Abstract

This paper traces the rise of an internationally important engineering concern developed by the Vaughn family in Salem and Peabody, Massachusetts (MA), United States. Initially established to serve the needs of a specific local industry, the Vaughn Morocco Machine Co. was started in the early 1880s by JosephWarren Vaughn and his three sons. The business name was changed to the Vaughn Machine Co. in 1892, after the company had expanded its sales more generally into leather manufacture. New machinery developments and continuous improvement of the ʻVaughnʼ product range are detailed and illustrated; machinery which would eventually instigate major changes in leather manufacture worldwide. European demand for the companyʼs equipment justified a sales and service depot being established in Germany with satellite marketing and repair branches in France and Britain. Part 2 pursues new machinery developments and the rise of a specific engineering rival. This new competitor combined with a different approach by management at the Vaughn Machine Co. ultimately led to the formation of new challenger – the Vaughn-Rood Machine Co.