Underhill Edge Tool Co.
“Underhill and other brands of axes and edge tools” — Nashua, New Hampshire
A New Hampshire edge-tool house whose axes, ice tools and hatchets a Nashua wholesaler’s 1886 catalogue prices to the cent.U1 Independent at Nashua from 1852 until 1890 — when the American Axe & Tool “axe trust” bought it, closed the plant, and carried the “Underhill Pattern” onward under its own name.U2 This page lays out the 1886 line and its prices, and shows how the place-name “Nashua, N.H.” dates a stamped head.
A short history
Underhill was a New Hampshire family before it was a company. The Underhills forged tools at a mill near Auburn, N.H. from the 1820s,U4 but the firm proper began at Nashua in 1852, when George W. Underhill (1815–1882), John H. Gage and a group of investors organized the Nashua Edge Tool Co.U4 By 1859 it was trading under the name it would keep for a generation — the Underhill Edge Tool Company — fixed by a Nashua catalogue of that year.U3
The house made a broad edge-tool line rather than axes alone: chopping and broad axes, ice tools, hatchets, chisels and railroad picks, all priced to the cent in a Nashua wholesaler’s 1886 catalogue.U1 Its chopping axes wore a red “Underhill Edge Tool Co., Nashua, N.H.” paper label — the same place-name that still tells a collector a head is the independent company’s work.U1 In 1879 the firm reached next door and bought the neighboring Amoskeag Axe Co.U4
The independent run ended in 1890, when the American Axe & Tool Co. — the “axe trust” — bought the company and closed the Nashua plant.U4 But the name outlived the factory: the trust went on listing “Underhill E. T. Co.” in its own catalogue and carried an “Underhill Pattern” of ice, brick and lathing tools long after Nashua fell silent.U2 For a collector that is the whole game — “Nashua, N.H.” means the independent maker; its absence, with trust marks, means 1890 or later.
Company timeline
- 1820s–35The Underhill family runs a forge near Auburn, N.H. (Chester Road; the Auburn-village mill site from 1835) — the family’s toolmaking roots before Nashua. ~ U4
- 1852George W. Underhill (1815–1882), John H. Gage and investors organize the Nashua Edge Tool Co. at Nashua, N.H. Underhill is superintendent to 1875, then a director until his death. ~ U4
- 1859Trading as the Underhill Edge Tool Company: a Nashua catalogue of chopping axes & mechanics’ tools fixes the Underhill name by this year. ✓ U3
- 1879Buys the Amoskeag Axe Co. (a successor to the Blodgett Edge Tool Co., 1853–62). ~ U4
- 1886The full Underhill line is carried and priced by the Nashua Lock Co. wholesale catalogue (per dozen). ✓ U1
- 1890American Axe & Tool Co. (the “axe trust”) buys the company; the Nashua plant closes. Per Davistown the machinery moves to AA&T’s Douglas, Mass. works. ~ U4
- 1890–1921AA&T keeps the name alive: “Underhill E. T. Co.” and the “Underhill Pattern” (ice, brick, lathing) appear in the AA&T catalogue. ✓ U2
Products & patterns — a full edge-tool line, not just axes
From the 1886 catalogue (U1), the Underhill chopping axe came in eight named patterns, each in Light / Medium / Heavy (about 3–6 lb):
Beyond chopping axes the line ran to broad axes (Western, Pittsburg, New England, Ship), handled / firemen’s / boys’ axes, shingling, lathing, claw & Haines’ adze-eye hatchets, ice hatchets & ice axes, framing & deck chisels, railroad picks and bill / bush hooks. ✓ primary
The Underhill mark, on the page — 1886. The Yankee-pattern chopping axe on p. 432 of the 1886 Nashua Lock Co. catalogue.U1
- The head wears the red “UNDERHILL / EDGE TOOL CO. / NASHUA, N.H.” paper label — the mark that dates a head to the independent company.
- The plate’s grid lists Light / Medium / Heavy weights (about 3–6 lb) beside a “Per Dozen” price column.
