Arnold Pen Co., Seward Trunk Co., Titmus Optical, Amsted Rail-Brenco
bearings, and Boehringer Ingelheim, one of the top 20 pharmaceutical
manufacturers, operate in Petersburg. The city has a long history as an
industrial center for Virginia. It was home to many tobacco companies,
including tobacco giant Brown & Williamson. The Southern Chemical Co., the
original maker of Fleets Phoso-soda (used in hospitals worldwide), was a
well-known brand associated with the town. As of September 2012, the e-tailer
Amazon.com opened a fulfilment center in the southwest part of the town. This
brought hundreds of new jobs to
