Warwood Tool Company

Introduction

Text-to-speech Audio

Although Warwood’s story and namesake begins here, Henry Warwood retired in 1892 and never oversaw the factory’s relocation to West Virginia. It was not until 1907, under the ownership of Walker Peterson, that the Warwood Tool Company moved to its current location. Before the construction of the current facility, the site was home to the Eberts family, one of the earliest families in Warwood. Using traditional heating and forging processes, the Warwood Tool Company produces the same heavy duty tools today as they did in 1907, which are finished with their signature “Warwood Blue” handle.

Images

Warwood Tool Company, facing SW, taken December 2016, photo courtesy of Christina Rieth

Warwood Tool Company, facing NW, taken December 2016, photo courtesy of Christina Rieth

Warwood Tool Company, undated, photo courtesy of Sandra Mauck. Note the B&O Railroad tracks that ran past the factory.

Warwood Tool Company, undated, photo courtesy of Sandra Mauck. The building on the left is no longer standing.

Warwood Tool Company, undated, photo courtesy of Sandra Mauck.

Backstory and Context

Text-to-speech Audio

The company is located in Warwood, Wheeling's northern most neighborhood. the neighborhood is named after Henry Warwood, who founded the Warwood Tool Company in 1854 in Martins Ferry. The company was relocated to Warwood in 1907.

As early as 1795, Thomas Glenn is the first known owner of the land; he bequeathed the land to his son, William, sometime before 1795. Farmers initially settled in the region north of Wheeling for its rich, fertile soil.

Farmland in Warwood made way to industrial and residential development at the turn of the century. Foreseeing the potential of Warwood’s future, R. J. McCullagh founded the Warwood Land Company in 1903. The company sold the lots at a very low price at the time, starting at $300 each. The land was far less susceptible to floods than other parts of Wheeling, and streetcars ran between Warwood and Wheeling every 15 minutes, which became excellent selling points for prospective residents. Working-class families who came to the area sought employment at the industrial plants and built their residences, businesses, and churches nearby. Coal mines were abundant in Warwood, and an oil boom hit Warwood in 1911.

Warwood became an incorporated community on May 26, 1911, and as part of the “Wheeling Greater Movement”, Wheeling annexed the Warwood neighborhood in 1919.

Sources

Hinrichs Bissett, Mabel, & Bertha Cupp Jones. "Warwood: a History, 1669-1975." Ernest St. C. Benfield, 1993.
Jourdan, Katherine, and Laura Pfeifer. "West Virginia Historic Property Inventory Form". Feb 1991. http://services.wvgis.wvu.edu/SHPOdocs/PDFs/Architectural/OH-0001-1848.pdf.
Rieth, Christina. "Warwood: a Walking Tour of its History and Architecture". Wheeling Heritage, 2017.