Our history and timeline

Connelly was founded in 1875, known as the Connelly Iron Sponge & Governor Company. In 1946, when they divested themselves of the Governor business, the company name was changed to Connelly, Inc. The primary business of the company was to manufacture Iron Sponge for the removal of hydrogen sulfide from illuminating gas and other gases.

Gas Purifying Materials Company, Inc. was founded in 1919 and until 1958 manufactured an Iron Sponge material, known as GPM Iron Hydroxide.

In the 1930’s, Connelly also began producing Metallic and Non-Metallic Building Products on a private-label basis for the heavy construction industry, and Chemical Iron for reduction purposes in chemical plants. Gas Purifying Materials Company Inc. did likewise starting in 1950.

In 1956, Gas Purifying Materials Company, Inc. purchased Connelly Inc. and operated Connelly as a wholly owned subsidiary, with the Gas Purifying Materials plant located in Long Island City, New York, and the Connelly plants in Elizabeth, New Jersey, and Chicago, Illinois – all three plants producing and selling Building Products, Iron Sponge and Chemical Iron.

In 1970, the parent company – Gas Purifying Materials Company Inc., was merged into the subsidiary, Connelly Inc. and the name changed to Connelly-GPM, Inc. The Gas Purifying Materials plant in Long Island City was shut down.

In 1991 it was determined that our customers’ needs could be more efficiently served by consolidating our operations in the more centrally located Chicago plant.

Connelly-GPM, Inc. manufactures the following products: Metallic and non-metallic building products for the industrial construction industry on a private-label basis only: Iron Sponge for the removal of hydrogen sulfide (H2S) from gases; Chemical Iron for reduction purposes for the chemical industry, and Iron Aggregate for groundwater remediation.

Our Products

The Chemical Iron products and Iron Aggregate for groundwater remediation are the result of many years of research and development by our own Technical Department in conjunction with many governmental and private enterprises. Current environmental concerns have opened new and exciting uses for our Iron Aggregate. We have the capabilities to custom-grind Iron Aggregate to any specification for both the Chemical Iron and environmental markets.

In December 1986, Mr. B.L. Klein retired from the Company as President, after serving for fifty years. Upon Mr. B.L. Klein’s retirement, Mr. Miles M. Klein became Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer. In May 1994, Mr. Stephen M. Klein became President.

In 1997 Mr. Miles M. Klein, who had been with the Company since 1950, officially retired, and Mr. Stephen M. Klein succeeded his father to become the third generation to carry on Connelly-GPM’s mission of fulfilling the needs of our customers in a broad range of industries. Mr. Stephen M. Klein has been with the Company in various management positions since 1971.

Connelly-GPM, Inc.’s nucleus of well-trained, experienced people, with many years of accumulated knowledge and know-how, stands ready to direct that experience to help industries meet a variety of challenges in an ever-changing market.

In 2018, the fourth generation of the Klein family, Cindy Mann and Amy Krevit assumed leadership of the company, making Connelly-GPM, Inc. a women-owned corporation for the first time.