Vaughan & Bushnell Manufacturing
{{Short description|American company}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=September 2024}}
{{Infobox company
| name = Vaughan & Bushnell Manufacturing
| logo = Vaughan & Bushnell Manufacturing logo.svg
| logo_size =
| type = Subsidiary
| foundation = 1869 in Peoria, Illinois
| founder = Alexander Vaughan
| owner = Marshalltown Company
| location = Hebron, Illinois
| key_people =
| num_employees = 130
| industry = Manufacturing
| revenue =
| products = Striking tools
| homepage = [http://vaughanmfg.com/ vaughanmfg.com]
}}
Vaughan & Bushnell Manufacturing, also known as Vaughan Manufacturing and branded as simply Vaughan, is an American manufacturing company that specializes in the production of hammers, axes, prybars, and hand saws. The company produces more than 250 different kinds of hammers.{{cite web|publisher=Imex Exchange|title=Vaughan & Bushnell Manufacturing|url=http://www.imex.com/vaughan.html|access-date=2010-03-29}}
History
Vaughan was founded in 1869 in Chicago, Illinois by Alexander Vaughan, an 18-year-old blacksmith, as a plumbing business. Vaughan soon set up a blacksmith shop behind a hardware store in Chicago owned by Sidney Bushnell. On June 15, 1869, Vaughan was granted a patent for an improved post auger{{cite patent|country=US|number=91387|pubdate=1869-06-15|title=Improved post-auger|inventor1-last=Vaughan|inventor1-first=A.}} and began producing custom tools.
In 1871, much of the company was destroyed in the Great Chicago Fire, and Bushnell invested additional funds for the company, which was incorporated in 1882 as the Vaughan and Bushnell Manufacturing Company. The company began shifting its focus to hammers, hatchets, axes, and wrecking bars.{{cite web|last1=Stiers|first1=Joanie|title=
Vaughan & Bushnell Manufacturing Co. Nails It|url=https://ilfbpartners.com/family/vaughan-bushnell-manufacturing-co-nails/|date=2017-02-06|website=Illinois Farm Bureau Partners|access-date=2024-09-29}}
In 1922, the Vaughan family bought out the Bushnell family's interests in the company, and in 1940 opened a factory in the nearby (and unrelated) city of Bushnell. In 1963, company's headquarters were relocated to Hebron, Illinois. In 1993, the company became the first striking tool manufacturer to receive ISO 9002 certification.{{cite web|author=Vaughan & Bushnell Manufacturing|title=History of Vaughan|url=http://hammernet.com/vaughan/pages/company/history-of-vaughan.php|access-date=2010-03-29}}
The company announced plans to close in 2024 due to financial difficulties, but was acquired in May of that year by Marshalltown Hammer, a division of the Marshalltown Company.{{cite news|author=KHQA Staff|title=Bushnell's Vaughan and Bushnell factory to close after 150 years impacting 130 jobs|date=2024-04-11|website=KHQA-TV|url=https://khqa.com/news/local/bushnells-vaughan-and-bushnell-factory-to-close-after-150-years-impacting-130-jobs|access-date=2024-09-29}}{{cite news|last1=Donaldson|first1=Hayden|title=Landmark factory in Bushnell staying open after nearly closing last month|date=2024-05-23|website=KHQA-TV|url=https://khqa.com/news/local/landmark-factory-in-bushnell-staying-open-after-nearly-closing-last-month|access-date=2024-09-29}}
Gallery
Image:Vaughan California Framer.jpg|A Vaughan "California Framer" framing hammer.
References
{{Reflist}}
{{Tool manufacturers}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vaughan and Bushnell Manufacturing}}
Category:Striking tool manufacturers
Category:Manufacturing companies based in Illinois
Category:Companies established in 1869
Category:Companies based in McHenry County, Illinois
Category:1869 establishments in Illinois
Category:Tool manufacturing companies of the United States
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