Albert Grosh Jones, the treasurer and general manager of the Utica-Duxbak Corporation, was born in Utica, Oneida county, New York, on the 27th of June, 1856, his parents being John G. and Emma M. (Grosh) Jones. He was a youth of fifteen years when he began working in the foundry of the firm of Hanby, McClougher & Head, which he eventually left in order to learn the mason's trade with his father. That work claimed his attention for six years, on the expiration of which period, in 1879, he secured a position with the notion and dry goods firm of McAdam & Company, which he represented for twenty years, or until Mr. McAdam retired from the company in 1900. While thus employed he drove a team through the Mohawk and Black River valleys both winter and summer and made the unusual record of losing only two days during the long period of his connection with the company. He next became associated with the firm of Rathbun & Company, with which he continued until 1904, when he joined Messrs. Bird and Kenyon in organizing the enterprise which has developed into the Utica-Duxbak Corporation.
The nucleus of what is the Utica-Duxbak Corporation, manufacturers of serviceable clothing for life in the open, was founded in January, 1904, by the association of Jesse S. Bird, Albert G. Jones and Henry B. Kenyon, in the Williams building, now the Walnut building. They began the making of waterproof clothing for sportsmen, with an equipment of ten machines, and the enterprise flourished to such an extent that they were compelled to seek larger quarters and capacity for more machines. They therefore installed the business in a small portion of what constitutes their present plant, which covers one hundred and ninety-six feet on Noyes street, two hundred and fifty-nine feet on Wheeler avenue and one hundred and seventeen feet on Lincoln avenue. The corporation furnishes employment to two hundred and twenty-five people and utilizes two hundred machines in the manufacture of its output. It was incorporated in January, 1917, with the following officers: Ralph McAdam Jones, president; Wardwell Willoughby Jones, vice president; Albert Grosh Jones, treasurer and general manager; and Carlton Bucher Jones, secretary and assistant treasurer.
The Utica-Duxbak Corporation are makers of Duxbak sportsmen's clothing for men and women, Utica trousers, canvas clothing and motorcycle clothing and Kamp-it outing clothing for men and women. Duxbak cloth is a strong, serviceable, specially constructed material, known in the trade as army duck. It is woven to specifications which have been developed to secure a cloth that will be soft and pliable, yet of such character as to make satisfactory rainproofing entirely practical. The material is also of sufficient tensile strength to insure wearing qualities such as the strenuous demands of sportsmen put upon it. Duxbak garments are designed by sportsmen for sportsmen. Into each goes the practical knowledge of the exacting requirements that sportsmen will make of it before the garment is accepted as an indispensable part of his equipment. That Duxbak has been so accepted by the leading sportsmen for many years is evidence of successful accomplishment. All Duxbak coats are made of a double thickness of Duxbak cloth. This is done for two purposes — first, that adequate protection may be insured the wearer from wet and exposure; and second, that a game pocket of ample capacity may be provided. All Duxbak garments are made extra strong where strength is a prime requisite. Duxbak is as nearly waterproof as it is possible to make any fabric of this kind. Kamp-it is the copyrighted name of the Utica-Duxbak Corporation for a strong, rugged twill material that is finished to its order in an attractive shade. Kamp-it cloth is lighter in weight than Duxbak and is not rainproofed. Kamp-it garments are as well designed as Duxback. Every one must make good on two essentials-appearance and utility. The Utica line of the Duxbak Corporation includes the following fabrics: Forestry cloth, imported tweeds, domestic tweeds, woolen gabardine, cotton gabardine, shepherd plaids, corduroys, wool serges, moleskins, imported herringbones, crash and linens. Many of these materials are rainproofed. The fact that Utica garments are factory-made enables the corporation to offer garments of exceptional merit at attractive prices. While Utica garments are factory-made, the same high standard of manufacture that has made Duxbak and Kamp-it the leading outdoor garments is also made a part of the Utica line.
In early manhood Mr. Jones was united in marriage to Miss Julia W. Smith, daughter of Giles C. and Jane (Wilson) Smith. They have three sons, namely: Carlton Bucher, Ralph McAdam and Wardwell Willoughby Jones. Albert G. Jones, a lifelong resident of Utica, enjoys an enviable reputation as one of its prosperous and representative manufacturers, as well as highly esteemed citizens.