Oscar Heyman was born in Latvia in 1888. After he spent a short time working in Ukraine in his uncle’s jewellery factory, a teenage Oscar and his brother Nathan immigrated to New York in 1906, where their brother Harry later joined them in 1907. In 1912, the three brothers started their own jewellery company, Oscar Heyman & Brothers, with all but one of their other six siblings coming to New York to work for the company. The company would undergo a significant period of growth and innovation in the latter part of this decade. During this time, Oscar was granted the first of six patents, and their jewellery of patriotic design proved extremely popular during World War I. Their first American Flag brooch designed for Black, Starr & Frost was incredibly successful, remaining a popular design to this day.

During and despite the progression of World War II, the company adapted to meet the needs of wartime production, offering its factory to companies such as General Electric and Kodak to assure the country’s production needs were met. In addition to a multitude of other restrictions, gems were difficult to source during this time, and platinum was reserved for military use. Hence, the factory’s primary output was devoted to manufacturing jewel bearings to incorporate into watches, compasses and airplane instruments. Despite the social and economic turmoil of the world war, Oscar Heyman & Brothers still produced some of the finest patriotic jewellery of the era and began working with Neiman Marcus, who remains a current partner.

Shortly after WWII, George Heyman started travelling the world looking for gemstones of the most beautiful colour and of the upmost rarity that he could find, a process that the company continues to realise today.
During the 1960s, George Heyman, the youngest brother, was appointed to succeed Oscar and thus the next generation took the helm. Though the 1964 World’s Fair did not have a dedicated jewellery pavilion, Heyman partnered with the Linde Star Corporation to create a necklace which served to commemorate the event.

Oscar Heyman passed away in 1970, and George Heyman became president of the firm, as accolades continued to mount for the company. Oscar Heyman jewellery continues to rise in popularity, leading the way with innovative, contemporary designs while still adhering to the same rigorous standards and painstaking precision they’ve maintained throughout their history.