State

north Carolina blankets the nation Every chilly night millions of people throughout the United States and abroad sleep under blankets made in North Carolina. This coast - to - coast and across-thc-sca blanketing of the population with Tar Heel products is made possible by three of the coun¬ try's largest blanket manufacturers — Beacon Manufacturing Co., of Swan- nanoa, Chatham Manufacturing Co., of Elkin. Lcaksvillc and Charlotte, and Fieldcrest Mills. Inc., of Spray and Draper. The state is also a leader in the electric or automatic blanket field with the Asheboro Plant of General Electric currently producing thousands of units weekly, for which Chatham supplies the entire fabric, and Ficldcrcst’s Elec¬ tric Blanket Mill at Spray responsible for one-third of the total U. S. annual production of automatic blankets. Annual Production In Millions Although exact figures on regular blanket production arc not available from the principal manufacturers. Chatham has stated that if its full facilities were devoted to manufactur¬ ing bed-size blankets, that they alone could produce more than 7.000.000 a year. And, Fieldcrest has indicated that its annual blanket production, if assembled in a single piece of mate¬ rial. would reach approximately 6,000 miles, or from the blanket mill's lo¬ cation in Draper to the Hawaiian Is¬ lands. Beacon and General Electric can also post extensive production fig¬ ures. A Major Part While the foregoing references to regular blanket volume at Chatham and Fieldcrest arc not precise statis¬ tics, they do indicate that Tar Heel This article republished by permis¬ sion of "The Wachovia" magazine where it originally appeared. companies produce the major part of the regular and electric blankets sold both in the United States and abroad This leadership stems from a broad background of experience tied closely to the history of textile manufactur¬ ing in this state. Chatham Chatham, the world’s largest unit woolen mill, had its beginning a few years after the Civil War in a little grist mill located in Elkin, N. C. Alexander Chatham and Thomas Lenoir Gwyn began their operation with a single carding machine, later adding a small spinning machine, and finally installing several looms to weave the cloth. From this small operation devel¬ oped the Chatham Manufacturing Co., which today is a nationally recognized leader in blanket production. This company has operations at Elkin. Leaksville and Charlotte (the latter two locations acquired through a merger with Lcaksvillc Woolen Mills — itself a pioneer in the woolen textile business), and its products arc sold throughout the world. Chatham is known principally to the public for its wool and blended blankets but the company also manu¬ factures specialty blankets for hotels, steamship lines, hospitals and other institutional buyers and produces bab> blankets in a variety of patterns, colors and shades. Company officials have indicated that they are turning more and more to synthetics in manufactur¬ ing blankets to meet customer prefer¬ ence. Other major Chatham products include automobile upholstery, in which the firm is a leader, and woolen suitings including sportswear and other types of apparel fabrics including syn¬ thetics. Beacon Beacon Manufacturing Co., located at Swannanoa. N. C., was organ¬ ized in New Bedford. Mass., in 1904 Modem wool «pinning equipment Blankets being -oven on a loom. Moteriol it eut to proper sixes. Inspecting, checking ond folding Todoy, customers from coost - to - coosf ond ocross-thc-sco con choose either regulor or electric 'outomolicl blonkcts bearing о North Corolmo lobcl Torhecl componics moke, ond notionollr morkel ond e*port, both types. At right (top to bottom i ore sho-n some of the fa¬ cilities ond production steps in blonket monu- foctunng m this Stole. 17 THE STATE. ГСШвиАЯУ 25. 1956