F.N. Burt Company
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Formerly | F.N. Burt Company |
|---|---|
| Corporation | |
| ISIN | 🆔 |
| Industry | Luxury packaging company |
| Founded 📆 | 1886 |
| Founder 👔 | Frederick Northrup Burt |
| Headquarters 🏙️ | , Oneonta, New York |
Area served 🗺️ | International |
Key people | Russ Hurd, Board Chairman; Laura Brodie, President |
| Products 📟 | Custom boxes, inserts, slipcases |
| Members | |
Number of employees | |
| 🌐 Website | https://www.burtbox.com/ |
| 📇 Address | |
| 📞 telephone | |
The F.N. Burt Company, now called Burt Rigid Box Inc., is a historic luxury packaging company headquartered in Oneonta, New York. The company was founded in 1886 by entrepreneur Frederick Northrup Burt in Buffalo, New York. At one time, it was the largest manufacturer of small paper boxes in the country.[1] In 1999, the rigid box division was renamed Burt Rigid Box, Inc. The company is widely known for their round and oval box production.
In 1906, Frederick Northrup Burt sold F.N. Burt to the Moore Corporation, which expanded operations and filed new patents, including equipment to manufacture round and oval boxes. In 1983, local Buffalo businessmen and entrepreneurs C. Taylor Kew and W. Russell Hurd purchased the company, renaming the rigid box division Burt Rigid Box, Inc. In the following decades, Burt Rigid Box, Inc. expanded by acquiring the shares, assets, and/or backlogs of several industry competitors including Maryland-based Jesco, Plaza Packaging, Brick and Ballerstein, and Hanover Packaging.
Today, Burt’s rigid box division is located in Oneonta N.Y., producing rectangular, wraparound, round, oval, and spiral packaging for a diverse client base in the fragrance and beauty, confectionery, liquor & spirits, electronics, publishing and retail markets. Burt serves clients from Fortune 100 companies to regional startups with high-end design capability and custom manufactured packaging made in upstate NY.
History[edit]
Frederick Northup Burt[edit]
In 1886, Frederick Northrup Burt founded F.N. Burt, Co. at 440 Main Street in Buffalo, New York. Burt initially began the company as a small-scale printer, specializing in law briefs and drug labels. Burt soon began selling pill and powder boxes along with the labels, expanding into the paper and cardboard box-making business in 1896. F.N. Burt’s first major client was the Larkin soap company.
Technological advances in the early 20th century transformed American manufacturing processes, including the manufacturing of boxes. Frederick Northrup Burt helped create machines which could be used by human operators to make boxes more quickly and cheaply than was previously possible. The growth of automatic machinery in the packaging industry led to an increase in demand, as fragile paper packaging was replaced by more stable cardboard boxes in department stores and pharmacies.
Following his retirement in 1911, Burt purchased 5,000 acres of land in eastern Florida. There, he maintained livestock and horses on his private property, which he named Spring Garden Ranch. Burt planted a variety of crops at Spring Garden Ranch including cotton, watermelon, corn, sugarcane, and pineapple. He developed Burwyn Park, a housing community where semi-retired people living in other states could spend the winter. Burt also developed Burt’s Park, which included an area for swimming, picnicking, and an artisanal well.[2]
Frederick Burt died on February 22nd, 1955 at the age of 91. He was buried in Forest Lawn Cemetery in Buffalo, New York.[3]
1900-1935[edit]
Mary Cass[edit]
Mary R. Cass was born in Buffalo, New York on January 5th, 1870. In 1891, she was hired by F.N. Burt as an “office girl,” or a secretary, making five dollars per week. As one of the earliest employees of the growing company and a personal hire of Frederick Burt himself, Cass was regularly promoted, despite being a woman.[4]
When Frederick Burt retired in 1911, he named Mary R. Cass his successor as Vice President of the company. While several members of the board were against the idea of a woman serving in such a high position within the company, Burt was insistent.
Cass oversaw multiple expansions during her time at F.N. Burt. Under her, the company grew exponentially. Cass became one of the most prominent female executives in the early 20th century and is credited with guiding the company through major growth from 6 employees in 1891 to 2500 by early 1921. Most of the factory employees were young single women, which was standard at the time. Cass oversaw employee recruitment campaigns which placed articles in local newspapers seeking young women for full time employment and promising benefits and fair wages.
