Hoopes Bro. & Darlington, Inc., Records
name: label: Manufacturer
content: Hoopes Brother & Darlington, Inc.
label: Names
content: Hoopes, Thomas, 1834-1925
label: Names
content: Hoopes, William, 1830-1917
place: label: Place
content: Pennsylvania -- West Chester
topic: label: Topic
content: Wheels
label: Topic
content: Wagon wheels
label: Topic
content: Woodworking
label: Topic
content: Woodworking machinery
label: Topic
content: Woodworking industries
acqinfo: label: Provenance
content: Immediate source of acquisition unknown.
creator: label: Manufacturer
content: Hoopes Brother & Darlington, Inc.
setName: label: See more items in
content: Hoopes Bro. & Darlington, Inc., Records
abstract: label: Summary
content: Records document the activities of the Hoopes, Bro. & Darlington Company, manufacturers of wooden wheels in West Chester, Pennsylvania.
bioghist: label: Historical
content: Hoopes Bro. & Darlington Wheel Works of West Chester, Pennsylvania was founded in 1867 by William and Thomas Hoopes to manufacture wooden wheels for carriages, wagons, and later automobile and motor truck wheels. In 1868, their cousin Edward S. Darlington joined the company. The company also made baseball bats and skis.
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 4.6 Cubic feet (15 boxes, 1 map folder)
unitdate: label: Date
content: 1834-1978
label: Date
content: bulk 1920s-1930s
custodhist: label: Custodial History
content: Materials originally collected for the Museum of History and Technology, Division of Road Transportation. Collection transferred to the Archives Center from the Division of Work and Industry in September 2022.
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: Archives Center, National Museum of American History
identifier: label: Identifier
content: NMAH.AC.1578
objectType: label: Type
content: Collection descriptions
label: Type
content: Archival materials
label: Type
content: Articles
label: Type
content: Blueprints
label: Type
content: Catalogs
label: Type
content: Correspondence
label: Type
content: Patents
label: Type
content: Photographs
label: Type
content: Price lists
arrangement: label: Arrangement
content: Collection is arranged into four series.

		
Series 1: Operational Records, 1885-1964			

Series 2: Patent Materials, 1834-1936			

Series 3: Drawings, 1867-1955

Series 4: The Last Wheel Works Film Project Records, 1968-1969, 1978
processinfo: label: Processing Information
content: Collection processed by Alison Oswald, archivist, 2023.
genre_format: label: Genre/Form
content: Articles
label: Genre/Form
content: Blueprints
label: Genre/Form
content: Catalogs
label: Genre/Form
content: Correspondence
label: Genre/Form
content: Patents
label: Genre/Form
content: Photographs
label: Genre/Form
content: Price lists
scopecontent: label: Content Description
content: Records document the activities of the Hoopes, Bro. & Darlington Company in West Chester, Pennsylvania, a manufacturer of wooden spokes for wheels. Materials include photographs, blueprints, price lists, catalogs, patents, correspondence, articles, film scripts and other supplemental documention for the film, "The Last Wheel Works: The Industrial Archaeology of a Wood Wheel Manufactory," and an oral history transcript with Thomas Hoopes, Jr.
relatedmaterial: label: Related Materials
content: Materials at the Archives Center

Warshaw Collection of Business Americana, Series Wagons, NMAH.AC.0060

Hagan Brothers Carriage and Wagonmakers records, NMAH.AC.1154

Samuel J. Meeks Carriage Works Records, NMAH.AC.1502

James Cunningham, Son and Company records, NMAH.AC.1193

Materials at Other Organizations

Hagley Museum and Library

The Hoopes Brothers & Darlington Inc. photograph collection (Accession 1969.099) 

Collection consists of miscellaneous images from the company, largely dating between 1900 and 1948, as well as advertising material and letterheads. The photographs include images of the company's exhibit at the 1876 International Exposition in Philadelphia; an unidentified ca. 1890 trade show; their saw mill in Jackson, Mississippi, ca. 1910; various models of wooden wheels; two automobiles with wooden wheels; and views of the factory.

The Last Wheel Works: The Industrial Archaeology of a Wood Wheel Manufactory

16 mm film produced in 1975 and sponsored by the Smithsonian and the Eleutherian Mills-Hagley Foundation about the manufacturing process employed by Hoopes Brothers & Darlington, a wooden wheel producer located in West Chester, Pennsylvania. The film details each step required to fashion a 16-spoke carriage wheel from raw lumber. Directed by Peter H. Smith and Robert M. Vogel. Written by Pierce Atkins. Filmed by Albert J. Robinson and Frank T. Herzog. Post Production by John W. Hiller and Karen Loveland. Technical support by Robert A. Howard, John D. Milner, Julia F. Davis, and Don Berkebile. With financial support from the Raymond John Wean Foundation.


Chester County Historical Society, West Chester, Pennsylvania

Thomas Hoopes Family Papers, 1876-1890

The bulk of the documents were written between 1876 and 1890, and addressed to Amanda Hoopes (unless otherwise indicated). Many of the letters were written by various members of the extended family, but a considerable amount of them were written by Thomas and sent to Amanda while she was residing in Elmira, New York. Also included are a collection of stamps and several blank postcards and envelopes.