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32-559: McGraw-Edison was an American manufacturer of electrical equipment. It was created in 1957 through a merger of McGraw Electric and Thomas A. Edison, Inc. , and was in turn acquired by Cooper Industries in 1985. Today, the McGraw-Edison brand is used on industrial, commercial, and institutional lighting products, and has been owned by the Pennsylvania Transformer Technologies Inc. since 1996. McGraw Electric

64-557: A company formed from a merger of Studebaker and the Worthington Corporation . The automaker Studebaker had been founded in 1852 as a blacksmithing and wagon-building company by Clement Studebaker and his brother Henry. Meanwhile, Worthington had been founded by Henry Rossiter Worthington , the inventor of the direct-acting steam pump. The two companies had merged with Wagner Electric in 1967 to form Studebaker-Worthington. The purchase of this agglomerated firm more than doubled

96-466: A division of McGraw Electric, keeping Al Bersted as president of the division. In 1930 the division was sold back to Al Bersted. The Waters-Genter Company of Minneapolis manufactured a pop-up toaster for restaurants called the Toastmaster. In 1926 McGraw used his private capital to buy an interest in the company. He provided the capital needed to enter the household market in 1927, and that year acquired

128-411: A division of McGraw Electric. The founder, Al Bersted, continued as president of the division. In 1930 the division was sold back to Al Bersted. The Waters-Genter Company of Minneapolis had been formed in 1912, and manufactured a pop-up toaster for restaurants called the Toastmaster. In 1926 McGraw used his private capital to buy an interest in the company from Glen Waters and Harold Genter. He provided

160-467: A merger with Thomas A. Edison, Incorporated. The combined McGraw-Edison Company was launched in January 1957. McGraw was primarily concerned with cash flow and capital expenditure, which was controlled from head office, and otherwise gave his division heads considerable latitude. He said in 1955, "Each division president is responsible. His ingenuity, judgement, and ability are expected to produce profits. He

192-841: A new plant in Elgin, Illinois , which housed Toastmaster and other product lines. The facility, designed by the architects Olsen and Urbain, cost $ 250,000 to build. It covered 123,000 square feet (11,400 m ) on 25 acres of land beside the Fox River to the south of Elgin. During World War II (1939–45) the plant was used to make anti-aircraft shells and fuses. In 1948 McGraw Electric purchased Bersted Manufacturing Company and Manning, Bowman & Co. McGraw made Al Bersted president. Eventually Bersted became CEO of McGraw Electric. The purchase include Bersted subsidiaries Swartzbaugh Manufacturing Company ("Everhot" appliances) and United Electrical Manufacturing Company ("Eskimo" fans). Other acquisitions over

224-514: A protected wetland. The Elgin plant converted more than 1,000 loaves of bread into toast each day as part of its toastmaster testing process. The toast was delivered to the wetlands to feed the water fowl. The Max McGraw Wildlife Foundation managed crop fields in northcentral Illinois, and allowed dove shooting on a few days each year. In 1959 Max McGraw, the McGraw Foundation and the estate of Marion Randall Parsons funded publication of This Is

256-630: A son. In 1907 McGraw founded the Interstate Electric Manufacturing Company, which manufactured magnetos, telephones and power switchboards. In 1910 he merged the supply and manufacturing companies into the Interstate Supply and Manufacturing Company. In 1912 he bought the Lehmer Company, a mill supply and electrical equipment manufacturer which he had used as a model for his earlier enterprises. He merged this company and

288-499: A youth he became fascinated with electricity. While at high school he enrolled in a correspondence course in electrical engineering and organized an amateur telegraph circuit linking the homes of fourteen of his friends. He delivered newspapers and did odd jobs to save money. In the summer of 1900, aged 17, McGraw entered business as an electrician. He called his enterprise the McGraw Electric Company. Most of his early work

320-583: Is judged according to his showing. He hires and fires, determines salaries and wage rates within a general acceptable pattern, and he has freedom within reasonable limits to establish his division's organizational pattern." In 1959 McGraw named Al Bersted president of the McGraw-Edison Company, retaining the position of chairman of the executive committee. In 1938 McGraw bought 2,000 acres (810 ha) of land near his new plant in Elgin, Illinois and made it

352-488: The Wagner Manufacturing Company of Sidney, Ohio . In 1959, Al Bersted became president of McGraw-Edison with responsibility for overseeing day-to-day operations. Max McGraw continued as chairman of the executive committee. McGraw-Edison took over the power-tool businesses of General Electric in 1969 and of G.W. Murphy Industries in 1972. In September 1979, McGraw-Edison purchased Studebaker-Worthington ,

