avondale mills
avondale sun (from the b. b. comer memorial library avondale mills collection )
avondale mills, inc. (avondale) issued the following press release on may 30, 2006 .
avondale mills, inc. (avondale) issued the following press release on may 22, 2006 .
alvin c. missildine v. avondale mills, inc. , a corporation .
15 .
all these (except the baby) work in avondale mills .
11 .
two girls (not the youngest) who work in avondale mills .
i worked at the avondale mills in pell city, al. it also burned down !
some children working at avondale mills birmingham nov. 25, 1910 – photo by lewis hines
avondale mills, inc. associate profit sharing & savings plan | 2006 form 5500 by brightscope
avondale mills, inc. associate profit sharing & savings plan | 2010 form 5500 by brightscope
avondale mills, inc. associate profit sharing & savings plan | 2009 form 5500 by brightscope
when avondale mills closed in late july 2006, sylacauga mayor sam wright said, “losing avondale is like losing a friend. it’s so sad. ”
see the demolition of the historic avondale mills smokestack in pell city on nov. 24, 2015 .
the process of demolishing a smokestack at pell city' s avondale mills was more involved than expected .
avondale mills was a system of textile mills that were primarily located in alabama. avondale, a suburb of birmingham, was the location of the first mill, which was the basis of the company’s name .
two girls (not the youngest) who work in avondale mills, . location: birmingham, alabama .
nobody that never worked for the comer’s or avondale mills could ever imagine what it was like to work for a family and origination as good as avondale mills, the comer’s were just like family to all of us .
avondale mill village was a section of housing near the avondale mills plant in avondale. it was located between 4th terrace north and 5th court alley north and between 37th and 40th street north, behind the massive brick mill building .
in 1897, braxton bragg comer built the first mill in the birmingham neighborhood of avondale, hence the name avondale mills. he went on to become governor in 1906 .
for 109 years, avondale mills left its mark on towns like sylacauga throughout alabama and several other southern states .
6 .
' our baby doffer' and some of the other infants all working in avondale mills .
9 .
' our baby doffer' and some of the other doffers all working in avondale mills .
central mills, sylacauga (owned by avondale mills, birmingham); 25, 536 ring sp. ; 75 cards; 3 boilers; 18 to 32 hosiery yarns .
avondale mills seeks stockholder approval of sale ,
united press international, march 28, 1986, am cycle .
phifer owns phoenix services of alabama, which contracted with pell city to demolish the old avondale mills' brick smokestack .
17 .
noon hour. going to work in avondale mills. i saw these girls at work inside .
feral dogs have become a big problem in sylacauga' s mill village since the avondale mills plant closed in 2006 .
the avondale mills textile company was founded in 1897, opening locations throughout the state of alabama. in 1919, avondale bought the pell city location, off of u. s. 231, from pell city manufacturing company. avondale mills became a constant in the pell city community for nearly a century .
third suitor emerges in fight for avondale mills ,
financial times, march 13, 1986, p. i35 .
buechler, joseph p. (1985 )
avondale mills: the first fifty years .
honors thesis, auburn university
5 .
john tidwell, a cotton mill product. doffer in avondale mills. many of these youngsters smoke .
7 .
noon hour at avondale mills. i saw this young girl working at her machine in the mill .
12 .
noon hour at avondale mills. i saw this young girl working at her machine in the mill .
in its 109 - year history, avondale mills expanded to include plants throughout alabama. by 1947 and 1948, avondale mills had reached its apex in alabama, with 7, 000 employees. the company later branched out into georgia and south carolina .
when avondale mills arrived in sylacauga, it was described by a local historian as the most important event in the town’s history .
noon hour. going to work in avondale mills. i saw these girls at work inside. location: birmingham, alabama .
“i don’t want to be alone; i can’t breathe, ’’ an avondale mills worker told a 911 dispatcher at the time .
avondale was a company town built east of birmingham, alabama in jefferson county. the town was incorporated on march 18, 1887. the city was annexed into birmingham and is now divided into three separate neighborhoods, north avondale, east avondale and south avondale. (wikipedia )
retreat at mills creek is the third phase of the overall redevelopment of tobie grant manor into the villages of mills creek .
the avondale sun, a newspaper published by avondale mills for its employees, ran from 1924 - 2006. over its 82 year history it published community and employee news, company information, and photographs .
initially constructed around the avondale mills, from which the area takes its name, avondale is now considered a trendy neighborhood near the university of alabama at birmingham and downtown birmingham. avondale hosts a happening food and beverage scene with mainstays such as saw’s soul kitchen, post office pies, melt, and avondale brewing. entertainment and education abound near avondale with the nearby presence of the alabama ballet, alabama theatre, birmingham civil rights institute, avondale park, and vulcan park and museum .
important notice concerning your rights under the avondale mills, inc. associate profit sharing and savings plan, dated may 22, 2006 .
national labor relations board, petitioner, v. avondale mills, respondent, 242 f. 2d 669 (5th cir. 1957 )
hugh’s father, governor comer, founded avondale mills with the backing of several birmingham bankers and other supporters, and moved the headquarters from birmingham to sylacauga. as the need for cotton grew, avondale mills expanded to other small cities in birmingham. mill towns grew up around these mills and avondale provided housing, schools, doctors and company stores for their employees. many families benefitted from life in these villages .
