Viking Pump Company is recognized as a world leader in the design and manufacture of rotary pumps. The firm was founded in 1911 by Jens Nielsen. Nielsen developed his original pump in 1904 to help remove seepage water from the stone quarry he owned at 18th and Main Streets in Cedar Falls. The company's original factory building, built in 1912 at 220 East Fourth Street, still stands amidst a greatly expanded complex of buildings.