Originally Posted by
big john
The original Paramounts were built by hand in the Waterloo factory. The Paramount Design Group bikes were made in Japan. I think some of the OS frames were made in Waterloo.
The Waterloo factory was kept by Richard Schwinn when the family name was sold. This is where the Waterford and Gunnar frames are made.
The original Paramounts were made in Chicago, first by Emil Wastyn and later in a special section of Schwinn's Chicago factory. By the mid 80s, Paramount production was moved to a new facility in Waterford Wisconsin (not Waterloo Wisconsin; that's Trek's factory). When Schwinn was sold, the Waterford facility was spun off into a new entity headed by Richard Schwinn (Waterford Precision Cycles).
"No Hands" is an engaging history of the Schwinn Bicycle Company.