M. Lowenstein & Sons, Lyman, SC
M. Lowenstein Companies
The M. Lowenstein Company began in 1889 in New York City as a small textile importing business. Morris
Lowenstein and his sons Abram and Leon expanded the firm by providing cloth directly to small garment
manufacturing firms and selling fabrics with slight flaws. The company was incorporated in 1918 with a net
worth of $2.7 million.
During the 1920s, the firm decided to control product quality by building its own finishing plant. In 1929,The
Rock Hill Printing and Finishing Plant was built. In 1946, Lowenstein expanded into the manufacturing of greige
cloth by purchasing several well-established textile mills in the Southeast: Merrimack Manufacturing Mills in
Huntsville, Alabama, and Orr Mills in Anderson, South Carolina. During the 1950s, Lowenstein acquired further
greige goods plants: Aleo Manufacturing in Rockingham, North Carolina, Spofford Mills in Wilmington, North
Carolina, Chiquola Mills in Honea Path, South Carolina and Covington Mills in Covington, Georgia. In 1954, the
firm broadened its product line through the purchase of Wamsutta Mills in New Bedford, Massachusetts with its
garment, industrial fabrics, towels, and sheet lines and the Pacific Mills in Columbia and Lyman, South
Carolina with their sheeting, industrial fabrics, and towel lines. The corporation prospered during the 1960s
and 1970s but retrenched during the 1980s by closing some mills, selling off certain product lines such as its
urethane plant at Rock Hill, South Carolina and its children's wear fabrics at Rockingham, North Carolina. In
1986, Springs Industries purchased M. Lowenstein and merged its operations with its own operations.
Rock Hill Printing and Finishing Plant
The building of the Rock Hill Printing and Finishing Plant moved M. Lowenstein halfway along the way to
becoming a totally integrated producer of textiles. The Rock Hill plant bleached, dyed, printed and finished cloth
purchased from a variety of sources, primarily in the South. The rapid expansion of Lowenstein through the
acquisition of textile mills produced the raw material for the plant and resulted in its own expansion. By the early
1960s, it grew from a plant with 200,000 square feet to one with more than 2 million square feet, which
bleached, dyed, and finished both cotton and synthetic fabrics. New processes such as Sanforizing and the
use of Scotchgard TM finishing permitted it to create permanent press cloth during the 1970s. Acquired by
Springs Industries in 1986, the plant included 23 roller print machines and 7 screen print machines.
Pacific Mills
Pacific Mills was founded in 1852 in Lawrence, Massachusetts, where it manufactured prints and fancy cottons
as well as worsted goods in its woolen mill operations. In the early 1900s, Pacific Mills acquired several cotton
mills in Columbia, South Carolina that produced broadcloth and shirting and one in Lyman, South Carolina,
which produced sheets and pillowcases and included a finishing operation. In 1955, M. Lowenstein acquired
the Pacific Mills.
Lyman Printing and Finishing, Lyman, SC
In 1972 Charles B. Palmer went to Lyman to report directly to James F. Magarahan, VP and General Manager
reporting to major stockholder (owner) Robert Bendheim, for the express purpose of leading the design,
building, equipping, and staffing of a flocking plant to produce crushed velvets and upholstery fabrics. Since
this was his experience of two years spent with Milliken at their Calumet Plant in LaGrange, GA, he was
emminantly qualified for the task. The start-up was completed according to schedule and started up with few
difficulties. For about two years Palmer operated Wamsutta Flocked Fabrics and then was asked to assist Les
Heaton at Lyman Printing and Finishing. Les, also originally from Milliken, had been brought in by Magarahan
to report to him for the operation of Lyman Printing and Finishing and had requested his help in the Preparation
and Continuous Dyeing Departments. He was happy to take on this task, which brought him back to his major
field of interest...and operating the flocking plant was becoming too routine.
In the middle 1970s, Lyman was the second largest plant of its type in the US textile industry (only Springs'
Grace Bleachery produced more yards per week) producing 7,000,000 yards per week of woven fabrics from
36" to 110" in width, over a broad range of weight from very light to bottom weights, decorated by roller printing,
screen printing, beck dyeing and continuous dyeing. The end use was generally apparel and sheeting but also
included a small but successful industrial department whose most expensive and successful product was
silver cloth used to line containers for storage of silver table ware or make the fabric holders for silver table
ware. The fabric truly contained a measured amount of silver, which tarnished instead of the silver ware it
contained.
The above barely touches on the variety of the product line and the complexity of the equipment used to produce
it.... Tommy Dodds and similar archaic machines were still in use. (Note: A Tommy Dodd was a back-coating
machine used to apply very viscous coatings to the reverse side of fabric where all interstices were filled). The
production scheduling and control problems were enormous. Quality results were far less than desired and
not acceptable. Each department superintendent operated his own fiefdom and production equipment was on
three floors in an antiquated building. Marketing headquartered in New York was organized and operated in the
same way with independent fiefdoms. In spite of all this, the Lyman printing and finishing operation made
money according to the accountants who also could point to product lines, which were constant losers...but yet
were not discontinued.