g. stephen felker, chairman, president and ceo, has allocated us $ 115 million to a modernization plan for avondale mills inc .
avondale mills was a consortium of textile mills founded in 1897 in birmingham by b. b. comer. the company was granted a 30 - acre parcel in a soon - to - be - developed suburb of avondale by the avondale land company. the mill was constructed on the north side of what became 1st avenue north between 37th street and 39th street .
under the settlement agreement, both avondale and fmic have the right to separately settle their respective claims against norfolk southern. in addition, avondale and fmic agreed that, in the event of a jury award of any separate compensatory damages to avondale and fmic, avondale and fmic will retain the separate damages awarded to them respectively. in the event of a joint settlement between avondale, fmic and norfolk southern or a jury award where compensatory damages are not separately allocated between avondale and fmic, avondale and fmic have agreed to a division of the proceeds in the settlement agreement. avondale will retain any punitive damages awarded .
14 .
noon hour at avondale mills. the youngest boy (on left end) said he had been doffing there four years .
covenant not to sue and settlement agreement by and between avondale mills, inc. and factory mutual insurance company, dated may 16, 2006 .
eva jane mills, sylacauga (owned by avondale mills, birmingham); 40, 000 ring sp. ; 125 cards; 1, 200 looms; 8 boilers; dye; bleach; sheetings & colored goods .
good old days. infants working in avondale mills, birmingham, by lewis w hine 1910. | lewis w. hine photography | pinterest | photos
national labor relations board, petitioner, v. avondale mills, respondent, 242 f. 2d 669 (5th cir. 1957): : justia
avondale closed three mills in sylacauga and one each in alexander city, pell city and rockford, laying off more than 1, 300 workers. in sylacauga, avondale generated an annual payroll of $ 35 million the year it closed .
irby, william g. ,
the avondale mills of alabama and georgia ,
textile history review, october 1962, pp. 197 - 204 .
john jones measures the loss of mortar on the avondale mills’ smokestack in april 2008, two months after the mill burned. news - aegis file photo .
avondale shuts some u. s. sales offices; textile fabric and yarn manufacturer ,
yep i worked at eva jane at avondale millls. now it has burned down .
after standing in its location for over a century, the main building of avondale mills’ pell city facility burned down in 2008, leaving only the smokestack behind .
than toward textiles. nevertheless, after graduation he was hired as a management trainee at avondale mills, inc. , a yarn and denim weaver in sylacauga ,
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noon hour, avondale mills. the next day, nov. 24th, i went through the mills during working hours and saw this young girl and six others like her working in the spinning and weave rooms .
in 1986, walton monroe mills inc. purchased avondale mills. the two merged in 1993 to become avondale incorporated. three years later, avondale acquired the textile assets of the graniteville company. then in january 2005, the train accident occurred near the graniteville plant. sixteen freight cars from one train and one car and a locomotive from another train derailed. sixty tons of chlorine gas was released in the wreck .
“what i know is what people have addressed with me when they see me within city limits, ” taylor said. “‘what can we do about avondale mills? ’”
irby, william g. (october 1962 )
the avondale mills of alabama and georgia .
textile history review, no. 3, pp. 197 - 204
to help adopt the dogs out, the three have created a facebook page, “the feral dogs of avondale mills, ” to help document the work they have done .
cotton mills in the south and coal mines in the north…. just babies .
in 1910, lewis wickes hine, famous photographer and american sociologist, visited avondale mills. he snapped a few photos of the child workers, in addition to interviewing them .
john tidwell: november 1910. birmingham, alabama .
john tidwell, doffer in avondale mills .
a closeup of the boy seen earlier today, this image was… | pinteres…
noon hour for some doffers at avondale mills, birmingham in november 1920 by lewis wickes hine – photo taken in november – notice the bare - feet of many of the boys .
missildine v. avondale mills, inc. :: 1981: : supreme court of alabama decisions: : alabama case law: : alabama law: : us law: : justia
susan gabriella comer was born in alabama on july 16, 1922, the first daughter of gillian goodall and hugh moss comer. her father was the youngest son of braxton bragg comer who founded avondale mills in 1897, and served as governor of alabama from 1907 - 1911. hugh and gillian lived in sylacauga where he worked as vice president for avondale mills .
graniteville shook the morning of jan. 6, 2005, when a norfolk southern train smashed into a parked rail car in the yard at avondale mills, the community’s major employer .
the birmingham mill was shut down in 1971 and the mill buildings were demolished in 1976. the site was redeveloped as the avondale commerce park. the company was sold to walton monroe mills inc. in 1986 and was merged into its parent to form avondale inc. in 1993 .
when you look at those avondale suns, you realize that avondale history was alabama history because they were all over the state and they reflect the culture of the time ,
spears said .
a pell city contractor pleaded guilty to federal explosives storage and record - keeping charges two years after his failed implosion of a more than 100 - year - old smokestack at avondale mills .
avondale stockholders approve merger ,
united press international, july 2, 1986, am cycle .
now, the town and county are losing a part of history with avondale’s destruction by fire wednesday .
female mill workers at fulton bag and cotton mills, atlanta, georgia, 1915. courtesy of georgia tech archives & records management, fulton bag and cotton mills digital collection .
the russellville mill was alabama mills inc. and closed in 1945 during world war 2 .
haglind p, lundholm m, rylander r. prevalence of byssinosis in swedish cotton mills .
within two years of the 2005 crash, avondale mills closed, taking with it more than 1, 000 jobs that had kept graniteville residents employed. the loss of the mills, the cornerstone of graniteville since the 1800s, left the community on the verge of becoming a ghost town .