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384-808: The American Earth by the Sierra Club , which appeared in 1960. The beautifully prepared book had photographs of natural scenes in the US by Ansel Adams and text by Nancy Newhall . Max McGraw died suddenly on 26 October 1964 in Utah while on a hunting trip. He was aged 81, and was still chairman of the companies he had founded. The McGraw Foundation was established in Northbrook, Illinois in 1948 with funding by Max McGraw and other friends and family members. It supports various causes, including higher education related to science and

416-652: The Central Electric & Gas Company and the Central Telephone Company, a subsidiary. Central Electric & Gas, under president Judson Large, expanded through mergers and acquisitions in the 1950s and early 1960s. The company shifted its focus from power supply to telephone service, and formed the nucleus of what became the Centel Corporation. McGraw continued to chair the company until his death. McGraw bought Bersted Manufacturing in 1926, and made it

448-468: The Interstate Supply Company in partnership with his father and four others, selling mill, railroad and electrical equipment. This business grew rapidly. In 1907 McGraw founded the Interstate Electric Manufacturing Company as a branch of the Interstate Supply Company. It became a separate corporation and focused on the manufacture of magnetos, telephones and power switchboards. In 1910 he merged

480-714: The Interstate Supply and Manufacturing Company into the McGraw Electric Company, taking the position of President. The combined business had sales of more than $ 2 million that year. McGraw bought the Central Telephone and Electric Company of St. Louis , Missouri in July 1922. He also bought an electric light plant in South Dakota and acquired electric and telephone companies in Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota and Minnesota. By 1925

512-649: The McGraw Electric Company. His electrical supply business operated in the basement of a drug store in Sioux City. Most of his early work was wiring houses that were converting from gas to electricity. The business struggled at first, but in the second year gained profitable contracts from the Stockyards and the Peavey Grand Opera House in Sioux City. In 1902 the McGraw Electric Company moved into larger premises on Fifth Street, Sioux City. In 1903 McGraw organized

544-562: The acquisitions by McGraw Electric included: Max McGraw Max McGraw (1 February 1883 – 26 October 1964) was an American entrepreneur who founded McGraw-Edison and Centel . He financed marketing of the first domestic toaster, the Toastmaster . He was also a conservationist and hunter. Max McGraw was born in Clear Lake, Iowa on 1 February 1883, and grew up in Sioux City, Iowa . As

576-447: The capital needed to enter the household market in 1927, and that year acquired Waters-Genter. He sold his interests in the company to McGraw Electric in 1929. Waters and Genter remained in charge of the toastmaster division until 1938. McGraw Electric grew steadily through acquisitions. McGraw used to say, "Never buy a company unless it is making money or seems about to go broke," a philosophy that served him well. In 1938 McGraw built

608-432: The company spread about 15,000 US gallons (57,000 L; 12,000 imp gal) of oil waste contaminated with trichloroethylene (TCE) to control dust on the site's dirt roads. In 1980, TCE contamination was found in nearby residential and municipal wells. The State of Michigan and McGraw-Edison Corporation registered a consent decree on June 11, 1984 for clean-up of the contaminated soil and groundwater. McGraw-Edison

640-477: The company was providing electricity or telephone service throughout the US mid-west. On 28 June 1926 the electric and telephone utilities were spun off into the Central West Public Service Company, which combined more than twenty former companies. In the mid-1930s the company was reorganized and renamed the Central Electric and Telephone Company, Inc. In May 1944 McGraw split the company into

672-511: The company. He sold his interests to McGraw Electric in 1929. McGraw Electric grew steadily through acquisitions. McGraw used to say, "Never buy a company unless it is making money or seems about to go broke," a philosophy that served him well. In 1948 McGraw bought Bersted Manufacturing a second time, and made Al Bersted president. Eventually Bersted became CEO of the company. By 1955 McGraw Electric had thirty one divisions, with gross annual sales of nearly $ 300 million. In 1956 McGraw arranged

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704-489: The military. This line never accounted for more than 10% of the output of the Mechanical Division. In May 1954 McGraw Electric purchased the home appliances business from General Mills. By 1955 McGraw Electric had thirty one divisions, with gross annual sales of nearly $ 300 million. In 1956 McGraw arranged a merger with Thomas A. Edison, Inc. The combined McGraw-Edison Company was launched in January 1957. Some of

736-503: The name of McGraw Electric. Thomas A. Edison, Inc. was formed in 1910 as a reorganization of the Edison Manufacturing Co., which had its roots in the 19th century. Edison began with the manufacture of phonographs and records, and later made radios and dictation machines. Charles Edison became president of the company in 1927, and ran it until it was sold in 1957, when it merged with the McGraw Electric Company. McGraw-Edison Co.

