Plumb (tools)

1925 advertisement for Plumb-brand hammers

In 1869, Fayette R. Plumb entered a partnership with Jonathan Yerkes, an established hammer manufacturer operating in the Frankford neighborhood of Philadelphia. Shortly thereafter, a new facility was built in the Bridesburg neighborhood of that city, operating as Yerkes & Plumb. The firm was one of the first in the United States to use cast steel to manufacture tools.[2] Yerkes retired in April 1886, and Plumb bought out Yerkes' interest in the company the following year. By 1888, the company was operating solely under the Plumb name.[3]

In 1926, Plumb objected to an attempt by the similarly named Plomb Tool Company to register its name as a trademark. The companies negotiated an agreement, but in 1946, Plumb sued for trademark infringement because Plomb had violated the terms of this agreement.[1] The Plomb company began selling tools under the Proto name instead.[4]

In 1971, the Plumb Company was acquired by the Ames Company. In 1981, Plumb was sold to Cooper Industries;[3] in 2010, the Cooper Hand Tools division was spun off into Apex Tool Group.[5]

• References to Plumb tools at the Apex web site
• Workshop of the World: "Plumb"—Article on the company's production for the Allied Forces in World War I.