Mersman Furniture
Company history
The company was founded as ‘Mersmans Tables’ in the 1870s by sawmill owner J. B. Mersman. They were based in the town of Ottoville, Ohio until 1900, when they relocated to the city of Celina and expanded their operations.
Mersman soon passed the running of the business to his two sons, and over the next few years it changed names several times with the coming and going of different business partners. These changes may be reflected in the labelling of furniture, and names to look out for include:
- Lenartz and Mersman Brothers
- Mersman Brothers and Brandts Company (later changed to Mersman Brothers Brandts Company)
- The Mersman Bros. Corporation.
By the 1920s the company had offices throughout the United States, and proclaimed that one in ten household tables in America had been made by Mersman. It continued to run successfully throughout the Depression, using a number of innovative marketing techniques and strategies, and later made furniture for the military during World War II.
In 1963 the company was sold to Congoleum. Who then re-sold it to a group of investors in 1977, who returned it to its original name ‘Mersman Tables’. It continued to produce furniture, concentrating primarily on living room tables, until its closure in 1995.