Founder J. Clifton Avery started in the insurance business in 1899, working as an agent of the Norwich Union Fire Insurance Society. In 1904, J. Clifton became partners with Judge Sewall Abbott, and formed the Abbott and Avery Insurance Company located in the Tricky Block behind Railroad Avenue. Judge Sewall Abbott retired from the insurance business in 1921 and the agency was renamed the J. Clifton Avery Agency, as it is known today. When J. Clifton’s son Howard joined the firm in the mid 1930s the firm was renamed Avery and Son.

In 1951, the agency relocated to the SP Peavey Block on Main Street, now known as the Avery Block. Howard’s daughter Mary and her husband Thomas A. O’Dowd joined the firm in 1963. Thirty years later, their son Tod joined the firm making it a fourth generation in the insurance business. With more than 100 years of dedication, the Avery Agency has met the insurance needs of the community with great pride. Tod and his wife Vicki continue to follow the long history of offering quality service to families in the local communities while staying current with the changing insurance.