Nelson Barlow was an innovator in planing machines during the time of the Woodworth planer cartel. Barlow was in business about 1847 through 1857, and perhaps before and after that time.

In 1851 Barlow became one of four defendants in a lawsuit brought by the holders of the Woodworth patents (the other defendants were Hervey Law, George W. Beardslee, and Enos G. Allen). Barlow's machine was similar to the fixed-knife machines of Beardslee and Allen, except that Barlow's knives oscillated laterally to provide a shearing action.

It appears that Barlow successfully defended his patent, because an 1853 Scientific American contains an ad for Barlow's "unsurpassed planing tonguing and grooving machines." The ad is from A. K. Wellington of New York City, who may have owned the rights for that territory. We have seen other mentions of Barlow's machines, as late as 1857. Barlow likely did not see much success with his planer after 1856, which is when the Woodworth cartel's rotary-planer patent monopoly ended.

Information Sources

• Article in 1850 Scientific American about a new type of power-transmission clutch invented by Barlow, and for which he was seeking a patent.
• An 1851 Scientific American article includes an illustration of Barlow's newly patented planer-matcher, and notes that Barlow had just relocated from St. Louis to New York.
• An 1855 Scientific American mentions that Barlow's newly patented rotary planing machine had won a medal at the Paris Exhibition in France. The machine itself was made by the Newark, N.J., Machine Co.
• An 1857 Scientific American column contained a passing mention of a sawing and planing mill from Nelson Barlow in Newark, NJ.