Wright Brothers & Co.

Allgemeines

NameWright Brothers & Co.
OrtssitzPhiladelphia (Penns.)
StraßeMarket Street 322+324
Art des UnternehmensSchirmfabrik
Anmerkungen[Hexamer] mit dem Zusatz: "Umbrellas & Parasols Factory & Stores". Lage: Market Street und Hudson Street (Südwest-Ecke).
Quellenangaben[Bishop: History of American manufacturers 3 (1868) 77] [Hexamer General Surveys, Plate 354 (1868)]




Unternehmensgeschichte

Zeit Ereignis
1816 Die vier Brüder John, Joseph, Edmund und Samuel Wright kommen aus England in die USA und treten in das Geschäft von Fischbein für die Schirmherstellung ein.
1820 Gründung durch die vier Brüder John, Joseph, Edmund und Samuel Wright aus Oxfordshire, England
1860 Die Firma hat mehr als die Hälfte des gesamten Kapitals, das bei der Schirmherstellung in den USA eingesetzt wird.




Produkte

Produkt ab Bem. bis Bem. Kommentar
Schirme 1868 [Hexamer Surveys] 1868 [Hexamer Surveys]  




Maschinelle Ausstattung

Zeit Objekt Anz. Betriebsteil Hersteller Kennwert Wert [...] Beschreibung Verwendung
1868 Dampfkessel 2   unbekannt          
1868 Dampfmaschine 1   unbekannt          
ab Dec. 1873 Dampfkessel 1   Babcock & Wilcox Co. Heizfläche 80 qm Wasserrohrkessel  




Allgemeines

ZEIT1868
THEMAFirmenbeschreibung
TEXTPhiladelphia, in 1860, had more than one half the whole capital that was employed in the United States in the manufacture of Umbrellas and Parasols. There were in the city about twenty of those establishments, and among them one that, it is believed, was the largest in the world. We refer to that of Wright Brothers & Co., a house that was founded in the year 1820 by four brothers - John, Joseph, Edmund, and Samuel Wright, natives of Oxfordshire, England, but who came to this country in 1816, and embarked in the business of preparing whale-bone for Umbrellas, to which they added, in the year named, the manufacture of the finished article. During the first ten years of their experience as manufacturers of Umbrellas, their production did not probably at any time exceed one hundred per day; but for the long period of forty-five years, with the exception of a few months, they have kept their manufactory in operation uninterruptedly, and in the busy seasons they have produced from twenty-five hundred to three thousand Umbrellas and Parasols per day. The exception alluded to was during the early part of the late Rebellion, when finding the demand for the articles of their manufacture had almost ceased, and their five hundred employees, principally females, in danger of suffering for want of their accustomed means of livelihood, they con /erted their establishment into a manufactory of army clothing; but when their contracts with the Government, amounting to a half million of dollars, had been executed and completed, they resumed their regular business, never having lost, in any degree, their perfect organization. The manufactory and sales rooms of this firm are located at 322 and 324 Market Street, in a four story building, owned by themselves, having a front on Market Street of thirty-six feet, and extending in depth two hundred and six feet, widening in the rear to Hudson Street, on which the front is sixty-five feet. Steam power and a great variety of machinery are employed in all the manufacturing operations, superseding, to a considerable extent, hand labor, and thereby insuring uniformity of size and strength in the various parts, and giving to the finished article a beauty and accuracy only obtainable by the use of the best mechanical means. But probably the secret of the remarkable success of this firm in their department of manufactures may be attributed to their advantages in procuring, on the most favorable terms, the raw materials that are required. Whalebone, which was formerly a prominent article of consumption in this manufacture, is now almost entirely superseded by rattan and steel, in consequence of its great cost, caused by the singular failure of the whale fisheries. To ensure a supply of rattans of the requisite quality, possessing the necessary hardness and elasticity, this firm have established connections in Hamburg, where alone the best quality, that is the Dutch East India Company's "selected", can be obtained, and their importations amount to two hundred and fifty thousand pounds annually, nearly all of which they consume in their manufactures; and that which is not suitable for their purpose, they dispose of to others, especially chair and basket makers. They have also favorable and extensive connections established with leading houses in Europe, through whom they obtain their Silks, Scotch ginghams, and various other materials direct from first hands, and of Which, in a yearly production of over a half million of umbrellas and parasols, great quantities are necessarily consumed. The head of this firm is Samuel Wright, the youngest and only surviving brother of the four who originally established it. For many years he has been the active manager of the establishment, and during a business career of a half century, has always been distinguished for honor and integrity in his dealings, and liberal and enlarged commercial views. Many of the mechanical improvements that give this firm their facilities for rapid production, are the offspring of his inventive genius. Though advanced in years, he continues an active supervision of the affairs of the firm, being aided by his three sons, who are now associated with him.
QUELLE[Bishop: History of American manufacturers 3 (1868) 77]