- The section opens: “Illustrated Catalogue of the Underhill Edge Tool Company … Nashua, N.H., U.S.A., 1886.”
Documented models & prices — 1886, wholesale, per dozen
Wholesale per-dozen prices from the 1886 Nashua Lock Co. catalogue (U1) — the edge-tool lines it prices to the cent. (The named chopping-axe patterns above sold from the same book, each in Light / Medium / Heavy weights.)
| Underhill line | Price / doz. | ≈ each |
|---|---|---|
| Broad axes (Western / N.E. / Ship) | $32.00–38.00 | $2.67–3.17 |
| Firemen’s handled axes (red, 36″) | $34.00–36.00 | $2.83–3.00 |
| Ice axes (Bayonet Point / New York) | $26.00–28.50 | $2.17–2.38 |
| Railroad picks (Underhill…Boston) | $12.00–25.00 | $1.00–2.08 |
| Handled axes | $15.00–18.00 | $1.25–1.50 |
| Boys’ handled axes | $13.00–14.50 | $1.08–1.21 |
| Shingling hatchets | $7.50–9.50 | $0.63–0.79 |
| Ice hatchets | $8.00–8.75 | $0.67–0.73 |
Also priced in the same section: Haines’ adze-eye hatchets ($9–13/doz), framing chisels ($7–14/doz), deck chisels ($8–10.75/doz), and pick-mattocks. Broad axes note “Iron Polls, $1.00 per dozen less”; firemen’s axes “unpainted, $4.00 per dozen less.” ✓ primary
What survived in the trust — the “Underhill Pattern” under American Axe & Tool
From the American Axe & Tool Co.’s own catalogue (U2)
The trust closed Nashua but kept the name. In its own catalogue AA&T lists the firm and carries the pattern:
| In the AA&T catalogue | What it shows |
|---|---|
| “Underhill E. T. Co.” — beside “Amoskeag Axe Co.” | Both New Hampshire firms named as trust constituents. |
| ICE, UNDERHILL PATTERN | The Underhill ice tool became a catalogue pattern name. |
| LATHING, UNDERHILL PATTERN | Underhill lathing hatchets continued as a named pattern. |
| BRICK / Handled, Underhill Pattern | The pattern name spread beyond axes. |
See the American Axe & Tool page for the full brand web. After Kelly bought AA&T’s assets in 1921, the trust’s pattern names flowed on into True Temper.
Dating a head by its stamp
| Era | What the head is marked | What it tells you |
|---|---|---|
| 1852–c.1859 | Nashua Edge Tool Co. — the founding name | Earliest production, under the original corporate name. |
| c.1859–1890 | UNDERHILL EDGE TOOL CO., NASHUA, N.H. — stamp and/or the red paper label | The independent Underhill company at Nashua. The label is documented on the 1886 axe plate. |
| 1879–1890 | Amoskeag Axe Co. | After the 1879 purchase an Amoskeag-marked head may be Underhill-made. |
| 1890–1921 | “Underhill Pattern,” AA&T attributes, no “Nashua” | Trust era: the name/pattern made by American Axe & Tool after Nashua closed. |
| post-1921 | Pattern names via Kelly / American Fork & Hoe / True Temper | After Kelly bought AA&T’s assets (1921), surviving Underhill-pattern tooling flowed on. |
The decisive tell is the place-name: “Nashua, N.H.” in the mark or label means the independent company (1852–1890) ✓ U1; its absence, with trust attributes, points to 1890–1921 ✓ U2.
In period print
Underhill was a regional New Hampshire maker, so it left little brand advertising of its own — most of its trace in the historic press is journalism, news of the company and of the axe trust that swallowed it, alongside the occasional hardware dealer’s notice. Each item below was read on the original page; all are public-domain newspapers.
“W. Underhill, axe and tool manufacturers”
The earliest trace — a Nashua fire-loss list names an Underhill axe-and-tool works nearly a decade before the Nashua Edge Tool Co. was organized.
New York Herald, N.Y. (U7)
“The Underhill Edge Tool company of Nashua has been purchased by a syndicate”
A New Hampshire paper reports the sale to the axe trust — the end of the independent Nashua company.
