Walden Worcester was formed as the Walden Manufacturing Company in 1906 by F E and Charles Walden. Warren S Bellows purchased the company in 1907. Among the first products were a laminated wrench and a wire-handle ratchet with pressed steel sockets. By 1913, Walden was producing single loop and T-handle wrenches in large numbers as automotive repair shops were opening throughout the industrial world. Specialty sets were being sold for several prominent cars including Ford, Overland, Buick, Dodge, Chevrolet, Maxwell, and Ford tractors. Display boards were set up in hardware stores with as many as 100 different tools and served as the main source of advertising.
A name change to Walden-Worcester Inc. takes place in 1916. Sales expand to at least 40 countries after the war and a new plant is erected in 1920 to meet demand. The modern facility has 2 ½ acres of floor space with railroad access along the Boston & Albany.
Competition, the new factory, and litigation expense forced Walden-Worcester into receivership with reorganization taking place in 1921. A merger with Stevens & Company takes place in 1926 with a name change to Stevens Walden-Worcester. This may be the first time a catalog is published showing their tools. Before this, collectors relied on trade publications and tool sets for information on Walden-Worcester products.
