Who turned the Louisville slugger's first bat?

Answer 1

J. Frederick Hillerich started a woodworking shop in 1856. His eldest son, John Andrew "Bud" Hillerich, was born in Louisville in 1866. In 1880 Bud Hillerich, who was an amateur Baseball player, became an apprentice in his father's shop. Young Bud made his own baseball bats along with bats for several of his teammates. According to company legend, the first pro bat was turned by Bud for Pete Browning in 1884. One of Browning's nicknames was, "The Louisville Slugger."

Bud Hillerich continued to improve the manufacturing processes of the new bat business, inventing a centering device for a lathe and an automatic sander. Their baseball bat business grew. The bat was first known as the Falls City Slugger, (a reference to Louisville's location at the Falls of the Ohio River), but the brand name was changed to Louisville Slugger and registered as a trademark in 1894. Bud Hillerich became a partner with his father in 1897 and the name of the firm was changed to J.F. Hillerich and Son.