The Howe Safety Appliance Co. was established about 1914 by A. F. "Frank" Howe. Howe manufactured a full lineup of safety guards, including guards for for jointer, tablesaw, wood shapers, and grinders.

The company was publicly traded and also issued bonds. They were originally capitalized at $250,000 which seems like a fairly generous amount given the company's probable sales and future prospects. In 1922, with the company in financial difficulty, their capitalization was increased to a limit of $750,000, which seems suspiciously high. In any event the company and some of its directors—including A. F. Howe—became insolvent. The company was formally dissolved in January 1923, having failed to pay its taxes for two years.

Information Sources

• Article on the jointer guard in the December 1913 Safety Engineering. The manufacturer is not mentioned and it seems likely that Frank Howe was preparing to launch his company but had not yet registered a name.
• Ad and article on the tablesaw guard in the December 1917 Safety Engineering.

  HOWE IMPROVED SAW GUARD

  With the unusual conditions caused by the war the conservation and protection of our industrial forces is of paramount importance to every employer.

  The Howe Safety Appliance Co. Granite City, Ill., is placing on the market a Safety Saw Guard applicable for rip or buzz saws. This guard is substantially constructed of aluminum with arms of steel and stands of cast iron. It is so constructed as to afford the workman complete protection from the saw hazard. This company also specializes in the manufacture of jointer and planer guards, swing or cut-off saw guards and carries as well a general line of safety appliances for hazardous machinery.

  The Howe Company has prepared an illustrated booklet which describes in detail the automatic action and principle of its products which will be forwarded on request.

• Text ad in 1920-08-02 National Safety News: "Howe Safety Appliance Co. / Manufacturers and Designers of Automatic Safety Appliances / Granite City, Illinois, U. S. A."
• October 1920 , in an article on the Milwaukee Safety Exhibit.

  The Howe Safety Appliance Company of Granite City had one of the most notable displays, showing various types of aluminum saw guards, also a motor-driven emery stand with the motor in the base. There was a Morse silent chain drive, equipped with a patented bearing, the cap of which sits on two wedges, so that as the bearing shows wear it is possible to back the wedges up and draw the cap down to fit, thus maintaining perfect alignment of the shaft at all times, 18" wheels being carried at each end of a 4’ shaft. This type of machine cuts out 75% of emery wheel dressing and saves about 30% of wheels. The same type of machine was also shown belt driven, the wire guards enclosing the belt being fabricated by spot welding instead of bolts and nuts. A 36” saw guard was also shown.

• 1922 Certified List of Domestic and Foreign Corporations For the Year 1922 page 553 lists "Howe Safety Appliance Company, 16th & D Sts., Granite City. / [President] A. F. Howe, 16th D St., Granite City. / [Secretary] R. D. Luster, 2335 C St., Granite City. / [Authorized Capital Stock] $250,000."
• 1922-07-20 Oil News page 56.

  The Howe Safety Appliance Company, of Granite City, Illinois, has issued a 28-page illustrated catalog of the Howe line of automatic safety applience. The company manufactures saw, jointer, shaper, emery wheel, belt and gear, and finger guards, as well as special guards for any type of machine. A special advisory service is maintained by the company in which plant surveys are made for recommendations and advice concerning the use of safety appliances.

• 1922-10-26 Iron Trade Review page 1153.

  Granite City, Ill.—The Howe Safety Appliance Co. has increased its capital stock from $250,000 to $750,000.

• 1924-12-15 , page 86, in Classified Ads section.

  For Sale or Lease:—Two cupola furnace, five ton capacity. Full machine shop equipment, including lathes, drill presses, etc. Private switch. Main building 118' x 139' 6"; several small outbuildings; entire site 290' x 265'. Howe Safety Appliance Company, Trustrees for Bond Holders, c/o Morriss Realty Company, Granite City, Ill.

• 1926 Reports of Cases Determined by the Appellate Courts of Illinois, Vol CCXXXIX pages 492-495, in the case of Fred Lueders et. al., Appellees, v. George Darling, Appellant. "The Howe Safety Appliance Company became financially involved and to procure funds to enable it to continue in business ten of its eleven directors assumed the responsibility of sureties on notes aggregating $39,000...." Appellant George Darling was one of the ten directors who pledge surety; he was sued by the other directors to force him to pay his share. He lost in the lower court, and appealed. Company directors A. F. Howe, J. T. Daniel and Ralph Kalish all pledged surety but became insolvent. They wanted the other seven directors to each cover 1/7 of the financial obligation related to the surety. The lower court ruled that Kalish was not insolvent but he and the other seven directors must each pay 1/8 of the money. The appeal court sustained the lower court's ruling.
• 1926 Marvy Scudder Manual of Extinct or Obsolete Companies, Volume I, page 573, lists "Howe Safety Appliance Co. Delaware charter repealed January 27, 1923. Taxes unpaid for two years.".
• 1931 issue of Steel, page 90.

  Granite City.—G. O. Eckstedt and associates, East St. Louis, Ill., have leased the building formerly occupied by the Howe Safety Appliance Co. and will start operations for the manufacture of gray iron castings. Brass castings may be produced also.

• We learned of the Howe patent jointer guard in an owwm.org forum post.