It all started in 1919 when Edward G. Kingsford helped Henry Ford procure a stretch of timberland to supply wood for his auto plants. Mr. Ford wondered if all the wood waste generated by his sawmill and plants could be put to better use, and found his answer in a new process for pressing blocks of reconstituted char.

Over the past century, Kingsford has had time to refine their formula. The briquettes have become smaller and more compact. If you're returning to grilling after a long hiatus, you'll find that Kingsford briquettes burn hotter and longer due to the denser material.

In the 1920s, Henry Ford learned about a process for turning wood scraps from the production of Model Ts (yes, the car) into charcoal briquets – who would have ever associated Model Ts with grilling? He built a charcoal plant and invented Kingsford charcoal.

While the charcoal-making process is usually kept under wraps, the Kingsford factory in Belle, Mo., sometimes offers tours, including to local elementary school children.

Clorox The Kingsford Company sawmill closed in 1961, according to the Iron Mountain News on June 28 of that year. And Kingsford Charcoal moved to Louisville, Kentucky. Today, the company, which is owned by Clorox, dominates the U.S. charcoal market.

The first use of charcoal for purposes other than providing heat was around 30,000 BC when cavemen used it as a pigment for drawing on the walls of caves. Then around 4000 BC came a monumental discovery, probably by accident, when a piece of ore fell into a charcoal fire and began to ooze metal.

Jealous Devil All Natural Hardwood Lump Charcoal Known for its purity, Jealous Devil's lump charcoal is made from South American hardwoods that are 30 percent denser than oak. This leads to clean, efficient burning with minimal smoke and total combustion, leaving just clean ash to dispose of later.

Kingsford Charcoal is made from charred soft and hardwoods such as pine, spruce, hickory, oak and others depending on which regional manufacturing plant it comes from. That char is then mixed with ground coal and other ingredients to make a charcoal briquette.

Who makes Kingsford® charcoal? Our charcoal is crafted by experts across America, with factories in Kentucky, Missouri, Oregon and West Virginia.

American Made. An American-made company founded over 100 years ago, Kingsford has a lot to be proud of. Our employees have been continuing the family tradition in backyards across the nation.

The Clorox Company Kingsford is a brand of charcoal briquette used for grilling, along with related products. Established in 1920, the brand is owned by The Clorox Company. Currently, the Kingsford Products Company remains the leading manufacturer of charcoal in the United States, with 80% market share.

An investment group bought Ford Charcoal in 1951 and renamed it to Kingsford Charcoal in honor of Edward G. Kingsford (and the factory's home-base name) and took over the operations. The plant was later acquired by Clorox in 1973.

Charcoal is a convenient and attractive energy source because of its high calorific value compared to firewood; it is cleaner, producing less smoke when burned than firewood; it is generally less expensive to cook with charcoal, and provides a reasonable substitute for electricity during frequent power disruptions.