were supplying the majority of the ivory in africa to the west . and they were most certainly creators of the numerous slave trains required in order to get it delivered to the coast .
there is no doubt that , though squeamish about the prospect , george cheney knew exactly what was taking place .
he didn’t have the heart to punish the slaves under his own care using his own hand . when he felt discipline was in order he had someone else do it and , as detailed by his wife in a letter home , was
whichever way you feel about the dark history of deep river the foundation of the queen of the valley was built upon the backs of slaves and the tusks of elephants . the last shipment of ivory was delivered to deep river in 1950 when by this time , there was no such thing as a big tusker anywhere near zanzibar ( 3 ) . the numbers of elephants had plummeted so low that entire ecosystems had begun to collapse . the first laws protecting elephants began to emerge with britain leading the charge . with the days of playing the piano in sitting rooms long past and the price for ivory driven high with scarcity the demand had also fallen .
for the last time in the late 1980s . today the big brick factory that takes up an entire city block has been transformed into a large , fashionable condo complex called piano works in which a single condominium with a gorgeous view of the connecticut river can be sold for as much as $ 250 , 000 .
the piano works condominiums in deep river where so much of america’s history lies .
the deep river museum situated not far from the red , brick building is dedicated to the town’s dark and riveting history . it stands as a place for the ancestors of the valley to come to terms with the fact that they have had a profound and devastating impact on not just africa’s dwindling population of elephants but on the hundreds of thousands of black slaves who never made it as far as the underground railroad .