Merck & Co. Day

Merck & Co. traces its origins to its former German parent company Merck Group, which was established by the Merck family in 1668 when Friedrich Jacob Merck purchased a drug store in Darmstadt. In 1827, Merck Group evolved from a pharmacy to a drug manufacturer company with the commercial manufacture of morphine. Merck perfected the chemical process of deriving morphine from opium and later introduced cocaine, used to treat sinus problems and to add to beverages to boost energy levels. In 1887 a German-born, long-time Merck employee, Theodore Weicker, went to the United States to represent Merck Group. In 1891, family member George (Georg) Merck emigrated to the United States and set up Merck & Co. in New York as the U.S. subsidiary of Merck Group. In 1891, with a capital of $200,000 received from E. Merck, Weicker started Merck & Co., with headquarters in lower Manhattan. That year George Merck, the 23-year-old son of the then head of E. Merck (and grandson of the founder) joined Weicker in New York. Merck & Co. operated from 1891 to 1917 as the US subsidiary of the Merck Group. Lightbulb inventor Thomas Edison was neighbors with our founder George Merck and an early customer of Merck & Co.

Today Merck & Co., Inc. is an American multinational pharmaceutical company headquartered in Kenilworth, New Jersey. Number of employees: 74,000 (2020).