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group of workers in avondale mills. smallest boy is john tidwell, been doffing 3 months. boy next to him is ragin bryant, been doffing here for five years .
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overseer and two of the doffer boys, charles hennessy and john douglass in avondale mills. noon hour. overseer said,' we' ve got 30 of' em.'
blaming the negative impact of that disaster, officials of avondale mills announced in 2006 that they were shutting down operations in graniteville and elsewhere, putting approximately 2, 000 aiken county residents out of work .
as previously announced, avondale has delivered notices required by applicable law respecting potential plant closures to employees at most of its plants. avondale anticipates that it will close substantially all of its plants by july 31, 2006 .
“hell’s half acre, was a row of disreputable houses not on the property of avondale mills, but at the edge of the avondale mill settlement. there were innumerable instances showing the bad moral influence of these houses for the cotton mill settlement. location: birmingham, alabama. ” by lewis wickes hine november 1910
home of workers in willingham cotton mills, macon, ga. location: macon, georgia .
these and other avondale plants typically turned out rope, hosiery yarns, sheeting, indigo denims and heavy twills .
g. stephen felker, avondales chairman and chief executive officer, stated, caring for avondale has been my lifes work and i am deeply saddened by the prospect of dismantling the company. our board of directors and management, however, are focused upon our duty to avondales creditors and shareholders. we are committed to maximizing value. 
the entire town was originally built, surrounding avondale mills. the mill eventually, provided parks, schools, hospitals, and housing for the population of mill workers. it was incorporated on march 18, 1887 .
according to the encyclopedia of alabama, avondale mills spanned the rise and fall of alabama’s industrial history, and its most notable owners, the comer family, became some of the most powerful people in the state .
other major textile mills operated across the south and in the upstate and coastal areas of south carolina. about 1. 3 million people worked in textile mills nationwide in 1948, according to published reports .
convenient to routes 11, 78, and 280 as well as i - 20, getting around from avondale is easy. birmingham - shuttlesworth international airport is less than four miles from avondale as well, making air travel plans simple .
1 department of community medicine, university of zimbabwe, p. o. box a178, avondale, harare, zimbabwe
walton monroe mills, inc. , a manufacturer of yarn and undyed fabric, has been managed by the same family since its 1895 origins. like other venerable mills, walton monroe was forced to adapt to an era of foreign competition, new technologies, and industry consolidation ushered in by the 1960s. unlike many of other smaller mills, walton monroe survived the sea of change. after launching an aggressive campaign of capital investment and improved efficiency in the early 1980s, walton monroe acquired dakotah mills in 1984 and avondale mills, inc. , in 1986 to become the 325th largest u. s. private company by 1993 .
[ … ] can you believe children this young worked in the mills. many look under the age of ten. many more pictures in alabama cotton mills can be found on alabama pioneers. [ … ]
avondale has actively been seeking buyers for some of its facilities and has already sold three linked ring - spinning plants to parkdale mills inc. , gastonia, n. c. – a move that has saved 700 jobs .
my mother, father, sister, brother aunts and uncles all worked for avondale in sycamore. also no longer there .
avondale mills, birmingham; inc. 1897; cap. $ 625, 000; 39, 800 ring sp. ; 58 cards; 512 broad, 430 narrow looms; dye; 6 boilers; print cloths & chambrays .
danville knitting mills, bon air; est. 1914; 6, 120 ring sp. ; 36 cards; 1 boiler; 14 to 18 hosiery yarn; branch of danville knitting mills, danville, va .
at this meeting it was decided to sell the property to cliffside mills and dissolve the corporation of haynes mills inc. mr. chas. h. haynes succeeded his father as president and it was under his management that the property of haynes mill was transferred to cliffside mills and the building of the new mill was completed .
on may 16, 2006, avondale entered into a covenant not to sue and settlement agreement with its primary property and casualty insurer, factory mutual insurance company (
fmic
), in connection with the january 6, 2005 norfolk southern train derailment and chlorine spill (the
norfolk southern derailment
). under the settlement agreement, avondale and fmic agreed to the total sum of $ 215 million to resolve all avondale claims against fmic arising from or related in any way to the norfolk southern derailment and discharge avondale from further response to the insurance policy adjustment, proof and appraisal requirements. of this amount, $ 115 million had previously been paid by fmic to avondale. fmic agreed to pay avondale the remaining $ 100 million on or before may 25, 2006. in exchange, avondale agreed not to sue fmic for any claims related to the norfolk southern derailment. the settlement agreement does not require avondale to use the settlement proceeds for repair or remediation of its facilities damaged by the norfolk southern derailment .
within the next month, about 70 pounds of explosives will be used to demolish the final remains of avondale mills. the brick smokestack will be leveled; leaving the property that once housed one of pell city’s most prominent landmarks completely bare .
to begin with, it was the plan that mr. r. r. haynes and his family would build the mill and the village of avondale. previously in 1897, he had built the florence mills at forest city and just after the turn of the century around 1901 he had built cliffside mills and the town of cliffside, north carolina .
