Browse Delaware Authors: Priestley, Kent

When brothers Allen and Joseph Speakman arrived in Wilmington, Delaware, soon after the Civil War, they couldn't have imagined the role their upstart plumbing business would play in the nation's life. While never employing more than 500 workers, the Speakman Company contributed to Allied victories in both world wars, made research, industry, and space travel safer, and introduced millions of Americans to the pleasures of the "shower bath." Speakman products have been a favorite of several U.S. presidents and featured in many cherished national landmarks, from New York's Chrysler Building to the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. As a hotel staple, Speakman showerheads have been a balm to generations of road-weary travelers. For nearly 150 years, the Speakman Company remained in family hands, a modest yet remarkably influential enterprise guided by Quaker values and a commitment to being the "best in brass." This is its story.