Eveready Battery Company
Established 1896Founded in 1896 by Conrad Hubert as the American Electrical Novelty and Manufacturing Company, Eveready is a leading manufacturer of battery brands. In 1899, the company obtained a patent from David Misell for the world’s first flashlight. Misell’s invention consisted of a couple of batteries laid front-to-back in a paper tube with a light bulb and a reflector at the end. In 1905, the company began selling flashlights and batteries under the trademark Ever Ready.
While working for Eveready, engineer Lewis Urry invented the world’s first alkaline battery in 1957. This long-lasting alkaline battery used a zinc/manganese dioxide chemistry instead of the old Zinc-carbon battery. Unfortunately, Eveready did not aggressively market the invention and therefore lost significant market share to Duracell. In 1980, the alkaline battery was rebadged under its current name, Energizer.
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