THIS IS THE THIRD OF A SERIES OF ARTICLES ON
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Southern Fire Insurance Co.
llerc's a .\ortli Carolina company (hat lias
enjoyed a splendid growth ever since it was
started fifteen years ago.
THKKK lias
Ыч*и
mill’ll discussion
lately iu the newxpajiers about the
South and conditions in the South.
It has hoot» intimated in some
quarters that “The South is the
Nation’s No. 1 economic problem.’’
That is a rather serious indictment.
Most of us. here in North Carolina,
had thought we were getting along
rather nicely. Statistics show that
agricultural conditions have improved
materially; that we have made ad¬
vancement in various lines of business
and manufacturing; that we have
made marked progress in education,
and that we have moved forward in
other respects.
Regardless of whether the indict¬
ment is true or not, wc believe that
everyone will admit that there is
room for improvement and that we
can make ju-t as great — and proba¬
bly greater — progress in the future
as we have made iu tin* past.
How* can that progress he brought
about ?
Governor Gardner’s Plan
We believe that former Governor
(>. Max Gardner had the right idea
when he was waging hi- "live-at-liouie
campaign” during his administration
a- chief executive of the State. Gov¬
ernor Gardner’s idea was to diversify
our agriculture, so that our North
Carolina farmers could keep in North
Carolina the money which is now
living sent to other parts of the
country. The same principle applies
to hu-inc— . Every town in the State
has had its "Trade-at-home campaign"
because the merchants of those towns
realize that money spent outside of
their respective communities is money
which i- gone forever and cannot help
in the progres- and upbuilding of
iha%e communities*
By CARL GOLKCH
The same principle also applies to
manufacturing enterprises.
And it likewise applies to insur¬
ance.
Take fire insurance, fur example.
North Carolinians spend millions of
dollars annually for their fire in¬
surance. A large part of this money
is placed with foreign companies,
and. of course, a portion of this
money leaves the State and never
returns. Therefore, it is obvious
that a North Carolina com¬
pany, operated iu North Carolina and
managed by North Carolinians, is
The late R. H. Wright, who was one
of the organizers and the first pres¬
ident of the Southern Fire Insurance
Company.
bound to U* a distinct asset to the
State. Just as much so as is a North
Carolina hosiery mill, or furniture
factory, or department store, or any
oilier business enterprise.
The week of October 9 to 15 is
National Fire Prevention Week. The
attention of people everywhere is
being focused on the danger of fire
and the necessity for taking proper
precautions to guard against losses.
That fact prompted us to take for
our "Outstanding Carolina Institu¬
tion'' this week the Southern Fire In¬
surance Company whose home offices
are in Durham. It is a Carolina Com¬
pany in every sense of the word.
Facts Worth Knowing
The first thing a person wants to
know, when placing fire insurance
with any company, is: “What about
its strength and service?”
A pertinent question. Let’s see
how it can be answered with respect
to the Southern Fire:
The company, this year, is cele¬
brating its fifteenth anniversary. It
was licensed and began business on
March 1. 1923, with a paid-in capital
of $100,000 and a paid-in surplus of
the same amount. Capital was in¬
creased to $200,000 in 1925 and
$50,000 was added to the surplus.
In 1923. the first year of operations,
the company wrote about -$-10,000 in
gross premiums ; in 192*. it wrote a
little over $300,000. And the figures
continued to show an increase as the
years passed. In 1933, at the end of
the tenth year, a little over $500,000
was written. Last year, the figure
jumped to more than $700,000 in gross
premiums.
And here’s another interesting
point : The Southern Fire Insurance
Company is the youngest of all North
Carolina fire insurance companies bv
