In 1977, Russ Smale purchased the T.W. Cooper Insurance Agency in Coopersburg, Pennsylvania, and, two years later, he acquired the Lee Stover Insurance Agency in nearby Sellersville. That year his son, Andrew, joined him in the insurance business.
In 1985, Russ Smale’s other son, Mike, also joined the business. After Russ Smale retired in 1992, Mike successfully recruited Thomas Wilkinson and Leo Carlin to help grow T.W. Cooper’s commercial insurance business.
By 2001, the agencies grew their business from $2 million to more than $15 million in premiums.
A year later, the Commonwealth Insurance Group comprised of Mike Smale, Andrew Smale, Tom Wilkinson, and Leo Carlin purchased the Durn and Beiler Agency in East Greenville, Pennsylvania.
In 2006, the principals formed T.W. Cooper Insurance LLC, a partnership comprised of Mike, Tom and, which added a new Coopersburg branch agency in Plumsteadville in lower Bucks County.
T.W. Cooper then purchased the Roscoe P. Snyder Agency in Walnutport, Pennsylvania in 2009 and the Scott Fisher Insurance Agency in Lehighton in 2011.
Since 1977, when the business had only three employees and $2 million in premiums, it has grown to include more than 30 employees managing in excess of $35 million in premiums and representing more than a dozen insurance companies.
T.W. Cooper offers a complete line of commercial–sauto, packages, worker’s compensation, business umbrella and group health, disability and life–and personal–auto, homeowner’s, boat, motorcycle, umbrella, whole and term life and health–coverage. In addition to Erie, T.W. Cooper also represents the Progressive, Hartford, One Beacon, Chubb, AIG, Lehigh Mutual, Main Street Group, Travelers, Windsor Mt. Joy, PMA and other companies.
