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WARREN AXE & TOOL CO.
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The company appears to have functioned under a variety of names. Whether the names were used at different times and in some specific sequence or whether they were alternative names used for business convenience is unclear. The most prevalent name was the ROMER AXE CO. but the name ROMER BROS. MANUFACTURING COMPANY was actually the original name. The two brothers that founded the company were Nicholas and John P. Romer
One of the names the company used was GOWANDA, which is also a town in which the company was initially located. They operated in that area between 1877 and 1887. Sometime after that, probably just before they joined with the American Axe & Tool Co., the works were relocated to Dunkirk, New York. Conflicting reports leave the actual year unclear. After relocating to Dunkirk they joined with the American Axe & Tool Company. The affiliation lasted until 1908 when Romer again became independent. Quite possibly that was when the name Romer Axe Co. was introduced. In 1916 Andrew C. Romer (Nicholas's son) sold the company to the Warren Axe & Tool Company.
Trademark registration records show that a company named the Romer Axe & Tool Co. of Dunkirk, NY registered two trademarks, one in 1922 and another in 1924. They were noted to have been in use since 1921. It may be that the Romer division of the A. & T. Co. was a subsidiary of the Warren A. & T. Co.
The use of the name Gowanda Axe Co. may have stemmed from the wording on the label or it may have been used as a matter of business practice. In the trade mark application and subsequent registration documents dated 1887, the brothers declared that they had used the brand and the associated label since 1877. The label design became the property of the A. A & T. Co. but The Romer Axe Co. introduced a number of other brands after they withdrew from the A. A. & T. Co.
Other company names:
ROMER BROS. MFG. CO.
GOWANDA AXE CO. (Secondary Name)
ROMER BROS. (Secondary Name)
Part of American Axe & Tool Co.
ROMER AXE COMPANY
By Tom Lamond ©
GOWANDA, NEW YORK 1876 -ca 1890
DUNKIRK, NEW YORK 1876-1916
Facsimile of label used on the UNCLE SAM’S axes.
1876-1889
1877-1887
1876-1889
1889-1908
1908-1916 (Sold to Warren Axe & Tool Co.)
Brands verified as having been produced by Romer:
GOWANDA
GOWANDA SUPERIOR
FAULTLESS
LAKE CITY
MONARCH
ROMER
ROMER CROSS GROUND
ROMER'S 1876
UNCLE SAM'S
BLACK KING
FOREST KING
HARD EDGE
HIAWATHA
MATCHLESS
OLD FAITHFUL
ROMER
SUPERIOR
TUNSTEEL
The earlier label included the name GOWANDA AXE CO. and was used before the company name change.
A similar label became a US Registered Trademark No. 14,132 issued March 8, 1887, and was reportedly used since 1877. It included the name ROMER BROS. MFG. CO. The original colors may have been black and gray on white as depicted on the left. Later versions with the name "SUPERIOR" added were dark maroon and white as well as gilt on dark maroon.
Fancy design etched onto a single bit axe provided by the Romer Axe Co. as a promotional give-away.
Supplemental stamping used on some axes.
Stampings reportedly registered under the Romer Axe Co. name for use on axes some years after the company was sold to the Warren Axe & Tool Co. of Warren, Pennsylvania. It could be the Warren A. & T. Co. continued the legal use of the name.
Examples of other labels used on different axes. These labels were probably printed in color.
Variations of labels used on the FAULTLESS axes.
Facsimile of label used on the ROMER brand axes.
Additional brands produced by Warren that may have originated with Romer: