Encyclopedia Dubuque
"Encyclopedia Dubuque is the online authority for all things Dubuque, written by the people who know the city best.”
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Affiliated with the Local History Network of the State Historical Society of Iowa, and the Iowa Museum Association.
GALENA GLOVE AND MITTEN COMPANY
Galena Glove and Mitten Company. Dubuque manufacturer of high quality work gloves. Recognized by its "Yankee Doodle" trademark, Galena Glove was started as a small family-controlled company in 1915. The firm thrived for years selling twenty or more designs of its Yankee Doodle line to Midwestern farmers. The company's best seller was a two-thumbed glove used for husking corn. When one thumb of the glove wore through, the farmer could flip the glove to use the other thumb and continue working.
Demand for most gloves declined. Agriculture became more mechanized and cheaper imported gloves claimed 42% of the United States market by 1982. At the same time, the familiar outlets for the gloves were being replaced by retail chains which demanded discounts the company could not afford.
Financial improvement for the company came in 1969 with the involvement of William Millhouse, grandson of the firm's founder. By 1983, the company, building on a healthy balance sheet, an experienced workforce, and a quality product, had acquired an estimated 600 new retail accounts, restored a five-day workweek, and introduced a new line of gloves. In 1986, the "Galena Gardener," a light-weight ladies' deerskin glove for lawn and garden work, was introduced.
The 1939 Dubuque Classified Business Directory through 1989 Dubuque City Directory listed 430 Garfield Avenue.
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Source:
Directory of Dubuque Industries. Prepared by the Dubuque Industrial Bureau, 1967