Local Business Celebrates 175th Anniversary

Many people may not know that Louisiana's second-oldest business is right here in Shreveport.

Morris & Dickson Company is a 5th-generation, family-owned business that began in Shreveport in 1841. And according to Shreveport City Council Chairman Willie Bradford, it's one he knows well.

"My dad worked for Morris & Dickson until his death," Bradford said at this week's city council meeting. "Morris & Dickson, after my dad had a stroke in 1992, maintained my dad on their active payroll for another 12 years, and my family will always be grateful for that."

Mayor Ollie Tyler applauds the Dickson family for maintaining the business here in Shreveport for so many years.

"I just want to say congratulations," Tyler said. "It is awfully refreshing to meet people like you who have been invested in this community and this nation with a company as long as you've had. So God bless you and thank you so much for what you do in our community."

Councilman Oliver Jenkins said city officials spend a lot of time discussing economic development, and this company is a perfect example of how successful a business can be here in Shreveport.

According to a news release from Gremillion & Pou, Morris & Dickson is planning to pull out all the stops to celebrate this big anniversary. It starts with a 2 p.m. news conference tomorrow, July 14, at the Shreveport Convention Center. The mayors of both Shreveport and Bossier City will issue proclamations marking the occasion.

The news conference will also serve as an opportunity to release the company's newly-published book called "Morris & Dickson Co. Since 1841: The Story of an Enduring Family Business." The author and company officials will be onhand to discuss the book.

Friday and Saturday, a guests will ride a paddlewheeler -- a replica of those that once brought goods to Morris & Dickson -- will brought up the Red River for the occasion.

Saturday evening, U.S. Senators David Vitter and Bill Cassidy, Congressman John Fleming and Shreveport Chief Administrative Office Brian Crawford will join the Dickson family to celebrate, with a performance of "Music & Milestones" performed by the Shreveport Symphony Orchestra.

More about Morris & Dickson:

Morris & Dickson Company began in Shreveport 1841 - only a few months after Antoine’s Restaurant first opened its doors in New Orleans. What began as a business distributing pharmaceuticals to plantations and small towns throughout Northwest Louisiana and Northeast Texas has grown into the nation’s largest privately held pharmaceutical wholesale distributor esale distributor to independent pharmacists in the country - serving customers in 14 states. Now in its 5th generation of family ownership and management, Morris & Dickson is as much a high-tech information provider as it is a distributor. Their approach to business has, from the beginning, been to create value by investing in innovation to ensure their pharmacy customers are able to continue offering the best possible care for their patients.