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George U. Roulet
Founder of The Roulet Company.
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| The Roulet Company's tradition of excellence began 121
years ago, thanks to George U. Roulet. George was not only a skilled jeweler,
but an honorable and civic minded man. He was born the son of a Swiss Watchmaker in
Hoboken, New Jersey on May 12, 1857. George and the family would put down roots in
Toledo for good in 1866. George left school at fourteen, and took a job as a
jewelers apprentice at S. K. McKinstry. (Somewhat reminiscent of our Young Ben
Koerper now, Eric Flynn 3 years ago, Doug Bosworth 30 years ago, and Roger Bovee 31 years
ago!) In 1877 he established The Roulet Company, manufacturing jewelers, and it was
considered one of the top jewelry companies in the country. One of the reasons The
Roulet Company was so highly regarded was its exceedingly high quality fraternal and
emblematic jewelry. |
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Roulet Company Time Line |
|
1857 |
On May
12, George U. Roulet was born the son of a Swiss watchmaker
in Hoboken, NJ. |
|
1866 |
George and his family moved to Toledo, Ohio. |
|
1871 |
George left school at the age of 14 and became working as a
jewelers apprentice at S.K. McKinstry |
|
1877 |
George U. Roulet established The Roulet Company
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|
1900 |
The Roulet Company acquires a new screw press to produce
high-quality stampings and medallions. |
|
c1910 |
George passes on, leaving The Roulet Company in good hands
with his two surviving sons, Lloyd and Norman |
|
c1910 |
Norman served as secretary-treasurer of The Roulet Company
for many years. Like most of the men in his family, Norman
was active in many of the organizations for which his
namesake company was making jewelry. |
|
1912 |
Norman served as a soldier in the US army in WWI |
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c1930 |
Norman became a very active leader of the American Legion
Post in Toledo. |
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c1939 |
Lloyd creates a medal of honor for Amelia Earhart, America's
best loved female aviatrix. This very medal was presented to
Earhart before her fatal flight. |
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1941 |
Norman dies at the age of 45, passing the presidency of The
Roulet Company on to his brother Lloyd. |
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c1950 |
Lloyd becomes a Toledo City Councilman for the next 18
years. He then was elected mayor, an office he held for 7
years. Lloyd served as Toledo's Vice Mayor for 3 years. |
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1968 |
Lloyd creates a Masonic pin that was worn by Walter "Wally"
Schirra on the first manned Apollo space mission. |
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1985 |
Lloyd passes on, bringing an end a Roulet direct
descendant actually making jewelry. Although many members of
the family are still taking an interest in upholding the
long tradition of excellence at The Roulet Company. Lloyd's
daughters, Ruth, Elisabeth and Alice and their husbands,
Alfred Wolfgang, Maurice Edgington and Leonard Delk have
each played a role in continuing The Roulet Company's
tradition of making the best jewelry at the lowest possible
prices. |
|
1996 |
Gary Wahl, son of longtime employee Lillian Wahl-Roulet and
Lloyd, becomes the main shareholder. |
|
1997 |
The Roulet Company installs computerized equipment to
streamline it's order processing, record keeping and
accounting. This monumental feat is spearheaded by Gary
Wahl. |
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1998 |
The Company moves to 413 Madison Avenue in downtown Toledo. |
|
2000 |
Although the faces around The Roulet Company have changed a
bit over the past 123 years, our desire for making the
finest jewelry available for the lowest prices possible
hasn't. And while our manufacturing shop and showroom has
relocated, many things haven't changed, like our commitment
to quality products at a terrific price! And, yes, we're
still using that same screw press that George first bought
way back in 1900! |