Pfaltzgraff is an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 kitchenware

Kitchenware

Kitchenware include utensils, appliances, dishes, cookware, and so on for use in the kitchen.-See also:*Cookware and bakeware*Dishware*Drinkware*List of eating utensils*List of food preparation utensils*List of Japanese cooking utensils...

 company that has been in business for almost 200 years; it is part of the Susquehanna Pfaltzgraff

Susquehanna Pfaltzgraff

The Susquehanna Pfaltzgraff Company was a conglomerate of companies that started in the 19th century with Johann George Pfaltzgraff's emigration from Germany to York, Pennsylvania...

 Company.

History

Pfaltzgraff started in the early 19th century in 1811 in York County, Pennsylvania

York County, Pennsylvania

York County is a county in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of 2010, the population was 434,972. It is in the Susquehanna Valley, a large fertile agricultural region in South Central Pennsylvania....

. It was founded by several members of the Pfaltzgraff family who were potters

Pottery

Pottery is the material from which the potteryware is made, of which major types include earthenware, stoneware and porcelain. The place where such wares are made is also called a pottery . Pottery also refers to the art or craft of the potter or the manufacture of pottery...

, the most notable of whom was Johann George Pfaltzgraff

Johann George Pfaltzgraff

Johann George Pfaltzgraff or Pfaltzgraf was a German-American potter and businessman. He is recognized as the first potter in the Pfaltzgraff family of potters in the United States. Pfaltzgraff Pottery Co. is known as the oldest pottery company in the USA...

. Johann, having come from a family of potters, knew the trade, and passed his skills on to his 7 sons. After Johann died in the late 19th century, three of his children, John, George, and Henry, were still carrying on the business. The business became official in 1889 when George and Henry started a partnership that would become The Pfaltzgraff Co. The first factory was built in 1895.

The business continued to grow, and in 1960, Pfaltzgraff opened their first retail store under the name Pottery Hill. During the 1950s and 1960s, the products were mostly sold in specialty store

Specialty store

Specialty stores are small stores which specialize in a specific range of merchandise and related items. Most stores have an extensive depth of stock in the item that they specialize in and provide high levels of service and expertise...

s, but in the 1970s, the business made a strategic decision to sell in higher-end department store

Department store

A department store is a retail establishment which satisfies a wide range of the consumer's personal and residential durable goods product needs; and at the same time offering the consumer a choice of multiple merchandise lines, at variable price points, in all product categories...

s, such as G Fox and Macy's

Macy's

Macy's is a U.S. chain of mid-to-high range department stores. In addition to its flagship Herald Square location in New York City, the company operates over 800 stores in the United States...

. A large mural depicting Pfaltzgraff's history was painted in York, Pennsylvania in 1998. The Pfaltzgraff Co. was sold to Lifetime Brands, Inc. in 2005.

The glass is tempered to make sure that it cannot be cracked easily. The featherweight and sturdy glass products easily fit within a dishwasher. The models are stylish and they aren’t very easily damaged compared to other makes and brands.

Today the company owns and operates 67 stores nationwide. The product line currently includes dinnerware, glassware, flatware, and other kitchen preparatory and cooking tools. Because of the age of the company, and the quality of the products it produces, Pfaltzgraff is well known for its collector

Collecting

The hobby of collecting includes seeking, locating, acquiring, organizing, cataloging, displaying, storing, and maintaining whatever items are of interest to the individual collector. Some collectors are generalists, accumulating merchandise, or stamps from all countries of the world...

 community.

External links

• Company Website
• The York Daily Record: Never to be forgotten: A year-by-year look at York County's past: 1800-1815: 1811: Conewago Township - Pfaltzgraff pottery starts small by James McClure
  James McClure
  James McClure may refer to:*James H. McClure, British crime author and journalist, born in South Africa*James A. McClure, former U.S. Senator from Idaho*James McClure , current local councillor and former regional assembly member...