From Hog
Scalders to Hotels
When Admiral Richard E. Byrd took
Kohler generators on his famous Antarctic
expeditions and reported to the world that
they had performed flawlessly under
extremely adverse conditions, the Kohler
name and its reputation for durability and
dependability were solidified in consumers’
KOHLER’S FOUNDER, JOHN MICHAEL KOHLER, WAS AN AUSTRIAN immigrant, a businessman and a visionary. In 1873, eager to make a name for himself, the young entrepreneur pur- chased a small cast iron and steel foundry in Sheboygan,
Wis., and settled into life on the shores of Lake Michigan. That might
have been the end of it, were it not for his fateful decision one day to coat
an iron hog scalder with enamel and market it as a bathtub.
Around the turn of the century, Kohler
moved these fellow immigrants and his
small plumbing company to the tiny
settlement of Riverside, four miles outside
of Sheboygan. He had grand plans for the
area, which locals jokingly dubbed
“Kohler’s Folly.” They were plans that at
the time only he could envision.
Today, more than a century later, the
reach of Kohler Co. extends far beyond the
shores of Lake Michigan to encompass an
enterprise on six continents with
manufacturing locations in
16 countries
and more than
30,000 associates
worldwide. The name of this audacious
young immigrant has become synonymous
with quality and originality, and the
business he founded is one of America’s
oldest and largest privately held companies.
One of the first exercises in creative
expansion came when John Michael’s son,
Walter Kohler, decided to add electric
generators to the company’s product mix in
1920. The first of those generators was
called the “Kohler Automatic Power and
Light.” It was a rugged
1,500-watt model
powered by a Kohler-built cast iron
gasoline engine and it provided the
electrical power that rural America
desperately needed.
It was an instant hit, and a new, exciting
business was born. Plumbing fixtures and
enameled ware soon accounted for
70
percent of the company’s total business.
Kohler’s
65 employees, many of them
immigrants like himself, brought their Old
World craftsmanship, indomitable work
ethic, and commitment to excellence to
this new venture.
PHOTOS COURTESY OF KOHLER CO.
Kohler Co.’s
history of
innovation
spans 137 years
By Jennifer
Anderson
Opposite page: Clockwise
from right to left: Kohler Co.’s
first bathtub; John Michael
Kohler; Kohler Co.’s first
factory; Walter J. Kohler Sr.;
Herbert V. Kohler Sr.
Below: Pictured is the
company's general office in
Kohler, Wis.
80 THE OFFICIAL PROGRAM OF THE 2010 PGA CHAMPIONSHIP
