Sign in

Private company

McMaster-Carr

Logo: McMaster-Carr, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons3

American industrial supply company

McMaster-Carr Supply Company is a private American supplier of hardware, tools, raw materials, industrial materials, and maintenance equipment. They function as a business-to-business company. The company was founded in 1901 and is based in Elmhurst, Illinois, with distribution centers in Robbinsville Township, New Jersey; Santa Fe Springs, California; Douglasville, Georgia and Aurora, Ohio.2 Wikipedia text CC BY-SA 4.0

Last updated Oct 21, 2026.

Overview

1901Founded1
  • HeadquartersElmhurst1

See how the biggest companies compare on our leaderboards

McMaster-Carr Supply Company is a private American supplier of hardware, tools, raw materials, industrial materials, and maintenance equipment. They function as a business-to-business company. The company was founded in 1901 and is based in Elmhurst, Illinois, with distribution centers in Robbinsville Township, New Jersey; Santa Fe Springs, California; Douglasville, Georgia and Aurora, Ohio. A new distribution center and regional headquarters began construction in June 2025 in Fort Worth, Texas, with completion expected in 2027.2

The story

The company was founded in 1901 at 160 East Lake street in Chicago as the McMaster-Davis Supply Company. Starting with $50,000 in investor capital, its founders were T.J. McMaster, a former stationary engineer, and F.C. Davis, who had been a chief engineer in the U.S. Navy. In 1904, an attorney with a background in mechanical engineering named Walter S. Carr purchased the company. As early as 1908, the name of the company had been changed from McMaster-Davis to McMaster-Carr.

Harry and James Channon, the sons of Henry Channon the founder of the H. Channon company, a large Chicago distributor of maritime and steam engine supplies, later purchased the company.

From Wikipedia’s article on McMaster-Carr, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.4

Products and brands

In 1908 the company printed and copyrighted its first catalog, at 506 pages in length. It releases its current catalog annually.

From Wikipedia’s article on McMaster-Carr, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.4

Timeline

  1. 1901Founded Founded1

Sources

The numbers on this page point here. Each one links to the record it came from.

  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4