Howard Miller Furniture

Custom Cabinets | Curios | Office | Clocks

Howard Miller Company, located in Zeeland, Michigan, was founded in 1926 by Howard C. Miller, son of contract furniture legend, Herman Miller. At that time the company primarily crafted fine chiming wall and mantel clocks and built all-wood casings designed to last generations. However, over the years, Howard Miller adjusted its product line to the needs of an ever-changing society.

During the 1940s Howard Miller produced trend-setting, avant garde clocks that may be found today in collector’s galleries. During World War II, Howard Miller produced anti-aircraft gun covers for planes being built by Ford Motor Company. Designer George Nelson designed futuristic Howard Miller clocks during the 50s, and it was not until the early 1960s that the company turned its attention to grandfather clocks. The development of grandfather clocks has earned Howard Miller the title . . . the world’s largest grandfather clock manufacturer.

In 1989 the company began manufacturing curio cabinets. The wooden cabinets, in development five years before the first one was sold, have glass windows and shelves, and are similar to the grandfather clocks but without timing devices. The cabinets can display heirlooms, plates and other collectible items, and are designed to be compatible with grandfather clocks built generations ago.

Though clocks have made the company famous world-wide, Howard Miller could be considered a furniture company with its wood and upholstered products for the home. The company bought Hekman Furniture Company in Grand Rapids, Michigan, in 1983. That company operates plants in Michigan and North Carolina. In 1994 Howard Miller purchased Woodmark Upholstery, which operates plants in North Carolina.