SAVE THE DATE, APRIL 24-27, 2024, ANNUAL MEETING IN WILLIAMSBURG, VIRGINIA
Online Event Registration
Note! - After registering on line, please download the registration form to mark your choices of Trades Shops visits and return to the address on the form.
Do you have a passion for collecting tools?
Are you also interested in historic trades,
crafts and industries?
Perhaps you'll join us on this fascinating journey.
For 90 years EAIA has been the go-to community to learn about American tools, trades and industries.
Join our 1000+ members, share in the conversation and enjoy the resources that we offer.
Master Cabinetmaker Chris Nassise works in the recently opened Cabinetmakers Shop at Old Sturbridge Village. The Shop design and construction was kicked off by suggestions and a major matching grant from EAIA members at the 2017 Annual Meeting in the Village. The subsequent design and construction were supported by in-kind labor and gifts from EAIA members.
✔ Annual Meetings
✔ Regional Meetings
✔ Quarterly Print Publication
✔ Quarterly PDF Newsletter
✔ Blog with 150+ Articles
✔ Social Media Groups
Henry Disston Factory, Philadelphia, Courtesy Old Sturbridge Village
Why Go It Alone?
It's difficult to pursue your interests alone without resources and support.
That's where we can help. The EAIA has access to resources that individuals do not, such as long standing relationships with museums, collectors and knowledgeable experts, We have networks of people who can provide support and advice.
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With over 90 years behind us, we can get you the answers and advice you'd have trouble finding otherwise.
EAIA members at our Old Quebec City annual meeting
In-Depth Information about Tools and Collecting
Well written articles are constantly published about tools and collections, and many members are leading collectors.
Benefits
Insights Into Historical Trades and Crafts
Interested in woodworking, fiber and textiles, blacksmithing? So are our members. We sponsor several demonstrations throughout the year.
Well Researched Articles on Historic Industries
Toolmakers, industrial machinery, agriculture and more are well represented in articles and factory tours.
I love being a member of the EAIA community, which brings together a great variety of people who bond over our interests in American industrial endeavors from the establishment of the colonies through the early twentieth century. We come from many different walks of life and bring with us a variety of inquisitive perspectives. I’m a furniture maker and historian. I connect with members who do trade work, craft work, research, and writing; people who collect and sell tools; and tinkerers. I’m always learning new and interesting things from articles in our top-notch publication The Chronicle, finding out about member projects and recent events in our newsletter Shavings, and chatting with fellow members at our yearly gathering. Our Annual Meeting is by far the best conference I attend all year. Organizers put together a substantial schedule of unique tours, special demonstrations, and engaging presentations. I take advantage of the tool sales and exchanges where I find high quality antique tools for my work and hard to find books for my reference library. The silent auction at the meeting’s closing banquet is a highlight for me. Camaraderie makes our gatherings fun and lively.
Sharon C. Mehrman
Testimonials
In the early 1980s, I went to an antique show at William and Mary college where I found a table of antique tools for sale. I purchased two nice looking wooden planes which the seller said were made by Baltimore plane makers. Problem was I didn’t know anything about antique tools nor Baltimore plane makers. I looked for information on the planes, and it being pre-internet days, had a hard time finding any. By chance I eventually found a publication that made reference to EAIA , joined, and I was hooked.
I found information there about my new interest. The dues were reasonable, and the newsletter and The Chronicle magazine kept my interest alive. But the bonus was EAIA is so much more than antique tools. If you have an interest in early Americana, history, trades, and tools, then EAIA is for you. Our annual and regional meetings are held across the country, from Maine to New Orleans. My wife and I have attended many meetings, and make a vacation out of it. With the internet and social media, access has never been easier. Being a member, attending meetings, and serving on the board have been a great pleasure in my life. Give it a try.
Richard P. Cunningham
As a collector and omnivorous old-stuff guy, membership in EAIA is one I cherish above the rest. The Chronicle is one of the finest club publications out there, not just because of the superior quality of the scholarship presented within its covers, but because of the array of fields and topics it explores. It is the perfect, tangible expression of an essential organization! EAIA fosters the study and perpetuation of the ways the “good stuff “of the past was created and utilized, and in doing so, does a great service to historians, enthusiasts, collectors, museums, and future generations alike.
Erik Goldstein, Senior Curator of Mechanical Arts, Metals, & Numismatics at the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation
90 Years of History
Leading Tool Collectors
Professionally Edited Printed Quarterly Publication
Quarterly PDF publication,
full of interesting articles
by members and staff
Blog with more than 100 articles on Tools, Trades, and Industries
What Membership to EAIA Brings
Great Factory Tours
Private Showings
Regional Meetings
Expertise in Many Areas
of interest
Social Media Groups
Including Facebook
and Instagram
And much more!
