The American Tobacco Company was founded in 1890. In the late 1960s, with health concerns seen as posing an increasing threat to the tobacco business, management decided to diversify into other fields and changed the corporate name to American Brands, Inc.

Brown & Williamson acquired the tobacco division in 1994.

The company had a number of divisions during its lifetime:

Tobacco

American Tobacco Company was the original division of American Brands. American Tobacco was sold to British American Tobacco in 1994.

Insurance

American Brands acquired Franklin Life Insurance in 1979. It sold the company to American General in 1994.

ACCO

In 1987 American Brands acquired ACCO, a holding company which owned several office supply subsidiaries. Stapler manufacturer Swingline, Inc., which American Brands had acquired in 1970, was combined with ACCO. In 2005, the company spun off ACCO to shareholders, and immediately thereafter ACCO merged with General Binding Corporation. This merged company is now known as ACCO Brands.

Golf

The Acushnet Company, purchased in 1976, became American Brands' golf division. It produced golf balls, shoes, and clubs under the Pinnacle Golf, Titleist, FootJoy and formerly Cobra Golf (now under the ownership of Puma Sport) trademarks. The Acushnet Rubber division, which was Acushnet's original business, was sold off in 1985. Cobra Golf was sold to Puma AG in March 2010, and the other golf brands were sold to Fila in 2011.

Home and Hardware

This division, which had annual sales of over $4 billion, included such businesses as Waterloo Industries, Masterbrand Cabinets (and its various subsidiary cabinet lines), Moen faucets, Fypon, Therma-Tru doors, Simonton windows, Master Lock, American Lock, and Vista Window Company, Western Division. Many of these operations passed to Fortune Brands Home & Security when the company was split.

Spiritis

The company had a stable of well known spirits brands, led by Jim Beam, which it had purchased in 1968.

American Brands, Inc. became Fortune Brands in 1997.