The company was originally organized by Herman Duhme, Sr. After Mr. Duhme died in 1888, the business was continued by Robert H. Galbreath, Frank Duhme, and Charles H. Duhme. [Crossman]

Duhme & Co. started manufacturing gold and silver cases in 1871. The following year, the company purchased the case business of Frank Doll, another case maker based in Cincinnati.

In the 1870s, Henry A. Wadsworth was employed by Duhme & Co., where he learned the art of case making. Mr. Wadsworth would eventually form the Wadsworth Watch Case Company in 1889, becoming one of the most successful watch case manufacturers in the country.

The manufacturing operation of Duhme & Co. extended beyond watch cases. In 1883, Duhme & Co. was listed in The Jewelers; Circular and Horological Review directory as "goldsmiths, silversmiths and diamond setters," located at 4th and Walnut Streets in Cincinnati.

In 1883, Duhme & Co. advertised that they had improved machinery for case making. An advertisement published in an 1884 issue of The Jewelers' Circular and Horological Review claims, "by the introduction of the very finest machinery and the employment of the most compentent workmen and artisans, Duhme & Co. are now producing watch cases that, in strength, beauty and sheapness, are absolutely unsurpassed." Cases manufactured by the company after this point in time exhibit more complex shapes and engravings. The majority of later production was 14K solid gold cases instead of the sterling and coin silver cases from eralier production. Advertisements continued to promote both solid gold and silver watch cases.

1884 also marks a modification in the standard company directory listing included in issues of The Jewelers' Circular and Horological Review. Instead of the general description of previous years, the company was listed as "manufacturers of gold and silver watch cases."

According to an article published in the July 1888 issue of The Jewelers' Circular and Horological Review, the manufacturing of gold watch cases was operated from the upper stories of the company building located at Fourth and Walnut Streets. The case factory was described as the "second largest in the west."

In September 1888, following the death of company founder Herman Duhme, the company was reorganized under the same name by Robert H. Galbreath, Frank Duhme, and Charles H. Duhme.

In 1889, Crossman reported that the factory employed about 65 men and produce 5,000 cases per year.

In 1890, the factory had been extended and trade publications reported that the cases offered by the company were becoming very popular.

In April 1893, Duhme & Co. was reoganized and incorporated as the Duhme Co. with capital stock of $400,000.

In 1895, a notice in The Jewelers' Circular reported that E. & J. Swigart had purchase the entire material department of the Duhme Co. as they began to transition away from wholesale to exclusviely deal in retail trade. According to another article published in 1897, it appears the Queen City Watch Case Company purchased the tools from the Duhme Co. in order to manufacture gold cases.

In 1897, the company was entrenched in financial difficulties with creditors pushing for bankruptcy. The company was officially assigned on March 5, 1897.

The company was subsequently reorganized as The Duhme Mfg. Co. in 1898. No members of the Duhme family were allowed to continue during this reorganization. The Duhme Brothers went on to form The Duhme Jewelry Company.