Pride Manufacturing Company: A Brief Industrial History

The history of Pride Manufacturing Company reflects the development of the American cigar industry, the growth of golf-related consumer products, and the persistence of wood-processing industries in Maine. The firm traces its origins to the cigar manufacturing center of Tampa, Florida, where wooden cigar tips began to be produced in the early twentieth century. By 1919, an operation associated with cigar manufacturers was producing wooden mouthpieces used for machine-made cigars such as Hav-A-Tampa, which were widely distributed throughout the United States.¹ These small wooden tips, often made from birch or other hardwoods, were designed to provide a more comfortable mouthpiece for factory-made cigars during a period of rapid expansion in the tobacco industry.

In 1930, Fletcher Pride and his son Gene Pride formally organized the Pride Manufacturing Company in Tampa.² The firm specialized in turning small wooden products on automated lathes, including cigar tips and related accessories. Tampa was one of the leading cigar-manufacturing centers in the United States during the early twentieth century, making it a logical location for a supplier of cigar components. The Pride operation gradually expanded as cigar production increased and as automated manufacturing techniques allowed large numbers of wooden parts to be produced efficiently.

By the mid-twentieth century, the company sought greater access to the hardwood resources required for its products. In 1956, Pride Manufacturing relocated its operations to Guilford, Maine, a small industrial community in Piscataquis County.³ The move brought the company closer to the white birch forests of northern New England, which supplied the raw material necessary for cigar tips and other wood-turned products. Maine had long supported a variety of wood-processing industries—including furniture manufacturing, woodenware production, and spool and bobbin factories—making it a favorable environment for a specialized wood-turning operation.

Following its relocation to Maine, Pride Manufacturing diversified its production and began manufacturing wooden golf tees. The popularity of golf increased steadily in the United States after World War II, creating a growing market for inexpensive wooden tees. Using automated turning equipment and abundant supplies of birch wood, the company expanded rapidly and eventually became the largest manufacturer of wooden golf tees in the world.⁴

By the late twentieth century, the company required a larger facility to support its expanding production. In 1992, Pride Manufacturing opened a new manufacturing plant in Burnham, Maine, in Waldo County.⁵ The Burnham facility significantly increased production capacity and eventually employed more than one hundred workers. The plant manufactured golf tees, cigar tips, and other small wooden products, continuing Maine’s long tradition of forest-based manufacturing.

In 2014, Pride Manufacturing gained national attention when production of the classic American toy Lincoln Logs was transferred to the Burnham facility, bringing the toy’s manufacturing back to the United States after many years overseas.⁶ Originally invented in 1916 by John Lloyd Wright, the toy had become one of the most recognizable wooden construction sets in American households. The move demonstrated the versatility of Pride’s wood-processing equipment and its ability to manufacture a wide range of consumer products from hardwood lumber.

Despite its long history and specialized production, Pride Manufacturing faced growing economic pressures during the early twenty-first century. In January 2026 the company announced that its Burnham plant would close permanently on April 14, 2026, affecting approximately 115 employees.⁷ According to company representatives, the shutdown resulted from a significant shift in customer demand that made continued operation economically unsustainable.⁸ Reports indicated that the company had lost a major contract to produce cigar tips—one of its highest-volume products—which greatly reduced the plant’s production volume.⁹ Without that business, the Burnham facility could no longer operate profitably.

The closure marked the end of nearly seventy years of Pride Manufacturing’s presence in Maine and brought a significant loss of employment to the small community of Burnham, where the company had long been one of the town’s largest employers.¹⁰ The plant’s shutdown also reflected broader challenges faced by forest-products manufacturers in rural New England, including changing consumer demand, shifting supply chains, and increasing global competition.

Footnotes

1. Gary R. Mormino and George E. Pozzetta, The Immigrant World of Ybor City: Italians and Their Latin Neighbors in Tampa, 1885–1985 (Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1987), 138–140.

2. PrideSports, “About Pride Golf Tee,” company history page, accessed January 2026.

3. Earle G. Shettleworth Jr., Maine’s Visible Black History (Gardiner, ME: Tilbury House, 2006), 214.

4. PrideSports, “About Pride Golf Tee.”

5. “Burnham Plant May Soon Manufacture Lincoln Logs,” Penobscot Bay Pilot, September 17, 2014.

6. “Lincoln Logs Now Made in Maine,” News Center Maine, September 22, 2014.

7. “Maine Company That Makes Lincoln Logs Is Closing,” Bangor Daily News, January 15, 2026.

8. “Maine Company That Makes Golf Tees, Lincoln Logs Is Closing,” WMTW News, January 16, 2026.

9. “Maine Factory That Makes Lincoln Logs to Close,” New York Post, January 21, 2026.

10. “Maine Company That Makes Lincoln Logs Is Closing,” Bangor Daily News, January 15, 2026.

Bibliography

Mormino, Gary R., and George E. Pozzetta. The Immigrant World of Ybor City: Italians and Their Latin Neighbors in Tampa, 1885–1985. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1987.

“Burnham Plant May Soon Manufacture Lincoln Logs.” Penobscot Bay Pilot. September 17, 2014.

“Lincoln Logs Now Made in Maine.” News Center Maine. September 22, 2014.

“Maine Company That Makes Lincoln Logs Is Closing.” Bangor Daily News. January 15, 2026.

“Maine Company That Makes Golf Tees, Lincoln Logs Is Closing.” WMTW News. January 16, 2026.

“Maine Factory That Makes Lincoln Logs to Close.” New York Post. January 21, 2026.

PrideSports. “About Pride Golf Tee.” Company website.

Shettleworth, Earle G., Jr. Maine’s Visible Black History. Gardiner, ME: Tilbury House, 2006.