HISTORY

OUR HISTORY

THE KRAMAN IRONWORKS STORY Kraman Iron Works has been a family owned business since 1913. The company was founded by Louis Kraman as a small blacksmith shop during a time when a business deal was sealed with a handshake. Louie was born May 8, 1894 in Russia. He married Dora in June of 1913 and they immigrated to New York in August of 1913. He immediately began working as a blacksmith, pushing his cart through the streets of New York, but quickly he decided to expand and opened a shop at 410 East 10th Street, where Kraman Iron Works is still doing business today. He got to know all the neighborhood landlords and started doing cellar doors, fire escapes and window guards. Louie and Dora had four children - Ann, Hyman, Sidney and Shirley. It was a family affair from the beginning, but hard work and responsibility were always a way of life for the Kraman's. Dora worked in the office, but if she came in late, Louie was sure to dock her pay! Sidney Kraman, Louie's second son, joined the business in the 1940s, expanding the company to offer fabrication and erection services all over New York City. James "Jimmy" Fassler, Ann's oldest son, joined his grandfather and uncle after graduating from college in 1961, with a weekly salary of $60. Sadly, Louie Kraman passed away in December of 1961 soon after Jimmy began working at Kraman Iron Works. Richard "Dick" Kraman, Sidney's son, joined the company in 1978, working hard to maintain the high standards set by his grandfather and father before him. Sid, Jimmy and Dick continued to expand the company; they began taking on bigger structural jobs in addition to miscellaneous steel work. As a teen, Dick spent his summers working in the shop and assisting his father in the field. Dick's second son, Max Kraman, joined Kraman Iron Works following graduation from George Washington University in 2006. Dick's only daughter, Kyla Kraman Galli, joined the company in 2011. Dick prides himself in instilling the same knowledge, values and work ethic he learned from the previous generations of his family in his children today.

THE KRAMAN IRONWORKS FAMILY TREE

﷯Louis Kraman
Born in 1894. This hardworking immigrant from Russia, a skilled blacksmith, founded Kraman Iron Works in 1913.

Sidney Kraman

Born February 15, 1922. Graduated from Yale University as an architect and joined his father at Kraman Iron Works in the 1940s. Expanded the company to offer structural and miscellaneous steel fabrication and erection all over New York City.

James "Jimmy" Fassler

Began working at the family company in 1961 after graduating from college. He spent 43 years working with his family, expanding and running the company with Dick until he retired in 2004. He was an integral part of building Kraman Iron Works into the company it is today.

﷯Richard "Dick" Kraman
With over 40 years of experience in the industry, he still runs the company today under the same high standards set by his father and grandfather before him.

Maxwell Kraman

Max was 12 years old when he first started helping out at KIW. He learned the business from the ground up, first watching and assisting in the shop with fabrication. He officially joined the company in 2006 after graduating from George Washington University.

Kyla Kraman Galli

Because of her fond memories of helping out at KIW as a teenager and wanting to be closer to her family, Kyla left the film industry in Los Angeles where she worked as an executive, manager and producer for 10 years, to join her father and brother at the company in 2011.

Kraman Iron Works

410 East 10th Street, New York, New York 10009

(212) 460-8400

kIW@kramanironworks.com