original early 20th century american industrial well-built freestanding solid cast iron factory lathe machine bases or legs designed and fabricated by the f.e. reed company, worcester, mass. the matching set of legs were salvaged from an old ohio factory complex undergoing demolition. each elegantly designed machine base has been brushed down to bare metal and sealed with a clear coat lacquer. manufacturer markings in the form of deeply embossed lettering run vertically along each stretcher. priced for the pair. free from cracks or breaks. company founder frederick e. reed entered in the industry in the 1870's when he joined wood, light & co., makers of iron-working machinery and power transmission equipment. in the late 1870's he bought out the a. f. prentice & co. and operated it under his own name. the company underwent a period of rapid expansion, and f. e. reed became one of the biggest machinists' lathe makers in the world. in 1891 his foreman, john r. black, became a partner and the firm added "& co." to the name. at their peak production around 1912, reed & co. employed over 1,000 workers. their iron foundry supplied castings to other worcester-area (massachusetts) machinery makers, including l. robbins and p. blaisdell & co. measure 27 x 8 1/2 x 30 inches.