Ashland Inc. (or simply, Ashland) NYSE: ASH is a Fortune 500 company which operates
in more than 100 countries throughout the world. Presently based in Covington,
Kentucky, in the USA, the company traces its roots back to Ashland, Kentucky
(for which it is named).
Ashland was founded in 1924 as Ashland Refining
Company of Ashland, Kentucky, by Paul G. Blazer.The refinery was originally
set up under the guise of the Swiss Oil Company located in Lexington, Kentucky.
In 1930, the nearby Tri-State Refining Company was purchased, adding 5,500
barrels per day of capacity to the company. The company continued to merge or acquire
other oil companies, combining with Swiss Oil in 1936, Allied Oil in 1948,
Aetna Oil in 1949, and purchasing Frontier Oil Refining and National Refining
in 1950. By that time, the company began to diversify, adding petrochemicals
to its portfolio with the acquisition of R. J. Brown Company in 1956 and United
Carbon in 1963.
The company currently has four wholly owned divisions,
which include Distribution, Performance Materials, Valvoline, and Water Technologies.
Founded 1924
Headquarters Covington, Kentucky, USA
Industry Manufacturing
and Chemical Distribution
Employees 11,700 (2006)
Website www.ashland.com |