People and Patriot, N.H. (U8)
“the Hub axe and the Underhill axe, cross cut and wood saws”
A Vermont hardware dealer stocks the Underhill axe by name — the firm’s regional retail reach.
The Londonderry Sifter, Vt. (U9)
“Underhill Edge Tool Company, Nashua, N.H.”
Years into the trust, a Massachusetts daily still names the Nashua works among the American Axe & Tool combine’s factories.
Worcester Morning Daily Spy, Mass. (U10)
Sources
- primary · wholesale catalogue & price listpublic domain
Nashua Lock Co. Illustrated and Descriptive Catalogue and Price List of Hardware, Tools, Etc., 1886 — the Underhill Edge Tool Co. section (catalogue pp. 431–461), with per-dozen prices. Section title page and the p. 432 axe plate verified against the page images. Internet Archive → - primary · manufacturer catalogue (trust-era)public domain
American Axe & Tool Co. catalogue (n.d., c. 1890s–1900s). Lists “Underhill E. T. Co.” and “Amoskeag Axe Co.,” and carries the “Underhill Pattern” (ice, brick, lathing). OCR read directly; also the basis of this guide’s AA&T page. Internet Archive → - primary · manufacturer catalogue (name evidence)public domain
Underhill Edge Tool Company, Catalogue of Chopping Axes, Carpenter’s … and many other kinds of Mechanics’ Tools (Nashua, N.H., 1859); reprinted by Ken Roberts Publishing Co., 1980. Fixes the “Underhill Edge Tool Company” name by 1859. (Cited from the catalogue record / title; not read page-by-page here.) N.H. Historical Society → - secondary · tool-maker biography
“Underhill Edge Tool Co.” Davistown Museum. Founders (George W. Underhill 1815–1882, John H. Gage), 1852 founding, 1879 Amoskeag, 1890 AA&T sale, Nashua works + Boston office, and the report that the machinery moved to AA&T’s Douglas, Mass. works. davistownmuseum.org → - secondary · axe-history research site
“Underhill Edge Tool Company.” Exploring Axe History. Corroborates the founding, the Nashua/Underhill dual naming, products and the trust absorption. exploringaxehistory.com → - secondary · value/marks/history guide
“Underhill Edge Tool Company — Guide to Value, Marks, History.” WorthPoint Dictionary. Marks lead (“Nashua, N.H.” as part of the mark). Note: this entry mis-dates the Amoskeag purchase to 1897 — impossible before the 1890 sale; the corroborated date is 1879. worthpoint.com → - secondary · period newspaper reportpublic domain
“W. Underhill, axe and tool manufacturers” (named in a Nashua fire-loss list — an Underhill tool business predating the 1852 company). New York Herald (New York, N.Y.), Jan. 19, 1843, p. 1. Library of Congress, Chronicling America → - secondary · period newspaper reportpublic domain
“The Underhill Edge Tool company of Nashua has been purchased by a syndicate” (report of the sale to the axe trust). People and Patriot (Concord, N.H.), Feb. 13, 1890, p. 4. Library of Congress, Chronicling America → - primary · period newspaper advertisementpublic domain
“the Hub axe and the Underhill axe, cross cut and wood saws” (hardware dealer’s advertisement). The Londonderry Sifter (South Londonderry, Vt.), Dec. 2, 1892, p. 1. Library of Congress, Chronicling America → - secondary · period newspaper reportpublic domain
“Underhill Edge Tool Company, Nashua, N.H.” named among the American Axe & Tool combine’s factories. Worcester Morning Daily Spy (Worcester, Mass.), Jan. 1, 1898, p. 8. Library of Congress, Chronicling America →
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Underhill Edge Tool Co. / Nashua Edge Tool Co.: history, a full edge-tool line with image-verified 1886 wholesale prices, the surviving “Underhill Pattern” inside the American Axe & Tool trust, and a place-name key for dating a stamped head. Not affiliated with any current rights-holder; sources are digitized public-domain catalogues and clearly-marked secondary references.