Paragon Oil

 

In the early 20th century, five brothers in New York had a vision to change the oil business for the better. As a result of the work by Henry, Irving, Robert, Benjamin and Arnold Schwartz, Paragon Oil was founded.

The Schwartz brothers, along with their sister Bess, were the children of Jewish immigrants from Belaya Tserkov, located in modern day Ukraine, who came to America to seek better opportunities for their first-generation American children. With ties to the whale oil business in Ukraine and having learned from their father Sam, a blacksmith, the brothers were empowered to experiment and create the first oil heaters designed for use in residential buildings.

As a fuel oil distribution business, Paragon Oil has spread throughout the Northeastern United States with their expansive fleet of oil trucks. The business became modernized in the 1950s, and now Paragon Oil is an industry leader with fifty-seven fuel oil trucks that visit and deliver to businesses and homes.