Tom Frampton began his ceiling fan career when he was a junior in high-school by taking a summer job working for a man named Burton A. Burton. Burton’s company spontaneously began manufacturing ceiling fans after they received a request to make a belt driven fan for a customer. One request turned into a dozen, a dozen turned into a hundred, and so on. Burton then renamed the company, Casablanca Fan Co. and put Tom in charge of the designer ceiling fan division. Several years later, Tom decided to part ways with the Casablanca Fan Co. to start his own fan company, Fanimation. Thirty years ago Tom began Fanimation in his garage in Pasadena, California. Tom was able to buy a few fan designs that he created as an employee for Casablanca Fan Co. which are still sold today under the Fanimation brand.
About ten years later, Tom and Rachel Frampton decided to move the business and their family from California to Indianapolis, Indiana. On July 4, 1994, Tom and Rachel arrived in Indianapolis with everything they owned packed in a Ryder truck. Their children, Nathan (now President of Fanimation) and Jennifer Frampton flew in a few days later. The entire business was shipped by rail in a single 55 foot trailer. The trailer had all of the shop and office equipment, including one computer and all of the company’s inventory. Along with the birth of our nation, this is why July 4th is so significant to Fanimation. The Day signifies a new chapter for the company.
Former Fanimation headquarters in California:
Ed Frampton, Vice President of Operations, cut firewood to power a steam engine for the Casablanca 4th of July party in 1975:
Tom’s wife, Rachel, assembled light kits for Casablanca Fan Co.
