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HEBRON — Peggy Stires, of Livermore, recently briefed the Hebron Historical Society on the history of Paris Manufacturing, which was started by her great-grandfather Henry Morton in 1861.
Initially Morton and his brother started making snow sleds in West Sumner, then Paris Hill, before establishing a permanent factory in South Paris in 1884. The logistics of getting supplies and shipping product were greatly enhanced at this location, Stires said.
When some of his employees (of Finnish heritage) came to work on their skis, Morton decided that it would be a worthwhile venture to produce and market skis from his factory. His motto was to make each product “the best that it can be.”
This charge to his workers for unsurpassed quality was surely the key in making his company the largest ski manufacturer in the country at that time, she said. In 1904 this company employed around 300 people and was turning out 1,500 sleds each day, a leading producer in the country. Arctic explorer Donald McMillan asked the company to make dog sledges for his ventures and he attributed the trips success to the reliability and quality of this equipment.
The company would also upholster some sled models at the request of the buyer. The company made numerous other items to include quality hardwood chairs, tables and roll top desks for adults and children as well and was a renowned employer in this community for 127 years.
Several of the attendees at the talk gave accounts of working for the local company during their childhood. At the next society program, Carolyn Lawson, of the Norlands Living Center, will speak on “History on Civil War Medicine, Myth and Miniballs.”
The meeting will be at 7 p.m., Tuesday, Jan. 23, at the Hebron Town Office, 351 Paris Road. The public is invited.
