As the nation marks its 250th anniversary, we're reflecting on the brands keeping American craftsmanship alive - one stitch, pour, plank, and feather at a time.
At Brackish, American craftsmanship is the heartbeat of everything we make. Each Brackish piece passes through the hands of eight artisans here in Charleston, SC, moving from feather sorting and artisan design to precision sewing and two rounds of quality inspection before it ever reaches a customer. That level of devotion to the handmade process isn't something you can manufacture at scale or offshore. It has to be chosen, every single day.
As America enters its 250th year, we wanted to pause and honor the brands across the country that have made that same choice. These are makers who believe that where something is made matters - that the hands behind a product are inseparable from its worth. Below, we celebrate six American brands whose craftsmanship, integrity, and dedication to domestic making we deeply admire.
SMITHEY - Charleston, SC
Some of the finest cookware in America is being made just a few miles from our own workshop. Founded in 2015 by Isaac Morton - who began by restoring vintage cast iron skillets in his woodshed - Smithey was built on the belief that a lost art could be evolved into a modern heirloom. Each skillet, Dutch oven, and carbon steel roaster is designed and manufactured on a former Naval Base in North Charleston, crafted by a team that polishes every interior to a satin-smooth, naturally nonstick finish by hand and machine.
What makes Smithey exceptional isn't just the quality of the cookware - it's the philosophy behind it. Smithey builds pieces intended to be used daily for generations, becoming true heirlooms in the families that own them. Their 2024 expansion into new Charleston County facilities reflects a brand that is doubling down on domestic manufacturing at exactly the moment when it matters most.
Why we admire them: Smithey proves that premium American manufacturing isn't a relic - it's a competitive advantage. Their cookware gets better with every meal and is designed to outlast trends, owners, and lifetimes.
Allegiance Flag Supply - Charleston, SC
There may be no more fitting symbol for America's 250th anniversary than the flag itself - and no better maker of that flag than our fellow Charlestonians at Allegiance Flag Supply. Founded in 2018 by Max Berry, Wes Lyon, and Katie Lyon after they struggled to find a quality American-made flag worthy of flying on their own front porches, Allegiance was born from a garage and a conviction: of all the things that deserve to be made in the USA, the American flag should be at the top of the list.
Today, Allegiance employs skilled seamstresses who individually sew every flag using 100% American-sourced materials - from heavy-duty nylon to embroidered stars to Vermont White Ash flagpoles. Their double-needle lock-stitching, bar-tack reinforcement, and proprietary grommet strips aren't just engineering details - they're a statement of intention. Every stitch is a rejection of the overseas-made flags that dominated the market and an investment in the American textile workers whose jobs had disappeared.
Why we admire them: In a category where cutting corners is easy and few consumers would notice, Allegiance chose the harder, more honest path - and built something the country deserves.
Imogene + Willie - Nashville, TN
In 2009, husband-and-wife founders Matt and Carrie Eddmenson set up 15 sewing machines in a renovated 1950s gas station in Nashville's 12South neighborhood with one simple, ambitious goal: to sew the perfect pair of jeans. Named for Carrie's maternal grandparents - a nod to the family and heritage the brand was built to honor - Imogene + Willie has spent 15+ years making all of its clothing in the United States, producing small-batch denim in a fashion industry that increasingly rewards speed over craft.
Their process spans the full domestic supply chain: cotton grown regeneratively in Alabama, spun in North Carolina, and woven on antique shuttle looms at historic American mills. Every pair is patterned, cut, and sewn in their Los Angeles sewing room, with in-store custom fittings ensuring that each customer's jeans are tailored to them specifically. While the entire industry watched competitors move overseas to cut costs, Imogene + Willie quietly held the line.
Why we admire them: Their commitment to the American supply chain is the best - a love letter to the makers, mills, and traditions that make domestic denim worth fighting for.
American Trench - Philadelphia, PA
American Trench was founded in 2012 when co-founder Jacob Hurwitz couldn't find a quality, American-made trench coat during a trip to London. Rather than accept that gap in the market, he closed it - launching on Kickstarter and partnering with carefully chosen, family-owned American factories to build something the domestic manufacturing industry could be proud of. What began as a single coat has grown into a full lifestyle brand spanning outerwear, socks, knitwear, shirting, and accessories, all made in the USA.
Their socks - a cult favorite - are knit at family-owned mills in North Carolina and Pennsylvania using domestic and specialty materials including USA-grown merino wool and, in some styles, real silver woven into the heel and toe for natural antimicrobial properties. American Trench works only with community-rooted factories where skilled workers have built careers around their craft, not just jobs.
Why we admire them: American Trench treats domestic manufacturing as a mission, not a marketing tactic. Their brand's motto - there is dignity in manufacturing - captures exactly why we do what we do.
Ranger Station - Nashville, TN
Ranger Station started as a side project. In 2015, professional drummer Steve Soderholm was living in a refurbished ranger station between touring gigs and began making candles in reusable cocktail glasses as a creative outlet. His now-wife Jordan launched the brand online with a single scent - Leather + Pine - and what began as a hobby became one of America's most distinctive independent fragrance houses.
Hand-poured in Nashville in soy-based wax, each Ranger Station candle comes paired with a cocktail recipe matched to the scent profile. Their fine fragrances draw from the textures and landscapes of the American outdoors - cedar, sandalwood, oakmoss, tomato vine, charred sage - and are crafted with ingredient-conscious formulas that bring luxury within reach without the traditional French fragrance house markup. As Steve describes it, they're bringing American heritage quality and craftsmanship into a category that has historically been dominated by European brands.
Why we admire them: Ranger Station reminds us that American craft isn't confined to textiles and ironware - it's an ethos that can infuse any category with soul, story, and a distinctly homegrown point of view.
Grain Surfboards - York, ME
In an industry dominated by polyurethane foam and plastic, Grain Surfboards makes something entirely different: hollow wooden surfboards, handcrafted in a white-shingled barn in York, Maine, using locally harvested, sustainably managed Northern White Cedar. Co-founder Mike LaVecchia - who spent 12 years in the snowboard industry before returning to his woodworking roots - started building boards in his basement in 2005, drawing on traditional boat-building techniques to shape something the surf world had never quite seen.
Every board is built using traditional edge tools: drawknives, hand planes, spokeshaves, and chisels. Grain sources its cedar from Maine mills specifically to support the local forestry industry, refusing cheaper alternatives to stay true to their regional roots. They've also pioneered a community model, offering multi-day board-building workshops so surfers can shape their own boards using the same techniques, materials, and tools as the craftspeople at Grain.
Why we admire them: Grain Surfboards is proof that the most radical thing a maker can do is slow down, reach back into tradition, and build something that lasts - an act they've described, perfectly, as "re-evolutionary."
At Brackish, we believe the things we make are only as meaningful as the people and values behind them. As America turns 250, we're grateful to be part of a community of makers who see craftsmanship not as a cost center, but as a calling. Shop Brackish and support American artisanship at www.brackish.com. Read Our Story here.