E.H. Wachs600 Knightsbridge Parkway, Lincolnshire, Illinois, United States

Since our founding in 1883, E.H. Wachs has enjoyed a rich history of product innovation and market leadership that has endured for over 135 years. The story of Wachs encompasses three centuries, four continents and four generations of the Wachs family.

The story begins in Europe, where a young Edward H. Wachs decided to emigrate from Germany to America. He began his career as an apprentice machinist in Ohio, before moving to Chicago, IL. In 1883 he founded a steam fitting firm that bore his initials and name - E.H. Wachs.

At first focused solely on steam fitting, after several years he recognized the need for a simple and reliable steam engine. E.H. Wachs designed and began manufacturing the Wachs Vertical Steam Engine, a single cylinder, double-acting vertical engine that ultimately would be manufactured in power ratings from 1 HP to 60 HP. The design of this steam engine proved so fundamentally sound that it would remain in constant production for the next 80 years.