Ken wel
Ken-Wel is a sporting good company that was founded in 1919 by the Kennedy brothers (Allen, Dr. Morris, Bert, Phillip, Nelson and Jack) in Gloversville, NY. It has been recently been purchased by Akadema (company) Inc, a modern baseball glove company.(1)
History
The brothers Kennedy were originally from New York City but after the Great War they moved to the Leather stocking area which was the glove and tannery capital of the world.(2) Dr. Morris Kennedy originally finance the project. Bert Kennedy owned a glove manufacturing business in Johnstown, NY brought the knowledge. However, it was Allen E Kennedy,a former Dow Chemical employee and a Syracuse University basketball player, who would emerge as the company leader. Allen would eventually buy out all of his brothers shares.
The Ken-Wel name had come from the Kennedy's last name and a partner named Wells. Wells pulled out of the venture before the company was started but the Kennedy brothers liked the name and kept it.
Ken-Wel started manufacturing baseball gloves and other sporting goods in earnest but the Reach corporation had a 1908 patent revolutionized glove design called the "diverted seam."(3) In 1922 Ken-Wel, released their own design called welting to challenge the Reach patent. The invention and technique is still used today on baseball gloves. In 1927 the Ken-Wel company filed for its most famous and ground breaking design, adding lacing to the fingers of the gloves. Many consider the Dazzy Vance welted and laced glove to be the birth of the modern baseball glove.(4) In the 1920s Ken-Wel advertisements declared " It is a distinct honor for the Ken-Wel Sporting Goods Co. to announce that there are more Ken-Wel Gloves and Mitts in use in the National League and the American League then of all other brands combined."(5)
Sponsorship/ EndorsementsΒ Β
From the 1919 to 1960 the firm had some of baseball's biggest names endorse Ken-Wel. Here is a small list of who endorsed Ken-Wel :(6) Lou Gehrig , Dazzy Vance, Daffy Dean, Sammy Bohne, Babe Pinelli, Muddy Ruel, George Selkirk, Cy Williams, Hank DeBarry, Eppa Rixey, Gordon Slade, Adam Comorosky, Bubbles Hargrave, Jim Bottomly, Babe Hermann, Ed Roush, Johnny Mize, and Jerry Colemen.(7)
Manufacturing: The company moved three times from 1919 to 1960. Ken-Wel's first factory was on 49 Yale St. in Gloversville, NY. In July 1927 a meeting of 100 businessmen was held at the Hotel Utica to raise $10,000 for Ken-Wel to move to Utica, NY. The meeting raised $3470, enough to entice the Kennedy's to move.(8) In 1927 Ken-Wel moved to Gennesse St in New Hartford to the former Olympian Mill on the Saquit Creek where New Hartford bordered Utica. At the time the company had 50 employees. The company grew to 125 employees and outgrew the building. In 1932 the company settled on 524 Catherine St in Utica, NY and at its peak had 300 employees during World War II The company not only made baseball products. Ken-Wel manufactured or distributed, football, basketball, soccer, skiing, tennis and golf and boxing gloves. It even briefly made fiberglass boats. Ken-Wel made several items for the US Army during world War II and the Korean war. Items such as back packs, skis, snow gloves as well as some sporting goods were made for the US troops abroad. Ken-Wel also private labeled its' sporting goods products for many large retailers and manufacturers.
Demise:
During the late 1940s Allen became interested in real estate in Florida and thoroughbred horse racing. He appointed Herbert Spring, his son in law as the plant manager to run day to day operations. Mr. Spring was also the president of the Swift Lumber Company of Utica .
In 1952 Allen sold his company to J.Lawrence Kennedy (no relationship) of Elmira, NY. Allen retained the building and would rent it to Lawrence. Lawrence had worked in his family's value company as vice president. Lawrence changed the Ken-Wel name to Kennedy Sports and interchanged the Kennedy and Ken-Wel name on some of the products.
The ending of Ken-Wel's patents, its loss of private label business to Japanese manufacturers, the surge of national brands dominance, the end of the Korean War and army contracts contributed to the demise. In 1960 Kennedy Sporting Goods shut its doors. Allen rented the building for the next eight years to the Royal Sports Manufacturing company. The Building was sold by Allen in 1968 for $473,000 as part of the East Utica John Bleeker project. The building was torn down.(9)
Re-birth
In 2005 Akadema purchased the Ken-Wel trademark and re-released the Lou Gehrig Glove, Dazzy Vance Glove and a vintage football helmet.(10) Ken-Wel has also been the subject of a book and a DVD, "The Rise and Fall of Ken-Wel" by Utica historian Scott Fiesthummel. Baseball glove enthusiasts still consider the Ken-Wel glove line one of the most sought after collectables.
References
1 Pitarresi, John (2008-04-04) "NJ Company Revives Ken-Wel" Observer Dispatch 1 2 Fiesthumel, Scott Major League Glove Makers, Erie Canal Productions, 2000 2 3 Tinney, Mike "Ken-Wel Gloves Were Well Ahead of Their Time," The Glove Collector Newsletter, May 2000 3 4 Ken-Wel Catalogs 1924,1928, 1933,1938
4A Arnett, Jeff (2007-19-02) " Leather & Lace: Dazzy Vance." National Baseball Hall of Fame 4
5 Philips, Joe, 2007 Baseball Glove Manufacturer's Catalog Listing Compilation, The Glove Collector 2007 5 6 Philips, Joe The Players autograph Baseball Glove Finder, The Glove Collector 1996 6 7 Fiesthumel, Scott Major League Glove Makers, Erie Canal Productions, 2000 7 8 Fiesthumel, Scott Major League Glove Makers, Erie Canal Productions, 2000 8 9 Akadema Catalogs 2005,2007