WWW
GASTONIA
NORTH CAROLINA
BENNETTSVSLLE
SOUTH CAROLINA
BOWLING GREEN
KENTUCKY
FEBRUARY
1972
• Gaslon County Court
House: 1848-1911. This Firestone
News photo is from a water-
color by A1 Fincher, Charlotte
artist known as "the historian
with a brush."
The Dallas Court House is
one of many Piedmont Carolinas
Cherished Gaston Landmark
In the Dallas, N. C. area, the Old Court House is con
sidered best-known of several landmarks “steeped in his
tory.” Dallas is a “Firestone hometown” for some 70 em
ployees of the Gastonia plant.
Named for George Mifflin
Dallas, U.S. Vice President to
James K. Polk (1845-49), the
town has retained its touches
of an Earlier America. It was
Gaston’s county seat to 1911.
In 1846-47 Gaston County was
created from Lincoln County
and Dallas became the seat of
government. It continued as
county seat until Aug. 1909
when an election was carried
for removal to Gastonia. Re
moval was completed on New
Year’s Day of 1911.
THE FIRST Gaston County
Court House was built of logs
in 1847 and located on the Dal
las “square.” A permanent build-
Not as Much as They Thought
A recent survey of 170 employees in 11 U.S. Firestone
plants showed an average guess of 16.8 profit for the com
pany on each dollar of sales, after taxes. Guesses ranged
from one-half of one percent to 67 cents on each dollar.
The survey was made of em
ployees throughout the country
a few days before the 1971 com
pany annual report figures were
released. Employees, both salar
ied and hourly wage, were sur
veyed in Firestone plants at
Akron; Albany, Ga.; Blooming
ton, Ind.; Russellville, Ark.; De
catur, 111.; Des Moines, Iowa;
Memphis, Tenn.: Salinas and
Los Angeles, Calif.; and Gas
tonia, N. C.
The Gastonia plant was repre
sented by 10 of the 170 people
queried. Asked: "As a guess,
what per cent profit on each
Vice President Diversified Products
Jack M. Comely, at one time the chief accountant
at Firestone’s Gastonia and Bennettsville textile
plants, is now the parent company’s vice president of
diversified products. He was elected at the company’s
board of directors meeting in January.
Comely, who was ad- was appointed president of Fire-
landmarks which Fincher has
painted with keen perception
(he plans to do many more.)
A January story in The Char
lotte Observer noted that Finch
er's work captures "a kind of
visual detail that most students
of history never acquire."
was
vanced from president of
Firestone Plastics Company,
succeeds Frank A. LePage
who was appointed president
of Firestone International
Company. LePage continues
as a corporate vice president.
The new vice president of
diversified products is 49. He
started with Firestone as a
member of the company’s 1949
college training class and a year
later became chief accountant
for the Firstone textile plants at
Gastonia, N. C. and Bennetts
ville, S. C.
RETURNING to Akron in 1955
he held a series of accounting
assignments until he was ap
pointed vice president and gen
eral manager of Firestone Plas
tics Company at Pottstown, Pa.,
in 1963.
He was named executive vice
president of the division in 1969
and president a year later. He
ing of handmade red brick was
completed in 1848.
In Dec., 1874 the Court House
was rifled by fire, the foun
dations and walls remaining.
The Court House was rebuilt
in 1875, incorporating the old
walls and foundation. Stairways
were placed on the outside and
the “town bell” was located in
a cupola on the building instead
of in a separate bell tower.
At one time after 1911 the
building was used as a Farm
Life School for Gaston County.
The Town of Dallas now owns
the Old Court House and “the
square.” It is cherished as a
“shrine to the past” and a choice
part of the county’s heritage.
dollar sales do you think Fire
stone makes, after taxes?" Gas
tonia employees' answers yield
ed an average 7.5 cents profit
per dollar sales.
This was nearer the actual
figure of 4.8 cents on the dollar
sales for Firestone for fiscal
1971. In 1970, the company’s
profit was 4.0 per cent, the same
as the average for all manufac
turing profits in America, after
taxes, that year.
The NON-SKID, company em
ployee publication distributed
nationwide, made the survey.
