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AMERICA'S FIRST
HOUSEWARES COMPANY
We artfully design and produce the world's finest flasks, kitchenware, and lifestyle goods.
Established in 1819, Jacob Bromwell® is internationally recognized as the oldest housewares company in the United States. The prestigious brand mark is rooted in excellence, history, and authenticity, and proudly reflects our founder's actual signature—made with his own hand. At a time when nearly all major housewares companies have moved their production entirely offshore, Jacob Bromwell® remains committed to supporting American workers, directly providing over 75 full time jobs to factory workers both domestically and abroad. Jacob Bromwell® continues to manufacture many of its products in the United States, with any products produced overseas made to exacting American standards. As a brand synonymous with the fabric of our great nation, we're proud to say, "We helped build America."
A STORY OF SUCCESS
The rich history of Jacob Bromwell® is linked to the entrepreneurial spirit of America.
Jacob Bromwell founded the eponymous lifestyle brand that still bears his name today during America's first major financial crisis, the Panic of 1819. James Monroe was the President of the United States. A mere 30 years earlier, at the Constitutional Convention on September 17, 1787, 38 delegates ratified the U.S. Constitution. We had yet to invent the light bulb, the telephone, the automobile, or even electricity. The Union had only 21 states, and the Land Run of 1889, which opened the Oklahoma Territory to settlement, was still 70 years away.
During this period, frontier entrepreneur Jacob Bromwell emigrated from Baltimore, Maryland, to a quaint Ohio hamlet coined Cincinnati, carved out of the virgin frontier forest. Mr. Bromwell, a veteran of the War of 1812, drifted down the Ohio River on a flatboat with a handful of wire looms where he was prudently able to jumpstart his entrepreneurship during the Panic of 1819. He called his business The Bromwell Brush Manufacturing Company. Cincinnati developed to become the "Queen City of the West," and as the city flourished, so did Jacob Bromwell's wire-goods business. Covered wagons, flatboats, and steamboats embarked on the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers delivering goods in a rapidly growing new nation.
The California Gold Rush began in 1848. During this new era, Americans caravanned to the West with their Jacob Bromwell® popcorn poppers, flour sifters, and frying pans. Years later, when the Civil War broke out in 1861, Jacob Bromwell® products continued to be a vital part of the pioneers' daily living. During this time, the company produced tin cups for Civil War soldiers - the very same Jacob Bromwell® cups we are still manufacturing here in the USA. The Transcontinental Railroad was completed in 1869, and Jacob Bromwell® was there through it all.
Jacob Bromwell® was manufacturing products in America for over 40 years before Abraham Lincoln was elected president in 1860. But reaching back further into our nation’s past, it is clear that Jacob Bromwell® embodies the “Buy American” beliefs that President George Washington, the father of American independence, put into practice. In the 1760s, Washington’s lone cash crop was tobacco. Most of which he exported to England, and he used the profits to purchase imported finished goods. Later, Washington formed his own personal Declaration of Independence from England, and switched from raising and exporting tobacco to raising corn and wheat. He then sold these items to local merchants and used the profits to buy finished goods from American craftsmen – the same kind of quality you will find at Jacob Bromwell® today.
In the early 1900s, Jacob Bromwell® moved to Michigan City, Indiana, where the company rejoiced in the Roaring 1920s but experienced the heartbreak of the Great Depression. During this time, the company operated just three days per week while unconditionally supporting as many hard-working Americans as possible. The company survived the daunting times by loyally adhering to its founding mission statement that it remains committed to today: to create the highest quality cooking, baking, and food preparation products that would last for generations.
Today, over 200 years since our company first began production, Jacob Bromwell® remains a household name and is universally recognized as America's oldest housewares company. We are still proudly manufacturing many of our products in the USA—supporting more than 35 American jobs here at home—with any products produced overseas made to exacting American standards. Furthermore, Jacob Bromwell® is family-owned and operated, and every year we continue to add innovative items to our line of heritage goods.
