Grumman Aircraft Engineering Corporation - Specimen Stock Certificate - Grumman Corporation

Specimen Stock available. Printed by American Bank Note Company. The Grumman Aircraft Engineering Corporation, which later became known as Grumman Aerospace Corporation, was a prominent American manufacturer of both military and civilian aircraft during the 20th century. Established on December 6, 1929, by Leroy Grumman and his associates, the company merged with Northrop Corporation in 1994, resulting in the formation of Northrop Grumman. Leroy Grumman began his career at the Loening Aircraft Engineering Corporation in 1920. 

Following its acquisition by Keystone Aircraft Corporation and the subsequent relocation of operations from New York City to Bristol, Pennsylvania in 1929, Grumman and his partners—who were all former employees of Loening Aircraft, including Edmund Ward Poor, William Schwendler, Jake Swirbul, and Clint Towl—founded their own enterprise in an old factory previously owned by Cox-Klemin Aircraft Co. in Baldwin, Long Island, New York. The company was officially registered on December 6, 1929, and commenced operations on January 2, 1930. Initially, the business focused on welding aluminum tubing for truck frames while actively seeking contracts with the United States Navy. Grumman innovated the first practical floats equipped with retractable landing gear for naval use, which marked the company's entry into the aviation sector. The inaugural aircraft produced by Grumman was the FF-1, a biplane featuring retractable landing gear, which was also designed for the Navy, followed by a series of other successful aircraft designs.