Samuel Curtis Johnson (December 24, 1833December 6, 1919) was an
American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, pe ...
businessman. He was the founder of
S. C. Johnson & Son, Inc., of
Racine, Wisconsin
Racine ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Racine County, Wisconsin, United States. It is located on the shore of Lake Michigan at the mouth of the Root River. Racine is situated 22 miles (35 km) south of Milwaukee and approximately 60 ...
.
Life
Samuel Curtis Johnson, Sr., was the son of Phineas Miller Johnson and Orra Ann Collins. Johnson had deep New England roots; his great grandfather Henry Johnson married Abigail Hubbard, a great granddaughter of
Rev. George Phillips, one of the founders of
Watertown, Massachusetts
Watertown is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, and is part of Greater Boston. The population was 35,329 in the 2020 census. Its neighborhoods include Bemis, Coolidge Square, East Watertown, Watertown Square, and the West End.
Watertown ...
. Johnson's immigrant ancestor Henry Johnson arrived in the Connecticut Valley from England in 1626.
In 1882, Johnson moved to Racine where he became a
parquet flooring salesman for the Racine Hardware Manufacturing Co. In 1886, he purchased the flooring business from the company and renamed it Johnson's Prepared Paste Wax Company. A few years later he established his own factory for manufacturing floor waxes and wood finishes. When his son,
Herbert Fisk Johnson, Sr., became a partner in 1906, the firm was renamed S. C. Johnson & Son.
Legacy
The S. C. Johnson Company remains privately held by the Johnson family today. It operates in more than 70 countries, employs 12,000 people, and provides products in more than 110 countries around the world.
The
Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Management at
Cornell University
Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to teach an ...
in
Ithaca, New York
Ithaca is a city in the Finger Lakes region of New York, United States. Situated on the southern shore of Cayuga Lake, Ithaca is the seat of Tompkins County and the largest community in the Ithaca metropolitan statistical area. It is named a ...
, is named in his honor.
See also
*
Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Management
Notes
{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Samuel Curtis
1833 births
1919 deaths
People from Elyria, Ohio
Businesspeople from Racine, Wisconsin
Samuel Curtis Johnson family
Phillips family (New England)