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Senior curator Kasey Eichensehr said the series is meant to highlight companies that have continued their success over the years.
“The ‘Born in Clark County’ series was meant to celebrate local companies, whether they were founded here, but especially companies that stayed here,” she said.
Currently, Rollins Moving and Storage is the main feature of the exhibit, having been in business for more than 110 years. Past exhibits have featured Woeber’s Mustard Company, Champion Chemical Company and Link-Hellmuth Real Estate, among others. The youngest company featured so far was Sweet Manufacturing, an auto parts manufacturer founded in 1955.
Eichensehr said the society has a working list of more than 50 companies it could feature, but its decisions sometimes depend on whether the company is willing to work with them. The companies are usually asked to supply any historical information they have available and someone as a contact to answer questions.
“We try to take up as little time as possible,” Eichensehr said.
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The companies it features typically have a lot of history in the community, she said, so the exhibits help both residents and the historical society learn more about their impact over time.
“The series was also meant to build up our archives regarding companies throughout the city,” Eichensehr said. “We often have very little information on the youngest companies here, even though some of them are prospering more than the oldest ones.”
She said the society hopes to be able to convey a lot more information about the companies the city has produced through the series and that everyone will be able to take away something new from it.
“Speaking personally, I have learned a lot about the community and companies here in Clark County,” Eichensehr said. “It’s really given me a new appreciation for them.”
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