Walker-Turner
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Walker-Turner Co. was founded around the end of the 1920s by Ernest T. Walker and William Brewer Turner, who built machines for home and light industrial use. It was acquired by Rockwell Manufacturing Co. in 1956 and Walker-Turner branded machines continued to be sold into the 1960s.


History

Walker-Turner was founded by Ernest T. Walker and William Brewer Turner sometime around 1927 and 1929. The company was first located in
Jersey City, New Jersey Jersey City is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, second-most populous
until 1931 when they relocated to
Plainfield, New Jersey Plainfield is a City (New Jersey), city in Union County, New Jersey, Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Nicknamed "The Queen City",
. The first machines Walker-Turner made were small, inexpensive, light-weight machines designed for home workshops of the time. * On Feb 17, 1931 the
Plainfield, New Jersey Plainfield is a City (New Jersey), city in Union County, New Jersey, Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Nicknamed "The Queen City",
Chamber of Commerce announced that Walker-Turner had purchased β€œthe Rushmore Plant at South Ave. and Berckman St.” at 639 South Avenue which had formerly been occupied by the Bosch Magneto Company. * In 1934 Walker-Turner introduced the 500, 700, and 900 series of their machine lines known as "The Driver Line". The 500 line included the smallest and lightest of these new machines while the 700 and 900 series consisted of beefier and more industrial styled machines. * In 1936 the first 1100 series machines were introduced, the TA1150
table saw A table saw (also known as a sawbench or bench saw in England) is a woodworking tool, consisting of a circular saw blade, mounted on an mandrel, arbor, that is driven by an electric motor (directly, by belt, by cable, or by gears). The drive ...
and BN1125
band saw A bandsaw (also written band saw) is a power saw with a long, sharp blade consisting of a continuous band of toothed metal stretched between two or more wheels to cut material. They are used principally in woodworking, metalworking, and lumb ...
. Also this same year, they expanded with the purchase of the Rivoli Silk Hosiery plant at 768 North Avenue which added 33,000 sq. feet and would become their shipping department. * In 1938 Walker-Turner began its direct geared motor drive machines. They were the MJ744 and MJ917 jig saws, TA990 and TA1162
table saw A table saw (also known as a sawbench or bench saw in England) is a woodworking tool, consisting of a circular saw blade, mounted on an mandrel, arbor, that is driven by an electric motor (directly, by belt, by cable, or by gears). The drive ...
s, and the S980
shaper In machining, a shaper is a type of machine tool that uses linear relative motion between the workpiece and a single-point cutting tool to machine a linear toolpath. Its cut is analogous to that of a lathe, except that it is (archetypally) line ...
. * In 1939 Walker-Turner started adding an
Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French (), is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design that first Art Deco in Paris, appeared in Paris in the 1910s just before World War I and flourished in the United States and Europe during the 1920 ...
redesign to many of the 700, 900, and 1100 series machines. This same year
drill press A drill press is a Drill, drilling machine suitable for quick and easy drilling of straight holes, Countersink, countersinking or Counterbore, counterboring that are perpendicular to both directions of a table surface. In comparison, it is more di ...
es came to the fore as they began to offer custom multi-headed setups for production work. This year also marked the beginning of the company adding serial numbers to many of their models. There is no reliably structured format to these number, other than the final two digits often designate the year that the model began production. * Starting in 1940, Walker-Turner discarded much of the 1939
Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French (), is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design that first Art Deco in Paris, appeared in Paris in the 1910s just before World War I and flourished in the United States and Europe during the 1920 ...
redesigns it had done to the 700, 900, and 1100 series of its machines. Only the 900 and 1100 series band saws retain the 1939
Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French (), is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design that first Art Deco in Paris, appeared in Paris in the 1910s just before World War I and flourished in the United States and Europe during the 1920 ...
design. This year they introduced their first radial arm saw, the RA1100. Also this year Walker-Turner organized behind the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America (a C.I.O. union), lack of progress in contract negotiations led to a five-week long strike. The strike, most notably delayed a shipment of some 300
drill press A drill press is a Drill, drilling machine suitable for quick and easy drilling of straight holes, Countersink, countersinking or Counterbore, counterboring that are perpendicular to both directions of a table surface. In comparison, it is more di ...
es to Great Britain for use in making shells for the war effort. Ernest Walker, who was vice president at the time described the shipment as "So important to Britain's armament they had been given priority over all other shipments out of
New York harbor New York Harbor is a bay that covers all of the Upper Bay. It is at the mouth of the Hudson River near the East River tidal estuary on the East Coast of the United States. New York Harbor is generally synonymous with Upper New York Bay, ...
.” * In 1942, Walker-Turner released its first Radial Arm Drill Press, the RD-1170. Through 1942-1945, during the years of the United States' involvement in
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, much of Walker-Turner's production capacity was focused on the war effort. Catalogs and other documentation from this period may be scarce. Due to paper shortages, some model years may not have had catalogs printed at all and other years likely saw limited print runs. During this time frame, Walker-Turner's first 20"
drill press A drill press is a Drill, drilling machine suitable for quick and easy drilling of straight holes, Countersink, countersinking or Counterbore, counterboring that are perpendicular to both directions of a table surface. In comparison, it is more di ...
, the D-1100 is introduced. * In 1948, Walker-Turner was sold to
Milwaukee Milwaukee is the List of cities in Wisconsin, most populous city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located on the western shore of Lake Michigan, it is the List of United States cities by population, 31st-most populous city in the United States ...
machine tool maker
Kearney and Trecker Kearney and Trecker founded in 1898 by Edward J. Kearney and Theodore Trecker was a machine manufacturer based in West Allis, Wisconsin. It became one of the largest machine tool suppliers in the world. History The company was founded in 1898 a ...
and the company becomes "Walker-Turner Division of Kearney & Trecker". Production continued still at the existing facility at Plainfield. Under a new name, all new machines are re-badged from saying "Walker-Turner company Inc." to "Walker-Turner Division of Kearney & Trecker Corporation". * Starting in April 1950 new serial numbers are brought into use. These new serials are formatted YYMSQD where YY is the year of manufacture, M is the type of machine, S is the specific model of machine, Q is the quarter of the year of manufacture, and D notes deviation from the standard model. * In 1952 a new plant is constructed at 900 South Avenue in Plainfield. * In 1956 Kearney & Trecker sells Walker-Turner to Rockwell Manufacturing Co. * In 1957 Rockwell ceases production in Plainfield and closes all former Walker-Turner facilities. Production of Walker-Turner badged machines moves to
Bellefontaine, Ohio Bellefontaine ( ) is a city in Logan County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Located 48 miles (77 km) northwest of Columbus, the population was 14,115 at the 2020 census. It is the principal city of the Bellefontaine micropolit ...
and
Tupelo, Mississippi Tupelo ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Lee County, Mississippi, United States. Founded in 1860, the population was 37,923 at the United States Census, 2020, 2020 census. It is the List of municipalities in Mississippi, 7th-most populous ...
.


References

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External links


Vintage Machinery Walker-Turner indexVintage Machinery Walker-Turner General TimelineVintage Machinery Walker-Turner Photo Index
Tool manufacturing companies of the United States Companies based in Union County, New Jersey