Victor Samuel Johnson Sr. (February 6, 1882 – August 29, 1943) was an American businessman who founded
Aladdin Industries
Aladdin is a brand notable for its line of character lunchboxes including Hopalong Cassady, Superman, Mickey Mouse and The Jetsons. Today, Aladdin continues to be a food and beverage products brand and is owned by Pacific Market International ...
, best known as manufacturers of kerosene mantle lamps.
In 1904, he was a bookkeeper and salesman for the Iowa Soap Company in
Burlington, Iowa
Burlington is a city in, and the county seat of, Des Moines County, Iowa, Des Moines County, Iowa, United States. The population was 23,982 in the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, a decline from the 26,839 population in 2000 United States ...
. After seeing German kerosene lamp models that were more efficient than American models, he formed the Western Lighting Company in
Minneapolis, Minnesota in 1907 and began selling the better lamps. On February 27, 1908 he incorporated The Mantle Lamp Company of America.
Early in 1909 Johnson introduced the Aladdin lamp, which succeeded beyond all expectations and led to subsequent improved models over the next 40 years.
After Johnson's unexpected death in 1943, his son,
Victor S. Johnson Jr.
Victor Samuel Johnson Jr. (June 12, 1916 – January 19, 2008) was an American lawyer who was president of Aladdin Industries, a manufacturer of vacuum bottles, kerosene lamps, and stoves. He was notable for creating the market for decora ...
succeeded him and expanded the company.
External links
History of the Aladdin Lamp Company, via Survival Unlimited(archived)
1882 births
1943 deaths
20th-century American businesspeople
People from Minden, Nebraska
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