Born in 1855, Hamilton Carhartt grew up in Michigan determined to make a name for himself in business. In fact, at age 22, the young entrepreneur established his own wholesale clothing business and soon thereafter added an extra "t" to his last name to ensure he would stand out from other businessmen.

While on the road promoting his company, it was an encounter with a railroad engineer that would forever shape the future of Hamilton Carhartt-and change the way Americans outfitted themselves for work.

The engineer related the rigors of a job on the railroad, and lamented the poor quality of the work clothes of the day.

Intrigued by the challenge, Hamilton Carhartt turned his attention to manufacturing overalls and founded his namesake company in 1889. His goal? Set a standard of excellence to which all others would aspire.

The first Carhartt overalls were made of the finest canvas duck and denim. Their cut allowed for easy movement during a long day of coupling rail cars, throwing switches, and shoveling coal. Double and even triple stitches often took the place of single-needle construction. And, rivets reinforced all key seams.

The reputation of Carhartt's clothing spread quickly, and not only among railway workers. Blacksmiths, boilermakers, drovers, sandhogs, teamsters, wheelwrights, and others were soon demanding the heavy-duty workwear with the distinctive Carhartt brand.

Many of these occupations have long since given way to new ones, but Carhartt's legend lives on in a full line of workwear that's delivering comfort, durability, and fit to today's men and women.