HARDWOOD RECORD 



19 



GK.NKUAi. \ nav I'r.wr i'.kri.ix \iai mxi-: wmiKS. r.Ki.oi'r. wis. 



Where 'Berlin Wood Working Tools Are Made. 



About ninety miles northwest of Chi- 

 oago, oil the Chicago ic Northwestern and 

 the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul, is the 

 cleanly, thriving and energetic manufac- 

 turing town of Beloit, Wis. It is a city in 

 which things arc done — in which things 

 are done well. One of the chief industries 

 is the Berlin Machine Works, which manu- 

 factures a great variety of woodworking- 

 tools. The monster plant of this institu- 

 tion covers an area of two large city 

 squares and from its several entrances 

 there pour forth each night more than a 

 thousand workmen. 



It is with pleasure that the Hardwood 

 Record takes this opportunity of dejjict- 

 ing with camera and pen some of the 

 salient features of this great institution. 

 The accompanying illustrations will convey 

 ail excellent idea of the model character 

 of the plant. While it has been erected 

 section by section, a general plan was out- 

 lined at its inception according to which 

 each succeeding structure was builded, 

 • nntributing its special functions to the 

 whole, harmonizing with it, and adding 

 increased conveniences and efficiency. The 

 great works stands as a nioiiiiiiieut tn the 



Text and PiioTOGRArMs nv Editor Hahdwood Hecokd. 



.ncuuicii, forcefulness and commercial sa- 

 gacity of its projector, Porter B. Yates, 

 the president and managerial genius of the 

 I'uterprise. 



The Berlin ilaehine Works had its in- 

 ception in a little machine shop at Berlin. 

 Wis., which was purchased in 1884 by Mr. 

 Yates. In this plant was built the first 

 power feed sanding machine over made. 

 It was the invention of two cabinet mak- 

 ers who were employed in a burial case 

 factory at that place. About 187G they 

 conceived the idea of making a machine 

 for finishing tlie curved sides of burial 

 cases. The owners of the coffin factory 

 bore the expense of having a tool made 

 for this purpose and a small local machine 

 shop executed the ideas of the mechanics 

 in the form of a single drum sanding ma- 

 chine. Naturallj', it was crude, but after 

 a fashion it did the work for which it was 

 designed. The inventors of the machine 

 secured a little financial assistance from a 

 local banker, took out a patent and built 

 two more machines. These tools were s61d 

 to other manufacturers and at once a de- 

 mand was created for tliom, especially 

 ;imong the furniture trade. In ISSO tlie 



Muichine was improved Ijy I lie addition of 

 .■>. second drum currying a different grade 

 of paper, and a few moi'c machines were 

 made and installed. By this time wood- 

 workers generally began to realize that no 

 plant was complete without a power Sand- 

 er. The business of manufacturing thesi- 

 tools was continued until 1884, when the 

 works were taken over by the financial 

 b.ackers and sold to Mr. Yates, who incor- 

 porated under the name of The Berlin Ma- 

 chine Works. This, then, was the incep- 

 tion of the present gre:it business at Be- 

 loit. ti;i which |ioiiif tiic [ilinil was moved 

 ill 18SS. 



The little one-story stone structure pic- 

 lured herewith was a wing of the building, 

 in which The Berlin Machine Works was 

 installed, and is now used as one of the 

 shipping rooms. The main shop was two 

 stories and had a lloor space of only 00xl4i> 

 feet. Less than two score of workmen 

 were originally employed. In 1891 Tin- 

 Berlin Machine Works increased its line 

 liy adding the m.'inufacture of cabinet 

 |ilajiers, glue jointers and other minor tools 

 Ksed largely by furniture makers, and as 

 time jiassed. const;int!y added to its line 



ERECTING ROOM, BERLIN MACHINE WORKS, REI.OIT, WIS. 



