I haven't posted much from my Patriot Picking lately as we go pretty busy during the holiday season. So I thought today I would share with you a set I got during the Christmas season.

 

A good friend of mine that has been on "American Pickers" was out one day and send me a picture of a couple of planes and ask it I was interested. Of course I am always interested so I text back and ask him about them. They looked good and he said he would pick them up and get them to me. A few weeks went by before we ran into each other at an auction and he brought in the planes. I put them aside and decided I would check them out later, it was time for the auction to begin.

 

A day of two later I got them out of the bag and started looking for markings on them. Pretty plain on the front of the plane was "Auburn Tool Co. Auburn, NY". Auburn Tool Co was in business from 1864 to 1893, Twice during their plane making days (1864-1865 and 1874-1877) they used prison labor from the Auburn Prison in New York. Census data says they "employed" 50 men making 35,000 planes worth $35,00.00. The 1865 New York State census also states that they were making Skates along with plane irons. They produced that year 30,000 pair of skates.

 

Auburn Tool Co was among the five leading planing making firms. H. Chapin's son, Greenfield Tool and Sandusky Tool along with Auburn made up the Plane Makers Association which was organized in 1858 to fix the price of planes.

 

November 14, 1893, Auburn Tool Co merged with Ohio Tool Company of Columbus, Oh. Plane manufacturing continued in Auburn until after 1907 but the planes were made under the Ohio Tool Co Brand.

 

Auburn Tool Company is rounded over on the logo with Auburn, NY in a straight line under it. A Star is in the middle of the name. They actually went by the name "Star" at one time.

 

 

On the back of the plane is the number, No. 69.

 

 

The really nice thing is this is a match set of Tongue and Groove planes. A lot of times you find one or the other, but not both or the set.

 

 

Both are in good shape and will be a nice addition to the collection.

 

I'll be back with more Patriot Picking!

 

 

Really cool knowing the pedigree of the old tools, John!

Sometimes, I think I am more or as interested in the story behind the plane than the plane itself. I love knowing where they were made and when and then imagine the person that used these in their shop.

 

Tongue and Grove Planes are not that uncommon and the value is less because woodworker and cabinet makers would have own them. A farm owner may have had a set to do tongue and groove on boards for buildings or other things around the place. The planes that demand the higher prices are the edge profile planes. They would have been used most likely in a cabinet shop making them more desirable and less of them out there. But those that would have survived are usually in very good shape because a cabinet maker took special care of his tools as they were his living.