|  |  PENN Fishing Reels
 The Penn Fishing Tackle Manufacturing Company was founded in 1932 by Otto Henze. Henze left Germany and came to the United States in 1922 at the age of 25. He started out working for the Ocean City Reels Company of Philadelphia but he had dreams of starting his own company. He dreamed that one day he would own his own fishing reel company and he would design reels that would go on to set world records. In 1932, Otto Henze began his dream.
Since its inception in 1932, the Penn Fishing Tackle Manufacturing Company has prided itself on the fact that millions of professional fishermen from all around the world use Penn products every single day. In 1933 Henze finally began selling his newly designed Penn fishing reels to the general public. The 1933 design was patented and the same basic design from those earliest reels is still in use today. The guarantee he offered at that time stated that only the finest materials were used in the construction of Penn fishing reels and each part was inspected before the reel was assembled. Penn fishing reels were guaranteed against defects in material and workmanship for life. In the year following his patent, Penn fishing reels doubled the number of reels offered to the public and by the end of 1934 the company had turned its first profit. This growth was especially dramatic at this difficult time in America. The depression was fully underway and though it should have been the worst time for the growth of a company, Henze was able to capitalize on the need for people to save money by fishing for their own food. The year 1936 would herald the development of the “Senator” fishing reel. This particular Penn fishing reel was specifically designed to target record setting, powerful big game fish. Penn still offers a Senator reel today but not at the $25 cost from 1936.
After his sudden death in 1948, Otto Henze’s wife Martha took responsibility for running the company and Penn fishing reels continued to prosper under her watchful eye. In 1955 all five of the new IGFA (International Game Fishing Association) records for Wahoo, Amberjack, Yellowtail, Black Drum and White Pointer Shark had been set using Penn fishing reels. 1961 would see the birth of Penn’s first spinning reel (Spinfisher 700). Close relatives to that original spinning reel known as the “Z” series are still in use today. Forty six years after the company’s birth, Penn fishing reels has a total of over 150 different reels in production. When the fiftieth anniversary of Penn fishing reels rolled around, the Penn freshwater reels had begun to excel and make their mark with over eight world records now held in their name.
By the time 1990 rolled around, the company was now manufacturing over 220 different types of Penn fishing reels, rods, and down-riggers and over 700 IGFA records had been set by anglers using a Penn reel.
At present time, Penn fishing reels are now responsible for over 800 IGFA world records and the company is now producing an amazing total of over 220 different models of fishing reels. The International reel which is Penn’s top of the line fishing reel, is responsible for over 220 of those world record catches. Penn has been credited for improving on star drags and the development of the lever-drag system which remains the backbone of most high performance big game reels made today. The Penn fishing reels company is the realization of what was once only a dream for a young German man named Otto Henze who came to America to find his way.
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