As Solid as an Oak: Memphis Hardwood's Chickasaw turns 100
Even now, as it celebrates its 100-year anniversary, Memphis Hardwood Flooring Co. continues to make good use of a slogan that dates back to the `50s: "Your feet will never be sore as long as you walk on a hardwood floor." The mantra beams brightly in neon lights on a sign outside the headquarters building just a stone's throw from the Mississippi River in the north end of Memphis. The same sign also includes the distinctive Indian head profile that is closely associated with the company's famous Chickasaw brand of classic oak unfinished strip flooring.
Some of the seven lumber families that helped start the company stayed with it in the generations that followed. The company today is lead by Tom Cathey, whose family has been an integral part of Memphis Hardwood for three generations.