The story of Icelandic sheepskins is often told through the landscape of Iceland itself — its hardy sheep, windswept pastures, and long tradition of using every part of the animal with care and purpose. But the development of Iceland’s hide and tanning industry was also shaped by knowledge exchanged beyond Iceland’s shores.
One of the most interesting chapters in this history involves an American company, Helburn Thompson Company, which became an important buyer of Icelandic hides in the early twentieth century. Their role helped connect Icelandic raw materials with the larger North American leather trade, while also contributing to the professional knowledge that would help Iceland’s own tanning industry grow.
From Home Craft to Icelandic Industry
For generations, hide preparation in Iceland was closely tied to home craft and practical necessity. Sheep were central to Icelandic life, providing wool, meat, milk, and hides. Skins were preserved and used locally, but the methods were often small-scale and rooted in traditional household production.
As demand grew and industries modernized, Iceland began moving from home-based preparation toward organized factory production. This transition did not happen overnight. Around the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, professional tanning knowledge was still limited in Iceland, and Icelanders often had to look abroad to learn modern methods.
People traveled to countries such as Norway, the United Kingdom, Sweden, Finland, and Germany to study tanning, leather processing, and shoemaking. These exchanges helped Icelandic producers understand how to prepare hides more consistently, preserve them for export, and eventually create finished leather and sheepskin products on a larger scale.
Helburn Thompson and the American Market
Around the 1920s, Helburn Thompson Company became one of the significant American buyers of Icelandic hides. At the time, the company operated in a much larger and more industrialized leather market than Iceland had at home.
This relationship created an important opportunity for Icelandic industry. Thorsteinn Davidsson, an Icelander connected to the developing tannery trade, traveled to America to learn more about the preparation of hides before tanning. The American tannery was considered modern and large for its time, making it a valuable place to study commercial-scale hide handling.
This kind of knowledge mattered. Before a hide could become fine leather, suede, or fur-tanned sheepskin, it had to be properly sorted, salted, preserved, and prepared. Better pre-processing meant better results, less waste, and more value from each hide.
The Rise of Icelandic Tanning in Akureyri
In 1923, Gæruverksmiðja SÍS, the SÍS tannery factory, began operations in Akureyri under the management of Thorsteinn Davidsson. The factory first focused on salting hides for export, but its work became more diverse as Iceland’s clothing and footwear industries developed.
Over time, the factory processed tanned leather, suede, fur-tanned sheepskins, and larger hide goods. These materials supplied Icelandic clothing and footwear production and helped support a more complete domestic industry.
What had once been a home craft was becoming a professional trade. Icelandic hides were no longer simply raw materials to be preserved and shipped away. Increasingly, they were part of a larger national effort to process, finish, and use Iceland’s own natural resources with greater skill.
A Changing Industry
By the late twentieth century, the Icelandic tanning industry had changed again. Clothing and shoemaking in Iceland declined, and hides were increasingly exported, first as processed materials and later as finished goods. Suede production became especially important around the 1980s.
The Akureyri tannery continued through many changes before operations finally ended in 2006, closing an 83-year chapter in the region’s industrial history.
In more recent years, Iceland’s tannery landscape has narrowed even further. As traditional sheepskin tanning declined in Iceland, more Icelandic hides began to be processed abroad before reaching the market. This means that while Icelandic sheepskins still carry the character of Iceland’s unique sheep, the modern journey from hide to finished pelt often extends beyond Iceland itself.
Why This History Still Matters
The history of Icelandic hides is not just a story of trade. It is a story of craft, adaptation, and international exchange.
American buyers such as Helburn Thompson Company helped create demand for Icelandic hides in the North American market. At the same time, the knowledge Icelanders gained abroad helped strengthen their own tanning industry at home.
For those who appreciate Icelandic sheepskins today, this history adds another layer of meaning. Each pelt is part of a much longer tradition, one shaped by Icelandic sheep, rural craft, industrial learning, and a century of connection between Iceland and the wider world.
Icelandic sheepskins remain prized for their natural texture, long wool, durability, and unmistakable character. Their beauty begins with the animal and the landscape, but their story also belongs to the craftspeople, tanners, and traders who helped bring Icelandic hides from local use to the international market.
FAQ: Early Importers of Icelandic Sheepskin into North America
Who were the first importers of Icelandic sheepskin into North America?
The exact first importers of Icelandic sheepskin and hides into North America are not clearly documented. However, one of the earliest known American companies connected to the Icelandic hide trade was Helburn Thompson Company, a leather company that became an important buyer of Icelandic hides around the 1920s.
It is likely that Icelandic hides reached North America before this period through the broader international leather and hide trade, but the earliest clearly noted connection we have found points to Helburn Thompson Company and its role in helping develop Iceland’s professional tanning industry.
Why was Helburn Thompson Company important to Icelandic hides?
Helburn Thompson Company was more than just a buyer. Its modern American tannery gave Icelanders an opportunity to learn more advanced methods for preparing hides before tanning. This knowledge helped support Iceland’s transition from small-scale home craft to more organized tannery production.
Were Icelandic sheepskins always tanned in Iceland?
No. Iceland has a long history of hide preparation and tanning, but Icelandic hides have also been processed abroad at different points in history. As Iceland’s domestic tanning industry changed, more hides were exported for processing before reaching the finished sheepskin market.
Continue Exploring Icelandic Sheepskins
Interested in the natural beauty and texture of Icelandic pelts? Browse our current collection of Icelandic sheepskin, each selected for its distinctive wool, character, and origin.
For a deeper look at what makes these pelts so unique, read our article about Icelandic sheep, their origins and beautiful wool they produce.
