Made in York by The Hench & Dromgold Company
Earlier this month, I wrote about The Hench & Dromgold Company; an agricultural implement manufacturer, headquartered in York, PA between 1879 and 1919. In 1899, they were the twelfth largest factory employer in York County. Floyd Stiles provided several photos of an old No. 6, Single-Hole Left-Hand Corn Sheller, made by Hench & Dromgold, that he still uses.
This is the second corn sheller, Made In York, for which Mr. Stiles provided photos. A year ago, Floyd provided several photos of an Invincible Corn Sheller that he was restoring. That corn sheller was manufactured by the Keystone Farm Machine Company; in business in York, between 1890 and 1919.
The collections of the York County Heritage Trust contain a file on The Hench & Dromgold Company. A product catalog “K” is in this file; unfortunately it is not dated, although being “K”, it is likely from at least the early 1900s. The catalog contains corn sheller Model Numbers 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 18 & 20. Based upon model numbering, No. 6 was likely a middle design; therefore probably produced from 1890s through 1919, when the company went out of business. The No. 6, Single-Hole Left-Hand Corn Sheller sold for $12 in 1917, per a Sales Contract Price List in the file.
The Hench & Dromgold factory was bounded by North Hartley Street to the east, the Railroad Tracks to the south and Park Street to the north. A few years after the Hench & Dromgold factory was established at this location, York Manufacturing Company built their plant immediately to the south side of the Railroad Tracks and S. Morgan Smith Company built their plant immediately to the north side of Park Street.
The birds-eye-view of the Hench & Dromgold factory looks in the northwest direction; from the corner of North Hartley Street and the Railroad Tracks. After Hench & Dromgold went out of business, their factory became part of the York Manufacturing Company complex. After Borg-Warner shut down YORK’s West York Plant in 1957, the former Hench & Dromgold buildings sat idle until they were demolished in 1978.
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