Maker record
Bachmann Industries
Bachmann Industries is an American maker of model trains and railway accessories, with roots in a Philadelphia company founded in 1833 by Henry Carlisle. The business first made combs and other personal goods, later expanding into molded-plastic products. It entered model railroading with Plasticville building kits and began selling model trains in 1969, manufactured by Hong Kong’s Kader. Bachmann’s ranges have included locomotives, rolling stock, track, scenery and train sets in several scales, including HO, N, On30, O and G. Kader acquired the company in 1981; Bachmann has since added product lines including Spectrum and Big Haulers.
- Founded
- 1833
- Countries
- USA
- Locations
- Philadelphia, USA · 1833
- Founders
- Henry Carlisle
The story of Bachmann Industries
Henry Carlisle began a Philadelphia business in 1833 making Spanish combs from horn, ivory and tortoiseshell. After the Civil War it diversified into other hair ornaments and umbrella handles. In 1899, the business merged with the firm of carver Henry G. Bachmann and his son Walter J. Bachmann. It adopted celluloid for eyeglass frames in 1912 and later became Bachmann Brothers. In 1929 the firm moved to 1400 East Erie Avenue, Philadelphia, where Bachmann’s current headquarters is also located.
The company made products for the US war effort during the Second World War and later sold items including model kits, shooting glasses and ski goggles. Its injection-molding experience supported entry into railway modeling through Plasticville, a range of snap-together buildings for model railways. As the company diversified in the 1960s and 1970s, it also sold slot cars, toy aircraft, plastic animals and robots. Kader produced Bachmann’s first model trains in 1969. Kader acquired Bachmann from the Crowther family in 1981 and renamed it Bachmann Industries. Subsequent ranges included Spectrum locomotives and train sets and Big Haulers large-scale models, both introduced in 1988. Bachmann acquired Williams Electric Trains in 2007, extending its offerings to O-gauge three-rail trains.