Erie J. Sauder (August 6, 1904 – June 29, 1997) was an American inventor and furniture-maker. He invented a knock-down table in 1951 and founded a company that produced ready-to-assemble furniture—one of the largest in the United States at the time of his death.

Early life

Sauder was born in

Archbold, Ohio Archbold is a village in Fulton County, Ohio, United States. The population was 4,346 at the 2010 census. Archbold is home to Northwest State Community College. It was designated a Tree City USA by the National Arbor Day Foundation in 1983. H ...

, to Daniel and Anne (Schrock) Sauder. In 1927, he married Leona Short. He had only an

eighth grade Eighth grade (or grade eight in some regions) is the eighth post-kindergarten year of formal education in the US. The eighth grade is the ninth school year, the second, third, fourth, or final year of middle school, or the second and/or final ye ...

education and was a

Mennonite Mennonites are groups of Anabaptist Christian church communities of denominations. The name is derived from the founder of the movement, Menno Simons (1496–1561) of Friesland. Through his writings about Reformed Christianity during the Radic ...

cabinet maker A cabinet is a case or cupboard with shelves and/or drawers for storing or displaying items. Some cabinets are stand alone while others are built in to a wall or are attached to it like a medicine cabinet. Cabinets are typically made of wood (s ...

. Sauder worked at the Archbold Ladder Company in his home town before he started his own business in 1934.

Manufacturing companies

The Sauder Woodworking Company initially manufactured church pews, tables and other items. In 1954, he formed the Sauder Manufacturing Company and later diversification included the Archbold Container company. The Sauder Woodworking Company manufactured ready-to-assemble furniture, while Sauder Manufacturing handled church furniture, and the Archbold Container company dealt in materials for packaging. With over 3,200 employees, at the time of his death, the Sauder companies constituted one of the largest companies producing ready-to-assemble furniture in the United States. In 1975 Sauder retired, but the businesses continued to be run by family.

Sauder Village

After retiring, Sauder started Sauder Village which depicts life in nineteenth-century Ohio.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sauder, Erie J. 1904 births 1997 deaths People from Fulton County, Ohio American Mennonites 20th-century American inventors