The Silverman Bros brand’s roots go back to 1897, when 10-year-old Archibald Silverman, an immigrant from Russia, arrived in the United States. He first received an education and then got a job in a jewelry workshop in Providence. The time when the young man turned 18 became the starting point of his entrepreneurial career: with five dollars in hand and an idea to make a brooch, he bought gold wire and created his brand.
After the death of Pope Leo XIII in 1903, Silverman responded to the mourning moment by creating brooches with a black frame and selling them on the streets of Boston. Inspired by the musical show “The Jolly Wings of the Widow”, he developed a whole line of jewelry and also became an innovator, offering the first jewelry with a veil, adapted to the fashion of women who had begun to drive cars.
In a modest space in Providence, Archibald founded a manufacturing company that would eventually become known as Silverman Brothers. His brother Charles, who had previously worked as a foreman at another company, joined the business a few months later, taking over production while Archibald focused on sales. The effective combination of their talents and efforts allowed the company to survive three world wars and economic crises.
Until 1946, the company operated as a partnership, after which it was transformed into a corporation. Archibald had three sons: Norman, Irvin, and C. Leon. After Charles Silverman’s death, Norman took over the company. The brand existed for 59 years.
