Belknap Hardware gloves and mitts

[mikesglove]

William Belknap founded W.B. Belknap & Co. in 1840 in Louisville, KY. At first, the business engaged in the manufacture of iron nails and boiler plate. With the addition of various partners, Belknap expanded the business to include a general purpose wholesale hardware supply. He incorporated in 1880 and changed the name of the business to Belknap Hardware and Manufacturing in 1903.

By the 1920's the Belknap campus covered 37 acres and featured underground passageways and covered bridges connecting the buildings.

In 1960, Belknap hardware was considered the largest business of its kind in regards to sales, net worth and floor space. Labor problems and competition from the late 1960's and on forced the company to eliminate some work force and decrease unprofitable production facilities but cash flow problems ultimately brought the company into bankruptcy in 1985. Like many similar businesses, Belknap carried an extensive line of sporting goods made by other manufacturers. This started circa 1890 when the son of William Belknap took over control of operations and entered a period of rapid expansion of goods available.

Here are some early examples of Belknap gloves from the teens' into the twenties.





Belknap Hardware catalogs are fairly common and carried a line of baseball gloves. here are a couple of different years.
The first is from 1937


The second is 1955


Here are some belknap gloves and mitts from the 40's-50's. The base mitt is a "Lou Gehrig" model



Some of the Belknap buildings were restored and converted to other uses because of historical value. This brick building features a nice corner clock tower


A lot of the waterfront Belknap campus was taken down in a spectacular implosion in 1993