The Sippy Historic Machine Shop was created in 2021 to preserve a historic belt driven machine shop. It is set up as a replica of the shop Fred Davenport set up and operated from 1906 to 1962 and Frank Foriska owned and operated until 1995. Fred Davenport founded his machine shop to make marine and auto timers (distributors). Over the years, he designed, patented, and produced dozens of products i
n Meadville, including the “Davenport No.1” plain milling machine. Frank Foriska started working at Davenport Machine Shop in 1926 at age 14 – right out of 8th grade. He bought the shop from Fred Davenport in 1962 and operated it for 33 years. Lon Sippy relocated this vintage tool shop in 2021 to preserve the Meadville area’s tooling and machining heritage. As you will see on your visit, the hours and personal resources that he has put into this masterpiece are invaluable.
