COMPANY·HISTORIES

U.S.A

Companies based in U.S.A, and the events that shaped them.

16companies1897–1993founding years16still active0no longer operating
§ 01

U.S.A companies over time

Companies foundedEconomyTechnologyEnvironment
FoundedMiddlesex Water Company
1897
FoundedThe Salvation Army USA
1899
1903
TechnologyThe Wright brothers achieve powered flight.
1908
TechnologyThe Ford Model T brings the automobile to the middle class.
FoundedRalphs Grocery Company
1909
1913
EconomyThe Federal Reserve is created.
1914
EconomyWorld War I begins; global trade reorders.
FoundedGC Companies, Inc.
1922
1929
EconomyThe stock market crashes; the Great Depression begins.
1933
EconomyNew Deal reforms reshape banking and industry.
1939
EconomyWorld War II begins; wartime production surges.
1945
EconomyThe war ends; a long postwar expansion begins.
1947
TechnologyThe transistor is invented at Bell Labs.
FoundedLillian Vernon Corp.
1951
FoundedG.I. Joe's, Inc.
1952
FoundedTidewater Inc.
1956
EconomyThe Interstate Highway program remakes commerce.
1958
TechnologyThe integrated circuit is demonstrated.
FoundedOrleans Homebuilders, Inc.
1959
1962
EnvironmentSilent Spring launches the modern environmental movement.
FoundedEdmark Corporation
1970
EnvironmentThe EPA is founded; environmental regulation expands.
1971
EconomyThe dollar leaves the gold standard; Nasdaq opens.
FoundedDelicato Vineyards, Inc.
1973
EconomyThe OPEC oil embargo triggers a global shock.
1975
TechnologyThe personal-computer era begins with the Altair.
FoundedOtis Spunkmeyer, Inc.
1977
1979
EconomyA second oil crisis drives inflation higher.
1981
TechnologyThe IBM PC launches and sets a standard.
FoundedRedhook Ale Brewery, Inc.FoundedSunGard Data Systems Inc.
1982
1984
TechnologyApple ships the Macintosh; the GUI era begins.
1987
EconomyBlack Monday: markets fall 22% in a single day.
1991
TechnologyThe World Wide Web is released to the public.
FoundedAavid Thermal Technologies, Inc.
1993
TechnologyThe Mosaic browser brings the web to everyone.
1995
TechnologyWindows 95 launches; the internet goes mainstream.
1997
EconomyThe Asian financial crisis rattles global markets.
EnvironmentThe Kyoto Protocol sets the first climate targets.
2000
EconomyThe dot-com bubble bursts.
2001
EconomyThe September 11 attacks; a recession follows.
2004
TechnologySocial media and Web 2.0 begin to take hold.
2007
TechnologyThe iPhone launches the smartphone era.
2008
EconomyThe global financial crisis freezes credit.
2010
TechnologyCloud computing goes mainstream for business.
2015
EnvironmentThe Paris Agreement sets global climate targets.
2020
EconomyThe COVID-19 pandemic upends the global economy.
2022
EconomyInflation spikes; central banks raise rates sharply.
2023
TechnologyGenerative AI reaches mainstream business use.
§ 02

The companies

Reed & Barton Corporation →
Active
Founded: 1824 as Babbitt & Crossman NAIC: 339912 Silver and Plated Ware Manufacturing Family owned, Reed & Barton…
World Book, Inc. →
Active
Founded: 1917 Employees: 5,600 Sales: $200 million SICs: 2731 Book Publishing; 5963 Direct Selling Establishments World…
Middlesex Water Company →
Active · founded 1897
Operating out of Iselin, New Jersey, Middlesex Water Company provides water services on both a retail and wholesale…
The Salvation Army USA →
Active · founded 1899
From baking donuts during World War I to the ubiquitous bell ringers and red kettles of the last years of the 20th…
Ralphs Grocery Company →
Active · founded 1909
Ralphs Grocery Company is the largest food retailer in Southern California, and is showing signs of eventually evolving…
GC Companies, Inc. →
Active · founded 1922
Although it invests in industries as diverse as optical superstores and cable television operators, GC Companies, Inc.,…
Lillian Vernon Corp. →
Active · founded 1951
The Lillian Vernon Corporation is a mail-order catalog company specializing in household, gardening, and decorative…
G.I. Joe's, Inc. →
Active · founded 1952
A regional retailer with a unique merchandise mix, G.I.
Tidewater Inc. →
Active · founded 1956
Tidewater Inc.
Orleans Homebuilders, Inc. →
Active · founded 1959
With its headquarters in the Philadelphia suburb of Bensalem, Pennsylvania, Orleans Homebuilders, Inc.
Edmark Corporation →
Active · founded 1970
Edmark Corporation is a developer and publisher of educational software and educational print materials for the…
Delicato Vineyards, Inc. →
Active · founded 1973
Delicato Vineyards, Inc.
Otis Spunkmeyer, Inc. →
Active · founded 1977
A rising contender in the foodservice industry, Otis Spunkmeyer, Inc.
Redhook Ale Brewery, Inc. →
Active · founded 1982
Redhook Ale Brewery, Inc.
SunGard Data Systems Inc. →
Active · founded 1982
SunGard Data Systems Inc.
Aavid Thermal Technologies, Inc. →
Active · founded 1993
Aavid Thermal Technologies, Inc., founded in 1993, is the world's technology and market leader in thermal management.
Build It Today

How would you build this today?

Each week we rebuild one of these stories for today's tools and capital.