as a major employer in the largely - undeveloped area, avondale mills constructed a mill village to house workers. the company supported local churches and schools, and also sponsored activities such as company bands, industrial league baseball, and a weekly newspaper, the avondale sun, which reported on company projects, as well as on the lives of its workers and their families .
when donald comer assumed management of avondale mills in 1907, he continued his father’s business success. he expanded the company into sylacauga, building the eva jane plant in 1913. in 1919, he constructed salle b. no. 1 and catherine mills and completed sallie b. no. 2 in 1926, although some sources said it was in 1922 .
the hartman center houses a vertical files collection from brouillard communications, a division of the j. walter thompson company advertising agency, with files on an extensive set of industry groups and individual companies. while processing this collection i came across this 1948 ad for avondale mills of alabama. the ad celebrates graduates from an avondale negro school with a quote from booker t. washington (“cast down your bucket where you are”) and encouragement to take advantage of the opportunities that education provides, whether in one of avondale’s mills—the ad points out that 1 in 12 avondale employees were african american, about 600 out of the 7, 000 total workforce—or in any of a number of other professions. as a corporate public relations piece, it is effusively inspirational .
shortly thereafter, avondale moved for summary judgment, setting forth in support thereof an affidavit and several depositions. the affidavit of mr. donald comer iii, president and treasurer of avondale, stated that avondale did not own or operate the cowikee mill, but merely acquired its stock in 1975 and thereafter operated the mill as a separate corporation, therefore owing no duty to the plaintiff, missildine .
hicks hosiery mills, talladega, successor to talladega hosiery mills; 80 knitting, 50 ribbing, 20 looping, 1 sewing machines; 1 boiler; dye; finish; electric power; 136 needle cotton seamless half - hose .
today, little physical evidence exists in eufaula of the cowikee cotton mills or the mill village known as “southside. ” the cowikee mills band hall still stands on the site of the old community house grounds on south eufaula avenue .
“pell city owes its existence to avondale, ” murphy said. “it helped grow the city to become what it is today. ”
the first residents of the area were clustered around “kings spring” on the slopes of red mountain, now the site of avondale park .
& corresponding author: department of community medicine, university of zimbabwe, p. o. box a178, avondale, harare, zimbabwe
david murphy, a former manager at avondale mills in pell city, revisits the site after news the iconic smokestack would sson come down. murphy said he hoped the city could preserve some of the smokestack for historic reasons. photo by kristen dale .
it is an issue that has steadily gotten worse since the closure of the avondale mills plant in 2006 that saw a large percentage of neighborhood homeowners leave without their canine companions. some residents estimate the total number of dogs there now to eclipse 100 .
i worked at kendall mills in albertville al. and at avondale mills in pell city. the work was hard and it was always hot in the plants but i miss it, the employs were a big family, i started workin in the mill when i was 18 i grew up there got married had my first child it was the best years of my life .
in connection with the board of directors decision of may 26, 2006 to discontinue avondales operations, avondale anticipates recording impairment charges and wind down costs, including non - cash charges to write down property, plant and equipment, inventories and other assets to estimated net realizable value. avondale also expects to incur employee separation costs associated with the plant closure activities. avondale is currently evaluating the proper accounting for these events and will record the appropriate charges upon the completion of this review. the discussion of avondales plans to discontinue its ongoing business operations and sell its assets contained in item 8. 01 of this current report on form 8 - k is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety .
davis, w. b. & sons, fort payne, formerly florence hosiery mills; 100 knitting, 210 ribbing, 4 2 looping machines; 1 boiler; children’s cotton hosiery; branch of davis hosiery mills, chattanooga, tenn .
andrews, mildred gwin, the men and the mills, macon: mercer university press, 1987, p. 288 .
monroe, georgia (may 22, 2006)... avondale mills, inc. , a georgia - based textile manufacturer, announces a settlement with its primary property and casualty insurer related to the january 6, 2005 norfolk southern train derailment and chlorine spill at its graniteville, south carolina location. in addition, avondale' s board of directors authorizes management to continue to assess and explore strategic alternatives .
and cut out layers of inefficient bureaucracy. the avondale debt was reduced by improved cash flow and financing through the trust company bank of atlanta .
in order to show that a duty did exist, missildine attempted to show that avondale and cowikee were one and the same. appellant pleaded that cowikee was the alter ego of avondale and introduced check stubs and insurance payments to support that theory. in a letter brief to the trial court, plaintiff stated that only one legal entity was involved and that avondale was thus liable to him for the acts of its subsidiary, cowikee .
in connection with its review of strategic alternatives, avondale has delivered notices required by applicable law respecting potential plant closures to employees at most of its plants. pending any decisions with respect to one or more strategic alternatives, avondale' s plants will continue to operate and service its customers .
the respondent was organized in 1897. its history and policies are described in a booklet entitled
an introduction to avondale
, which recites :
gregg journeyed to new england in 1844 on a fact - finding mission to study textile mills, then returned to the state and founded the graniteville company in 1845. the mill operated through the civil war, world war i and world war ii, the great depression and other landmark points in united states. the company was taken over by avondale mills in the 1980s and operated until the 1990s .
walton monroe mills, inc. .
international directory of company histories. . retrieved july 09, 2018 from urltoken urltoken
no it’s gone i had been working there 10 years the doors closed in 1996. kendall mills was the name of it .
