Burlington Industries
Company type | Public |
---|---|
Industry | Manufacturing |
Founded | 1923Burlington, North Carolina | in
Founder | J. Spencer Love |
Defunct | 2003 |
Fate | Acquired by International Textile Group |
Products | Textiles |
Burlington Industries, formerly Burlington Mills, is a diversified American
The company entered
History
In 1923 J. Spencer Love founded a textile corporation in Burlington, North Carolina.[3] Love and his father brought $50,000 worth in machinery from a factory they had sold in Gastonia to Burlington, and also invested $200,000 that they had earned from the sale of the Gastonia plant, as well as selling an additional $200,000 worth of stock to local residents. In early 1924 Love began construction on the Pioneer Plant and a mill village of 70 houses known as Piedmont Heights. The mill opened with about 200 workers.[3][4] The operation initially produced cotton products without much success, but the company's situation improved once Love adopted rayon as the mill's fabric for manufacture shortly after it had been introduced to the Southern market.[5][6] Love had a second mill built in 1928 and opened a sales office in New York City the following year.[5]
During the
During World War II Burlington Mills sold nylon parachute cloth to the United States government.[3] About 4,000 male employees served in the war and were replaced by female workers.[5] Following the war the company diversified its operations, offering cotton and nylon commercial products, and it rapidly expanded.[5][8] It also invested $50 million in revamping and expanding its facilities.[9] In 1952 it became the first textile corporation to create a television advertisement.[5] By then it was the largest synthetic textile producer in the world, overseeing 73 facilities and 31,000 workers. Three years later the company was reorganized as Burlington Industries with nine different divisions.[7] In 1961 Fortune listed Burlington Industries as the 48th largest American corporation, with sales of $913 million and 62,000 employees in and outside of the country.[8] Love died the following year and the company came under new management.[5] In 1970 the company opened a new headquarters building in Greensboro, designed by Odell Associates.[10]
In the late 1970s and early 1980s Burlington Industries reinvested 85 percent of its revenue ($1.5 billion) in new equipment.
Legacy
In 1955, Burlington Industries helped to fund the North Carolina State University reactor program. This was the first fission reactor built only to apply nuclear fission in peacetime for educational purposes. Because of their funding, the building is named Burlington Engineering Laboratories in honor of the company.[16]
In 1998, the Supreme Court ruled in Burlington Industries, Inc. v. Ellerth that employers were responsible if a supervisor creates a hostile work environment for an employee.[17]
Sources
- ^ "Burlington". ITG. Archived from the original on July 3, 2017. Retrieved July 19, 2017.
- ^ "Burlington, Cone become International Textile Group." Archived March 31, 2012, at the Wayback Machine BedTimes Magazine. March 19, 2004. Retrieved 2011-8-29.
- ^ a b c d e f Troxler, George W. (2006). "Burlington Industries". NCPedia. NC Government & Heritage Library. Retrieved February 24, 2022.
- ^ Covington & Ellis 2002, pp. 157–158.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Kaiser, Nancy (2009). "Burlington Industries, Inc. Records, 1844-2001". UNC University Libraries. University of North Carolina. Retrieved February 24, 2022.
- ^ a b c Covington & Ellis 2002, p. 158.
- ^ a b Glass 1992, p. 80.
- ^ a b Covington & Ellis 2002, p. 159.
- ^ Glass 1992, p. 83.
- ^ a b c Williams, Matt (May 23, 2005). "Award-winning building falls as thousands watch". News & Record. Retrieved February 24, 2022.
- ^ Glass 1992, p. 97.
- ^ Glass 1992, pp. 100–101.
- ^ Craver, Richard (November 12, 2003). "Burlington Industries is out of bankruptcy". Winston-Salem Journal. pp. D1. Archived from the original on November 11, 2023. Retrieved November 11, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Bolden 2010, Introduction.
- ^ "International Textile Group Becomes Elevate Textiles Following Integration with American & Efird : A&E, Burlington, Cone Denim, Gütermann and Safety Components Join Forces Under New Corporate Brand". Elevate Textiles, Inc. January 22, 2019. Retrieved February 24, 2022.
- ^ "Burlington Engineering Laboratories". projects.ncsu.edu. Retrieved 2019-12-14.[permanent dead link]
- ^ Burlington Industries, Inc. v. Ellerth, 524 U.S. 742 (1998).
Works cited
- Bolden, Don (2010). Burlington. Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 9781439626474.
- Covington, Howard E.; Ellis, Marion A., eds. (2002). The North Carolina Century: Tar Heels who Made a Difference, 1900–2000. Levine Museum of the New South. ISBN 9780807827574.
- Glass, Brent D. (1992). The Textile Industry in North Carolina: A History. Raleigh: North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources Division of Archives and History. ISBN 9780865262560.