George W. Korn Razor Manufacturing Company
Founded by George W. Korn
Little Valley, New York
1890-1925
Meeting coincidentally while traveling, J.B.F. Champlin befriended German immigrant George W. Korn, who had invented an automatically-opening knife in 1883 and had a factory in Chicago, Illinois. Champlin convinced Korn to relocate to Little Valley so, in 1900, George W. Korn Razor Manufacturing Company opened alongside the railroad tracks, with Cattaraugus Cutlery’s second factory soon standing beside. There, Korn’s famous safety razor would be built, adding to the mystique of Little Valley and Cattaraugus County, until Korn’s death in 1919 and the company’s ultimate demise in 1925.
Information and photo provided by Brad Lockwood and Dean E. Case.