He established a large factory—the Wakefield Rattan Company—for these manufactures in South Reading, Massachusetts, where his rattan works covered 7 acres (2.8 ha) of ground.

In 1868, South Reading voted to change its name to Wakefield, in recognition of his benefactions, particularly the gift of a town hall that cost $100,000.

He also gave $100,000 to Harvard University, and left other large philanthropic bequests.

In 1869, Wakefield and other business leaders petitioned and received a charter to open a savings bank that would serve the resident population of the town of Wakefield, numbering just over 4,000 people.

[3] The following year, Wakefield lost his fortune during the Panic of 1873.