During the next several years, management reduced the weekly production from seven million yards to five
million, the number of employees from approximately 1000 to approximately 650, eliminated all roller printing,
and made significantly more money as a result (roller printing was rapidly being replaced by rotary screen
printing). Quality and productivity problems in preparation and dyeing were largely overcome and, for the most
part, every one was "pulling in the same direction". At this point the Wamsutta Dye Plant was built adjacent to
the Lyman plant. It had Gaston County Jets and two tenter frames. All preparation was done at Lyman but
drying and finishing took place in the new plant. Inspection and packing, etc. was done at Lyman. Palmer was
asked to start up and operate this plant and did so successfully for about two years.
Then more personnel changes were made at Lyman, which resulted in his return to the main plant in charge of
all production and related services. The company continued to take out or mothball obsolete equipment,
streamline processes, improve quality and production, and even replace old equipment with new while adding
integrated process controls.
Lyman was also the location for a large domestic cut and sew operation that produced sheets, pillowcases,
comforters and the like under the Wamsutta label. It was also home to Lowenstein’s research division, a
screen manufacturing operation and design center, a water treatment facility for the operations at Lyman, and a
waste disposal system serving Lyman, Duncan, and Startex.
At the end of 1982, after 10 very happy years, Palmer joined Kurt Zimmerli at Zima Corporation to continue a
good and fruitful association, which really began in 1962 at the start of this story at the inception of a new
dyeing and finishing plant (see Magnolia Finishing). (Palmer)
In 1992, the Lyman Printing and Finishing Company was a division of Springs Industries with bleaching,
dyeing, printing, and finishing using seventeen dye machines and seven screen printers. The Columbia
Division of Springs included the Granby and Olympia Mills, which employed 1300 in 1992 with 134,540 ring
spindles and 1450 broad looms.
Sources:
Palmer, Charles B., personal communication 2007-2008
http://www.lib.clemson.edu/SpCol/findingaids/Mss/lowenstein_1.pdf
http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9407EEDB143BF93BA3575BC0A967948260 Clark Schwebel
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,820362,00.html Lowenstein Wamsutta Mills 1954
The M. Lowenstein Company began in 1889 in New York City as a small textile importing business. Morris
Lowenstein and his sons Abram and Leon expanded the firm by providing cloth directly to small garment
manufacturing firms and selling fabrics with slight flaws. The company was incorporated in 1918 with a net
worth of $2.7 million.
During the 1920s, the firm decided to control product quality by building its own finishing plant. In 1929,The
Rock Hill Printing and Finishing Plant was built. In 1946, Lowenstein expanded into the manufacturing of greige
cloth by purchasing several well-established textile mills in the Southeast: Merrimack Manufacturing Mills in
Huntsville, Alabama, and Orr Mills in Anderson, South Carolina. During the 1950s, Lowenstein acquired further
greige goods plants: Aleo Manufacturing in Rockingham, North Carolina, Spofford Mills in Wilmington, North
Carolina, Chiquola Mills in Honea Path, South Carolina and Covington Mills in Covington, Georgia. In 1954, the
firm broadened its product line through the purchase of Wamsutta Mills in New Bedford, Massachusetts with its
garment, industrial fabrics, towels, and sheet lines and the Pacific Mills in Columbia and Lyman, South
Carolina with their sheeting, industrial fabrics, and towel lines. The corporation prospered during the 1960s
and 1970s but retrenched during the 1980s by closing some mills, selling off certain product lines such as its
urethane plant at Rock Hill, South Carolina and its children's wear fabrics at Rockingham, North Carolina. In
1986, Springs Industries purchased M. Lowenstein and merged its operations with its own operations.
Rock Hill Printing and Finishing Plant
The building of the Rock Hill Printing and Finishing Plant moved M. Lowenstein halfway along the way to
becoming a totally integrated producer of textiles. The Rock Hill plant bleached, dyed, printed and finished cloth
purchased from a variety of sources, primarily in the South. The rapid expansion of Lowenstein through the
acquisition of textile mills produced the raw material for the plant and resulted in its own expansion. By the early
1960s, it grew from a plant with 200,000 square feet to one with more than 2 million square feet, which
bleached, dyed, and finished both cotton and synthetic fabrics. New processes such as Sanforizing and the
use of Scotchgard TM finishing permitted it to create permanent press cloth during the 1970s. Acquired by
Springs Industries in 1986, the plant included 23 roller print machines and 7 screen print machines.
