The Family Business 100: America’s oldest family companies
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* Denotes new listing
21 1774
Stuart Land & Cattle Co.
Stuart family
Cattle
Rosedale, VA
Henry Smith started Clifton Farm in 1774. When his great-granddaughter Mary Taylor Carter married William Alexander Smith, she brought a dowry of 80,000 acres, which Stuart added to his own large land holding. Eighth-generation proprietor William Alexander (Zan) Stuart died at age 85 in 2008; his widow, Lynda, now runs the operation. Zan Stuart’s children and grandchildren own stock.
22 1776
Westcroft Gardens*
de Beausset family
Nursery
Grosse Ile, MI
www.westcroftgardens.com
Brothers William and Alexander Macomb purchased the island of Grosse Ile from the Pottawatomie Indians on July 6, 1776. William purchased Alexander’s share of the property in 1791. After getting into debt, William’s son David Macomb sold the central part of Grosse Ile, which included Westcroft, to his cousin John Anthony Rucker II, who in 1835 built a large white house that still stands. Rucker’s cousin Robert Lee Stanton purchased the farm and house to bring his widowed mother, Alexandrine Macomb Stanton, back to Grosse Ile. Stanton’s main product was hay for horses that pulled the Detroit trolleys. With the advent of the automobile, his son Ernest Newman Stanton changed Westcroft into a nursery specializing in acid soil plants (rhododendrons, azaleas, laurels, dogwood). Connie Lee Stanton de Beausset inherited Westcroft in 1984; her daughter, seventh-generation member Denise de Beausset, is now owner/manager. Niece Erica Mesedahl works with her. Over the generations Westcroft has shrunk to 27 acres in the middle of a bedroom community.
23 1780
Laird & Co.
Laird family
Brandy distiller
Scobeyville, NJ
www.lairdandcompany.com
America’s oldest licensed distiller and importer of wines and spirits produces Applejack, Apple Brandy and other spirits under the Lairds, Banker’s Club, Five O’Clock and Senators Club names. In 1717, an ancestor opened Colts Neck Inn. Robert Laird, a Revolutionary War soldier, first distilled AppleJack in 1780 to serve at the inn and gave his recipe to George Washington. In 1812, Robert’s son Samuel took over the inn. The distillery flourished until it was destroyed by fire in 1849. In 1851, Samuel’s son Robert moved the distillery to its present site. The company survived Prohibition by selling cider, applesauce and other apple products. Since 1990, it has imported wines and spirits from Europe and Canada. Eighth-generation member Larrie W. Laird, daughter Lisa Laird Dunn and nephew John E. Laird III now head the company.
24 1783
Juanita M. Joiner Farm
Joiner family
Agriculture
Millen, GA
The Joiner family farm, between Augusta and Savannah, survived Sherman’s march. The family has produced cotton, peanuts and timber. Ancestors include a chaperone of Henry VIII’s wife Catherine of Aragon. Robert Joiner now runs the farm and hopes to start a new commercial venture on the site.
25 (tie) 1789
George R. Ruhl & Son Inc.
Ruhl family
Bakery supplies
Hanover, MD
www.grruhl.com
In 1789, Conrad Ruhl established the company as a flour and feed mill. The family closed the milling operation in the mid-1800s and began distributing flour to bakers in Baltimore. The firm survived the Baltimore fire of 1904 by tossing flour barrels into the harbor. The company transitioned to baking supplies in 1915. Sugar was added to the product line in 1950 and mixes in 1960. The company took its current name in 1972, when fifth-generation member George Ruhl III became owner and president. He began incorporating other categories and expanding to new states. The company now distributes dry and frozen goods. Sixth-generation members Erin and Bill Ruhl work alongside their father.
25 (tie) 1789
Nathan Trotter & Co. Inc.*
Etherington family
Non-ferrous metals
Coatesville, PA
www.nathantrotter.com
Nathan Trotter, a Quaker from a family of entrepreneurs in Colonial Philadelphia, founded a metal importing company on the banks of the Delaware River in 1789. He provided tin to craftspeople who turned it into pewter; the business became a major East Coast metal importer. The company evolved into a manufacturer of tin and tin alloys. Now based in Coatesville, Pa., with a warehouse in Milwaukee, it’s also a source of lead alloys and other non-ferrous metals. In addition, it offers metal recycling. Current company president Russ Etherington worked alongside his father-in-law, fifth-generation member Thomas Henry “Harry” Dixon (d. 2011), who was a direct descendant of Nathan Trotter. Etherington’s sons Luke and Ben, great-great-great-grandsons of the founder, now are vice presidents at the company. Non-family member Peter Morris became a shareholder in the company in 1984.
