Most of our old woodworking machines are powered by electric motors. A few dozen companies made those motors, and this page provides a brief listing of those companies.
| Company | City | Years | Comments |
| Advance Electric Co. | St. Louis, MO | -1920- | From patent records. No confirmed motor sightings. |
| Louis Allis Co. | Milwaukee, WI | 1901-1977- | Louis Allis left his father's company, E. P. Allis, just before the merger that created Allis-Chalmers. Louis Allis Co. was Mechanical Appliance Co. until 1922. OEM supplier for Oliver. |
| Allis-Chalmers Manufacturing Co. | Milwaukee, WI | -1901-1960- | Better known as an agricultural equipment maker, but they manufactured motors for many years. |
| American Electric Motor Co. | Milwaukee, WI | -1929-1933 | Acquired by Cedarburg Manufacturing Co. They had been a subsidiary of Splitdorf-Bethlehem Electrical Co. of Newark, NJ. Cedarburg went bankrupt in 1939. |
| Baldor Electric Co. | St. Louis, MO. | 1920-present | In 1967 HQ moved to Forth Smith, AR. One-time supplier of motors for Delta Unisaw and Powermatic 66. |
| Bodine Electric Co. | Chicago, IL | 1905-present | Still in business, specializing in very small industrial motors. |
| Brown-Brockmeyer Co. | Dayton, OH | -1929-1981 | Made motors for some Montgomery Ward machinery. |
| Burke Electric Co. | Erie, PA | -1908-1957- | |
| Century Electric Co. | St. Louis, MO | -1910-1993- | By the late 1970s they were owned by Gould Inc., and motors were labeld "Gould/Century". By 1993 the name was Magnetek Century Electric, Inc. |
| Cleveland Electric Motor Co. | Cleveland, OH | -1885-1957- | |
| Crocker-Wheeler Electric Co. | Ampere, NJ | -1888-1936- | Also "Crocker-Wheeler Co.", "Crocker-Wheeler Electric Manufacturing Co.", and "Crocker & Curtis Electric Motor Co." |
| Cushman Electric Co. | Concord, NH | -1900-1942- | |
| Dayton Fan & Motor Co. | Dayton, OH | -1889-1929 | Also "Day-Fan Electric Co.", which was acquired by General Motors in 1929. |
| Dayton Electric Manufacturing Co. | Niles, IL | 1905-1989- | Owned by W. W. Grainger, Inc. as of 1966. |
| Delco Products Corp. | Dayton, OH | -1910-present | Also known as "Dayton Engineering Laboratories Co.", "Delco-Light Co." and "Delco Products, Division of General Motors Corp." Became part of Lincoln Electric, which is now owned by Leeson. |
| Diehl Manufacturing Co. | Elizabeth, NJ; Somerville, NJ | -1909-1958- | By 1965 they were the "Diehl Division of Singer Co., Somerville, NJ". Diehl supplied motors for Sears, Roebuck. |
| Doerr Electric Corp. | Cedarburg, WI | 1939-1986 | Began as "Electro Machines, Inc." Acquired by W. W. Grainger in 1969, then sold to Emerson in 1986. It is uncertain when the Doerr name disappeared. |
| Domestic Electric Co. | Cleveland, OH | -1916-1929- | A reported example had a 1911-05-23 patent date but the likely patents on that date were assigned to Allis-Chalmers. |
| Electric Specialty Co. (Esco) | Stamford, CT | -1921-1950- | Main business was motor-generator sets but they also sold freestanding motors. |
| Electro Dynamic Co. | Bayonne, NJ | -1906-2000 | Moved to Avnel, NJ sometime before 1976 following a fire at the Bayonne plant. |
| Electric Motor Corp. | Racine, WI | ?-1945 | This producer of fractional horsepower motors was purchased by Howard Industries in 1945. Some former employees then started Rae Motor Corp. |
| Emerson Electric Co. | St. Louis, MO; Paris, TN | 1890-present | Originally known as "Emerson Electric Manufacturing Co." They are now a conglomerate. U.S. Electrical Motors, Inc. was acquired in 1962, and now operates as "U. S. Motors". |
| Fairbanks-Morse Electrical Manufacturing Co. | Indiananpolis, IN | -1911-1969- | |
| Fidelity Electric Co. | Lancaster, PA | -1918-1976- | |
| Galvin Electric Manufacturing Co. | St. Louis, MO | -1925-1931- | |
