In 1886, a blacksmith decided to begin improving the farriers' tools available at that time. George B. DeArment spent the cold northwestern Pennsylvania winters hand-forging tools in a small two-story factory in Evansburg, PA, now called Conneaut Lake. When warmer weather arrived in the spring, he would load his wagon with all the tools he had forged and travel from town to town selling his wares until the wagon was empty. Then he would sell the horse and wagon, and catch a train back to Evansburg to begin the process again.
1893 proved to be a difficult year for George B. DeArment. All the company's cash assets were lost after a local bank teller left town with the bank's funds, leaving the Champion Bolt & Clipper Company, and many other businesses, broke. With the help of a few local businessmen and his wife, Eva, George obtained the needed capital and had the company up and running again in 1894.
DeArment's business continued to grow, and in 1904 the Champion Bolt & Clipper Company moved to Meadville, PA. The town of Meadville enticed George B. to move his company by offering him a loan of $6,000. He accepted their offer and moved into a 12,000 square-foot facility, paying an incredible $150 a year in rent (payable up front). It was at that time that Champion expanded its product line to include nippers, pinchers, and open-end wrenches, as well as horseshoeing tools.
Seven years later, in 1911, George's sons, Almon W. and J. Howard DeArment became partners in the business. After the retirement of George B., the two brothers took over the company, Almon directing development and production, and brother J.H. in charge of sales and administration. In 1914, the brothers once again expanded Champion's product line, this time to include hammers. After the death of George B. in 1917, Champion was soon on the move again, literally.
By 1963, the word Channellock was so synonymous with their product that the company's name was changed from Champion-DeArment Tool Company to Channellock, Inc. in order to preserve the trademark and capitalize on its extensive name recognition. In 1965, Channellock, Inc. was granted its third patent, this time for the conical surface created on the cam side of the pliers when undercut.
In 1980, brothers George S. and William A. became co-chairmen of the Channellock, Inc. board of directors, and handed over the reigns of management to William S. DeArment, son of William A. When William S. was named company president and general manager, Channellock, Inc. employed over 500 people, with sales in excess of $20 million per year.
In 1984, CHANNELLOCK received a patent for the "Perma-Lock®" fastener used on all CHANNELLOCK® tongue and groove pliers and all slip-joint plier products. In 1988, the unique color "CHANNELLOCK BLUE®" was granted trademark protection by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. More to read at their website: http://www.channellockproducts.com
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