Austin Powder Company is the oldest manufacturing enterprise in the State of Ohio and one of the oldest manufacturers of explosives in the world.
The company began in 1833 in Akron, Ohio, by the 5 Austin brothers of Vermont to produce Black Powder used in blasting rock and the sporting arms of the day.
In 1891, Austin Powder moved the production into the country and carved out a parcel of Solon Township southeast of downtown Cleveland, and built the company town of Glenwillow, a rural community in 1892 that included production facilities as well as employee homes, a town hall, a school, and a general store.
In 1930, the company recognized the need to add to its product offering and built a dynamite plant in Vinton County, OH, near McArthur, OH. This remote facility became known as Red Diamond, in recognition of the company’s logo, and has become the company’s main production site in the US. In 1972, all of the remaining activities at Glenwillow were moved to Red Diamond.
Beginning in 1985, Austin started a significant technical and international expansion period. By 1995 the company had operations in a dozen countries around the world and over 1,400 employees. Today, Austin Powder serves customers in the Americas, Europe, Asia, and Africa, with more than 4,500 family members worldwide.
“Austin Powder has been a steady provider of products and services to the mining industry for 190 years. Our long history and success are due to our keen focus on safety, our passionate attention towards our customer’s needs, and making sure that we are a great place to work. These have been the hallmarks of the company from generation to generation, and we are proud to be one of the industry’s global leaders,” says John Rathbun, President & CEO of Austin Powder.
See the whole story and a brief video history from our CEO here: https://austinpowder.com/unitedstates/company/history/
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