As a young man growing up near Grand Blanc, Harry Walker had a choice – he could run the family threshing business or go to college.

His decision to pursue academia and let his brother take over at home resulted in a respected Jackson business now commemorating its century mark.

Modern Machine Tool Co., 2005 Losey Ave., turns 100 years old next April, but the celebration begins this fall.

"We've had our ups and downs, but ultimately, we produce a satisfactory product and we've advanced to keep up with the times," said Steve Walker, president. "We have a good engineering staff and good employees. This is an exciting milestone."

Steve Walker and his cousin Greg, vice president, are the third generation of their family to guide Modern Machine Tool Co.

Harry Walker, their grandfather, was the first. He made his decision to go to Michigan Agricultural College — now Michigan State University — as a 14-year-old.

"He was an exceptionally bright student and there was this program where you could go to high school and college at the same time," Steve Walker said. "He graduated from high school at 14 and from college at 18."

Harry Walker started out teaching school and had various other jobs before he landed as master mechanic at the Buick Motor Co. plant at Wisner and Ganson streets in Jackson just after the turn of the 20th century.

When Buick left Jackson for Flint, Harry Walker stayed.

There was a 500-square-foot factory with a dirt floor at 601 Water St. where pulleys and long belts turned a single motor that hung from the ceiling and powered equipment that made cut-off machines used for cutting and forming tubing, pipe or bars for manufacturing.

This company — The Holton Co. — had been formed in 1914 by Harry Holton, Harry Bowen and George E. Holton.

Harry Walker joined its ranks in 1916 when the company was incorporated. In 1920, he bought controlling interest in what then had been renamed Modern Machine Tool Co. By 1930, the Walker family had acquired total stock in the company.

Up to the Great Depression, Modern Machine Tool Co. had nearly doubled in size to 12 employees. As hard times hit, though, there were days when Harry Walker was the only man running the plant.

As smart as he was at engineering, Harry Walker was equally smart at marketing, Steve Walker said. This resulted in Modern Machine Tool Co. supplying the U.S. military's mobile machine shops during World War II.

Harry Walker's sons, Walter and Bert, had joined their father in the business by then. Both served their country during the war — Walter in the South Pacific and Bert in Palestine, where he ran a factory that made gas cans.

After the war, as technology improved, the company switched from producing manually operated cut-off machines to automatic ones.

By 1950, 37 people were employed by Modern Machine Tool Co. and the company needed more room. So in 1952, a new 11,000-square-foot building was constructed on Losey Avenue.

Soon after, Harry Walker retired after 40 years of running the company, leaving the reins to his sons. Throughout the 1960s and '70s, the brothers made additions to the 4-acre site to keep up with changing technology and demands.

Steven Walker, Walter's son, joined the company full time in 1972, followed by Greg Walker, Bert Walker's son, in 1979. They helped guide the business into the computer age.

Since 2000, Modern Machine Tool Co. has produced a complete line of computer numerical control (CNC) cut-off machines. And specialized, custom engineered projects have become the norm.

The company currently employs 28 people.

Tidbits

• Cut-off machines, like those manufactured by Modern Machine Tool Co., make it possible to cut off pipe, tubing and bars without leaving a burr or obstruction, or crushing the wall of light-gauge tubing.

• Historically, the machines have been used in various industries from small garages and machine shops to large automobile plants and railroad shops.

• Besides cut-off machines, the company, after World War II began manufacturing safety drill tables, which were installed on drill presses to quickly and efficiently hold parts safely. This was a significant aspect of the business for years.

• Modern Machine Tool Co. started out selling directly to large manufacturers. Today, the company primarily sells to Tier 2 and Tier 3 vendors that supply parts to manufacturers.