Red Devil, Inc.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Red Devil is a manufacturer of caulking, glazing, sealants and related surface preparation tools for glaziers, painters and masons. They are a privately owned family business with manufacturing facilities in Pryor, Oklahoma.[1] The company is currently headquartered in Pryor, Oklahoma.[2]
| Founder | Landon P. Smith John Francis Hemenway |
|---|---|
| Defunct | 1897 |
History
The company was founded as Smith & Hemenway Company, in 1872 by Landon P. Smith and John Francis Hemenway in Hill, New Hampshire.[1][3] The company manufactured the "Woodward Wizard", patented by Frank R. Woodward in 1875, for cutting glass.[3][4] During a trip to Sweden, Smith heard a blacksmith call sparks "those little red devils" and he named the tool after that phrase.[1]
In 1926 Landon P. Smith bought John Francis Hemenway's shares in the company and Hemenway retired.[5] In 1932, general manager George Ludlow Lee, Sr. acquired Vesco Tools Company's line of wood scrapers.[1] In the 1950s George Ludlow Lee, Sr. became chairman of the board.[2] In 1963 George Ludlow Lee, Jr. acquired Schalk Chemical Company adding adhesives and cleaners to the companies product line.[1]