27 1798
Alan McIlvain Company
McIlvain family
Lumber, custom mouldings
Marcus Hook, PA
www.alanmcilvain.com
Hugh McIlvain, a Quaker of Scotch-Irish descent, started a lumber company in Philadelphia. In the late 1700s, the company transported lumber from sawmills to the lumberyard via rivers and canals. The company bypassed the Embargo Act of 1807, which stopped all shipments to and from American ports, by selling lumber to home construction companies. The company thrived with the advent of the railroad era. It survived a 1906 fire that destroyed its Philadelphia lumberyard because a 138-carload delivery was en route when the fire broke out. It supplied lumber to shipyards in World Wars I and II. In 1946, McIlvain closed its retail store to focus on industrial clients. Today, Alan McIlvain is president and Gordon McIlvain is vice president of purchasing. Members of the seventh generation recently joined the company.
19th Century
28 1801
Crane & Co.
Crane family
Paper manufacturing
Dalton, MA
www.crane.com
Together with two partners, Zenas Crane, son of a paper engraver, founded a one-vat paper mill. In 1879, his grandson W. Murray Crane won the contract to make U.S. currency paper. Later, Murray served as governor of Massachusetts. The company, which is also known for its social stationery, now makes currency paper for foreign governments in addition to the U.S., including emerging economies. It also produces security features embedded in paper currency and makes security papers for U.S. and Swedish passports. Sixth-generation member Charles Kittredge is CEO.
29 (tie) 1802
The Homestead
Hayward family
Inn
Sugar Hill, NH
Moses and Sarah Aldrich, Sugar Hill’s first permanent settlers, built a log cabin. The original inn was a farmhouse built in 1802. In 1898, the family expanded the farmhouse to its present size. Family heirlooms are in use and on display. Seventh-generation member Paul Hayward is the current owner.
29 (tie) 1802
Rogers Funeral Home
Rogers family
Funeral services
Frankfort, KY
Rogers Funeral Home is owned and operated by the sixth generation of the Rogers family in a Victorian building. The family started out as cabinetmakers; their enterprise evolved into a livery stable and funeral business.
31 1805
Samuel T. Freeman & Co.
Freeman family
Auction house
Philadelphia, PA
www.freemansauction.com
In 1805, Tristram Bamfylde Freeman founded the Philadelphia auction house as T.B. Freeman & Co. In the 1880s, Freeman’s sold Philadelphia’s Post Office building for $425,000, then a record for a single piece of real estate sold at auction. The company was renamed Samuel T. Freeman & Co. in 1898. Sixth-generation family member Samuel M. “Beau” Freeman II is chairman. Beau’s sons Samuel T. III and Jonathan are also involved in the business.
32 1807
John Wiley & Sons*
Wiley family
Publishing house
Hoboken, NJ
www.wiley.com
Charles Wiley opened a small printing shop in Lower Manhattan, New York City, at age 25. He worked with other printers to print and publish law books during the next four years. “C. Wiley, Printer” appeared for the first time on the title pages of legal works in 1812. Two years later, Charles Wiley and printer Cornelius Van Winkle formed a partnership. It ended in 1820, when Charles focused on publishing and bookselling and hired others to do his printing. When Charles died in 1826, his 18-year-old son John took over. He hired George Putnam as a partner; they split in 1848. In 1850, John’s eldest son, Charles, joined the business, which became known as John Wiley & Son. The company adopted its current name in 1875, when a second son, William Halsted Wiley (known as “the Major”), came on board. Wiley became a public company in 1962. Today sixth-generation member Peter Booth Wiley is chairman of the board. His brother Bradford Wiley II, who preceded him as chairman, continues to serve as a board member. Their sister Deborah retired as senior vice president of corporate communications at the end of 2010. Jesse Wiley is the first member of the seventh generation to work at the company. The company moved its headquarters from New York to Hoboken, N.J., in 2002.
33 1812
Bear Funeral Home
Bear family
Funeral services
Churchville, VA
Christian Bear Sr. moved to Virginia from Pennsylvania in 1809 and started as a cabinetmaker, using a mill on the property for power. He transitioned to casket making when customers began requesting wooden caskets. The earliest records related to funerals date from 1812. Later the furniture and woodworking businesses were superseded by the funeral business. The mill’s waterwheel is still on the property. Sixth-generation Bear family members are now in charge.
