Henry Marcus Quackenbush (April 27, 1847 – September 8, 1933), commonly called "H.M.", was an American inventor and industrialist who founded the H.M. Quackenbush Company in Herkimer, New York. His company was widely known for its air rifles and for the invention of the metal, spring-jointed nutcracker. Early apprenticeship and invention of extension ladder Quackenbush was born in Herkimer, New York, in 1847. At age fourteen, he began an apprenticeship at gun manufacturer Remington Arms Co., where he acquired skills as a metalworker and gunmaker. At the age of 16, he invented the extension ladder, which he patented on Oct. 22, 1867, and then began manufacturing them himself, until he sold the patent for $500. Several years later, he left his job at Remington to start his own metal working and gun shop in his hometown of Herkimer. It was a good running shop. The H.M. Quackenbush Co. In 1871, he founded the Quackenbush Company in Herkimer, New York, and obtained his first air gun patent (issued June 6, 1871) for his Eureka air pistol. The pistol is now a collectors item. Air rifles The company began producing air rifles in 1876. Their spring/air design, as well as the steam-powered manufacturing plant itself, were considered to be innovative at the time. In the 1880s, they began mass production of so-called "gallery guns", and the Quackenbush name appeared in carnival and amusement arcade shooting galleries throughout the United States. The company went on to play a key role in the standardization of shot sizes for shotguns and air-guns, and to produce many models of their very popular Quackenbush air rifles. Nutcrackers In 1913, Quackenbush invented the spring-jointed nutcracker and a nutpick, designs still in wide use today. Over the years, his company produced over 200 million, and metal nutcrackers seen today stamped with the hallmark "HMQ" or "QBC" were those made by the Quackenbush. The company stopped making air guns in the 1930s, but continued making nutpicks and nutcrackers. Other innovations The company also developed and manufactured many other products over the years -- ranging from rifles and sport firearms to kitchen gadgets and seafood tools. Based on U.S. Patent Office records, H.M. Quackenbush and his company were responsible for inventing, or significantly contributing to the development of, numerous early 20th century inventions, including: bicycles; a foot-powered wood lathe; the scroll saw; darts; stair rails; the extension ladder; a bathroom shelf;