Towle Silversmiths

In 1890, the company adopted the trademark of a large script "T" enclosing a lion.

Richard Dimes, an English silversmith who had immigrated to the U.S. in 1881, started Towle's hollowware line.

Over the years, Towle has created numerous sterling silver flatware patterns in the United States: including the "Candlelight" in 1934, the "Marie Louise" in 1939, which became the official sterling silver pattern for U.S. embassies worldwide, "Old Master" in 1942, now considered by some to be the company's flagship pattern, and the "Contour" in 1950 (designed by Robert J.

King, patented by John Van Koert) which was the first American sterling pattern to manifest post-World War II organic modernist design and the only production-line American flatware included in the Museum of Modern Art's Good Design exhibitions.

In 1986, due to problems with inventory and distribution, in addition to a weak retail market, Towle filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.