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The Definition of Durability: 10 Manufacturing Companies That Have Reached the Century Mark
These are no y-by-night manufacturers. Each one has been around for at least 100 years, and
several are many years beyond that milestone.
Jill Jusko | Oct 27, 2019

We are back with another set of U.S. manufacturing companies that have been around for a lifetime -- or at
least 100 years. IndustryWeek has been pursuing this series of salutes to century-young manufacturers since
we published our first gallery on the topic in 2013.

With the continued strength of U.S. manufacturing -- and your help -- we expect to continue adding new
members. It's no small achievement to earn a century badge, and we applaud the staying power of these
manufacturers.

This gallery showcases 10 manufacturing companies, in alphabetical order. Below are links to previously
published slideshows that introduce many more. If you know of manufacturing companies we should add to
our growing series, please drop us a line.

Other galleries in our Century Salute include:

• 100 Years and Growing: Manufacturers Meet the Challenge of Business Longevity Part 1
• 100 Years and Growing: Manufacturers Meet the Challenge of Business Longevity Part 2
• 100 Years and Growing: Manufacturers Meet the Challenge of Business Longevity Part 3
 • Staying Power: 100-year-old (and More) US Manufacturing Companies
• Time Tested: 100-year-old (and More) US Manufacturing Companies
• A Century in the Making: A Salute to Manufacturing Company Longevity

Andersen Corp.

1. Andersen Corp.: Windows to the World Since 1903

Danish immigrant Hans Andersen and his family founded the company that would become Andersen Corp. in
1903 as the Andersen Lumber Co. in Hudson, Wisc. In 1904 it began making window frames, and in 1929 the
company changed its name to Andersen Frame Co. The privately held window and door manufacturer changed
its name to Andersen Corp. in 1937 and now calls Bayport, Minn., home to its headquarters.

Pictured here is Andersen's traveling window display, the brainchild of sales manager Jim Rowland in the
1930s. The vehicle, a 1929 Buick Master five-passenger coupe, originally was the personal vehicle of Fred
Andersen. Rowland replaced the trunk with a custom-built display and away he went. The traveling display
was retired in the late 1930s.
 Bullard

2. Bullard: A Safety Start in 1898

Bullard traces its origins to 1898 and San Francisco, where the company founded by Edward Dickinson Bullard
supplied carbide lamps and mining equipment to gold and copper miners. In 1919 the company introduced the
"hard boiled" hat, a safety helmet devised by the founder's son. That son, E.W. Bullard, drew inspiration for
the hard hat from the doughboy army helmet, which he'd worn as a soldier in World War I. The hard boiled hat
was originally manufactured from steamed canvas, glue, a leather brim and black paint, according to the
Bullard website. Today Bullard is a manufacturer of a range of personal protective equipment and systems, and
has its headquarters in Cynthiana, Ky.

Pictured here are Bullard hard hats through the years.

Chelsea Clock
3. Chelsea Clock Co.: Its Time Began in 1897

In 1897 Charles Pearson purchased the Boston Clock Co. and renamed it Chelsea Clock , so you could argue
that this clockmaker's origins date back even further than 1897. The company, which handcrafts and repairs
premium clocks at its location in Chelsea, Mass., also produces barometers and tide instruments. Notable
recipients of a Chelsea Clock include Bob Hope and General Douglas MacArthur, and the clocks have been
displayed in the White House.

Cummins
4. Cummins Inc.: Powering the World Since 1919

Clessie Lyle Cummins built his first steam engine when he was 11, so the story goes, and his interest in engines
never wavered from then on. In 1919, Cummins founded Cummins Engine Co. in Columbus, Indiana, with
backing from banker William G. Irwin—but not before Cummins held a host of other jobs: chauffeur, pit crew
member and automobile repair shop owner. Cummins developed his first engine as a licensee of R.M. Hvid
Co., but it was not long before he began developing completely home-grown designs.