mr. maurice hendrick was the first superintendent, which position he held until about 1921 when he became superintendent of cliffside mills .
this suit was brought by alvin c. missildine, appellant, against avondale mills, inc. (avondale), and curtis - marble machine company, inc. , alleging that avondale owned and operated a textile mill, cowikee mills, inc. (cowikee), and that both defendants
negligently failed to provide missildine with a reasonably safe place to work and safety equipment or appliances with which to do his job .
as a proximate result of this negligence, appellant alleged, he was exposed to hazardous working conditions and unsafe machinery, and thereby forced to breath large amounts of cotton dust and fibers, which in turn caused him to become afflicted with byssinosis (brown lung) .
my whole family worked in the mills. both sides of the family. buck creek mills in siluria, al. later, my grandfather at avondale mills in birmingham. they were all lint heads. doffers, weavers, spinners, winders, loomers, weavers, etc. fortunately, my father and his uncle were great baseball players on the buck creek millers baseball team. we had a great mill house when i was young because of that in what is now alabaster, al. i will always be a lint head .
kevin henderson of aerial alabama (urltoken) is the final drone in the air on november 24, 2015, when the historic avondale mills smokestack finally gives way. henderson captures the tower falling onto the track hoe driven by tim phifer of phoenix services of alabama, llc .
yes. it’s modeled after a suburb of cincinnati. avondale is the only part of birmingham that didn’t have debt when it was incorporated into birmingham .
buck creek cotton mills, siluria; inc. 1911; successor to siluria cotton mills co. ; cap. $ 600, 000; 20, 000 ring sp. ; 55 cards; 400 looms; 4 boilers; electric power; sheetings & drills .
in 1986 walton monroe greatly expanded and diversified its offering line by acquiring avondale mills, inc. , an established manufacturer of denim and yarn, for $ 165 million. the acquisition startled textile experts because of the novel logistics of a small, privately owned mill like walton monroe acquiring a large, publicly owned company like avondale. walton monroe had $ 84 million in sales, compared with $ 240 million for the alabama mill .
as of july 2018, the average apartment rent in avondale is $ 625 for a studio, $ 982 for one bedroom, $ 1, 218 for two bedrooms, and $ 1, 204 for three bedrooms. apartment rent in avondale has increased by 1. 6% in the past year .
girard cotton mills, girard; inc. 1900; cap. $ 75, 000; 7, 616 ring sp. ; 22 cards; 283 narrow looms; 1 boiler; electric power; plaids; subsidiary of eagle & phenix mills, columbus, ga .
looks like a lot of money was made from child labor and the workers who picked the cotton from the fields for the mills .
i didn’t see the opp and micolas mills from opp, alabama. i worked there during high school and a few years after .
group of
model tenements
occupied by the workers in augusta (ga .) cotton mills. location: augusta, georgia .
all that is known about these two is that they were “two workers in merrimack mills in november 1913. ” they look exhausted .
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three youngsters in avondale mills. boy in middle, john douglas said,' i' ve been to school my eight weeks. work now. been workin' a year.'
( none of them, even the tiniest, would admit being under twelve. )
mary e. frederickson, as in the mills of the new south, male supervisors oversee the margilan weave room, uzbekistan, 2006 .
housing conditions at lynchburg cotton mills are not good. houses are ill - kept and out of repair. location: lynchburg, virginia .
this appeal is from a summary judgment granted in favor of defendant avondale mills in an action for damages for injury to the plaintiff' s lungs caused by over thirty years' work in a cotton mill operated by a subsidiary of that defendant. for the reasons set out herein, we affirm .
felker remarked that avondale' s decision to invest these $ 74 million in alabama because of the alabama tort reform act of 1999, in addition tax incentives .
the plant was designated as cliffside mills, haynes plant, until 1952. mr. chas. h. haynes served as president until 1945 when he retired. mr. maurice hendrick succeeded him and served until 1951, retiring during the year. mr. earle r. stall, sr. was elected president of cliffside mills in 1951 and in 1952 cliffside mills merged with and became a part of cone mills corporation, of which mr. stall was vice president. the mill was under his management until 1960 when, having served beyond his regular retirement date, mr. stall retired. he was succeeded by mr. earl r. stall, jr. , assistant vice president of cone mills corporation, who was in charge of the florence division, consisting of the florence plant, forest city, north carolina; american spinning, greenville, south carolina; and in 1960 the haynes plant, avondale, north carolina, became part of the florence division of cone mills corporation, greensboro, north carolina .
this all sounds very much like contemporary progressive economic and social rhetoric, and the list of avondale’s employee benefits would be appealing today. the following decades, of course, would see the collapse of the textile industry in the u. s. south as production moved overseas (the avondale mills would themselves close for good in 2006), but here in this ad is a remarkable testimony to a social experiment that combined progressive social welfare ambitions with company town paternalism .
s relaxed manner, his energy, and his aptitude at understanding the complexities of the industry. he left avondale on excellent terms and joined his father at monroe .
monroe, georgia (may 30, 2006)... avondale mills, inc. , a georgia - based textile manufacturer, announces that its board of directors has authorized a plan to discontinue the companys ongoing business operations and sell the companys assets in order to maximize value for its creditors and shareholders .
