Ames True Temper, Inc.
Subsidiary
Predecessor
  • American Fork and Hoe Co.
  • Ames, Baldwin, Wyoming Co.
  • Ames Shovel and Tool Co.
  • Baldwin Tool Works
  • Hubbard & Co
  • O. Ames Company
  • The Old Stone Forge
  • Pittsburgh Shovel Co.
  • True Temper Co.
  • Wyoming Shovel Works
Foundation1774 (age 252)
FounderCaptain John Ames
Location cityCamp Hill, Pennsylvania
Location countryU.S.
Area servedWorldwide
IndustryLandscaping tools
ParentGriffon Corporation
HomepageAmes.com

Ames True Temper, Inc. is a multinational corporation headquartered in Camp Hill, Pennsylvania, U.S. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Griffon Corporation.[1] Ames True Temper specializes in the manufacture of non-powered lawn and garden products.[2] Its manufacturing plant was located in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and produced 85% of the wheelbarrows in the United States and Canada making 1.7 million wheelbarrows each year, until Griffon decided to outsource production to China. The Harrisburg plant had been in continual operation since 1876.[3]

Ames, which celebrated its 200th anniversary in 1974, is among the oldest extant business corporations in the United States.[4]

History

Formation

Blacksmith and pioneer Captain John Ames began making metal shovels in America in 1774.[5] Ames underwent a merger in 1931 including Baldwin Tool Works of Parkersburg, West Virginia, the Ames Shovel and Tool Company of North Easton, Massachusetts; the Wyoming Shovel Works of Wyoming, Pennsylvania; Hubbard & Co. of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; and the Pittsburgh Shovel Co. of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It later absorbed the Skelton Shovel Co. Inc. of Dunkirk, New York. The result of the merger was called the Ames Shovel and Tool Company. The company was renamed the Ames, Baldwin, Wyoming Company in 1933. In 1952, it became known as the O. Ames Company.[6]

The Old Stone Forge of Wallingford, Vermont, founded in 1808, became the American Fork and Hoe Co. In 1949, the name was changed to True Temper. Ames purchased True Temper from the Huffy Corporation in 1999 to become Ames True Temper.[6]

In 2002 Ames, then based in Camp Hill, Pennsylvania closed one of its two plants manufacturing lawn and garden tools in Wood County, West Virginia.[7][8]

In 2023, Ames closed the Harrisburg, Pennsylvania plant where President Trump celebrated this first 100 days of his first term in office.[9]

Problems and controversies

Ames True Temper Company closed its facility in West Virginia in September 2005, unable to reach a contract agreement with the United Steelworkers Union.[6]

Brands

Ames True Temper currently[when?] owns the following brands:[1][10]

  • Ames
  • ClosetMaid
  • Dynamic Design
  • Garant
  • Harper
  • Hound Dog
  • Jackson
  • Razor-Back
  • Southern Patio
  • True Temper
  • Union Tools
  • Westmix

Ames Australasia

Currently[when?] owns the following brands:[11]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Griffon Corporation -- Ames True Temper". Archived from the original on March 29, 2012. Retrieved July 6, 2012.
  2. ^ "Ames True Temper, Inc.: Private Company Information". Businessweek. Bloomberg. Archived from the original on January 18, 2013. Retrieved July 6, 2012.
  3. ^ "This factory made wheelbarrows for more than a century. Now that’s ending". PennLive. August 23, 2023. Retrieved May 1, 2025.
  4. ^ Sloane, Leonard (30 April 1974). "Ames Prospers as It Marks 200 Years". The New York Times. Retrieved 21 January 2020.
  5. ^ "Ames - Our History". Ames True Temper. Retrieved July 12, 2012.
  6. ^ "Ames True Temper Collection". Stonehill College. Retrieved September 18, 2017.
  7. ^ "Ames True Temper plant closing". The Charleston Gazette. AP. 4 May 2002.
  8. ^ Harris, Linda (10 June 2002). "Ames True Temper closes plant in Parkersburg". The State Journal. Vol. 18, no. 23. p. 25.
  9. ^ "Made-in-USA Wheelbarrows Promoted by Trump Are Now Made in China". Bloomberg.com. Archived 2025-04-30 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2025-05-02.
  10. ^ "Our Brands". Ames True Temper. Archived from the original on November 15, 2011. Retrieved July 6, 2012.
  11. ^ "About Ames"
  12. ^ "Home". Cyclone. Retrieved 2022-08-22.
  13. ^ "HOME - Kelso - Built Stronger to Last Longer". Kelsotools.com.au. Retrieved 2022-08-22.
  14. ^ "Northcote Pottery | The container gardening experts". northcotepottery. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  15. ^ "Home". Trojan Tools. 2015-06-07. Retrieved 2022-08-22.