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In the early nineteenth century, New York State put into effect a system in which contractors could bid on the right to have prisoners make goods to sell outside the prison walls. For about fifty-six years-from 1821 until 1877-a large number of contractors tried to run businesses using prison labor to make planes, tools, and other products. From the very beginning, state manufacturers who were not involved in the system vehemently complained. Using inexpensive prison labor, they claimed, put them at a major disadvantage in the market place. Laws were enacted in order to protect these "outside" tradesmen, but these seem to have been largely ignored. The workings of the prison became known as the Auburn-or congregate-system after the Auburn State Prison in Auburn, New York. These planes are well-documented by Kenneth and Jane Roberts in their book Planemakers and Other Edge Tool Enterprises in New York State in the Nineteenth Century.'
The Robertses give many examples of in-prison manufacturers in their book. Samuel Dunham and Truman J. McMaster started manufacturing planes in 1821 at Auburn prison with four or five convicts.2 Apparently, this was a very small-scale operation, and the "Dunham and M'Master" mark is relatively uncommon. By 1825, T. J. McMaster & Co. had taken over the business and was employing ten convicts. Even though T. J. McMaster had the advantage of inexpensive labor, the company had trouble selling the tools in the Eastern market, so McMaster turned to Southern hardware dealers. Collecting debts was also a problem for McMaster, and he eventually could not meet his obligations to the state. In 1839 he relinquished the contract with the Auburn prison to his brother Zalmon J. McMaster, who moved the planemaking operation to Sing Sing prison in the eastern part of the state on the Hudson River.
Between 1839 and 1877, many different contractors ran the shops in Auburn and sold planes bearing their marks (Figures la & lb). Contracts were granted to Dunham & McMaster (1821-1825), T.J. McMaster & Co. (1825-1839; an example of one of these planes is found on the back cover), Young & McMaster (1839-1846), ZJ. McMaster & Co. (1846-1847), Casey, Kitchell & Co. (1847-1858), Casey, Clark & Co. (18581864), Auburn Tool Co. (1864-1867), J.M. Easterly & Co. (...