North Brothers Manufacturing Company
A Philadelphia manufacturer of hand tools, small appliances, and specialized power tools, best known for its Yankee ratcheting screwdrivers.
Last updated August 26, 2026
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Overview
North Brothers Manufacturing Company was an American industrial and consumer-products manufacturer headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1878 as a foundry owned by Selden Gladwin North, the business developed over more than six decades from a small family-controlled operation into a substantial producer of household equipment, hand tools, and selected power tools. The company was commonly known as North Bros. Mfg. Co. or simply North Bros. The company expanded its ownership and management base within the North family during its early years. Selden North was joined by his brother Ralph H. North in 1880, while Frank H. North joined in 1886. The business was incorporated as North Bros. Mfg. Co. in 1887. A series of acquisitions broadened its manufacturing capabilities and product portfolio. In 1892, North Brothers acquired the American Machine Company of Philadelphia and its Crown consumer brand, subsequently moving operations to the acquired facilities. In 1893, it purchased the Shepard Hardware Company of Buffalo, New York. In 1897, it acquired the Forest City Screwdriver and Drill Company of Portland, Maine, bringing the tool designer Zachary T. Furbish into the organization. North Brothers initially manufactured a diverse range of goods. Around the turn of the twentieth century, its products included ice-cream freezers, ice-shaving and ice-crushing equipment, kitchen appliances, other household goods, and hand tools. Over time, the company increasingly concentrated on tools, particularly devices using spiral-ratchet mechanisms and related drilling or driving technologies. Furbish's designs were especially important to this transition. He held numerous patents associated with North Brothers' hand tools, and his work helped establish the technical foundation for a product family that remained important to the company for decades. The company's principal tool brand was Yankee. The name appeared across a broad range of North Brothers products, including screwdrivers, push drills, breast drills, hand drills, bench drills, bit-and-brace tools, ratcheting tap wrenches, vises, cutting tools, and small tool kits. The Yankee identity eventually became most closely associated with the spiral-ratchet screwdriver, but it was originally a wider trade brand rather than the name of a single product. This branding and the practical utility of the tools helped North Brothers become a significant participant in the American hand-tool industry. North Brothers remained family owned and operated for more than sixty years. Ralph North's son, John Spring North, joined the company in 1919, extending the family's involvement into a later generation. In 1946, The Stanley Works acquired North Brothers, principally to strengthen its own tool portfolio. Stanley was particularly interested in North Brothers' bit-and-brace designs and Yankee spiral-ratchet screwdrivers. The North Bros. name continued under Stanley into the 1950s before being discontinued. The Yankee name survived considerably longer, remaining in use under Stanley until the early 2000s and later passing to the German Schroeder tool company. The historical North Brothers company is therefore defunct as an independent manufacturer, while elements of its product heritage and Yankee branding continued after the acquisition.
History
North Brothers Manufacturing Company began in Philadelphia in 1878 as a foundry owned solely by Selden Gladwin North. The enterprise became a family business when Ralph H. North joined Selden in 1880 and Frank H. North followed in 1886. The company was incorporated as North Bros. Mfg. Co. in 1887, formalizing an operation that was already broadening beyond its original foundry activity. Expansion during the 1890s came partly through acquisitions. In 1892, North Brothers purchased the American Machine Company of Philadelphia and its Crown consumer brand. Production was subsequently moved to the acquired company's facilities. The following year, North Brothers acquired the Shepard Hardware Company of Buffalo, New York. In 1897, it bought the Forest City Screwdriver and Drill Company of Portland, Maine. That transaction was particularly consequential because it brought in Zachary T. Furbish, a prolific tool designer whose patented mechanisms became central to North Brothers' later development. By 1900, North Brothers was a major Philadelphia manufacturer and employer with a varied product range. Its output included ice-cream freezers, ice-shaving and ice-crushing equipment, kitchen appliances, consumer goods, and hand tools. The company gradually moved toward tools as the twentieth century progressed. Its early tool activity included spiral-ratchet and plain screwdrivers, and the product range later expanded to push drills, breast drills, egg-beater-style hand drills, hand-powered bench drills, bit-and-brace tools, ratcheting tap wrenches, vises, cutting tools, and compact tool kits. Furbish's contribution was central to this transition. He accumulated approximately thirty patents connected with hand tools made by North Brothers, and although he died in 1906, his designs continued to influence the company's products. The firm's principal trade name was Yankee. The brand was applied broadly across the tool range and was not initially limited to screwdrivers. Over time, however, Yankee became strongly identified with the spiral-ratchet screwdriver, the product associated most closely with North Brothers in later historical accounts. The company retained a family character for more than six decades. John Spring North, the son of Ralph North, joined the business in 1919, extending North family participation into a subsequent generation. North Brothers' success in hand tools eventually attracted the attention of The Stanley Works. Stanley acquired the company in 1946, with the aim of improving its own tool offerings. The purchaser was especially interested in North Brothers' bit-and-brace designs and Yankee spiral-ratchet screwdrivers. Following the acquisition, the North Bros. name remained in use within Stanley for several years but was ultimately phased out during the 1950s. The Yankee brand had a longer afterlife. Stanley continued to use it into the early 2000s before selling it to the German Schroeder tool company. Schroeder continued marketing Yankee screwdrivers and push drills as of 2013. North Brothers therefore ceased to exist as an independent company, but its designs, product terminology, and Yankee brand remained part of the later history of hand tools.