Pacific Mills
Pacific Mills was founded in 1852 in Lawrence, Massachusetts, where it manufactured prints and fancy cottons
as well as worsted goods in its woolen mill operations. In the early 1900s, Pacific Mills acquired several cotton
mills in Columbia, South Carolina that produced broadcloth and shirting and one in Lyman, South Carolina,
which produced sheets and pillowcases and included a finishing operation. In 1955, M. Lowenstein acquired
the Pacific Mills.
Lyman Printing and Finishing, Lyman, SC
In 1972 Charles B. Palmer went to Lyman to report directly to James F. Magarahan, VP and General Manager
reporting to major stockholder (owner) Robert Bendheim, for the express purpose of leading the design,
building, equipping, and staffing of a flocking plant to produce crushed velvets and upholstery fabrics. Since
this was his experience of two years spent with Milliken at their Calumet Plant in LaGrange, GA, he was
emminantly qualified for the task. The start-up was completed according to schedule and started up with few
difficulties. For about two years Palmer operated Wamsutta Flocked Fabrics and then was asked to assist Les
Heaton at Lyman Printing and Finishing. Les, also originally from Milliken, had been brought in by Magarahan
to report to him for the operation of Lyman Printing and Finishing and had requested his help in the Preparation
and Continuous Dyeing Departments. He was happy to take on this task, which brought him back to his major
field of interest...and operating the flocking plant was becoming too routine.
In the middle 1970s, Lyman was the second largest plant of its type in the US textile industry (only Springs'
Grace Bleachery produced more yards per week) producing 7,000,000 yards per week of woven fabrics from
36" to 110" in width, over a broad range of weight from very light to bottom weights, decorated by roller printing,
screen printing, beck dyeing and continuous dyeing. The end use was generally apparel and sheeting but also
included a small but successful industrial department whose most expensive and successful product was
silver cloth used to line containers for storage of silver table ware or make the fabric holders for silver table
ware. The fabric truly contained a measured amount of silver, which tarnished instead of the silver ware it
contained.
The above barely touches on the variety of the product line and the complexity of the equipment used to produce
it.... Tommy Dodds and similar archaic machines were still in use. (Note: A Tommy Dodd was a back-coating
machine used to apply very viscous coatings to the reverse side of fabric where all interstices were filled). The
production scheduling and control problems were enormous. Quality results were far less than desired and
not acceptable. Each department superintendent operated his own fiefdom and production equipment was on
three floors in an antiquated building. Marketing headquartered in New York was organized and operated in the
same way with independent fiefdoms. In spite of all this, the Lyman printing and finishing operation made
money according to the accountants who also could point to product lines, which were constant losers...but yet
were not discontinued.
During the next several years, management reduced the weekly production from seven million yards to five
million, the number of employees from approximately 1000 to approximately 650, eliminated all roller printing,
and made significantly more money as a result (roller printing was rapidly being replaced by rotary screen
printing). Quality and productivity problems in preparation and dyeing were largely overcome and, for the most
part, every one was "pulling in the same direction". At this point the Wamsutta Dye Plant was built adjacent to
the Lyman plant. It had Gaston County Jets and two tenter frames. All preparation was done at Lyman but
drying and finishing took place in the new plant. Inspection and packing, etc. was done at Lyman. Palmer was
asked to start up and operate this plant and did so successfully for about two years.
Then more personnel changes were made at Lyman, which resulted in his return to the main plant in charge of
all production and related services. The company continued to take out or mothball obsolete equipment,
streamline processes, improve quality and production, and even replace old equipment with new while adding
integrated process controls.
Lyman was also the location for a large domestic cut and sew operation that produced sheets, pillowcases,
comforters and the like under the Wamsutta label. It was also home to Lowenstein’s research division, a
screen manufacturing operation and design center, a water treatment facility for the operations at Lyman, and a
waste disposal system serving Lyman, Duncan, and Startex.
At the end of 1982, after 10 very happy years, Palmer joined Kurt Zimmerli at Zima Corporation to continue a
good and fruitful association, which really began in 1962 at the start of this story at the inception of a new
dyeing and finishing plant (see Magnolia Finishing). (Palmer)
In 1992, the Lyman Printing and Finishing Company was a division of Springs Industries with bleaching,
dyeing, printing, and finishing using seventeen dye machines and seven screen printers. The Columbia
Division of Springs included the Granby and Olympia Mills, which employed 1300 in 1992 with 134,540 ring
spindles and 1450 broad looms.
Sources:
Palmer, Charles B., personal communication 2007-2008
http://www.lib.clemson.edu/SpCol/findingaids/Mss/lowenstein_1.pdf
http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9407EEDB143BF93BA3575BC0A967948260 Clark Schwebel
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,820362,00.html Lowenstein Wamsutta Mills 1954