King Arthur

King Arthur was founded in 1790 in Boston’s Long Wharf when Henry Wood began importing flour from England, establishing the first flour company of the United States. King Arthur continued importing until American farming flourished in the 1920s, allowing King Arthur to stop importing wheat and begin selling American milled flour. In 1896, The Sands, Taylor, & Wood Company (the name the company operated under before it become known as King Arthur Flour) introduced for the first time their King Arthur flour line, giving it that name for its Arthurian attributes of “purity, loyalty, honesty, superior strength, and dedication to a higher purpose.” While King Arthur had become New England’s largest bakery supplier by 1968, providing just about everything professional bakers needed, in the 1970s they refocused their efforts on returning to their roots of selling flour to professional and home bakers. The passion for baking at King Arthur is so strong that they officially established The King Arthur Bakery and Baking Education Center in Norwich, Vermont. By 2004 the company became completely employee owned, fulfilling owners Frank and Brinna Sands’ wish to leave their company in capable, caring hands after their retirement. The employee-led company has continued to fulfill the company’s original purpose of spreading the joy of baking, with a National ESOP Company of the Year award in 2016 showcasing the business’ successful culture and passion for what they do.