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Edwin R. Fellows
Born; May 29, 1865 in
Torrington Connecticut,
Died May 21, 1945
Springfield, Vermont
Edwin R. Fellows, who
worked as a store clerk in Torrington, Connecticut, became
acquainted with James Hartness, who roomed at his mother's home
while working in that community. Hartness, after starting work
in Springfield, wrote to Fellows about the opportunities of work
in the town. Fellows arrived in Springfield in April 1889. First
he worked as a machinist at Jones and Lamson, but soon Hartness,
who realized his design abilities, had him in the drafting-room.
Fellows had very little education, leaving high school after his
freshman year due to the death of his father. He appeared to be
more aesthetically inclined rather than leaning towards
mechanical design. He became a meticulous draftsman and as chief
draftsman put Hartness's ideas on the drafting board.
Fellows saw the many
possibilities offered by the machine tool business and spent
evenings developing his own ideas on a new method for cutting
gears. He ultimately made a radically new design of a machine
for shaping gear teeth by generating them using a master gear as
the cutter. Through this procedure a much more accurate gear
tooth could be made than by any previous method. With the urging
and support of both James Hartness and W. D. Woolson, Fellows
became the originator of the Fellows Gear Shaper Company in
1897. Through his initiative, enterprise and hard work, he was
able to build a great and enduring business from a small
beginning, and created opportunities and richer lives for a
great many men and women. His influence was felt everywhere, for
without the Fellows method of shaping gears, the progress of
civilization would not had reached its present development nor
would the course of two World Wars reached such quick decision.
The coming of the automobile was fortuitous for the machine tool
industry. In 1900, Fellows developed a rack shaper, and in 1902
he developed the 24-inch gear shaper, which was principally
developed to cut automobile gears. The fortunes of the company
came to be interwoven with the automobile industry. For the
Fellows Gear Shaper Company, the 1920s was a time of growth and
product development and the early 1940s heralded the design and
production of nine new kinds of machines. In 1977 Fellows
introduced its new series of Hydrostroke machines and in the
early 1980s introduced its computer numerical control (CNC)
machines. In 1970, the company changed its name to Fellows
Corporation. Four years later, Fellows was acquired by the
Emhart Corporation. In 1987 Fellows was acquired by Goldman
Industrial Group. Fellows was a leader and dominant figure in
the manufacturing of precision gear production, gear cutting
tools, and optical inspection machines. Their contribution to
the industry enabled the manufacture of gears for textile,
automobiles, factory machinery, and other industries.
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