You'll see that many of the early tools used in home and field were made of wood. Someone had to make them, and this was a tool used to do so. The schnitzelbank originated in Germany. The name literally means "scrap bench" or "chip bench" (from the colloquial German verb "schnitzeln," "to make scraps" or "to carve," and "bank", meaning "bench"). Just as they did with many other useful European tools, immigrants appropriated the schnitzelbank to the New World. They used it to make tool handles, wooden rakes, hayforks and more. Woodworkers of today still use a schnitzelbank!