Handy Manufacturing Co. - History | VintageMachinery.org

Manufacturers Index - Handy Manufacturing Co.

Handy Manufacturing Co.
Chicago, IL, U.S.A.
Manufacturer Class: Wood Working Machinery

History

Last Modified: Feb 9 2020 8:12PM by Mark Stansbury
If you have information to add to this entry, please contact the Site Historian.

From May 1919 The Wood-Worker

Handy Manufacturing Co. was established in February 1909, probably by M. B. Joseph and H. H. Joseph. The company survived to at least 1977. In their first couple of years they manufactured a line of hand clamps, but they eventually specialized in veneer presses and clamp carriers in addition to clamps, all designed for furniture manufacturers.

Information Sources

The 1908-1910 Biennial Report of the Secretary of State of the State of Illinois lists newly established corporations, including Handy Mfg. Co. of Chicago, with a capital stock of $10,000 and registered on 1909-02-27.
November 1911 Wood Craft has a brief illustrated writeup of some "Handy" miter clamps from this firm.
October 1913 Wood Craft lists Handy Mfg. Co. of Chicago as a maker of clamps and hand screws.
The 1920 Certified List of Domestic and Foreign Corporations issued by the Secretary of State of Illinois, lists Handy Manufacturing Co. of 27 E. Madison St., Chicago, with a capital stock of $10,000.
A 1910 clamp patent was granted to Herman A. Knoke and assigned to M. B. Joseph and H. H. Joseph (the latter name perhaps should be "A. H. Joseph"). This clamp design was manufactured by Handy Manufacturing Co., so we surmised that the two Josephs were the owners of Handy.
A 1923 Talking Machinery World Trade Directory lists "HANDY MANUFACTURING CO. ... Officers: H. H. Joseph, president; O. Bergstrom, vice- president; M. B. Joseph, secretary and treasurer.- Factory located in Chicago, Ill. Manufactures clamping machines 'for clamping and squaring sides of cabinets; case ..."
From an ad in the May, 1925 issue of "The Wood-Worker".
A correspondent reports a machine with a 1964 date on the wiring schematics. In addition, the plate bears a plate that says, "Handy Manufacturing Co., 1908".
Patents provided the range of operating dates and also provide information on what products they made.
A review of Chicago Tribune employment ads for the company's later years showed frequent advertising unil late Aug. 1977.