History of Trow & Holden Co.

Trow & Holden cutter's hand hammer No. 237

Trow & Holden Co. is an iconic American maker of excellent quality tools for working stone, operating in Barre, Vermont, since 1890 (or 1889). Their tools were used to create the Lincoln Memorial, among many other notable monuments, sculptures, and buildings. They have a large number of videos on their YouTube channel, demonstrating their hand and pneumatic tools. One measure of their tool's high quality is that the pneumatic tools have serial numbers, and No. 1 still exists. It belongs to Barre sculptor Giuliano Cecchinelli, seen here on Facebook.

Trow & Holden was founded by Clark Holden (1834-1909), a native of Barre, the heart of Vermont's granite industry. At age 21 he bought the general store where he was employed. In 1865 he and a partner, Frank A. Stafford, bought a Barre agricultural fork manufacturer and ran it as the Stafford-Holden Co. and the Stafford & Holden Manufacturing Co. In 1885 Clark Holden withdrew from the business to serve as postmaster of Barre for 5 years. In 1889 he formed a partnership with John Trow, a banker, to make granite tools under the name Trow & Holden.

Trow & Holden's factory, 1906

In 1905, Clark Holden sold the business to his son, William Merrill Holden (1873-1941). The firm had outgrown its facility, and William Holden bought the Stafford & Holden Manufacturing Co.’s buildings on South Main St. in Barre. The site included a dam on Stevens Branch for powering the forges and grinding wheels. In 1911, the business incorporated as Trow-Holden Co. This aerial photograph is in a 1942 book.

The company passed to William’s son Max Albee Holden (1899-1973), who married Eula Mary Akley. Max Holden brought his wife’s brother Gordon E. Akley (1920-1992) into the business. When Max retired around 1969, Gordon Akley bought the rest of the shares.

Today, Gordon Akley’s son Norman Akley and his wife Lauren LaMorte own Trow & Holden.
According to a 2012 article, all of Trow & Holden’s products are made with CNC machines, but the plant has its original line shafts. The old water-powered drop forges and other antique equipment is stored on site, seen in a 2008 photo on Flickr, in 2014 on Facebook, and a 2008 video tour on YouTube.

Trow & Holden 1-3/4 pound cutter's hand hammer

Trow & Holden Co. 1926 catalog
Family biographies in 1914 book
Trow & Holden plant on Google Streetview
Barre Granite Association, The Sculptor monument
Rock of Ages granite quarry tour, Barre

Trow & Holden hand bush hammer No. 3L