Vt. basket company founder dies at 89
10:15 a.m.
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The Associated Press - Published: July 28, 2009
PUTNEY — Frank Wilson, who helped build a small basket shop in Putney into an international business called Basketville, has died, the company said. He was 89.
Wilson died Saturday.
At the height of its success, Basketville had nine stores, from Vermont to Florida.
The Brattleboro Reformer reports Wilson worked as an apprentice to his father in basketry. In 1941, he purchased the West River Basket Co. in Putney and founded Basketville.
The company sold baskets made from ash and oak in small stands and stores and eventually opened accounts with Sears Roebuck and Montgomery Ward.
In 1956, Wilson imported his first basket from overseas. He was one of the first American businessmen to trade with China after President Nixon ended the trade embargo. Basketville established its own factory in China.
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