TABLE OF CONTENTS

Overview of the Records

History:

Scope and Content:

Organization:

Restrictions

Index Terms

Related Material

Administrative Information

Detailed Description/Box and Folder Listing

Series I: Annual Reports, 1928-1955

Series II: Newsletters, 1943-1987

Series III: Company History, undated, 1984

Series IV: Catalogs/Price Lists, 1918-1940

Series V: Photographs, undated, 1946-1969

Series VI: Negatives, undated, 1950-1970

Thermos Company Collection

History:

In 1906, William Walker, an American businessman visiting Germany, learned of the invention of the vacuum bottle. He immediately began to import and market the new product in the United States. The following year, Walker created the American Thermos Bottle Company and began producing vacuum bottles in a Brooklyn, New York, factory. The product met with such success that the expanded New York plant proved inadequate within the first five years. Walker moved the Thermos Company to Norwich, Connecticut, in 1913. Five years later, the company had nearly doubled its size, and after World War II a second plant was opened in Norwich's Taftville section. The Thermos Company became Norwich's largest employer, with more than 1000 workers.

In 1969, the Thermos Company was sold to Household International, Inc., and in 1984, warehousing and manufacturing at the original plant in the Laurel Hill section of Norwich was consolidated into the Taftville location. In 1986, Household International announced that its Thermos division would be relocated to Freeport, Illinois. Thermos production in Norwich ended in 1988.

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Scope and Content:

The records in the collection consist of materials gathered by former employees of the Thermos Company in an effort to document the history of the company after its closed in 1988. It consists, in large part, of employee photographs, company newsletters and annual reports, and memorabilia.

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Organization:

Series I: Annual Reports (1928-1955) contains reports, with some gaps, arranged chronologically.

Series II: Newsletters (1943-1987) contains various Thermos Company publications arranged chronologically.

Series III: Company History (undated, 1984) contains materials such as a history of the company, maps, newspaper clippings, and publicity city Richard Byrd's use of Thermos Company products on his arctic expedition. Pieces of memorabilia, such as visitor pins, employee service pins, and a sample of glass from the last batch produced at the Norwich plant, are included in this series. The materials are arranged alphabetically.

Series IV: Catalogs/Price Lists (1918-1940) contains catalogs and price lists arranged chronologically.

Series V: Photographs (undated, 1946-1969) consists of photographs taken by the Thermos Company photographer of the Thermos plant, its facilities, and employees, as well as informal snapshots of Thermos outings. The photographs have been arranged by subject under such headings as Awards/Presentations, Employee Outings, Employees, Machinery, Production, Products, and Tours. Also included in this series are oversize photographs of the Thermos plant and employees, a display letter from Richard Byrd, as well as a videotape of an oral history project conducted by the Thermos Company. Except for the oversize materials, the series is arranged alphabetically.

Series VI: Negatives (undated, 1950-1970) contains packages of negatives, many of them identified.

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Restrictions

Restrictions on Access:

There are no access restrictions on this collection.

Restrictions on Use:

Permission to publish from these Papers must be obtained in writing from both the University of Connecticut Libraries and the owner(s) of the copyright.

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Related Material

Archives and Special Collections has a substantial collection of materials pertaining to Connecticut businesses. See especially, Slater Company Records for Norwich area businesses. For detailed information on these collections please contact the curator or ask at the reference desk.

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Index Terms

This record series is indexed under the following controlled access subject terms.

Persons:

Organizations:

Subjects:

Document Types:

Occupations:

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Administrative Information

Preferred Citation:

[Item, Folder #], Thermos Company Collection. Archives and Special Collections at the Thomas J. Dodd Research Center, University of Connecticut Libraries.

Acquisition Information:

The materials in the collection were donated to the University of Connecticut Libraries in 1989/1990 by former employees of the Thermos Company in order to insure that some of the history of the company would be preserved in Connecticut. The carafe was donated in June 2007 by Ms. Andrea Colwell of Manistique, Michigan.

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Detailed Description/Box and Folder Listing