GASTONIA • NORTH CAROLINA
VOLUME X-NUMBER 7
JUNE, 1961
Some Firestone folks, home
from a leisure four of Florida,
brought back a Floridian's defi
nition of a tourist. "You always
can tell the tourist from the
native/' they overheard. "The
tourist is the one who wears
those giant sunglasses."
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MOUNTAIN VISTA
Rhododendron blossoms in
to a spectacular color show
at lofty elevations of the
Southern mountain region
during June. Making Camp
Firestone in the Blue Ridge
your starting point, you can
enjoy the climax of the
spring flower season in the
midst of such beauty as this—
Craggy Rhododendron Gar
dens on the Blue Ridge Park
way near Asheville. A few
miles north on towering
Roan Mountain you can join
the fun at the 16th annual
Rhododendron Festival, June
24-25 News Bureau Pholo
801 Vehicles Safety-Checked
Employees and other motorists of the Gastonia plant
community put 801 vehicles through safety inspection in
the company-sponsored check program May 22-26. Check-
lanes here were part of the fourth annual nationwide pro
gram sponsored by Firestone.
Three years ago the company
was the first business or indus
trial concern to conduct a na
tionwide safety check in con
junction with the national vol
untary Vehicle Safety-Check for
Communities sponsored by the
Auto Industries Highway Safety
Committee.
The free safety inspection
here was offered at the em
ployee parking area off Fire
stone boulevard, on a schedule
or King Cotton:
Economic Bulwark
All the gold that has ever
been produced in this country
wouldn’t equal the value of the
cotton crop for the last ten
years. Burris C. Jackson of Hills
boro, Texas made this observa
tion, in his keynote address
opening the American Cotton
Congress in Lubbock recently.
Mr. Jackson went on to point
out these additional facts;
• The cotton industry repre
sents an investment of $22 bil
lion and the crop each year cre-
that permitted people to bring
their vehicles at times outside
their regular working hours.
This year's vehicle-check pro
gram was a major phase of the
off-)ob safety emphasis in May,
and was especially timely be
cause of the Memorial Day
weekend.
Qualified mechanics and other
helpers were on duty to check
brakes, front and rear lights and
turn signals, steering mechan
ism, tires, exhaust system, glass,
windshield wipers, rear-view
mirror, and horn.
“Join the Circle of Safety—
Check Your Car—Check Your
Driving — Check Accidents,” is
the slogan in this year’s two-
month program in May and
June in some 3,000 communities
in the states which do not have
compulsory motor-vehicle in
spection.
ates new wealth to the extent of
$2.5 billion at the farm level
alone.
• It provides work for mil
lions of people and is a vitally-
important export commodity and
source of economic strength.
FOR CARPETING
Lofted Nvlon
•/
From Plant
At Hopewell
A lofted nylon filament for
rugs and carpeting will soon
be in production at the com
pany’s Hopewell (Va.) plant.
Firestone has acquired the
trade name “Nyloft” from
Industrial Rayon Corpora
tion of Cleveland, Ohio and
will begin production by
mid-June.
The company thus becomes
one of the three leading pro
ducers of lofted nylon filament
with an initial capacity of ap
proximately four million pounds.
Industrial Rayon has produced
“Nyloft” for several years at a
factory in Covington, Va. The
process involves the wrinkling
or curling of nylon staple fiber
into a bulky material resembling
sheep’s wool.
Most carpet manufacturers
consider nylon to be the strong
est and longest-wearing fiber in
the industry. Nylon rugs and
carpets usually have high re
silience and good resistance to
wear, to flame, soil, and most
acids and solvents.
THE HOPEWELL plant is op
erated by the Firestone Syn
thetic Fibers Company. Presi
dent Roger S. Firestone is also
a director of the parent com
pany.
Firestone bought the Hope-
well works in 1959 for produc
tion of synthetic fibers. When
the plant opened last year, the
company became the first in the
American rubber industry to
produce its own nylon filament
for tire cords. Of this produc
tion, a major portion is being
further processed into fabric at
the Gastonia plant.
MEDALLION FOR WINNER—Starr Neely Robinson receives
from general manager Harold Mercer the Harvey S. Firestone Jr.
Silver Medallion. Looking on are the scout's father, W. R. Robinson
(left), and W. A. Forbes, Starr's former scoutmaster.
Top Award To Starr Neely Robinson
Company Honors 36 Scouts
“He is a leader in all activities in which he participates.
He is an ideal American boy—in every respect deserving
of this high honor.” That was the evaluation placed upon
Starr Neely Robinson, in reviewing the record which led to
his selection as recipient of the Harvey S. Firestone Jr.
Scouting Award for 1961.
The top winner this year holds
28 merit badges in Scoutcraft
A member of Post 30 since April
of 1959, he lives with his par
ents, Mr. and Mrs. William R.
Robinson on Route 3, Gastonia.
In addition to the Medallion,
Starr received a Certificate of
Merit, a $100 U.S. Savings Bond
and a check for $27.75 toward
expenses for two weeks at the
Schiele Camp for Piedmont
Council Scouts, in Polk County.
35 Other Scouts Honored
Also at the banquet 35 other
area Scouts were formally com
mended for outstanding records.
Each received from the company
a Merit Certificate and a check
for $27.75 to be appropriated
toward expenses for a two-week
stay at the Polk county camp,
or for purchase of Scouting
equipment of the Scout’s choos
ing. Those honored were:
Flay Anthony, Robert Clonin-
ger, Michael Cole, John Connor,
Jimmy Crawford, Philip Ford,
Francis Galligan Jr., Steve Har
mon, Ray Hawkins, Lewis
—More on page 3
The 17-year-old Eagle Scout
was accorded the company’s
highest recognition for Scouting
at an annual banquet on May 31
in the Recreation Center here.
The 16th boy from the Gas
tonia area to be so honored,
young Robinson was presented
the engraved Silver Medallion,
symbolic of the award named for
the company chairman and chief
executive officer,
A member of the graduating
class of Frank H. Ashley High
School this year, Robinson com
peted for the top company hon
or on the basis of excellence of
his Scouting record during the
past year. He was described as
a leader in his Scout, church and
school endeavors.
Safety Manager Visits Here
On a recent visit to Gastonia, M. R. Batche of Akron,
Ohio, stopped on a tour of the mill to discuss the Red Tag
safety program with employees Belon Hanna and Jack
Sutton in Twisting (synthetics). Mr. Batche is manager of
safety for all Firestone manufacturing plants.
It’s Another Hitch
For Sgt. Hardy
Sgt. Edward F. Hardy has be
gun his 13th year of service with
the United States Army. The son
of Hoyt Hardy (mechanical serv
ice at Firestone) and Mrs. Hardy
of 105 S. Liberty street in Gas
tonia, he re-enlisted in March,
and was assigned to headquar
ters 2nd Logistical Command in
transportation at Fort Ord, Calif.
Previous to his last enlistment,
Sgt. Hardy had been for 16
months with the Army Combat
Development Experimentation
Center at 2nd Logistical Com
mand.