| General Electric Co. | Schenectady, NY | -1889-present | Was "Edison General Electric Co." until about 1895. From the 1890s, GE battled with Westinghouse to be the dominant motor manufacturer. |
| Hobart Manufacturing Co. | Troy, OH | -1920- | This company is known for their food mixers but they also briefly made AC motors. |
| Holtzer-Cabot Electric Co. | Brookline, MA | 1875-1972 | Began as the "Holtzer Co." in 1875, then became "Seth W. Fuller & Holtzer" in 1880, then "Holtzer & Co." in 1888, then "Holtzer & Cabot" in '89 then "Holtzer & Cabot Electric Co." shortly thereafter. They primarily made smaller motors, 1 HP and under. |
| Hoover Co. | North Canton, OH | 1908-present | By 1945 Hoover had acquired Kingston-Conley, and K-C motors displayed the Hoover logo. It is possible that Hoover made their own motors before the K-C acquisition. |
| Howard Industries, Inc. | Racine, WI; Chicago, IL | 1945-1983- | Formed after WWII when Howard Aircraft Corp. sold their aircraft making assets, bought Racine-based Electric Motor Corp., and renamed it. Howard motors have been spotted on Rockwell/Delta radial arm saws. |
| Howell Electric Motors Co. | Plainfield, NJ | 1920-2007 | Connected to Kingston-Conley in some way. Our best guess is that Howell bought K-C in 1958 and in 1963 Kingston-Conley was absorbed into Howell. The name changed to "Howell Electric Motors, Inc." sometime after 1961. Probably supplied to Boice-Crane. Acquired by Kinetek, Inc., in 2007. |
| Imperial Electric Co. | Akron, OH | -1891-present | |
| Jack & Heintz, Inc. | Cleveland, OH | -1942-1956- | Also known as "Jack & Heintz Precision Industries, Inc." |
| Jeannin Electric Co. | Toledo, OH | -1916-1935- | This company is known from patent records. No confirmed motor sightings. Related to Howell in some way? |
| Kimble Electric Co. | Chicago, IL | -1909-1948- | Best known for their motors with integrated electro-mechanical controllers. Used on Oliver lathes. Later motors labeled "Star-Kimble". |
| Kingston-Conley Electric Co. | Jersey City, NJ; North Plainfield, NJ | 1934-1963 | Acquired by Hoover Co. sometime before 1945. Motors after that time had both Kingston-Conley and Hoover names. Seems to have been acquired by Howell in 1958 and absorbed in 1963. Made motors and grinders for Atlas, Millers Falls, Stanley, Walker-Turner, and others. |
| Leeson Electric Corp. | Milwaukee, WI | 1972-present | Acquired by Regal-Beloit Corp. in 2000. Acquired Lincoln Electric Co. motors in 2006. |
| Leland Electric Co. | Dayton, OH | -1926-1951- | There was also a Leland Electric Canada Ltd. Leland probably supplied motors to Walker-Turner. |
| Leland Faraday Electric Co. | New York, NY | -1969-1986- | Brand now belongs to Essex Technology, Inc. |
| Lincoln Electric Co. | Cleveland, OH | 1895-2006 | Known as "Lincoln Motor Works Co." in the very early years. Acquired by Regal-Beloit Corp. in 1999 and it became "Lincoln Motors". Acquired by Leeson Electric Corp. in 2006. |
| Mechanical Appliance Co. | Milwaukee, WI | -1914-1922 | Renamed to Louis Allis Co. in 1922. |
| Marathon Electric Manufacturing Co. | Wausau, WI | 1913-present | Became "Marathon, Inc." at some point. For many years the main motor supplier for Unisaws. Also supplied Montgomery Ward. |
| Master Electric Co. | Dayton, OH | 1920-1961? | Closed its Dayton plant in 1961. Made some motors for Delta (combo units, e.g.), possibly including some rebadged as Delta. Also supplied to Sears, Roebuck. Acquired by Reliance? |
| Norge Corp. | Muskegon Heights, MI | -1927-1961- | So far as we know, Norge made appliance motors that have occasionally been adapted for workshop use. Norge was acquired by Borg-Warner Corp. in the late '20s or early '30s. Norge relocated to Fort Smith, AR, in 1961. |
| Ohio Electric & Controller Co. | Cleveland, OH | -1920-1930- | |
| Packard Electric Co. | Warren, OH | 1890-1932 | The Packard Motor Car Co. spun off in 1902. GM bought Packard Electric in 1932. |
