In 1929 the American Manufacturing Concern, Inc. was established in Kalamazoo by Andrew Lenderink, J. Vander Brook, and Frank F. Ford, with a modest capitalization of $5,000. Their stated business was to deal in "machinery, supplies and equipment". By 1932 they had introduced a printers' saw, for which they offered payment terms of $1 per week. A surviving example reveals a benchtop saw of cast iron construction. The original miter gauge is missing but the miter slot in the table is unusually wide. This company's name is cast into the base.
By 1946 the American Mfg. Concern had been absorbed into another Kalamazoo maker of printers' saws, Hammond Machinery Builders, Inc.
Information Sources
- A small tablesaw has "American Manufacturing Concern / Kalamazoo, Mich." cast into it. This saw can be seen in our Photo Index.
- Searches for American Manufacturing Concern give lots of results for to a much larger and unrelated business of the same name, a toy manufacturer located in Falconer, NY (near Jamestown). In confirming that this business is indeed unrelated, we researched their history, which is briefly summarized here. The American Manufacturing Concern of Falconer traces its beginnings to 1806 in the form of a sawmill operated by Edward Work. In 1836 the land and operations were acquired by the Falconer family who expanded the business to include windows, doors and architectural trim. In 1888 William T. Falconer, operating the business as W. T. Falconer Mfg. Co., partnered with D. E. Merrill to form American Manufacturing Concern, which produced toys, rulers, and washtubs among other products. This business formally incorporated under that name in 1910, with W. T. Falconer serving as president until his death in 1915. By the 1930s this company was manufacturing chairs and bedroom furniture. Manufacture of toys ceased in 1968. In 1976 the business was acquired by the Fancher Furniture Co., and in 1979 the Falconer business was renamed to the Fancher Chair Co. The Fancher Furniture Co. went under in 2003 but the Fancher Chair Co. remains in business as of 2026.
- 1929-09-21 Michigan Manufacturer and Financial Record page 28, in a listing of New Michigan Corporations.
American Manufacturing Concern, 608 Kalamazoo National Bank Bldg., Kalamazoo; deal in machinery, machinery supplies, and equipment. Andrew Lenderink, J. Vander Brook, Frank F. Ford, Kalamazoo—$5,000.
- January through September 1931 issues of The American Press, page 40, classified ads.
Printers' Saws—$1.00 per week. You do not pay for the saw—the saw pays for itself. American Mfg. Concern, 608 Kal. Nat'l Bank Bldg., Kalamazoo, Michigan.
- 1932 issue of American Printer (vol. 95, page 63), small text ad.
Special—$1.00 per week; small down payment brings you an American Printers' Bench Saw. Ask about "Special August Terms." American Manufacturing Concern, M.C.R.R.-5, Kalamazoo, Mich.
- 1933 issue of The Printing Industry (Volumes 11-12, page 56), small display ad.
Printers' Saws / Printers' saws, casting boxes, $2 per week. They pay for themselves. Why go without? American Mfg. Concern / U. S. 131 at M. C. R. R.-3, Kalamazoo, Mich.
- 1937 issue of National Printer Journalist (vol. 55 page 64), small display ad from "AMERICAN MFG. CONCERN KALAMAZOO, MICH. U.S. 131 at MCRR 2 / Kalamazoo, Mich." The ad seems to show an image of their printers' saw but Google Books does not let us see the ad except for the text ad the bottom.
- 1946 MacRae's Blue Book and Hendricks' Commercial Register page 96. "American Manufacturing Concern, Inc., Kalamazoo, Mich. (now Hammond Machinery Builders, Inc.)" A search for other mentions of American Manufacturing Concern in relation to Hammond Machinery Builders failed to produce any other data points.