Its editors learned that the com-
stone Steel Products, with head
quarters in Akron, in early 1971.
Cor^iely is a graduate of the
University of Akron with a de
gree in business administration.
He also is a graduate of the Har
vard Advanced Management
Program.
Among the several non-tire
divisions under Mr. Cornely’s
guidance are Firestone Textiles
Company with units at Gastonia,
JACK
Bennettsville, and Bowling
Green, Ky.; and Firestone Syn
thetic Fibers Company at Hope-
well, Va.
The company’s DP operations
manufacture a wide variety of
non-tire products—some 46,000
for the consumer market.
Certificates For Learning
Thirty-six persons at the Gastonia Firestone plant
earned certificates in five subjects, the courses completed
at Gaston Community College, Dallas; and Belmont Abbey
College, Belmont. James B. Call, Firestone Textiles Com
pany president, presented in January the 37 certificates
(Donald Hedges finished two courses).
Those who received the cer- H. G. Hall, Production; Donald
THIRD Harold
Mercer Award
Dr. Gary Levinson, Gas
tonia optometrist, received
the Harold Mercer Memorial
Award at the 19th annual
meeting of United Commun
ity Services of Gaston Coun
ty, Jan. 19.
James B. Call, Firestone Tex
tiles Company president, pre
sented the award to the out
going UCS president in recog
nition of his outstanding leader
ship during 1971.
Dr. Levinson is the third USC
president to receive the award
which honors the memory of the
late general manager of Fire
stone’s Gastonia plant and presi
dent of Firestone Textiles Com
pany at the time of his retire
ment in 1968.
Others who have received the
award are Hugh J. McArver and
William S. Holland.
Mr. Mercer was a Firestone
official and community leader
for more than 38 years. He was
one of the founders of the local
United Fund and served one
term as its president.
Incoming UCS president for
1972 is David Allen Smith.
pany’s employees showed a
better knowledge of the profit
picture than did people ques
tioned in an Opinion Research
Poll of the general public, show
ing that it is believed American
industry averages 28 per cent
profit on each dollar sales.
• More on page 3
tificates, and the courses com
pleted;
Employee Interviewing &
Evaluating • Windom Jones,
James M. Smith Jr., TC Twist
ing; Charles K. Cauthen, James
S. Meeks, Warehouse; Thomas
A. Grant, Methods-Time Study;
Alvin V. Riley, Division Person
nel; Ralph Johnson, Dock Rey
nolds, Industrial Relations;
Teresa:
Beam knotter
to storekeeper
Hedges, Traffic.
Occupational Safely & Health
Act • T. E. Gibson Jr., Freddie
Elkins, Earl Clark, Carl Rape,
Joseph Harrison, Benjamin
Massey, TC Weaving; W. T.
Kirby, Clee McCaslin Chafer
Weaving; Alvin Dill, Horace
Hughes, J. E. Fletcher, J. B. Mit
chell, Shop.
• More on page 2
BG Storekeeper
Teresa Leonard recently be
came the first woman supply-
room storekeeper in the com
pany’s textile division. Before
her current assignment, Teresa
worked as a beam knotter in
Cable Twisting at Bowling
Green.
Teresa’s husband “Buddy”
Leonard is an “A” Crew section
supervisor in Cable Twisting.
The Leonards have a daughter,
Janel.
Rosie C. Francum, with Fire
stone in Gastonia for 33 years,
has a job similar to Teresa’s at
Bowling Green. Mrs. Francum
has been Gastonia toolroom
clerk in the Shop for several
years.
GASTONIA Four Retired
Floyd L. Kelly, for many years a shift foreman
in Chafer (cotton) Weaving, is the most recent to
officially end his work career at the Gastonia
Firestone plant. Upon his retirement at the end of
January, he “marked up” 35 years and 8 months of
service, all at Gastonia.
Kelly followed close after three others who re
tired in late 1971 at Gastonia:
Joseph C. Ruff of the Shop, with 29 years; Harry
B. Groves, TC Weaving (splicing), 22 yers and 6
months; Nervie Barbee, TC Weaving, 22 years and
5 months.