At Lawton —
In 1879, Civil War Veteran Charles Lawton and his uncle, E.W. Arndt, established the Novelty Manufacturing Company in De Pere, Wisconsin. The company’s name would later be changed to The C.A. Lawton Co. Their first invention was the “Bran Dresser,” a device designed by Lawton’s father to separate bran from flour.

What was happening in the world?
1879 was also the year that Thomas Edison invented the lightbulb.

In 1885, the Statue of Liberty was gifted from France to the United States as a symbol of unity and independence.

At Lawton —
In 1886, Jones Bank ran into financial difficulty and, as a result, closed its doors. Because the Novelty Manufacturing Company had taken out a loan from Jones Bank, its financial difficulty nearly caused the young company to close its doors. However, because of the generosity of local business owners, the company was able to stay afloat.

By 1890, Charles Lawton was able to pay off all debts owed to the local businesses who had given assistance to the company. Lawton then went into business for himself and changed the name of the company to The C.A. Lawton Company.

What was happening in the world?
In early May 1893, the New York stock market crashed in an event known as the Panic of 1893. This event precipitated a four-year depression that was second only to the Great Depression.

At Lawton —
In 1904, Charles Lawton began a partnership with a man named Edward Lauson. Together, they formed an independent manufacturing company within the Lawton factory and called it the Lauson-Lawton Company.

The most profitable result of this partnership was the Lawton-Lauson gasoline engine. It was built in 1909 and was also known as the “Wisconsin” engine. Since electricity had not yet reached rural farming areas, Lawton and Lauson used the Lauson-Lawton engine to power portable generators. These conveyor belts transported silage into silos and mechanically processed grain.

At Lawton —
In 1917, the first generation president and company founder, Charles Lawton, passed away after dedicating 38 years to the company. The company was then taken over by Charles Lawton’s son, Edward Lawton.

What was happening in the world?
In 1917, the United States entered World War I, declaring war on Germany.

In 1919, World War I officially came to an end with the signing of the Treaty of Versailles.

During the post-war 1920s, the United States experienced an economic boom. For the manufacturing industry, this resulted in increased demand for coal on both the consumer and commercial sides of the market. Edward Lawton saw this as a great opportunity to expand the company’s consumer product offering. In 1928, Lawton began developing a line of coal stokers. This remained a profitable outlet for years until oil and natural gas replaced coal as a chief source of energy.

In 1929, the Great Depression began when stock prices fell by 23 percent, triggering a market crash. To this day, the Great Depression remains the longest, most profound, and most widespread depression in history.

At Lawton —
The Great Depression also had a significant impact on Lawton. The Lawton-Lauson Company disbanded in 1930, and the Buhl Company, with whom Lawton had been producing air compressors, went bankrupt. Because of this, the total production costs of the air compressors fell on Lawton. In addition, many dedicated workers were laid off. Those who stayed on, including Edward Lawton and his family, took dramatic pay cuts. Some weeks, payroll was missed altogether.

To create a financial foundation and prepare for the future, Lawton began producing Rotor Stator presses, which led to the development of molding presses for rubber and plastics manufacturing in 1937. This product line enabled the company to establish a foothold in the increasingly profitable hydraulic press market and achieve stability.

In 1939, after a long decade of hardship, the Great Depression was finally coming to an end. Edward Lawton was feeling worn out and decided it was time for his son, Charles A. Lawton II, to take over as president. Edward Lawton stayed on as vice president.

Also in 1939, a small band of men began designing the Lawton Roll Wrapper. Two brothers by the last name Witbro came to Charles Lawton and his father with an idea for a machine that became known as the Lawton Roll Wrapper. The purpose of the machine was to wrap toilet paper rolls in a tissue overwrap. Before its advent, factory workers were only able to wrap 5 to 7 rolls per minute by hand. This machine could wrap 50 rolls per minute automatically.

What was happening in the world?
In 1941, after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, the United States entered World War II.

At Lawton —
When the United States entered World War II in 1941, The C.A. Lawton Co. began manufacturing products for the war effort, including ship propellers, submarine parts, and hydraulic shell banders. Through building a machine to band artillery shells, Lawton assisted in enhancing the accuracy and range of guns used on American ships during World War II.

What was happening in the world?
In 1945, Japan finally surrendered, officially bringing an end to World War II.

In 1955, the Vietnam War began. This war was precipitated by decades of political conflict and became inevitable when the United States became involved in President Ngo Dinh Diem’s fight against communism in Vietnam.

At Lawton —
Between 1967 and 1969, The C.A. Lawton Co. began production of nylon tooth gears. This was the first major innovation in decades for power transmission. The Lawton design was a significant innovation for workplace safety in the paper industry, as it reduced noise levels in manufacturing facilities.

Until 1971, Charles Lawton III was the only engineer at the company with a degree. The rest of Lawton’s engineers were trained through its apprenticeship program. However, in 1970, one of Lawton’s designs was engineered incorrectly. This flaw in engineering cost the company between $35,000 and $40,000. As a result, Lawton began hiring degreed engineers and adopted a culture that was focused on engineering and the efficiency of the process.

