James Gamble (industrialist)

James Gamble ( born April 3, 1803 in Enniskillen, United Kingdom, † April 29, 1891 in Cincinnati, Ohio ) was a British soap maker and industrialist. He and his brother in law William Procter was the founder and eponym of Procter & Gamble.

Career

James Gamble attended Portora Royal School in Enniskillen, before he left with his parents in Ireland for the United States at the age of 16 years. They sailed away from Derry and reached after 47 days of New Brunswick in Canada. From there they went to settle down to a more grueling journey by boat and carriage in the direction of Illinois, where they intended. However, James fell ill on the way to Cincinnati. After his recovery, they settled there. James attended Kenyon College, where he graduated in 1824. After this he started an apprenticeship as a soap maker. He founded in 1828 his own soap factory. In the early 1830s he married Elizabeth Ann Norris ( 1822-1888 ), daughter of Alexander Norris. His sister Olivia Norris was married to William Procter, a candle makers. Her father suggested they merge for reasons of cost savings and synergies both before their businesses. Then the two men opened on April 12, 1837 her first business at Sixth and Main Streets in Cincinnati. My business grew due to the proximity to the Ohio River and the fact that Cincinnati was a railway junction, quickly.

From 1851 led Procter & Gamble an early version of " Man in the Moon " brand, which was applied on the boxes of their star- labeled candles for the first time. This step was taken from the requirement of identifiability, because at that time many of the customers were illiterate. The annual turnover has grown steadily, surpassing 1859 for the first time the one-million - dollar limit. Shortly before the Civil War, Procter and Gamble were concerned that their supply of a particular type of pine resin from the south could be interrupted, which was a main ingredient in some of their products. Then send both partners their sons, William Alexander Procter and James Norris Gamble, to Louisiana, so they should acquire a huge amount of this pine resin there. This clever gambit allowed Procter & Gamble to take a dominant position on the market during the civil war and sign a lucrative contract to supply the Union Army with numerous products.

James Gamble died on April 29, 1891 in Cincinnati and was then buried in the Spring Grove Cemetery. His son James was a chemist and CEO of Procter & Gamble. He was the inventor of ivory soap, which became a bestseller.

Children

James Gamble and Elizabeth Ann Norris had ten children together. Among them were:

• James Norris Gamble ( born August 9, 1836 † July 2, 1932 )
• Olivia Gamble ( * September 18, 1841; † July 31, 1850 )
• Alex William Gamble ( born December 6, 1843 † August 23, 1844 )
• William Alex Gamble ( born September 1, 1845 † May 2, 1897 )
• Charles E. Gamble ( born May 1, 1850 † December 27, 1863 )
• Edwin Percy Gamble (born 18 Dember 1852 † April 23, 1939 )
• Lillian Frances Gamble ( born August 16, 1855 † May 2, 1907 )