Gruen, Dietrich with Frederick Gruen and Paul Assmann, 1894

While studying at the Deutsche Urhmacherschule (German Watchmaking School) in Glashütte, Germany, Frederick Gruen became acquainted with Paul Assmann, whose father Julius had founded a successful and highly-regarded watch company whose clients included A. Lange & Söhne, a premiere German watchmaking firm. In 1894, Frederick, Dietrich Gruen, and Paul Assmann founded their own company in Glashütte. It was called Grünsche Uhrenfabrikation Grün und Assmann. This 1894 photograph, taken to commemorate the founding of the new firm, shows Dietrich Gruen (center) sitting arm-in-arm with Frederick (left) and Paul Assmann (right). The young boy at the far right is Paul Assmann’s son Ernst, who moved to Ohio in 1905 to work at the Gruen Company.