Machinist's Tool Chest, about 1920

Machinist's Tool Chest
Some chests have evolved along functional lines. The drawers and compartments of this chest organize the machinist's precision tools and protect them from damage. A lock keeps the tools from being "borrowed."

This tool chest also symbolizes the autonomy once enjoyed by skilled workers. Management may control the physical workplace, but factory workers still retain some sense of independence through their skill and ownership of tools.

Harold Latham used this chest while a foreman at United Shoe Machinery Company of Beverly, Massachusetts.


GotoBack to the main page