Victor Insulators, Inc. based in

Victor, New York Victor is an incorporated town in Ontario County, New York. The population was 15,969 at the time of the 2020 census. The town is named after Claudius Victor Boughton, an American hero of the War of 1812. The Town of Victor contains a village, ...

(founded 1893 by Fred M. Locke) is the oldest insulator company in North America. They originally made glass

insulators Insulator may refer to: * Insulator (electricity), a substance that resists electricity ** Pin insulator, a device that isolates a wire from a physical support such as a pin on a utility pole ** Strain insulator, a device that is designed to work ...

for electrical lines. They suspended operations during the Great Depression, but resumed operations in 1935 as Victor Insulators. In 1984, the managers purchased the company from

Brown Boveri Brown, Boveri & Cie. (Brown, Boveri & Company; BBC) was a Swiss group of electrical engineering companies. It was founded in Zürich, in 1891 by Charles Eugene Lancelot Brown and Walter Boveri who worked at the Maschinenfabrik Oerlikon. In 1970 ...

and resumed operating under the name. They also made diner coffee mugs in the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s. They are still making insulators at the same location to this day.

Coffee Mugs

During World War II, the Victor Insulator Company responded to a request from the military to develop dining ware that was sturdy, and wouldn't slide easily on tables. The company developed a bowl and a dual-wall coffee mug using the same materials they use to make insulators. They won the government contract, but their coffee mug design quickly caught on in restaurants and diners. The popular American off-white colored diner-style coffee mug would soon be copied by companies as far away as China. When Victor Insulator Company couldn't compete with the counterfeits on the market, they decided to close their coffee mug manufacturing in the late 1980s.

External links

Victor Insulators, Inc. official company home page

Fred M. Locke web page

References

Electronics companies of the United States Companies based in Ontario County, New York {{US-company-stub