COMPANY·HISTORIES
SIC 2899

Industrial Chemicals

How the companies in this industry began, and the forces that shaped them.

50companies1848–1991founding years48still active2no longer operating
§ 01

The industry over time

Companies foundedEconomyTechnologyEnvironmentHistory
FoundedMorton International Inc.
1848
FoundedMetallgesellschaft AG
1881
FoundedEthyl Corporation
1887
FoundedThe Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company
1898
FoundedHunt Manufacturing CompanyFoundedWestvaco Corporation
1899
1903
TechnologyThe Wright brothers achieve powered flight.
FoundedThe Dexter Corporation
1914
EconomyWorld War I begins; global trade reorders.
FoundedEnglish China Clays plcFoundedNCH Corporation
1919
FoundedNalco Chemical Corporation
1928
1929
EconomyThe stock market crashes; the Great Depression spreads worldwide.
FoundedPetrolite Corporation
1930
FoundedGreat Lakes Chemical Corporation
1933
1939
EconomyWorld War II begins; wartime production surges.
1945
EconomyThe war ends; a long global expansion begins.
FoundedOil-Dri Corporation of America
1946
1947
TechnologyThe transistor is invented.
FoundedLeaRonal, Inc.
1953
FoundedBetz Laboratories, Inc.
1957
1958
TechnologyThe integrated circuit is demonstrated.
1962
EnvironmentSilent Spring launches the modern environmental movement.
1971
EconomyThe dollar leaves the gold standard; currencies float.
1973
EconomyThe OPEC oil embargo triggers a global shock.
1975
TechnologyThe personal-computer era begins.
1979
EconomyA second oil crisis drives inflation higher worldwide.
1981
TechnologyThe IBM PC launches and sets a standard.
1984
TechnologyApple ships the Macintosh; the GUI era begins.
FoundedFirst Brands CorporationFoundedSterling Chemicals, Inc.
1986
1987
EconomyBlack Monday: markets fall sharply around the world.
1989
HistoryThe Berlin Wall falls; global markets open up.
FoundedCytec Industries Inc.
1991
TechnologyThe World Wide Web is released to the public.
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.
2004
TechnologySocial media and Web 2.0 take hold.
2007
TechnologyThe iPhone launches the smartphone era.
2008
EconomyThe global financial crisis freezes credit worldwide.
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

