In 1900, Claude Foster, a pioneer in the automotive parts industry, founded a company in Cleveland, Ohio, that was named after its first product, Gabriel horns for horse-driven carriages. Foster later developed the first shock absorbing device, the “Snubber,” for which he was granted the first U.S. patent for a direct acting shock absorber in 1907.

The company continued to prosper in the suspension business and sold direct acting shock absorbers to both the OEM and replacement markets.

In the early 1960’s the Maremont Corporation purchased the Gabriel Company and started construction of a new shock absorber manufacturing operation in Pulaski, Tennessee. The Cleveland operation was closed and the new Pulaski operation became a modern facility producing all of Gabriel’s shock absorber requirements.

A second production and distribution facility was opened in Chickasha, Oklahoma, in the early 1970’s, and the Pulaski operation was phased out and transitioned to a new world-class facility in Queretaro, Mexico, in 2001. In addition to the Oklahoma and Mexico manufacturing and distribution centers, a corporate headquarters is located in Brentwood, Tennessee.

In the 1970’s and 1980’s the Gabriel name became synonymous with technology-advanced products such as Hijackers and Striders. In 1978, Gabriel introduced the first gas charged shock absorber developed and produced in the U.S. Struts were added to the product line in the early 1980’s and the company became a strong competitor worldwide.

During the 1970’s and 1980’s strong consumer advertising programs led Gabriel to market share equal to the only other major U.S. shock supplier in the U.S. Throughout the 1990’s and into the 2000’s, Gabriel has become the standard for service in the replacement markets and continues to expand on a global basis.

• 1907 - Gabriel introduces the first shock absorber in America – the Gabriel Snubber.
• 1918 - Gabriel unveils the first hydraulic shock absorber.
• 1956 - Gabriel invents the first adjustable shock absorber – the Gabriel Strider/Adjustamatic.
• 1967 - Gabriel engineers create the first air-adjustable shock absorber – the market leading Gabriel HiJacker.
• 1979 - Gabriel pioneers Position Sensitive (Groove Tube) Technology.
• 1983 - The first U.S. produced gas-charged twin tube shock absorber hits the market - the Gabriel Gas Ryder.
• 1996 - Gabriel introduces Velocity Sensitive Technology (VST) for shock absorbers and struts, a new innovation and advancement in the ride control industry.
• 2001 - Gabriel launches MaxControl, a full line of monotube shock absorbers for light trucks and SUVs.
• 2003 - Gabriel unveils G-Force Technology – the ultimate in control, performance, and safety.
• 2005 - Gabriel offers ReadyMount, a preassembled strut with bumpers, strut mounts, coil springs and boots for quick, easy and safe installation.