Welland Vale Manufacturing Company Limited – 1869 – 1966

Worker Duckey Switzer in the foreground, unknown worker in background, manufacturing king axe-heads at the Welland Vale Manufacturing Company, c. 1920’s.
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In 1869, Tuttle, Date and Rodden opened the Welland Vale works of their company on 12 Mile Creek. The company produced agricultural and edged tools, especially axes. The company was taken over in 1874 by William Chaplin who changed the name to Welland Vale Manufacturing Company. Welland Vale Manufacturing Company produced hand tools, edge tools, scythes, forks and axes. The “Rodden Fork” was produced by this company.

In 1892, Chaplin began expansion by building a new factory, The Canada Axe and Harvest Tool MFG. Co., in Montreal, and in 1895, he purchased the Bedford Mfg. Co., in Bedford, Quebec.
From about 1895, Welland Vale also produced bicycles under the trade names “Perfect”, “Garden City”, and “Dominion.”

The first of three disastrous fires occurred in 1877.

From 1896-1900, much of production was devoted to bicycles. In 1899, Welland Vale joined with three other Canadian bicycle manufacturers to create Canada Cycle and Motor Company, CCM. However, Welland Vale itself stopped manufacturing bicycles in 1900, after the second devastating fire destroyed the works. They rebuilt and continued to make edged tools.

Photo of Welland Vale employees including Edgar Fielder (marked with an X – 12th from the right standing) who immigrated to Canada from England in 1922.
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In 1930 Welland Vale was bought by American Fork and Hoe Corporation, and became known as Welland Vale – True Temper. Products included the Black Prince axes, Forest King, Sunset, Royal Oak, Premier Best Western, Stag Head, Caribou, Lion, Signal and about 200 other labels. It also produced a new line to include the name Kelly, for the Kelly Axe and Tool Co.
Other works added to the company included The Canadian Shovel and Tool Co. Ltd., the Maple Leaf Harvest Tool Co. Ltd., the Canada Axe and Harvest Tool Co. Ltd., and the Bedford Mfg. Co. Ltd., which were all subsidiaries to the newly incorporated Welland Vale Manufacturing Co. Ltd. The Turnerday Works in Strathroy was also taken over to supply handles.

Welland Vale Manufacturing played a surprise role in World War II on May 10th, 1941 when Nazi chief Rudolf Hess had parachuted in Scotland to flee Germany. He was captured by a local farmer, who used a hay fork as a wepaon. The hay fork had been made by Welland Vale.

In 1936 and 1946 the plant suffered major fires, but was rebuilt once again. In 1950 the trade name Welland Vale was replaced by True Temper, and on June 1, 1965 the name officially changed to True Temper Canada Limited. It was closed in 1966 by the American parent company because of a strike. Ninety-four people lost their jobs, and the site was sold to the Lincoln County Board of Education.
Any True Temper axes after this time were made at the Charleston, West Virginia plants, and labelled True Temper Kelly.

This men’s CCM bicycle purchased by donor from a St. Catharines man, George X. Walker, who had bought the bike before he went into the Air Force. This bicycle is hanging on display in the Museum’s Isabella Frampton Hawken Gallery
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My Story: James Dew Chaplin  

J.D. Chaplin, owner of Welland Vale Manufacturing Company – detail of a composite image from his time as Federal Member of Parliament for St. Catharines.

James Dew Chaplin was born in Toronto, Canada West, on March 20, 1863. He attended public schools as a youth and went to high school at the St. Catharines Collegiate Institute.  He was tall and athletic and was a very proficient lacrosse player.  

Chaplin was a manufacturer in St. Catharines and, over the course of his business career, he was involved in a number of manufacturing concerns, including serving as the President of the Chaplin Wheel Company, Canada Axe and Harvest Tool Company, Welland Vale Manufacturing Company, and others.  

During the First World War his factories manufactured munitions in support of the war effort. 

James Dew Chaplin also served 4 years on St. Catharines City Council. He ran for federal office under Prime Minister Borden’s Unionist banner in 1917 and in later elections returned as Conservative Member of Parliament for Lincoln County until 1935. 

Mr. Chaplin, who considered a no-nonsense individual, was also known to be an early riser when he would take the time to feed his hens and regularly spend part of each Sunday afternoon with them.  He was also an avid gardener with a large garden and conservatory located at his home where he specialized in growing red geraniums. 

Paxton and Bray Brickworks

A wagon delivering bricks is shown at the corner of Clayburn Avenue and Queenston Street. This was Walter Bray’s first home.
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The brickyard on this location began as Parnall’s Brickyard in 1814, when William Parnall obtained title to a Grantham Township lot on the North side of Queeston Road (now Street) near Hartzel Road. He established a brickworks and built a brick home on that location. After William’s death, his wife Elizabeth took over operation of the brickworks along with William Harrison. In 1835, bricks could be purchased for $4 per 1000 bricks.

Fred Paxton and Walter Bray took over the operation of the brickyard in the early 1900’s. By 1950, the yard was known as Paxton’s Brick and Tile.

In 1907 the brickyard was described in The St. Catharines Standard as follows:

“This yard covers about 18 acres, rich in clay admirably suited for the manufacture of common stock building brick, of which a specialty is made. The yard is fitted with modern machinery for preparing the clay for use and the kilns are fitted with every improved facility. Eighteen experienced workmen are employed. From this yard is supplied the brick is supplied the brick used by leading builders and contractors throughout the Niagara Peninsula. the firm also does a large business in sand and gravel, as well as in general teaming.”

Paxton and Bray Brickyard pre-1929. this horse-drawn piece of equipment was used in scraping the clay from the pits. the drum on the back was open at the top and would tip around and dump the clay into cars which were cabled up a track to conical rollers where limestone would be removed. The clay was then taken to the pug mill and then the brick press. In the background are dryer racks where the bricks were placed to dry.
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This photo shows the drying racks to the left and kiln in the background. Kneeling is “Old Harry” and Fred Paxton is standing. A man pushing 12-foot long wheelbarrows would bring the green brick from the press. Each drier had 10 racks which could be doubled up holding 20 pallets each. A top on the rack kept the green bricks dry. The bricks were left flat until dry then turned on their side in order to help dry the “frog” – the indentation on the top of the brick. Once dry, large wheeled wheelbarrows took the bricks to the kiln where they were “set to burn.”
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The bricks were brought to the kiln on large wheebarrows. These held 120 bricks at 6 pounds each. These men are shown “setting the skintle work” in the kiln. Skintling meant setting one row of bricks diagonally side to side and then the next row the opposite diagonal direction and one on top of the other. This pattern allowed a draft to be formed in the kiln. The brickyard used an “up-draft kiln”, meaning it was open at the top. Each kiln held 250,000 to 300,000 bricks and would take 2 weeks running night and day to bake.
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Two men shown inside the kiln loading brick onto a wagon for shipment. The skintle work can be clearly seen in the background.
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A wagon is shown leaving the kiln with a full load. According to Mr. Saxton, Newman Brothers were probably their biggest customers, however the brickyard served many local contractors and suppliers in the area.
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