About Zimmer Brothers Jewelers

Founder Thomas Zimmer, Jr. started his career in the jewelry business at the age of 14 when he apprenticed as a bench jeweler for Hallowell & Co. Jewelers in Poughkeepsie, NY.

Moving to New York City around the age of 18, he became shop foreman for George O. Street & Co. who manufactured wedding rings and men’s rings primarily for Tiffany & Co.

Returning to Poughkeepsie in 1893 Thomas opened his own small jewelry store on Garden Street in Poughkeepsie, N.Y. where he continued to work at the bench and was joined by his brother Fred, a watchmaker in 1896.

In the early days Zimmer Brothers specialized in diamonds and watches and was the official watch inspector for three railroads. We also manufactured many different styles of wedding bands right on the premises.

Thomas’s son Leonard Sr. entered the business in 1914 and guided it through the difficulties of the Depression and WWII. He was a master watchmaker graduate of the Philadelphia School of Horology as well as a bench jeweler and talented hand engraver.

In 1948, the post war years welcomed Leonard Jr. who greatly expanded the business by adding many of the products and services we offer today. Leonard Jr. had a sharp eye for design and was renowned for his beautiful store design and window displays.

Zimmer Brothers is currently owned and operated by Leonard Jr.’s son-in-law Michael Gordon who came on board in 1971 and his daughter Jocelyn Gordon Klastow joining full time in 2001. Today, Michael and Jocelyn represent the fourth and fifth generations of the founding family.