Thermos L.L.C.

History

In 1892, James Dewar, a Scottish-born scientist, working at Cambridge University, invented the vacuum-insulated flask, a scientific vessel for storing liquefied gases. It was not a household item fit for everyday use like carrying warm coffee. In 1903, the German glass blower Reinhold Burger received a German patent for an isolating vessel for everyday use. In 1904, Burger registered the trademark Thermos® for his patent. In 1906, the company Thermos GmbH was formed by Burger with Albert Aschenbrenner and Gustav Robert Paalen. The production of Thermos-branded bottles in the United States was based on US patent 13,093 by Burger and Aschenbrenner.

The vacuum flask is today commonly called the Dewar flask among chemists in recognition of its inventor, though he did not register a patent or trademark for his invention. When Burger and Thermos GmbH did so, Dewar sued, but lost his court case to claim intellectual property rights to the invention.

Historical importance

Thermos products made a major impact in the 1950s and sold over 2 million units. In 2004, the Smithsonian Institution museum featured Thermos products as part of its "Taking America to Lunch" retrospective of lunch kits from the 1880s to the 1980s.

The citizens of Norwich, Connecticut, US sought out the Thermos company to build and operate a plant on the banks of the Thames River. A group of citizens under the group "Norwich Boomers" rallied the community to purchase 27 acres of land for $750 an acre so that it could be used for the Thermos. The house of Dr. William H. Mason was also on the property, and it was also a part of the purchase. The Italianate house was converted to be used as an office building. Together, the citizens and the city raised $78,000. A contract was signed on February 14, 1912, it would make Norwich the home of the Thermos Plant and that Thermos would use Norwich's name on its advertising. Allyn L. Brown acted as attorney and provided counsel for the deal. Thermos products produced in Norwich bear a stamp "Made in Norwich".

The construction of the plant was a boon for Norwich, which helped the employment of the area after the decline of the textile industry. The operations expanded into nearby Taftville, Connecticut and together the plants were active until they were phased out and shut down in 1988. The Norwich site was listed as a historic district on the National Register of Historic Places in 1989.