Hardwood flooring as we know it today (kiln-dried, tongue-and-grooved, matched and end-matched) originated in the United States around the turn of the century. About that same time, two enterprising men in Ontario, William Seaman and Frank Kent, saw the potential for this popular new product in Canada. In 1901 they formed the Seaman-Kent Company and became the first company in the British Empire to manufacture hardwood flooring.

The company was located in Meaford, heart of the finest hard maple stands in the world. Here, the limestone beds lend a uniqueness to the maple, unequalled anywhere else: the wood is free of mineral stains and has the whiteness preferred in the flooring market.

The two men formed an ideal business partnership. They were the exact opposites in temperament. Seaman was a cautious, conservative man while his partner was a flamboyant extrovert. Together they built up a company that within a few years was shipping "Beaver Brand" hardwood flooring of maple, oak, beech and birch across Canada, to the United States, and the United Kingdom. By 1920 they had manufacturing facilities and warehouses from Quebec City to Edmonton with a head office in Toronto. The principal manufacturing plant however remained at its birthplace, in Meaford.

With the stock-market crash and Great Depression of the 1930s, the Seaman-Kent Company was over-extended. One by one their plants and warehouses were closed, auctioned off, or left idle. By 1931, the sole activity of the company was from the Meaford plant. Finally it closed it's doors that same year. The property and premises reverted to the town for back-taxes and the factory was deserted.

In 1937, at the height of the Depression, F. Stanley Knight, a local woodworker, acquired the abandoned plant from the Town of Meaford. He purchased the "Beaver Brand" name, refurbished the plant and once again hardwood flooring flowed from Meaford.

Today, years later, the Stanley Knight plant, situated in the original Seaman-Kent premises, produces some of the finest quality flooring available. We supply markets worldwide, shipping native woods across Canada, to the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, Spain, Japan, Taiwan, and Korea.

Beaver Brand flooring is seen in squash courts, gymnasiums, industrial and commercial sites, as well as in fine residences. Some of our high profile installations include facilities at the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona, Spain, the international airport in Oslo, Norway and the Concert House in Freiberg, Germany.