Sometime before 1890 Clayton F. Root and George A. Root established the Root Brothers Co. in Medina, OH, as a manufacture and seller of hardware and agricultural equipment. In 1895 they moved to Plymouth, Ohio, to be, closer to their foundry supplier. George A. Root opted not to make the move, selling his share to Charles E. Heath, who had married Clayton Root’s daughter. In 1908 the Root Brothers Co. sold their manufacturing operations to the newly formed Heath Foundry & Manufacturing Co. of Plymouth; the Root Brothers continued with their hardware wholesaling business. By 1909 the Heath company was manufacturing a lawn mower sharpening machine. In mid-1913, the Heath Foundry & Mfg. Co. changed their name to the Root-Heath Mfg. Co. In 1919, they merged with J. D. Fate Co. (makers of brick and tile machinery) to form the Fate-Root-Heath Co.

The company's first lawn mower sharpener was the Ideal, available with hand or electric power in 1917. This was followed by the Peerless. The company also made the Peerless saw chain sharpener, c. 1959.

Information Sources

• 1904-02-25 The Iron Age. "The foundry of the Root Brothers Company, Plymouth, Ohio, was recently destroyed by fire. The loss is placed at $10,000."
• 1904-03-03 The Iron Age. "The Root Brothers Company, Plymouth, Ohio, whose foundry was recently destroyed by fire, will replace it with a large building, which will be equipped with the latest improved machinery. In the meantime they have made arrangements to rent a foundry at Sandusky, Ohio, and expect to be in a position to fill all orders within a few days. What new machine that will be required has been arranged for."
• 1904-09-15 The Iron Age has a small ad from The Root Brothers Company of Plymouth, Ohio, for their "Plymouth Rock" hand-operated riveting machine. The issue two weeks later had ad ad for Root Brothers Company's "Plymouth Rock" hand-cranked corn sheller.
• 1908-09-03 The Iron Age. "The Root Brothers Company, Plymouth, Ohio, has sold the manufacturing end of its business to the Heath Foundry & Mfg. Company, Inc., which will continue the manufacture of the Root specialties. The Root Brothers Company will confine itself in the future to the wholesale Hardware business."
• 1909-03-25 The Iron Age, in an article on the "Ideal 1909 Lawn Mower Grinder". "The Heath Foundry Mfg. Company, successor to the Root Brothers Company, Plymouth, Ohio..."
• 1910-01-27 The Iron Age: "The Heath Foundry Company, Plymouth, Ohio, will install a direct current generator." 1910-02-17 The Iron Age: "The Heath Foundry & Mfg. Company, Plymouth, Ohio, whose requirements were recently mentioned, have purchased a direct current generator of 50 hp."
• November 1911 The Foundry has a classified ad from Heath Foundry & Mfg. Co., Plymouth, O., soliciting applications for foundry foreman.
• 1912 Penton's Foundry List: A Directory of the Gray & Malleable Iron Foundries of the United States and Canada lists, under Plymouth, Ohio, "Fate Co., J. D. GI-B-MS-PS" and "Heath Foundry & Mfg. Co. GI-MS". GI is gray iron; B is brass or bronze; MS is machine shop; PS is pattern shop.
• 1913 Yearbook of the American Foundrymen's Association lists Heath Foundry and Manufacturing Company, Plymouth, O., as a member since 1908.
• August 1913 Steam. "The Heath Foundry & Mfg. Company, Plymouth, O., has changed its name to the Root-Heath Company."
• 1937 Brick and Clay Record, volumes 90-91, page 352, in the Obituaries section.

  Charles E. Heath, 65, vice-president and general manager of the Fate-Root-Heath Co., Plymouth, Ohio, died at his home in Plymouth May 19, following an illness of several months.

  Mr. Heath joined the Root Brothers Co. in Medina, Ohio, in 1890, and later married Mabel E. Root. Five years later the firm moved to Plymouth, and became known as the Root-Heath Co. A few years later the company merged with the J. D. Fate Co., to form the present Fate-Root-Heath Co. Much of the success of the company is attributed to the efforts and foresightedness of Mr. Heath, who has been vice-president and general manager for the past 40 years.

• More history and machine information can be found at the Farm Collector web site.
• The Wikipedia page on Plymouth Locomotive Works provides more history on this firm.