Few companies are so fortunate to have been around so long to celebrate more than two centuries of business. From our very first customer in 1819 to our modern-day worldwide presence, the only thing that's changed are the memories you create with Jacob Bromwell®. If Jacob Bromwell® could be transformed from a small wood-frame building in Cincinnati into one of America's leading housewares companies in a little over 200 years, what might the next century bring? One thing is certain: Jacob Bromwell® will be here to witness and find out.
Jacob Bromwell is Born
• 1785 •
Our story truly begins in 1785 with the birth of our founder, Jacob Bromwell (1785-1866), who was born in Richmond, VA, a country village not far from Cincinnati, OH. He is not to be confused with his grandson, Jacob Henry Bromwell, born May 11, 1848, who was a former U.S. Representative from Ohio. Mr. Bromwell is educated in the Quaker Schools of Baltimore, MD and becomes a young soldier of the War of 1812. He returns home with an entrepreneurial spirit and a strong desire to start his own business.
The Start of a Legend
• 1819 •
A frontier entrepreneur, Jacob Bromwell leaves Baltimore and forges his way across the American frontier. He travels west via the Ohio River on a flatboat, ending his journey in a small town with the funny name of Cincinnati. The Panic of 1819 strikes – America’s first major financial crisis – yet that same year he opens America’s first wire goods and housewares manufacturing company. Located at 181 Walnut Street, his company occupies all six floors and boasts over 1,000 products in its catalog.
Patented First Flour Sifter
• 1835 •
The company patents the world's first flour sifter and continues to create cutting-edge products that fulfill the demands of American pioneers, including shoe brushes, leather and wood horse shiners, dusting and window brushes, mops, rat traps, and corn poppers. They were meticulously crafted by hand with portions constructed on innovative machinery to quicken production.
A Pie Plate with a Pedigree
• 1848 •
Resourceful miners and pioneers of the Old West use our pie plates – sometimes called pie pans – to pan for gold during the California Gold Rush of 1848 as they search for infinite treasure. Our company still makes these pie plates the same way, and you can purchase them for baking something scrumptious for your next gathering. You might just strike gold!
Tin Drinking Cups
• 1862 •
The company supplies its tin drinking cups to Union and Confederate soldiers during the Civil War – marked U.S. for United States and C.S. for Confederate States. Standard issue during the Civil War, we still produce these cups today without welding, soldering, or rivets – all with a little help from the original machinery and equipment.
Continued Growth
• 1866 •
Jacob Bromwell spends his retirement years in Cincinnati surrounded by his children and grandchildren, and is greatly adored for his kind and amiable character. He is said to have been a large portly man and to have kept an open house and table for all his friends and kindred. He passes away in 1866 while demand for his company’s tin cups, popcorn poppers, graters and more increase, reaching new heights.
Official Incorporation
• 1883 •
During its first 50 years of business, the company undergoes several name changes, including The Bromwell Brush Manufacturing Company and The Bromwell Wire Goods Company. On February 12, 1883, the business files for incorporation and finally settles on the name The Bromwell Brush & Wire Goods Company.
100 Year Anniversary
• 1919 •
The Bromwell Brush & Wire Goods company celebrates 100 years in continuous business and remains family owned. The company has upwards of 1,000 employees in 7 states, including Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois. As the largest business of its kind, it bills itself as having "the largest capacity in the country.” Much of the manufacturing is done through convict labor, employing prisoners at wages averaging about 35 cents per day.
The Company Splits
• 1923 •
The fireplace division of the company is purchased by the Gerwe family, who opens a fireplace store in Cincinnati, OH that is still open today called Bromwell’s. It is now owned by the McClorey family and has been since 2005. The housewares division of the company (this company) is purchased by Leigh Products, Inc.
The Move to Michigan City, IN.
• 1925 •
Under the ownership of Leigh Products, the company gets relocated to a 4-story building at 601 N. Carroll Ave. in Michigan City, where they enjoyed the Roaring 1920s followed immediately by the heartbreak of the Great Depression. Sales fall drastically, yet the company continues to operate just three days per week to continue employing hard working Americans.