Throughout her tenure as an executive, Cass remained the only woman in the position. By 1921, F.N. Burt was the largest paper box manufacturing company in the United States, largely driven by Cass’ efforts to expand the business.[5] She served in executive positions at F.N. Burt for over 30 years before retiring. Under her leadership, F.N. Burt is credited with inventing the ubiquitous white paper cone water cup.
Cass was considered a progressive woman for her time, insisting on driving herself everywhere she went. She was known to play golf and regularly attend dances, although she never married. She was an early member of the Zonta Club in Buffalo, an international service organization for working women focused on women’s rights.[6] She died on August 12, 1945, at the age of 75.[7]
Major Expansions[edit]
The first half of the twentieth century brought several major expansions to the F.N. Burt Company. In 1906, Frederick N. Burt purchased a large manufacturing plant in the Black Rock neighborhood of Buffalo, New York. F.N. Burt had five printing and warehouse facilities by the early 1930s, including its main headquarters at the corner of Seneca and Hamburg streets in Buffalo.[8]
World War II[edit]
During the Second World War, F.N. Burt was hired by the United States government as subcontractors manufacturing machine gun parts. Burt also produced cardboard boxes for the United States Medical Corps.[9]
The company is credited with creating paper substitutes for traditionally metal containers and other products when metal was being rationed.[10] Aspirin boxes, jar caps, and lipstick containers were a few of the products Burt created from paper and cardboard.
1950s-1970s[edit]
By the 1950s, F.N. Burt was the largest manufacturer of small boxes in the world, producing between 3 million and 4 million units per day, including folding carton and rigid boxes. The company had two plants operating in downtown Buffalo as well as a large warehouse near the Pennsylvania Railroad.[11] Cigarette, cosmetic & fragrance, and pharmaceutical boxes were the three main categories of boxes produced. The ability to produce round and oval boxes using special automatic machinery set Burt apart from the competition, which could produce the similar products at a higher price using human labor.
1980s-Present Day[edit]
In 1983, the Moore Corp. sold F.N. Burt to prominent area businessmen C. Taylor Kew and W. Russell Hurd, who became the driving forces behind additional major growth and changes for the company, including multiple corporate acquisitions.[12] In 1997, the folding carton division and the F.N. Burt name were sold. The rigid box division in Oneonta was renamed Burt Rigid Box, Inc. Burt Rigid bought Maryland-based company Jesco in 2002 and added slipcases to its list of capabilities. In 2010, Burt Rigid acquired Bronx-based competitor Plaza Packaging. In 2015, Burt Rigid incorporated Brick & Ballerstein of Long Island into the company. In 2016, Burt Rigid acquired the rigid box operations of Hanover Packaging, further expanding capacity.
References[edit]
- ↑ "Looking Backward: F. N. Burt Company". The Public. 2018-05-08. Retrieved 2022-09-29.
- ↑ Munizzi, Amy (2020-12-16). "West Volusia Memories: DeLeon Springs' intriguing history". The West Volusia Beacon. Retrieved 2022-09-29.
- ↑ "Frederick Northrop Burt (1863-1955) - Find a..." www.findagrave.com. Retrieved 2022-09-29.
- ↑ "Mary R Cass (1870-1945) - Find a Grave Memorial". www.findagrave.com. Retrieved 2022-09-29.
- ↑ Brown, Richard (1981). Buffalo: Lake City in Niagara Land. United States: Windsor Publications. Search this book on
- ↑ King, Derek (2012-07-27). "The Preservation Exchange: Mary R. Cass". The Preservation Exchange. Retrieved 2022-09-30.
- ↑ "Miss Mary R. Cass is Dead". Buffalo Evening News. August 13, 1945. p. 26.
- ↑ "Frederick N. Burt Buys Factory in Black Rock". The Buffalo Enquirer. May 14, 1906. p. 7.
- ↑ Griggs, Lee (September 21, 1952). "Burt Co. is World's Largest Maker of Small Set-up Boxes: Three to Four Million Units a Day". Buffalo Courier Express.
- ↑ "WW2 Medical Equipment Manufacturers and Suppliers | WW2 US Medical Research Centre". Retrieved 2022-09-30.
- ↑ Griggs, Lee (September 21, 1952). "Burt Co. is World's Largest Maker of Small Set-up Boxes: Three to Four Million Units a Day". A Buffalo Courier Express.
- ↑ "Burt Rigid Box, Inc. - About Us". www.burtbox.com. Retrieved 2022-10-01.
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