1955

Lincoln Life 50th Anniversary Gift Compact

Financial chaos and controversy among big, established insurers marked the start of the twentieth cen-tury. It was during this time that a group in Fort Wayne, Indiana envisioned a better insurer-one rooted in dependability and honesty. Determined to create and operate a different kind of insurance company, and to do so with integrity, thirty-three founders, headed by Arthur Hall and William Paul, established the Lincoln National Life Insurance Company in September 1905. Through periods of financial instability where thousands of financial institutions have failed, sound management and a growing group of loyal managers brought prosperity: $500,000 worth of insurance sales in 1902, $6.5 million in 1911, $1 billion in 1939 and in 1955 it had $7 billion in life insurance sales. It evolved into the Lincoln National Corpora-tion by 1968 and a "multiline" insurer with casualty and health products in the 1970s and 80s. "The Lin-coln" had become the largest home-based company in Allen County with 4000 employees. By the 1990s, management was selling off the less-profitable multiline insurance subsidiaries to focus on financial services-life insurance and annuities. This led to many changes in its organization including moving its corporate headquarters to Philadelphia in 1999. Much of the company's financial services business is located in Fort Wayne at its annuity operations center and Lincoln remains an important economic partner in the community.

For the company's 50th anniversary they gave each female employee a compact while each male employee received a gold tie clip. The compact contained fine face powder and the gold and mother of pearl case was protected by a felt pouch. Every employee was also given a $50 bill.