The company was founded in 1876 by Eli Lilly, a pharmaceutical chemist and Union Army veteran of the American Civil War for whom the company was later named. [6] As of October 2024, Lilly is the most valuable drug company in the world with a $842 billion market capitalization, the highest valuation ever achieved to date by a drug company. [7] .

Eli Lilly (July 8, 1838 – June 6, 1898) was a Union Army officer, pharmacist, chemist, and businessman who founded Eli Lilly and Company. Lilly enlisted in the Union Army during the American Civil War and recruited a company of men to serve with him in the 18th Independent Battery Indiana Light Artillery .

Eli Lilly and Company creates and delivers innovative medicines that enable people to live longer, healthier and more active lives. Key Dates: 1876: Colonel Eli Lilly starts making ethical drugs in Indianapolis. 1881: Company is incorporated.

3 days ago · On May 10th 1876, in Indianapolis in the American state of Indiana, Colonel Eli Lilly founded the global research-based company, Lilly Pharmaceuticals. Colonel Lilly was 38 years old, a...

Lilly was founded in 1876 by Colonel Eli Lilly, a man committed to creating high-quality medicines that met real needs in an era of unreliable elixirs peddled by questionable characters. His charge to the generations of employees who have followed was this: "Take what you find here and make it better and better."

Colonel Eli Lilly began a new business in Indianapolis in 1876 manufacturing drugs for wholesale distribution – a business that became Indiana’s most successful start-up.

It all started nearly 150 years ago with a clear vision from founder Colonel Eli Lilly: "Take what you find here and make it better and better." But we’re not only dedicated to making medicines.

Eli Lilly was born in Maryland but soon thereafter moved with his family to Kentucky and then, in 1852, to Greencastle, Indiana. In 1854, he began working at the Good Samaritan Drug Store in Lafayette, learning the business as an apprentice. He returned to Greencastle to open his own drugstore in early 1861.

Jan 28, 2025 · Eli Lilly and Company was established in May 1876 in Indianapolis, Indiana by Eli Lilly, a pharmaceutical chemist who served as a colonel in the Union Army during the U.S. Civil War.

The Lilly story began more than 145 years ago, when founder Colonel Eli Lilly combined scientific rigor and passion for discovery, with caring for the individuals and communities the company served. Employees honor his legacy by embodying his call to "Take what you find here and make it better and better."