| Peerless Electric Co. | Warren, OH | 1893-present | Supplied motors to Sears, Roebuck. |
| Prestolite-Leland Co. | Sarnia, ON | | Canadian motor maker. The few reported examples are all 1 HP or less. |
| Rae Motor Corp. | Racine, WI | 1946-present | Formed by former employees of Electric Motor Corp., which had been bought by Howard Industries. |
| Reliance Electric & Engineering Co. | Cleveland, OH | 1904-2006 | Acquired the Medium AC Motor Division of Westinghouse in 1986. In 1994 Reliance was acquired by Rockwell Automation but continued to operate under the Reliance name. Acquired by Baldor in 2006. |
| Reuland Electric Co. | Alhambra, CA; Howell, MI | 1945-present | Company began as repair shop in '30s; made first motor in '45. Moved from Alhambra to City of Industry in '63. |
| Reynolds Electric Co. | Chicago, IL | -1902-1944- | |
| Robbins & Meyers Co. | Springfield, OH | -1893-present | Have seen "Robbins & Meyers Co.", "..., Inc.", "..., Corp.", Supplier for Powermatic 65/66 saws. |
| Sangamon Electric Co. | Springfield, OH | -1924- | |
| A. O. Smith Corp. | Milwaukee, WI | 1904-present | A. O. Smith started out making automobile frames. They got into the motor business roughly... In 1986 they Bought Westinghouse's small motor business. In 1999 they bought Magnetek's motor operations. |
| Star Electric Motor Co. (Semco) | Newark, NJ | -1916-1931- | |
| Star-Kimble Motor Division, Miehle Printing Press & Mfg Co. | Bloomfield, NJ | -1950-1966- | The name "Star-Kimble Electric Co." was also used. Descended from Kimble Electric Co. and Star Electric Motor Co. |
| Sterling Electric, Inc. | Irvine, CA | 1927-present | |
| B. F. Sturtevant Co. | Boston, MA | -1902-1945 | The company dates back to 1856 but motor manufacture started about 1902. The company was acquired by Westinghouse Electric in 1945. |
| Sunlight Electrical Manufacturing Co. | Warren, OH | 1917-1919 | This motor manufacturer was very quickly acquired by GE. Their motor designer, Frederick S. Kingston, went on to co-found Kingston-Conley. |
| Triumph Electric Co. | Cincinnati, OH | -1907-1921- | From patent records. No confirmed motor sightings. |
| United States Electrical Manufacturing Co. | Los Angeles, CA | 1908-present | Became the "U.S. Electrical Motors Division of Emerson Electric Co." in 1962. |
| U. S. Industries, Inc. | Los Angeles, CA | -1915-1962 | This maker of AC induction motors became a conglomerate, and around 2004 changed its name to Jacuzzi Brands, Inc. |
| Valley Electric Corp. | St. Louis, MO | -1920-1942- | Original name was "Valley Electric Co." Suffix changed to "Corp." in about 1939. Edwin Ballman co-founded Baldor while he was working at Valley Electric. |
| Wagner Electric Manufacturing Co. | St. Louis, MO | 1891-present | An early motor supplier to Delta. Still in business as "Wagner Lighting Co." |
| Joseph Weidenhoff, Inc. | Chicago, IL | -1929-1961- | Reportedly acquired by Snap-On in 1956. |
| Western Electric Co. | Chicago, IL | 1872-1983 | Western Electric brand motors were made for them by General Electric and by Robbins & Meyers. |
| Westinghouse Electric Co. | Pittsburgh, PA | 1889-present | Also known was "Westinghouse Electric and Manufacturing Co." and "Westinghouse Electric Corp." GE and Westinghouse were the two biggest makers of electric motors. Westinghouse supplied 1/3, 1/2, and 3/4 HP general-purpose motors to Delta from roughly 1942-47. |
| S. A. Woods Machine Co. | Boston, MA | 1920-1962 | Starting about 1920, S. A. Woods started manufacturing motors for its own use. Their high quality motors were designed for direct drive applications and were also sold to other machinery manufacturers. "The Murray Co." name was used during the war years. In 1961 Yates-American purchased the rights to all of S. A. Woods' products including the motor line. |