Recovery Engineering, Inc. →
Active
Recovery Engineering, Inc.
Recovery Engineering, Inc. →
Active
Recovery Engineering, Inc.
Morton International Inc. →
Active · founded 1848
Morton International&mdash′obably best known for its popular blue canister of table salt, featuring a raincoat-clad…
Morton International Inc. →
Active · founded 1848
Morton International&mdash′obably best known for its popular blue canister of table salt, featuring a raincoat-clad…
Metallgesellschaft AG →
Active · founded 1881 · Germany
Metallgesellschaft AG (MG), based in the heart of Frankfurt since its foundation, is a conglomerate providing raw…
Metallgesellschaft AG →
Active · founded 1881 · Germany
Metallgesellschaft AG (MG), based in the heart of Frankfurt since its foundation, is a conglomerate providing raw…
Ethyl Corporation →
Active · founded 1887
With facilities in the United States, Japan, France, England, and Belgium, Ethyl Corporation was a leading manufacturer…
Ethyl Corporation →
Active · founded 1887
With facilities in the United States, Japan, France, England, and Belgium, Ethyl Corporation was a leading manufacturer…
Kao Corporation →
Active · founded 1887 · Japan
Kao Corporation, often called the Procter & Gamble of Japan, is one of Japan's leaders in personal care products,…
Kao Corporation →
Active · founded 1887 · Japan
Kao Corporation, often called the Procter & Gamble of Japan, is one of Japan's leaders in personal care products,…
The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company →
Active · founded 1898
The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company (Goodyear) is a major manufacturer, distributor, and seller of tires worldwide and…
The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company →
Active · founded 1898
The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company (Goodyear) is a major manufacturer, distributor, and seller of tires worldwide and…
Hunt Manufacturing Company →
Active · founded 1899
The Hunt Manufacturing Company is a leading producer and distributor of office supplies and arts and crafts products.
Hunt Manufacturing Company →
Active · founded 1899
The Hunt Manufacturing Company is a leading producer and distributor of office supplies and arts and crafts products.
Westvaco Corporation →
Active · founded 1899
Westvaco Corporation is a major manufacturer of printing papers and envelopes, consumer and industrial packaging, and…
Westvaco Corporation →
Active · founded 1899
Westvaco Corporation is a major manufacturer of printing papers and envelopes, consumer and industrial packaging, and…
American Cyanamid →
Active · founded 1907
When William Bell became president of American Cyanamid in 1922, he is reported to have said "even a fool could see…
American Cyanamid →
Active · founded 1907
When William Bell became president of American Cyanamid in 1922, he is reported to have said "even a fool could see…
The Dexter Corporation →
Active · founded 1914
With a history that stretches back over two centuries, The Dexter Corporation is the oldest company listed on the New…
The Dexter Corporation →
Active · founded 1914
With a history that stretches back over two centuries, The Dexter Corporation is the oldest company listed on the New…
English China Clays plc →
Active · founded 1919 · United Kingdom
English China Clays plc (formerly known as ECC Group plc) is perhaps best known as the world's largest producer of…
English China Clays plc →
Active · founded 1919 · United Kingdom
English China Clays plc (formerly known as ECC Group plc) is perhaps best known as the world's largest producer of…
NCH Corporation →
Active · founded 1919
NCH Corporation is a major international marketer of maintenance products, and one of the largest companies in the…
NCH Corporation →
Active · founded 1919
NCH Corporation is a major international marketer of maintenance products, and one of the largest companies in the…
AlliedSignal Inc. →
Defunct · founded 1920
AlliedSignal Inc., formed from the acquisition of Signal Companies, Inc.
AlliedSignal Inc. →
Defunct · founded 1920
AlliedSignal Inc., formed from the acquisition of Signal Companies, Inc.
Nalco Chemical Corporation →
Active · founded 1928
With nearly one-fifth of the global market for water treatment chemicals, Nalco Chemical Company dominates that $3…
Nalco Chemical Corporation →
Active · founded 1928
With nearly one-fifth of the global market for water treatment chemicals, Nalco Chemical Company dominates that $3…
Petrolite Corporation →
Active · founded 1930
A leader and a pioneer in the oil field chemical industry, Petrolite Corporation manufactures specialty chemicals,…
Petrolite Corporation →
Active · founded 1930
A leader and a pioneer in the oil field chemical industry, Petrolite Corporation manufactures specialty chemicals,…
Great Lakes Chemical Corporation →
Active · founded 1933
Great Lakes Chemical Corporation is one of the world's largest manufacturers of bromine and brominated chemical…
Great Lakes Chemical Corporation →
Active · founded 1933
Great Lakes Chemical Corporation is one of the world's largest manufacturers of bromine and brominated chemical…
Koch Industries, Inc. →
Active · founded 1942
Koch Industries, Inc., a diversified petrochemical company, is the second-largest privately held firm in the United…
Koch Industries, Inc. →
Active · founded 1942
Koch Industries, Inc., a diversified petrochemical company, is the second-largest privately held firm in the United…
Oil-Dri Corporation of America →
Active · founded 1946
Oil-Dri Corporation of America makes and markets leading sorbent products for use by individual, industrial,…
Oil-Dri Corporation of America →
Active · founded 1946
Oil-Dri Corporation of America makes and markets leading sorbent products for use by individual, industrial,…
LeaRonal, Inc. →
Active · founded 1953
LeaRonal, Inc.
LeaRonal, Inc. →
Active · founded 1953
LeaRonal, Inc.
Betz Laboratories, Inc. →
Active · founded 1957
Betz Laboratories, Inc.
Betz Laboratories, Inc. →
Active · founded 1957
Betz Laboratories, Inc.
Big Flower Press Holdings, Inc. →
Active · founded 1967
Big Flower Press Holdings, Inc.
Big Flower Press Holdings, Inc. →
Active · founded 1967
Big Flower Press Holdings, Inc.
First Brands Corporation →
Active · founded 1986
First Brands is a leading consumer products company with operations based on a number of major brands: STP oil, Glad…
First Brands Corporation →
Active · founded 1986
First Brands is a leading consumer products company with operations based on a number of major brands: STP oil, Glad…
Sterling Chemicals, Inc. →
Active · founded 1986
Sterling Chemicals, Inc.
Sterling Chemicals, Inc. →
Active · founded 1986
Sterling Chemicals, Inc.
Cytec Industries Inc. →
Active · founded 1991
A leading chemicals company, Cytec Industries Inc.
Cytec Industries Inc. →
Active · founded 1991
A leading chemicals company, Cytec Industries Inc.
OM Group, Inc. →
Active · founded 1991
Created through the 1991 merger of America's Mooney Chemicals, Inc., Finland's Kokkola Chemicals Oy, and France's…
OM Group, Inc. →
Active · founded 1991
Created through the 1991 merger of America's Mooney Chemicals, Inc., Finland's Kokkola Chemicals Oy, and France's…
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