housing conditions at lynchburg cotton mills are not very good. houses are ill - kept and out of repair. location: lynchburg, virginia .
mill village, winona cotton mills, miss. fairly good conditions generally, but many very slovenly houses. location: mill village, mississippi .
avondale’s impact on sylacauga was heightened by the presence of five plants in talladega county. the catherine central plant and the eva jane plant employed almost 3, 000 people .
dmslivecafe / 3 / 155536 / avondale thumbnail. jpg? crop = (0, 0, 270, 170) & cropxunits; = 270 & cropyunits; = 170
george w. felker iii, 77, headed family' s woven textile mills ,
atlanta journal and constitution, february 24, 1993 .
walton monroe mills, inc. .
international directory of company histories. . encyclopedia. com. (july 9, 2018). urltoken
my dad worked at dan river mills in greenville for 40 yrs i worked about 1. when i was born we lived in the mill village .
the impact avondale had on the city of pell city is unquestionable. the silhouette of the mill is engraved in the city’s seal, another symbol of how instrumental it was in the creation and growth of the area’s economy. murphy said avondale and pell city were synonymous for decades, as the mill consistently brought in new residents to the area .
sylacauga, ala. – across the railroad tracks from avondale mills, lies a local county school b. b. comer. from the looks of the building, one could assume that school was relatively new. however, the history that represents the school goes much deeper than the modern time in which we live today .
avondale shuts some u. s. sales offices; textile fabric and yarn manufacturer ,
women' s wear daily, november 19, 1991, p. 14 .
in 2006, avondale shut down operations, including the pell city operation. murphy said the decision was disappointing, but it wasn’t a huge surprise to people in the industry .
[ … ] is the mill school at avondale. the mill gate is but a few feet to the right of the photo and the employees pass through the [ … ]
gone were the steady paychecks that generations of families had been depending on since the 1840s, when william gregg founded the graniteville co. , which merged with avondale in 1996 .
part of felker' s success stemmed from his ability to gain avondale' s trust .
i believe they had faith i would continue to operate avondale mills under its present name with management remaining in place, for the most part ,
he said in atlantic business chronicle .
i want to assure you that the company has a very special place in my heart ,
felker said in a july 2, 1986, united press article. it was this trust that enabled am acquisition to purchase 39 percent of avondale stock from a descendant of the mill' s founder, former alabama governor b. b. comer, while dominion arrived at purchasing only one percent .
as late as 2005, the combined company employed more than 4, 000 workers in 18 plants in alabama, georgia and south carolina. that year a norfolk - southern railroad accident near graniteville, south carolina caused irreparable damage to an avondale mills plant there. the company never recovered from the blow and closed shop in 2006 .
housing conditions at roanoke (va .) cotton mills are not very good. houses run down and not well kept. location: roanoke, virginia .
ten years ago, textile mills in the south were struggling to survive because of competition from cheaper labor overseas, and graniteville’s way of life was threatened .
applying the law to these facts, it is quite clear that avondale met its burden of showing no genuine issue as to a material fact. the motion for summary judgment was submitted to the trial court on the theory, as presented by the plaintiff, that avondale and cowikee were one legal entity and, as a result, avondale should be liable through its duty to missildine for the acts of its subsidiary. yet, if this is the case, then avondale would be entitled to the immunity provided by the workmen' s compensation act, unless it fits within the exception of the dual capacity doctrine. under the holding of stone v. united states steel corp. , 384 so. 2d 17 (ala. 1980), however, it is clear that avondale undertook no special independent relationship toward missildine other than that of employee - employer, thus keeping it outside of the dual capacity doctrine. therefore, any claim against avondale would have to proceed under the workmen' s compensation act. see, code 1975, § 25 - 5 - 110 .
by currents of change avondale mills has become an institution in the textile industry, with a history spanning more than 150 years. by the turn of the 20th century, as the south finally emerged from reconstruction into the broad daylight of industrialization, a trio of companies had begun operations in alabama, georgia and south carolina. avondale mills, walton and monroe mills and the graniteville company, much like the three fates of greek mythology, were spinning and weaving parallel threads of production, expansion and employee self - improvement in the early 1900s. a rich heritage developed for all three companies over the ensuing century, one that was similar in its focus on quality, value and opportunity. by the end of the 20th century, the companies, like the fabrics they produced, had finally intertwined to form a cohesive whole .
phifer, 54, pleaded guilty in april to one count of failing to record the acquisition of explosives and one count of improperly storing explosives - - two years after his failed implosion of a more than 100 - year - old smokestack at avondale mills. the demolition ended with the smokestack collapsing on the track hoe phifer was operating .
the orginal granite plant, built in 1845. the formation of avondale mills, inc. , brought with it the illustrious more - than - 150 - year history of these southern companies, and it is from them that the company takes its motto today: to develop partnerships through relationships, information and product with its suppliers, associates and customers which create value and the opportunity for each to grow and profit. today, avondale is one of the nations largest producers of utility - wear fabrics, denim and sales yarn; and one of the largest consumers of cotton. with sales in excess of $ 600 million, and more than 5, 600 associates working in 20 plants in four southeastern states and 15 sales offices across the globe, avondale mills continues the heritage of innovation that was begun more than a century ago. how it all began
b. b. comer high school received its name from mr. braxton bragg comer who was the 33rd governor of alabama from 1907 to 1911. he later served as a united states senator. one of comer’s primary goals as governor was to increase funding for education and rise the literacy rate. to succeed in this initiative, he planted schools in each county in the state. comer also served as president of avondale mills. this allowed the creation of many schools to be planted within the local avondale facilities .
avondale plants were overseen by other male comers and often bore the names of female comers; for example, the eva jane plant was named for b. b. comer’s wife .