This photo, circa 1932, shows a 125-horsepower Cummins Model H-equipped Mack test bus. The 32-seater test
bus traveled from New York City to Los Angeles in 91 total trip hours and 78 hours running time. It reached
speeds of up to 65 miles per hour.
 Freedman Seating

5. Freedman Seating Co.: Founded in 1894

Even before establishing his own company in 1894, Freedman Seating Co. founder Hyman Freedman garnered
attention for his seating expertise. In 1893 Freedman exhibited with his then-employer at the 1893 World's
Columbian Exposition in Chicago, and his upholstery skills earned him an honorable mention. Early company
efforts included making seat cushions for horse-drawn buggies. Freedman Seating, which calls Chicago home,
also patented several seating-related technologies before the Great Depression. Today the company continues
to make seating for many applications, including bus, marine, rail and commercial vehicles.

The picture shown here is circa 1960.

Lodge Manufacturing Co.

6. Lodge Manufacturing Co.: It Began with a Foundry in 1896

Cookware manufacturer Lodge Manufacturing got its start in South Pittsburg, Tenn., when Joseph Lodge and
his wife settled in this Appalachian Mountains town and opened a foundry. The company then was known as
Blacklock Foundry, named after Lodge's friend and minister, and enjoyed some success until 1910, when it
burned down. Rebuilt and reborn as Lodge Manufacturing Co. , the company remains family-owned and is
perhaps best known for its cast iron cookware.

Mill-Rose Co.

7. Mill-Rose Co.: Cleveland-born in 1919

Like many companies with a lengthy history, Mill-Rose Co. 's path to manufacturing prowess was not
straightforward. In fact, it had a sweet start. Founder Victor H. Miller established the Mill-Rose Co. in 1919
when he bought a confectionery store on Cleveland's east side and, meanwhile, also produced wire postcard
racks and displays. His work led to a contract to make percolator brushes for a manufacturing company, and
thus began Mill-Rose's entry into the business of making twisted wire brushes. It wasn't until 1925, by the way,
that Miller ceased confectionary operations to focus on making brushes.

Pictured here is Victor H. Miller.

Red Wing Shoe Co.

8. Red Wing Shoe Co.: Walking Tough Since 1905

As the turn of the 20th Century approached, observant shoe merchant Charles Beckman identified a need for
tough footwear to meet the sometimes-harsh working conditions of such industries as mining, logging and
farming. He set out to fill that void, and in 1905 he opened Red Wing Shoes in Red Wing, Minn., where the
headquarters remains today. In 2005, the shoe manufacturer commemorated achieving the century mark by
constructing a huge boot of the same materials used to build a Red Wing shoe. The boot is 20 feet long, 16 feet
high and 7 feet wide, and resides at the flagship store.
 Twin Disc Inc.

9. Twin Disc. Inc.: Established in 1918

Twin Disc. Inc. launched in Racine, Wisc., in 1918 with the introduction of the twin disc farm tractor clutch,
and its product line has long since expanded from there. Key moments for Twin Disc include the lead into
World War II, when Twin Disc was asked to design a marine transmission for the Higgins landing craft. Today
the company started by P.H. Batten produces power transmission technology for both marine and land-based
applications.
The photo shown here displays production efforts in the 1930s.

Victaulic

10. The Victaulic Co.: Patented Beginning in 1919

The history of Victaulic began in 1919, when Lieutenant Ernest Tribe of the Royal Engineers developed and
filed a patent for what is now known as the Victaulic coupling. Tribe and other investors founded the Victory
Pipe Joint Co. Ltd. in London and in 1922 renamed it the Victaulic Co. Ltd. "Victualic" is a combination of the
words "victory" and "hydraulic." Victaulic Company of America was established in 1925. Today Victaulic, with
headquarters in Easton, Pa., manufactures mechanical pipe joining and flow control solutions across a broad
range of markets.

Pictured here is a large diameter coupling.

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