Creelman Brothers Georgetown, Ontario One of my great uncles, Nathaniel Bell lived and worked in a small town in Ontario by the name of Georgetown. While investigating his life, I found out he worked for a company called Creelman Brothers. Curious to find out what they did I searched and found out that they were a knitting machine company founded in 1872. The company owner Richard Irving Creelman was originally form Grey County. He and his brother started a stationary company in Georgetown. To offset this they also sold other goods knitting machines among them. According to research they most probably were the local agents for “Franz and Pope” sock knitting machines, from Bucyrus, Ohio. These machines were so popular that the Creelman’s entered into a partnership with the latter and set up a manufacturing factory in Georgetown capable of making 600 machines per year. This made them the first Canadian company of its kind. By 1881 they purchased Elijah Travis’ planning mill on the main street, levelled it and built a three-story factory in its place. Fire partially destroyed the factory five years later. This fire caused them to consider moving to Ingersoll to rebuild, but the remained in Georgetown. After he had a nasty accident involving a pistol in October of 1887 where he was shot through the palm, Richard decided to go abroad. His purpose to recuperate and at the same time drum up business. This proved to be very lucrative and he managed to get orders from France, Spain, and even New Zealand. By April of 1890 the two brothers split up with Roberson, moving to Collingwood, where he set up another stationary business. At this point the Georgetown factory began making and selling typewriters as well as the knitting machines. The Creelman Knitting MachineThe back of the 1922 Creelman Bros. catalogue showing the factory in Georgetown, Ontario, situated on the Main Street. It was destroyed by fire in 1966. The short lives of Nathaniel Cameron Bell, Joseph Bell, sons of William and Jane Bell, and Esther Bell daughter of William and second wife Catherine Coventry.
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Martin Bosch
8/20/2016 03:24:29 pm
I am trying to determine where George Creelman from Collingwood who was President of OAC, Guelph Ontario from 1904-1920 with respect to the Creelman Brothers. That is, is he the third brother, cousin etc.
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Stephanie Bell-Boissonneault"When researching Family never leave a stone unturned, not even a pebble." Archives
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