. with avondale, walton monroe entered into the denim business and set new sights on fancy, light - weight denims as well as the possibility of other apparel - fabric takeovers .
now, all 82 years' worth of the avondale sun are available to the public online. the papers, which date back to 1924 and tell the stories of the workers at avondale' s factories in birmingham, sylacauga, pell city, eufaula and other cities, provide a glimpse into a vanished way of life, said sylacauga library director shirley sears .
to assist in its assessment and ongoing review of strategic alternatives and related matters, avondale has engaged conway, del genio, gries & co. , llc as a financial advisor .
van meter, dwight c. (march 1951 )
donald comer and his 7, 000 partners: labor - management troubles, not at avondale in alabama !
the rotarian
“our baby doffer” they called him. this is one of the machines he has been working at for some months at the avondale mills. said, after hesitation, “i’m 12, ” and another small boy added, “he can’t work unless he’s twelve. ” child labor regulations conspicuously posted in the mill. location: birmingham, alabama .
29. ethel l. best, lost time and labor turnover in cotton mills (washington, d. c. : gpo, 1926), 16–17 .
clark - pratt cotton mills, prattville, successor to prattville cotton mills; inc. as prattville manufacturing co. no. 1, by act of jan. 13, 1846 (see text supra); 12, 500 ring sp. ; 290 narrow looms; 4 boilers; 1 water wheel; cotton cloth .
my daddy worked in the cotton fields and in the cotton mills here in alabama …. had to, times were very hard in the 1930s for everyone .
the b. b. comer memorial library - - named for braxton bragg comer, the first president of avondale mills and alabama' s 33rd governor - - received the newspapers and other documents soon after the company went out of business in 2006. the library was also given a set of paintings of avondale employees that ran in the 1948 saturday evening post; spears said the paintings, which are on permanent display, are a huge draw for the library, which is trying to gather oral histories from the people in them .
in 1986 walton monroe greatly expanded and diversified its offering line by acquiring avondale mills, inc. , an established manufacturer of denim and yarn, for $ 165 million. the acquisition startled textile experts because of the novel logistics of a small, privately owned mill like walton monroe acquiring a large, publicly owned company like avondale. walton monroe had $ 84 million in sales, compared with $ 240 million for the alabama mill .
when you march out and buy avondale with the assets of a walton monroe, well, that' s a helluva maneuver ,
cited walter forbes, ceo of the signal thread co. in a march 1988 georgia trend article. however impressive, the maneuver was not simple .
the mill remained opened in pell city 87 years, employing thousands of st. clair county residents. david murphy was a manager at the mill and worked for avondale for 33 years .
lewis hine, a typical spinner, lancaster cotton mills, lancaster, south carolina, 1908. courtesy of the library of congress, national child labor committee collection .
highland city mills, talladega; inc. 1898; cap. $ 50, 000; 5, 376 ring sp. ; hosiery yarns, 10 to 16 .
one day a man came by to visit papa and told him that he could get jobs for us at the mill (avondale mills in sylacauga) where he worked if he’d allow it. evelyn and i were excited about the opportunity and of course jumped at the offer. papa thought about it awhile since we were only teenagers, but he finally agreed .
bettie francis cotton mills, alexander city; inc. 1914; cap. $ 100, 000; 5, 472 ring sp. ; electric power; knitting yarn .
demopolis cotton mills, demopolis; est. 1914; 3, 600 mule sp. ; 9 sets cards; 1 to 7 mule spun yarn (woolen system) .
marble city mills, sylacauga; cap. $ 50, 000; 4, 120 ring sp. ; 20 cards; 1 boiler; 8 to 12 hosiery yarns .
the graniteville plant was closed following the accident. from then on, repercussions of the wreck ripped through the company until july 2006, when avondale incorporated ceased operations and sold three of its plants .
two staffers spent three months indexing the archives so they can now be searched online; shelton herself tested it out by looking up her own grandmother, who worked at the avondale plant in sycamore .
phifer owned phoenix services of alabama, which contracted with pell city to demolish the old avondale mills brick smokestack. court records show he held a federal permit to receive and use explosives, but failed to timely record the receipt of those explosives materials between september 2014, and december 2014. he also failed to properly store a detonating cord in december 2015, records show .
in the past five years, however, aiken county industrial recruiters have found several new businesses for the area. those businesses include an appliance recycling plant that uses one of the old avondale mill buildings .
adelaide mills, anniston; incorporated 1900; capital $ 50, 000; 7, 344 ring sp. ; 25 cards; 3 boilers; 12 to 20 hosiery yarns .
sycamore mills, sycamore; cap. $ 300, 000; 15, 000 ring sp. ; 44 cards; 3 boilers; 16 to 24 hosiery & undyed yarns .
