The company was founded on the February 4, 1929, when Henry Berliner and his 1922 company, Berliner Aircraft Company of Alexandria, Virginia, joined with Maryland Aviation Commission leader Captain Temple Nach Joyce.

[1][2] Berliner-Joyce hired William H. Miller as chief designer, and opened a 58,000 square foot factory in Dundalk, Maryland, near Logan Field.

[4] The Great Depression ended the civil aircraft production market, so Berliner-Joyce concentrated on designing aircraft for the USAAC and US Navy.

A merger between the Douglas Aircraft Company and Berliner Joyce was proposed in early 1930, but fell through.

[5] Later that same year, North American Aviation bought the company.