S. C. Forsaith Machine Co. - History

Manufacturers Index - S. C. Forsaith Machine Co.

S. C. Forsaith Machine Co.
Manchester, NH, U.S.A.
Manufacturer Class: Wood Working Machinery, Metal Working Machinery & Steam and Gas Engines

History

Last Modified: Jun 6 2019 1:05PM by Mark Stansbury
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This firm was founded by Samuel Caldwell Forsaith (1827-1885) and his brother, Hiram (1820-1908), in 1860; they first operated as Samuel Caldwell Forsaith Machine Co. Their first product seems to have been a hay cutter; by 1869 they were making a range of woodworking machinery, including sawmills, planers, and shingle mills.

Hiram left the company about 1869 and began making machinist tools under his own name, which he did until at least 1877. The name changed to S. C. Forsaith & Co. in Feb. 1869. William E. Drew became a partner in Samuel's firm in 1879. In 1884 the company name changed to Samuel C. Forsaith Machine Co., though they seem to have done business as S. C. Forsaith Machine Co. Samuel died in 1885, but the company continued on for at least another fifteen years.

“S. C. Forsaith, commenced the manufacture of circular I saw mills, patent newspaper folding machines, shafting, wood working machinery, &c., in 1860; removing to his new brick building in the fall of 1868. S. C. Forsaith & Co., succeeding in Feb. 1869. The building is 114 x 40, three stories, with engine and boiler-house attached, 30 x 34, one story. They occupy 1 J floors, leasing the others to different parties. Employ 30 persons; use five tons of castings per month and do a business of $35,000 yearly. An 80 horse-power G. W. Davis & Co's, engine, supplies the power and for other shops in the immediate vicinity. This manufactory can be seen by persons from cars while entering and leaving Manchester." (Quote from 1869.)

Information Sources

The EAIA Directory of American Toolmakers provides a goodly amount of information on this maker, all of which is reproduced above.
Ca. 1869 catalog of 39 pages; 1891 catalog of 192 pages. An 1882 letterhead gives a company founding date of 1860, and gives the company name as, "S. C. Forsaith & Co."
"Memorial of the International [Centennial] Exhibition," by Samuel J. Burr, S. DeVere Burr, pg. 183. Lists metal working machines.
Ad in 28 February 1897 issue of "Northeastern Lumberman and Manufacturers Gazette".
Webb's New England Statistical Gazetteer, 1869, pg. 100-101