like many postwar planters, comer branched out into merchandising. in 1885, he used the money he made as a merchant - planter in barbour county to become a partner in a wholesale grocery business in anniston, in calhoun county. he sold his interest in the firm in 1890 and moved to birmingham, where he became president of the city national bank and bought cornmeal, flour, and textile mills. comer achieved his greatest business success in the development of avondale mills, a textile venture that grew into one of alabama' s largest industrial enterprises .
murphy spent over three decades with the company and knows what an importance it held to the people who worked for avondale. not only those who were employed by the mill, but by the entire town .
when sylacauga' s public library received the archives of the newspaper that served avondale mill' s multiple plants around the state, officials there didn' t want to let it just sit on a shelf .
on may 26, 2006, the board of directors approved the termination of the avondale mills, inc. associate profit sharing and savings plan (the plan) effective as of that date. as a result, eligibility to participate in the plan was closed on may 26, 2006 to all avondale employees who had not previously begun participating in the plan. in addition, all future contributions to the plan ceased and account balances of all plan participants were fully vested to the extent not already vested effective as of may 26, 2006. avondale expects to submit the plan to the internal revenue service for a determination of the plans tax - qualified status upon its termination. distributions will be made to the plan participants in accordance with the terms of the plan. however, distributions have been temporarily suspended from the portion of the plans balanced equity fund investment option that is invested in avondale class a common stock in accordance with a blackout notice that was sent to the affected plan participants on may 22, 2006.
the avondale mills were a system of textile mills located predominantly in alabama , but also in georgia and south carolina , with headquarters in birmingham , and later in sylacauga , alabama . the birmingham neighborhood of avondale was chosen to be the site of the first mill , hence the naming of the company . founded in 1897 , the mills employed thousands of alabamians throughout its 109-year history until they closed in 2006 . avondale mills was founded in 1897 by a consortium of investors including the trainer family of chester , pennsylvania , the future governor of alabama , braxton bragg comer , and a group of birmingham civic leaders including frederick mitchell jackson sr . the mills refined the plentiful cotton from alabama fields and , at its peak , devoured 20 % of the entire state of alabama 's cotton production . the owners and operators of avondale mills were noted not only for progressive stances with regards to the overall well being of their workers , but also for conditions of child labor that , while common at the time , are today considered abusive . the mills were operated solely in alabama until donald comer released control of avondale mills to his brother-in-law , craig smith , who helped expand the mills into both georgia and south carolina . . walton monroe mills inc. purchased avondale mills in 1986 . in 1995 , the owning firm acquired the textile operations of the graniteville company . disaster struck when , on the morning of january 6 , 2005 , a train accident outside of the graniteville , south carolina mill caused a massive chemical explosion that killed 9 . in 2006 , as a result of the graniteville disaster and increased competition from overseas , avondale formally shuttered its operations . 
the avondale mills were a system of textile mills located predominantly in alabama, but also in georgia and south carolina, with headquarters in birmingham, and later in sylacauga, alabama. the birmingham neighborhood of avondale was chosen to be the site of the first mill, hence the naming of the company. founded in 1897, the mills employed thousands of alabamians throughout its 109-year history until they closed in 2006. avondale mills was founded in 1897 by a consortium of investors including the trainer family of chester, pennsylvania, the future governor of alabama, braxton bragg comer, and a group of birmingham civic leaders including frederick mitchell jackson sr. the mills refined the plentiful cotton from alabama fields and, at its peak, devoured 20% of the entire state of alabama's cotton production. the owners and operators of avondale mills were noted not only for progressive stances with regards to the overall well being of their workers, but also for conditions of child labor that, while common at the time, are today considered abusive. the mills were operated solely in alabama until donald comer released control of avondale mills to his brother-in-law, craig smith, who helped expand the mills into both georgia and south carolina.. walton monroe mills inc. purchased avondale mills in 1986. in 1995, the owning firm acquired the textile operations of the graniteville company. disaster struck when, on the morning of january 6, 2005, a train accident outside of the graniteville, south carolina mill caused a massive chemical explosion that killed 9. in 2006, as a result of the graniteville disaster and increased competition from overseas, avondale formally shuttered its operations.
the avondale mills were a system of textile mills located predominantly in alabama, but also in georgia and south carolina, with headquarters in birmingham, and later in sylacauga, alabama. the birmingham neighborhood of avondale was chosen to be the site of the first mill, hence the naming of the company. founded in 1897, the mills employed thousands of alabamians throughout its 109-year history until they closed in 2006. avondale mills was founded in 1897 by a consortium of investors including the trainer family of chester, pennsylvania, the future governor of alabama, braxton bragg comer, and a group of birmingham civic leaders including frederick mitchell jackson sr. the mills refined the plentiful cotton from alabama fields and, at its peak, devoured 20% of the entire state of alabama's cotton production. the owners and operators of avondale mills were noted not only for progressive stances with regards to the overall well being of their workers, but also for conditions of child labor that, while common at the time, are today considered abusive. the mills were operated solely in alabama until donald comer released control of avondale mills to his brother-in-law, craig smith, who helped expand the mills into both georgia and south carolina.. walton monroe mills inc. purchased avondale mills in 1986. in 1995, the owning firm acquired the textile operations of the graniteville company. disaster struck when, on the morning of january 6, 2005, a train accident outside of the graniteville, south carolina mill caused a massive chemical explosion that killed 9. in 2006, as a result of the graniteville disaster and increased competition from overseas, avondale formally shuttered its operations.