Blackburn History

“The Original & Still the Best”

Blackburn Mfg. Company was started by E.A. “Bud” Blackburn, my grandfather, in the basement of a small family homestead near Royal Nebraska. Bud’s uncle, Ray Blackburn (a surveyor), asked him if he could come up with a machine to attach a piece of cloth or paper to a piece of wire instead of using the wooden lathes stakes that was the current way to mark during surveys.
Bud, a farmer by trade but a “tinkerer” at heart, would over the next couple of years, invent a Marking Flag machine to mass produce marking flags using a small piece of vinyl attached to a wire staff.
The first flag order was for one million flags so Bud and his two sons, Bob (eleven at the time) and Jim (seven), ran the first machine around the clock for 30 days to fill that order. They then hauled it into Orchard Nebraska to put it on the train for shipment. Easy, right? Well maybe not but it sure started something all those years ago!
Today, Blackburn Mfg. Company produces on average 150 million marking flags per year! While our machines have been modernized over the years, Grandpa’s original machine blueprint is what we use to build all our machines today.
Our flag machines are built in-house and can produce over six thousand flags per hour. We can build them as we need them and often have parts on hand to make repairs or new builds when necessary. We strive to follow Bud’s legacy and ingenuity by creating solutions for our customer’s needs.
We have an amazing team that strives to provide you with high-quality, American-Made products at both our Nebraska and California locations. Customer service is our #1 priority; therefore, we make sure that we are doing everything possible to exceed your expectations with our marking products and continued service. We know that none of this would be possible without our loyal customers.
While it’s not as simple as “one size for all” anymore, you will see that we have a wide array of marking products available!
Please let us know how we can help you design YOUR mark!

The History of Blackburn

Your Town Nebraska

Support Independent Neligh Businesses

Neligh, Nebraska, home to Blackburn Manufacturing Company, is proof that small towns carry big stories. Students, longtime residents, and local leaders share the same pride in this community and everything it offers. Blackburn is proud to be one of the local businesses helping Neligh's economy thrive. 

Celebrating Neligh’s Community & History

Neligh, Nebraska is a place of opportunity. Whole-person healthcare, strong schools, and everyday connections between local organizations fill our small town with big possibilities. Blackburn is proud to be part of a community built on small business support and neighbors looking out for neighbors.