768-854: The size of McGraw-Edison. Also, in 1979, McGraw-Edison sold its appliance division (which owns the Speed Queen brand) to Raytheon Company . This former appliance division is now part of Alliance Laundry Systems . In June 1980, Bastian-Blessing, soon to merge with Nytronics, Inc. , acquired McGraw-Edison's food service equipment division. In September 1980, the company sold its power tool division to Shopsmith, Inc . McGraw-Edison manufactured equipment such as air conditioners, cooling fans, electric space heaters, air humidifiers, portable hair dryers, toasters and other household appliances at their 24 acres (9.7 ha) site in Calhoun County, Michigan between 1958 and 1980. During its operations between 1970 and 1980,

800-683: The supply and manufacturing companies into the Interstate Supply and Manufacturing Company. In 1912 McGraw bought the Lehmer Company, a mill supply and electrical equipment manufacturer which he had used as a model for his earlier enterprises. He merged this company and the Interstate Supply and Manufacturing Company into the McGraw Electric Company, taking the position of President. The combined business had sales of more than $ 2 million that year. In 1926 McGraw Electric sold its wholesale operation to Westinghouse Electric and Manufacturing Company . McGraw bought Bersted Manufacturing in 1926, which made small appliances such as electric waffle irons, and made it

832-563: The years included Clark Water Heater, Buss Fuse, Speed Queen , Albion Humidifiers, Tropic Aire, Village Blacksmith, Allover Clippers, Duracrest, Spartan Bottle Warmers, Coolerator, Zero and Halo Lighting. As of 1948 the company had plants in Chicago, Elgin and Saint Louis. 1948 sales were $ 21,000,000 and net income was $ 2,712,000. In 1949 McGraw acquired the Line Material company of Milwaukee, which manufactured power line equipment. Line Material

864-411: Was a US manufacturer of electric appliances founded by Max McGraw in 1900. It grew through mergers and acquisitions to become a major enterprise. The best known product may have been the Toastmaster pop-up toaster. In 1957 McGraw Electric merged with Thomas A. Edison, Inc. to form McGraw-Edison . In the summer of 1900, aged 17, Max McGraw entered business as an electrician. He called his enterprise

896-519: Was acquired by Cooper Industries of Texas in 1985. At the time of the take-over, McGraw-Edison had 21,000 employees working in 118 facilities in the United States and other countries. Cooper took over responsibility for the Calhoun County site clean-up, and as of 2004 the remedies were reported to be functioning well. Citations Sources McGraw Electric The McGraw Electric Company

928-623: Was based in Milwaukee and operated plants in several other cities. It had 1948 sales of $ 38,750,000 and net income of $ 3,108,000. In 1952 McGraw Electric merged with the Pennsylvania Transformer Company. In 1953 the McGraw Electric Company transferred its Toastmaster manufacturing operation to Missouri. After World War II General Mills began making home appliances such as electric irons, toasters and pressure cookers to maintain employment for workers who had been making supplies for

960-467: Was created in 1957 when the McGraw Electric Company acquired Thomas A. Edison, Inc. Charles Edison became board chairman of the merged company until he retired in 1961. Max McGraw was chief operating executive. In March 1957, McGraw-Edison acquired Griswold Manufacturing . Griswold manufactured cast-iron cookware and some electrical items. Later that year, the Griswold brand and housewares division were sold to

992-399: Was founded by Max McGraw in Sioux City, Iowa in 1900, in the business of installing electricity in houses. The founder was aged 17 at the time. The company quickly expanded into industrial and commercial buildings. It made several acquisitions over the years, evolving into a manufacturer of electrical products. In 1952 McGraw Electric and the Pennsylvania Transformer Company merged, keeping

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1024-564: Was wiring houses that were converting from gas to electricity. The business struggled at first, but in the second year gained profitable contracts from the Stockyards and the Peavey Grand Opera House in Sioux City. In 1902 the McGraw Electric Company moved into larger premises on Fifth Street, Sioux City. In 1903 McGraw organized the Interstate Supply Company in partnership with his father and four others, selling mill, railroad and electrical equipment. This business grew rapidly. McGraw married Frances Schaaf on 16 August 1904. They had two daughters and

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