- 1946
Acquired by The Stanley Works
[1]Stanley acquired North Brothers to obtain and strengthen important hand-tool designs and product lines.
- 1919
John Spring North joins the business
[1]Ralph North's son joined the company, continuing the family's involvement into a later generation.
- 1900
Established as a major Philadelphia manufacturer
[1]By the turn of the century, North Brothers had become a significant Philadelphia manufacturer and employer with a broad consumer and industrial product range.
- 1897
Forest City Screwdriver and Drill Company acquired
[1]The acquisition added tool-making capabilities and brought designer Zachary T. Furbish into North Brothers.
- 1893
Shepard Hardware Company acquired
[1]The company purchased Shepard Hardware Company of Buffalo, New York.
- 1892
American Machine Company acquired
[1]North Brothers acquired the Philadelphia-based American Machine Company and its Crown consumer brand, then moved operations to its facilities.
- 1887
Business incorporated as North Bros. Mfg. Co.
[1]The expanding operation adopted its incorporated North Brothers manufacturing identity.
- 1886
Frank H. North joins the company
[1]Frank H. North became the third North brother involved in the business.
- 1880
Ralph H. North joins the business
[1]Selden North's brother Ralph joined the company, beginning its development as a broader North family enterprise.
- 1878
Company founded as a foundry
[1]Selden Gladwin North established the original foundry operation in Philadelphia.
Products and positioning
A family-owned American manufacturer that evolved from general industrial and household equipment into a specialist hand-tool producer, with the Yankee brand serving as its best-known commercial identity.
Hand tools
Yankee spiral-ratchet screwdrivers
North Brothers' best-known product family used a spiral-ratchet mechanism to convert pressure and motion into screw-driving action. Although the Yankee name was applied broadly to the company's tools, it became especially associated with these screwdrivers. The designs originated in the company's broader tool-development program and were later retained by Stanley after the 1946 acquisition.
Hand-powered drills
Yankee push drills
Yankee push drills formed part of North Brothers' expanding range of manually powered drilling tools. They reflected the company's emphasis on compact mechanisms that could provide controlled rotary action without an external power source. The Yankee name remained associated with push drills after the North Brothers business was absorbed by Stanley and later transferred to Schroeder.
Hand tools
Bit-and-brace tools
North Brothers produced bit-and-brace tools as part of its mature hand-tool portfolio. These products were among the designs that particularly interested The Stanley Works when it acquired the company in 1946, and comparable designs continued to be produced by Stanley for many years afterward.
Hand-powered drills
Hand drills and bench drills
The company's drilling range included breast drills, egg-beater-style hand drills, and hand-powered bench drills. These products expanded North Brothers' position beyond screwdrivers and demonstrated its capability in manually powered workshop equipment.
Small appliances and consumer equipment
Household appliances and ice equipment
Before concentrating more heavily on hand tools, North Brothers manufactured products such as ice-cream freezers, ice-shaving and ice-crushing equipment, kitchen appliances, and other household goods. These lines illustrate the company's earlier role as a diversified consumer and industrial manufacturer.
Brand decisions
1946
Sell the company to The Stanley WorksM&ABackground
North Brothers had become a notable hand-tool producer, and Stanley sought to improve its own tool portfolio.
Action taken
The Stanley Works acquired North Brothers, with particular interest in its bit-and-brace designs and Yankee spiral-ratchet screwdrivers.
Aftermath
North Brothers ceased operating as an independent company. The North Bros. name was later phased out, while selected designs and the Yankee name continued under Stanley.
1897
Acquire Forest City Screwdriver and Drill CompanyM&ABackground
North Brothers was developing a stronger position in hand tools and sought the products and expertise of the Portland, Maine manufacturer.
Action taken
North Brothers acquired Forest City Screwdriver and Drill Company and brought its designer Zachary T. Furbish into the organization.
Aftermath
Furbish's patents and designs became a technical foundation for North Brothers' later screwdriver and hand-tool lines.
1892
Acquire American Machine CompanyM&ABackground
North Brothers was expanding beyond its original foundry activity and sought additional manufacturing capacity and consumer-product capability.
Action taken
The company acquired the American Machine Company of Philadelphia and its Crown consumer brand, then moved operations to the acquired facilities.
Aftermath
The transaction broadened North Brothers' manufacturing base and added the Crown brand to its portfolio.
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