The Oneida Steam Engine & Foundry Co. was incorporated in 1872. In 1887 the firm was re-incorporated as the Westcott Chuck Co. In about 1957 it became the Oneida Machine Tool Co., and then in September 1961 it merged with Maul Brothers of Millville, NJ, manufacturers of glass-making machinery. At that point the Oneida Machine Tool Co. had 35 employees. The chuck manufacturing portion of the business was then sold to the Powers Co. of Elmira, NY, which manufactured the chucks for about five years before quietly fading from sight.

Information Sources

• 1888 book, The Empire State, Its Industries and its Wealth, American Publishing and Engraving Co., p. 198.

  Westcott Chuck Company, Manufacturers of Patent Lathe Chucks, etc., D. G. Dorrance, President, and C. E. Stevens, Secretary. Walnut Street.

  This business was established in 1872 by the Oneida Steam Engine and Foundry Company, which was succeeded in 1887 by the Westcott Chuck Company, with a paid up capital of $45,000. The works of the company are fully supplied with the latest improved machinery, special tools and appliances for the systematic conduct of this steadily growing industry. In the workshop, fifty skilled mechanics are employed, and the machinery is driven by a fifty horse-power steam engine. The Westcott Chuck Company manufacture extensively Westcott's Lathe and Drill Chucks, including Little Giant Drill, Oneida Drill, Scroll Combination Lathe, Geared Combination Lathe, Plain Universal Lathe, Independent Lathe and Cutting-off Chucks. The jaws of all lathe chucks are reversible, and the chucks possess the following points of superiority, viz. : strongest grip, greatest capacity, extreme durability, perfect adjustment, cheapness and unsurpassed accuracy. In fact, these lathe chucks are absolutely unexcelled and have no superior in the American or European markets, while they are guaranteed to give entire satisfaction to patrons. The Westcott Chuck Company promptly and carefully fills orders at the possible prices, and its trade extends not only throughout the United States and Canada, but also to all parts of the world where machinery is used. The following gentlemen, who are widely and known in trade circles for their business capacity, energy and integrity, are the officers: D. G. Dorrance, president; C. E. Stevens, secretary; T. F. Hand, Jr., treasurer; S. H. Goodwin, superintendent; J. H. Westcott, foreman.

• Patents provide quite a bit of information that supplements the 1888 history given above.
• A correspondent reports a Westcott chuck with a "21st Feb. 1873" patent date. That is not a valid patent date (patents are always issued on Tuesdays and that date was a Friday). The correct date is presumably 25th Feb. 1873, which corresponds to the earliest known Westcott chuck patent.
• Articles in 1961 issues of the Syracuse Post-Standard.
• 1962-08-13 New Haven Register. "Officials of Oneida Machine Tool Corp., 320 E. Walnut St., announced on Aug. 9 that all operations are being moved to Winchester, Ind., mainly because of a shortage of skilled machinists in this area. Current employees are being offered positions at the new location."
• 1966-07-21 Hardware Age lists "Powers Co. 1140 Sullivan St Elmira, NY, 14901" under "CHUCKS, Lever Scroll".
• 1968 Mechanical Engineers Catalog and Product Directory lists "Powers Co., The, 950 S. Main St., Elmira, N. Y. 14904" under lathe chucks.