In 1973, Charles Lawton II passed away suddenly, leaving his sons, Randall W. Lawton and Charles A. Lawton III, to carry on the company legacy. In order to figure out who would take over as president after the passing of their father, Randall Lawton and Charles Lawton III decided to flip a coin. Charles Lawton III then took over as president.

Towards the end of 1973, The C.A. Lawton Co. decided to enter into a joint venture with Rothe Foundry of Green Bay. Lawton’s foundry needed updating. However, this would be a costly investment. By entering into a joint venture with Rothe, Lawton could combine its small foundry operation with Rothe’s and make investing in a new foundry worthwhile. This relationship lasted until 1978 when Rothe went bankrupt.

What was happening in the world?
In 1975, the Vietnam War came to an end. Saigon had finally fallen, and the people’s army of Vietnam had won.

At Lawton —
In 1978, Randall W. Lawton took over as president of The C.A. Lawton Co. Additionally, after the bankruptcy of Rothe, Bay Engineered Castings (BEC) was formed. BEC became the brand identity for Lawton’s foundry and the castings it produced. Charles Lawton III remained involved as treasurer of BEC.   

In 1983, a recession hit. This recession led to the decline of Bay Engineered Castings. In order to restore the company, Randall Lawton took over as president of BEC. His first action as president was to hire leadership-minded individuals and assist them in designing better processes, both for manufacturing and communication.  

By 1985, through Randall’s leadership, Bay Engineered Castings was on its feet again.

What was happening in the world?
In 1991, the World Wide Web was introduced, and for the first time ever, a global connection was possible via the internet.

September 11, 2001, was a devastating day in our nation’s history. On this day, terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon resulted in the deaths of nearly 3,000 people. We forever remember the victims and heroes of 9/11.

At Lawton —
Just after 9/11, a recession hit Lawton’s corner of industry in 2001.

In 2003, the company was still struggling due to this industry recession, so Alex Lawton, son of Randall Lawton, decided to work part-time to assist his father. Alex focused on BEC while Randall focused on Lawton, and together they rebuilt the company.  

In 2005, there was a boom in the waterworks industry, and Lawton immediately took advantage of this opportunity. This resulted in new business for the company and an inflow of capital that helped it become profitable once again. 

On June 6, 2006, Alex became the fifth-generation president of The C.A. Lawton Co. Months later, on December 21, 2006, Bay Engineered Castings and The C.A. Lawton Co. merged through a reverse merger, becoming one company. The foundry became the Lawton foundry. 

In 2008, a recession hit. This was known as The Great Recession due to the dramatic decline in the economy and the prolonged period it took to recover. During the recession, those who stayed on at Lawton took pay cuts and worked only three weeks per month to avoid laying people off.

At Lawton —
After the recession, in 2011, Lawton focused on rebuilding financially and repaying everyone for their sacrifices during the recession. They also made new hires and took advantage of a post-recession boom in the natural resources market, manufacturing parts needed for mining, oil, and gas, as well as the agriculture industry, through 2014.

In 2015, Alex decided to begin using the lean business model at Lawton. Later that year, he met Barry Adamski, who became COO of Lawton, at a business function. They began discussing Alex’s plan to integrate lean into Lawton, and Alex found that Barry was also an advocate for this business model.

In early 2016, Barry began splitting time between another job and Lawton in order to provide support for Lawton’s lean journey. By the summer of 2016, Barry joined the company full-time as COO and as an ally to Alex in getting the company on board with Lean.

Most recently, in 2018, Lawton initiated the development of its social media marketing program to reach new audiences to sustain its success well into the future. Additionally, Lawton began working with a customer it pursued for almost 15 years. Now that this company has become familiar with Lawton and its capabilities, they are treating the company as a significant supplier partner. Additionally, a major multinational industrial company has designated Lawton as its only gold-status preferred supplier of its type within its network.

At Lawton —

In January 2020, The C.A. Lawton Company & Temperform combined to serve customers better. This merger will allow each company access to the other’s products and enhance value-added offerings across their customer bases. This new specialty metals platform will operate under the umbrella of Oakland Standard. This firm specializes in helping organizations grow through mergers and acquisitions as well as facility and automation investments. (Learn More)

In April 2020, Damascus Steel Casting Company joined Temperform and The C.A. Lawton Co. (Learn More)

In July 2020, Midwest Manufacturing & Logistics joined The C.A. Lawton Co. family. Midwest Manufacturing & Logistics, an iron foundry located in Minster, Ohio, operates as a second location of The C.A. Lawton Co. (Learn More)

In February 2021, Penn-Mar Castings joined The C.A. Lawton Co. family. Penn-Mar Castings, a gray-and-ductile iron foundry located in Hanover, Pennsylvania, joins the platform. (Learn More)

In April 2021, The Lawton Standard Co. announced its metals platform.

In August 2022, Northern Iron & Machine (St. Paul, MN) joined the Lawton family.

In November 2022, American Iron (Versa-Bar) joined the family. 

In July 2023, AMSCO Wear Products, Inc. was added to the family. 

In March 2024, Lawton Standard combined with Renaissance Manufacturing Group. 

What was happening in the world?

A global pandemic, COVID-19, changes the way we live, work, and view safety. View COVID-related updates here.