Shockley Semiconductor Laboratory

Shockley Semiconductor Laboratory, a division of Beckman Instruments, Inc., was the first establishment working on silicon semiconductor devices in what came to be known as Silicon Valley. In 1957, its 8 leading scientists left and formed Fairchild Semiconductor, a loss from which it never recovered. It was purchased by Clevite in 1960, and officially closed shortly after being sold to ITT in 1968. Engineers leaving the company stayed in the area; engineers leaving these companies did the same, and soon an entire industry built up in the San Francisco Bay Area.

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shockley Semiconductor Laboratory