Maker Spotlight:
The History of Stall & Dean
The History of Stall & Dean
December 22, 2016
Page 5
Page 5
In 1941, Frank W. Cobb joined Stall & Dean as vice president. Cobb was Richard Stall's mother's maiden name, therefore, it is probable that Frank and Richard were cousins. Frank Cobb would continue to serve as vice president into the 1960's.
By the late 1940's, the Stall & Dean line of athletic goods had been reborn using modern fabrics and styling. Worsted wool jerseys and duck football pants were replaced with nylon twill and durene. The company stopped producing football helmets and baseball bats, but continued to manufacture shoulder pads and gloves.
Perhaps the most significant shift in Stall & Dean's product line was a new focus on hockey uniforms and equipment. According to the National Museum of American History Archives, Stall & Dean was the first American company to supply uniforms to supply uniforms to the "Original Six," the founding members of the modern National Hockey League (Boston, Chicago, Detroit, Montreal, New York, and Toronto).
By the late 1940's, the Stall & Dean line of athletic goods had been reborn using modern fabrics and styling. Worsted wool jerseys and duck football pants were replaced with nylon twill and durene. The company stopped producing football helmets and baseball bats, but continued to manufacture shoulder pads and gloves.
Perhaps the most significant shift in Stall & Dean's product line was a new focus on hockey uniforms and equipment. According to the National Museum of American History Archives, Stall & Dean was the first American company to supply uniforms to supply uniforms to the "Original Six," the founding members of the modern National Hockey League (Boston, Chicago, Detroit, Montreal, New York, and Toronto).
Resurgence
1958 was a significant year for Stall & Dean. Not only did it mark the company's 60th anniversary, it was the year that a fourth generation of Stall's joined the firm in the production of athletic goods. Richard G. Stall, Jr. became a foreman in the Brockton factory in 1958 at the age of 30.
In their 1958 Fall & Winter catalog, Stall & Dean boldly claimed that "more professional and amateur hockey players in the U.S. use Stall & Dean equipment than all other makes combined." Stall & Dean would go on to supply uniforms to the U.S. Olympic hockey team between 1960 and 1984.
In their 1958 Fall & Winter catalog, Stall & Dean boldly claimed that "more professional and amateur hockey players in the U.S. use Stall & Dean equipment than all other makes combined." Stall & Dean would go on to supply uniforms to the U.S. Olympic hockey team between 1960 and 1984.
1948 Stall & Dean Fall & Winter catalog images
1958 Stall & Dean Fall & Winter catalog images
1959 Stall & Dean Spring & Summer catalog images
In the early 1970's Richard Stall, Jr. replaced his father as President of Stall & Dean. By that point, Stall & Dean had retired its football and basketball product lines, focusing exclusively on baseball/softball and hockey goods. Richard Sr. passed away in 1976, and his son would continue to oversee the production of athletic goods in Brockton, Massachusetts "on some of the same turn-of-the-century sewing machines it purchased new." The company remained in business until it closed the Brockton factory in 1996. Ten years later, Richard Stall, Jr. died at the age of 78.
Changing of the Guard
1970 Stall & Dean Fall & Winter & 1971 Spring & Summer catalog images
References
The Sporting Goods Dealer,
- Print.
Keen, Kathy. "Other Collections." STALL AND DEAN COMPANY RECORDS, 1898-1998. Archives Center, National Museum of American History, 19 Jan. 2001. Web. 21 Dec. 2016.
Tinney, Mike. "Vintage Baseball Glove Forum."
Vintage Baseball Glove Forum.
N.p., 8 Feb. 2013. Web. 20 Dec. 2016.
Stall & Dean will be remembered as the foremost manufacturer of baseball uniforms during the 1910's and 1920's and hockey uniforms and equipment from the 1950's through the 1980's. The company's remarkable 98-year run required the blood, sweat and tears of four generations of Stall's and Dean's to survive bankruptcy during the Great Depression and to adapt to the constantly changing demand for American athletic goods.
Stall & Dean's Legacy
The Sporting Goods Dealer,
Sep. 1900. Print.
In 2013, the abandoned Stall & Dean factory in Brockton Street was purchased by Capstone Communities, LLC, and converted into the Station Loft Apartments. The renovation and reuse of the building saved an important landmark in Brockton and in the annuls of American sporting goods manufacturing.
Epilogue
Photo from www.stationloftapts.com
Mael, Jon. "Abandoned Factory-Turned Apartment Building Boasts Impressive Sporting History." Boston.com.
The Boston Globe, 22 Feb. 2015. Web. 21 Dec. 2016.
The Boston Globe, 22 Feb. 2015. Web. 21 Dec. 2016.
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