Hillerich & Bradsby Hillerich woodworking shop. J. F. Hillerich was uninterested in making bats; he saw the company future in stair railings, porch columns and swinging butter churns. In fact, for a brief time in the 1880s, he even turned away ball players. Bud, however, saw the potential in producing baseball bats, and the elder Hillerich eventually relented to his son. The bats were sold under the name "Falls City Slugger" until Bud Hillerich took over his father's company in , and the name "Louisville Slugger" was registered with the U.S. Patent Office. In , Honus Wagner signed a deal with the company,
Louisville Stoneware Louisville Stoneware Louisville Stoneware, previously known as Louisville Pottery, is located in the Highlands section of Louisville, Kentucky. Founded in 1815, making it one of the oldest stoneware companies in the United States, it creates fanciful stoneware that is nationally renowned. It specializes in decorating its pottery with Kentucky Derby and Christmas themes, but it has other themes as well: Noah's Ark, Primrose, and Pear being examples. They can also create personalized items. Besides pottery, they have made bird baths and bird feeders. The JB Taylor Company was founded in 1815 in Louisville, Kentucky. But it was not owned by