Numerous Distinctions Earned
• 1945 •
By 1945, the company earns numerous distinctions, including being "the oldest known manufacturer of tin and stainless steel products in the United States", "the oldest housewares company in North America", and "the 34th oldest continuously owned and operated company in the United States."
1 Millionth Popcorn Popper
• 1952 •
The Original Popcorn Popper, one of the oldest products in the product line, was originally sold at a wholesale price of $3.50 for a gross. In 1952, the company proudly announces the sale of its one millionth popcorn popper. Walmart celebrates its success with the company and special signs are put on display at Walmart stores to further promote the company’s products.
New Ownership
• 1987 •
Leigh Products divests its interest in the company and sells Bromwell Housewares outright to a private investor. Under new ownership in the late 1980s, Bromwell Housewares sustains its success and continues to distribute its namesake, mass market goods to nationwide discount stores, hardware stores, supermarkets, and drug stores, including Walmart, K-Mart, Target, and Ace Hardware. At this point, it is estimated that 1 in 4 American households owns a Bromwell product.
Relocation of Headquarters
• 1991 •
Headquarters relocates to Phoenix, AZ while the factory in Michigan City, IN continues to operate. While nearly all housewares companies based in America move production offshore to capitalize on low labor costs, Bromwell keeps production local due to its faith in the creativity and productivity of American workers. Lower cost imports make their way onto the shelves of big box retail stores, and demand for the company's products decline throughout the 1990s and 2000s.
Turnaround of an Icon
• 2010 •
With sales at an all-time low, Bromwell Housewares nearly files bankruptcy and disappears into history. New ownership steps in to revitalize the failing company which was once a household name. The Michigan City factory is closed due to unsafe worker conditions, while the product line is reduced and quality is vastly improved. The newly renamed Jacob Bromwell® brand is focused solely on producing best-in-class products.
The Move to Markle, IN.
• 2011 •
Jacob Bromwell® begins production at its new plant in Markle, IN, featuring state-of-the-art machinery and safe working conditions. Products manufactured at this factory include the Classic Tin Cup and Original Popcorn Popper, both of which have become important icons of 19th-century domestic Americana. By focusing on the brand’s reputation for durability, quality, and exclusivity, the company sees a resurgence in sales and a return to profitability.
Creators of a New Category
• 2012 •
Jacob Bromwell® brings to market the world’s first copper flask and it becomes an instant success, catapulting the company’s sales and helping to garner nationwide press in publications such as Country Living, People, Esquire, and Martha Stewart Living. In response to the increased demand, the company opens a domestic copper fabrication workshop in Vermont.
Greensburg Factory Conversion
• 2014 •
One of the company’s original factories located at 530 W. First Street in Greensburg, IN factory is converted into apartments. In fact, this two-story building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1990. How would you like to live in a building that once made Jacob Bromwell® tin cups, flour sifters, popcorn poppers, and wire-based household items?
Indiana State Museum Exhibit
• 2015 •
Jacob Bromwell® proudly donates several original pieces of machinery and equipment to a permanent exhibit at the Indiana State Museum in Indianapolis, IN. Historical Bromwell products can also be found at a number of museums across the country, including The Rossen House in Phoenix, AZ.
200 Year Anniversary
• 2019 •
The company proudly celebrates its 200th anniversary, serving a "cult following" group of customers, including homesteaders and environmentalists, hunters and fishers, the "chronically nostalgic", interior designers, and even Hollywood celebrities and U.S. Presidents.
Pewter Flask Line
• 2021 •
Jacob Bromwell® introduces a luxury flask line made out of solid pewter, using the same techniques as our copper flasks. The timeless looks and build quality of pewter allow these flasks to be shared across multiple generations, just like the appreciation for the fine spirits they hold.
Entry Into Luxury Watches
• 2023 •
In response to strong consumer interest for high quality timepieces with character, the company develops a process of infusing its authentic products into a unique timepiece that tell a story for generations. History takes on a whole new meaning when you can hold it in your hand.
