Lisle Corporation

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Lisle Corporation
Type Privately owned
Industry Manufacturing
Founded 1903
Founder(s) C.A. Lisle
Headquarters Clarinda, Iowa
Products Automotive tools

The Lisle Corporation is an American manufacturer of specialty automotive tools.[1] It is an independent, privately owned corporation that has been operated in Clarinda, Iowa by members of the Lisle family since its founding in 1903.

The company manufactures more than 400 different automotive tools and related items, including the Jeepers Creepers line of mechanic's creepers,[2] and its products are sold at a variety of retailers throughout the United States, including O'Reilly Auto Parts and Sears.


Lisle was founded in 1903 by C.A. Lisle, originally manufacturing horse-powered water well drilling machines. The company soon expanded its offerings to include washing machines, cream separators, and reel lawn mowers.

In the 1920s, the company entered the automotive market when it began producing master ignition vibrators for the Ford Model T. It then introduced its first tool, a valve refacer. In the 1930s, the company began manufacturing a line of magnetic drain plugs, which were used in various pieces of military equipment in World War II. In 1943, the company was one of several to win the Army-Navy production award.[3] After the war, the automotive aftermarket boomed and the company began to focus on specialty automotive tools.[4]


  1. ^ "Still going strong". Professional Tool & Equipment News. 2005-10-01. Retrieved 2010-01-02. 
  2. ^ "Creeper fit for back- and the job". The Toronto Star. May 11, 2002. p. G.16. Retrieved January 2, 2010. 
  3. ^ "37 INDUSTRIAL PLANTS GET WAR JOB AWARDS; Army-Navy Pennants Are Presented for Production". The New York Times. June 29, 1943. p. 32. Retrieved January 2, 2010. 
  4. ^ Lisle Corporation. "About Us". Retrieved 2010-01-01. [dead link]

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