34 1813
Continental Grain Companies
Fribourg family
Grain, feed, food processing
New York, NY
www.contigroup.com
Simon Fribourg established the company as a grain-trading firm based in Arlon, Belgium, in 1813. The company entered the flour milling business in the 1890s. It opened its first U.S. office in Chicago in 1921. Its second U.S. office was in New York, where the company moved its headquarters in 1944. The family moved to the U.S. after the German invasion of France in 1940. The company is now a major global agribusiness firm. Paul Fribourg, the founder’s great-great-great-grandson, is now chairman and CEO; Charles Fribourg is a director and a member of the management committee.
35 1815
Loane Bros. Inc.
Loane family
Tents, awnings, party rentals
Baltimore, MD
www.loanebros.com
Joseph Loane opened a sail maker’s loft in 1814. He made and designed sails for clipper ships. During the Civil War, the company crafted canvas sails and flags for Union troops. It made canvas covers for Conestoga wagons heading west. During World War II, it produced canvas gun covers for B-52 bombers and decorated Liberty Ships for christenings. Joseph’s son Jabez called the company J.W. Loane & Son; his sons named it Loane Bros. at the turn of the 20th century. Today, it’s a party tent rental and canvas awning company. Bryan Loane, a member of the sixth generation, is president.
36 1816
Taylor Chair Co.
Meals family
Furniture
Bedford, OH
www.thetaylorcompanies.com
Benjamin Franklin Fitch made split-bottom, slat-backed chairs by hand at his cabin. As demand increased, he added workmen, including Wm. O. Taylor, who became his assistant. In 1841, Taylor married Fitch’s daughter Harriet. After a fire in 1850, the company moved to its present location. By 1902, it had begun to specialize in office furniture. Moselle Taylor Meals (d. 1978) became president in 1953 after the death of her father, Joseph F. Taylor. She introduced the first designer chairs and received patents for her contemporary design in the 1950s and 1960s. In 1986, Taylor Chair acquired a desk company in Los Angeles. Fred J. Baldassari became the first non-family CEO in 1972 after the sudden death of Joseph Taylor Meals. Today his son Jeff Baldassari is the CEO. The company is solely owned by Brett Meals, a seventh-generation direct descendant of founder Benjamin Fitch. Taylor’s factory and headquarters today are based on a remediated brownfield.
37 1818
Eaton Funeral Homes
Eaton family
Funeral services
Needham, MA
www.eatonfuneralhomes.com
Carpenter and furniture maker William Eaton built his first coffin in 1818. He and his son George, whose main business was insurance, gradually became more involved in handling details for funerals in the community. In the 1890s George’s son Alger bought out his uncle’s livery business, acquired a hearse and got an embalming license. In the 1920s Alger made part of his residence available for funeral services. Sixth-generation family members Laurence R. and David E. Eaton now carry on the tradition.
38 1822
Stuard Funeral Home
Stuard family
Funeral services
Ardmore, PA
The funeral home was founded by Henry Stuard to serve residents of the Main Line in suburban Philadelphia. It is now operated by sixth-generation member C. Wallace “Wally” Stuard III.
39 1824
Ashaway Line and Twine Mfg. Co.
Crandall family
Manufacturing
Ashaway, RI
www.ashawayusa.com
Capt. Lester Crandall founded a fishing line company in 1824. The company produced the first commercial nylon fishing lines in 1939 and the first commercial racquet strings in 1949. Subsequent generations made parachute cord, harness twine for Jacquard looms and whipping cord for golf club heads. In 1977, Ashaway introduced Kevlar strings. Now, Ashaway Line and Twine Mfg. Co. produces strings for racquet sports, surgical suture thread and custom braided products. The sixth and seventh generations of the Crandall family run the company, which is the U.S.’s only remaining racquet string manufacturer.
40 (tie) 1825
Milward Funeral Directors
Milward family
Funeral services
Lexington, KY
www.milwardfuneral.com
Twenty-one-year-old Joseph Milward opened a cabinet and furniture business with a partner and soon afterward focused on production of caskets. Within ten years he became the sole proprietor. Milward Funeral Directors is Lexington’s oldest continuously operating business. Fifth- and sixth-generation members Robert Emmet Milward and Robert E. Milward Jr. now operate the business.
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