Roto-Rooter was founded in 1935 by Samuel Blanc. Mr. Blanc had developed a revolutionary drain cleaning machine at his home in Des Moines, Iowa. Mrs. Blanc coined the name "roto-rooter". Franchising of the service followed. Today Roto-Rooter is the largest provider of plumbing and drain cleaning services in North America. Since 1980 Roto-Rooter has been owned by Cincinnati-based Chemed Corporation.