Baldor is a well-known maker of motors and bench grinders. They were founded in 1920 by Edwin Ballman (who was working for Valley Electric Co.) and Emil Doerr. They operated for a brief time as St. Louis Electrical Works, and then with the name created by combining letters from their respective surnames.
In 1939, Emil's son Lee and two brothers founded Doerr Electric Co., which was acquired by W. W. Grainger in 1969. In 1972, Lee's sons formed Leeson Electric Corp., which was acquired by Regal-Beloit Corp. in 2000.
Information Sources