Thomas Dean Bigelow (1801-1863)
Thomas Dean Bigelow, Nail Manufacturer, of Montreal
His father was the first manufacturer of cut nails in Montreal and the first in Canada. He began on a very small scale - one machine and it was called a "horsehead" from the peculiar shape of the cutting lever. This machine was worked by horsepower. The workshop, for it was nothing more, was located on Bleury Street near the S. W. corner of Sainte-Catherine St, and where Almay's new store is building. The firm of T.D. Bigelow and Son was continued by his son, John, and later became Pillow & Hersey before being purchased by the Montreal Rolling Mills in 1903.
