People
George A. Muirson
George
Muirson and Joe Knoth in front of Muirson Label Company Building, San
Jose, CA, c. 1917. George A. Muirson, founder of the Muirson Label Company, was a self-described “self-made man”. Born in Indiana in 1860, he and his family were living in San José by the early 1880’s. Muirson worked as a bookkeeper and business manager for local newspapers. By the 1890’s, he had formed a printing firm in partnership with his nephew Theodore M. Wright. In 1914, with backing from Robert I. Bentley Jr., family members and potential customers in the canning industry, Muirson founded the Muirson Label and Crate Company.
Muirson firmly believed that all workers should start at the bottom of a business and work their way to the top. All young men joining the firm, including his family members, served time in the production side of the business. Those who showed particular promise and diligence, like artist Ralph Rambo, were given opportunities to develop their talents and advance their careers. Rambo described him as a “kind, thoughtful employer”.
Muirson died in the great flu epidemic in 1918 at age 58; the San Jose Evening News called him one of the city’s “best known, best loved and most useful citizens”.
