Nicholson File Company (Cooper Industries) 1907 - 1908 signed by Nicholson

Beautifully engraved certificate from the Nicholson File Company issued in 1907 -1908. This historic document was printed by the International Banknote Company and has an ornate border around it with a vignette of William T. Nicholson sitting in a rocking chair. This item is hand signed by the company's president, Samuel M. Nicholson and its treasurer, George Nicholson.

At the turn of the 20th century, it was claimed that the Nicholson File Company in Providence contained the world’s largest file factory. This certificate is over 91 years old.

In 1972, Nicholson File Company was acquired by Cooper Industries. From its origins more than 165 years ago as a small iron foundry in Mount Vernon, Ohio, Cooper Industries has evolved into a worldwide manufacturer of electrical products, tools and hardware.

Brothers Charles and Elias Cooper founded Cooper in 1833. For more than 125 years, Cooper was primarily a one-market company, manufacturing power and compression equipment for the transmission of natural gas. In the 1960s, Cooper began to diversify, eventually broadening its product lines to include petroleum and industrial equipment, electrical products, electrical power equipment, automotive products, tools and hardware.

Although diversification served Cooper well for approximately 30 years, the economic realities of the 1990s made it clear Cooper's strategy had to change. To thrive in today's increasingly competitive global marketplace, Cooper began to focus on becoming a larger player in selected markets, selling and spinning off a number of businesses to focus on its two most profitable business segments: Electrical Products and Tools & Hardware.

Today, Cooper manufactures thousands of products through its seven electrical products divisions, which generate over 80 percent of annual revenues, and one tool division, which represents both our power tool and hand tool lines. Headquartered in Houston, Texas, Cooper has annual revenues of approximately $5.0 billion, employs approximately 30,000 people and operates more than 100 manufacturing facilities around the world.