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Directors Name Ruff in I
As Lewis Assu New
Other Officers and Board
of Directors Are Re-elect
ed; Raffia Retains Job of
Treasurer
mi. " The Bond of Dimeters of The Er
 vfm Cotton Mills Company la uiul
■ssrtag today aide BL P. Lewis,
Chalrmss of the Board, aad elected
Wa. H. Buffin, to sneeeed him ss
Ftaritet of the Compaay. Mr. Lew
fee of the Compaay. Mr. Bufta has
wis Milk siaee 1932 when he sneeeed
ed the late W. A. Erwia ia that of
iee, aad will eoatiaoe ia active serv
ice of the Coatpsay. Buffin has
land as Viee-Presideßt aad Treasur
er of the Coatpaay siaee IMS. Raffia
- retained the office of Treasurer which
he has held for soa« years.
AO other officers were re-elected as
follows: Carl B. Harris, Viee-Presi
deat aad Assistant Treasurer, Fraak
T. de Vyrer, Vice Presidest, B. W.
Durham, Secretary, N. A. Gregory,
Assistant Secretary, aad L. C. Thom
as, Asafstaat Secretary.
It was also announced that Edwin
M. Holt has been made general man
ager of maanfaetaring aad aasistant
to Carl B. Harris, Vice-President aad
Aasistant Treasurer of the Company.
Holt served for a number of yean as
Maaager of the Company'■ plants ia
Cooleemee, N. C., aad came to Pur
ham ia July, 1947, to Join the execu
tive staff of the Company.
The following Directors were elect
ed: John Spruat Hill, BL P. Lewis,
J. Harper Erwia, George Watts Hill,
B. W. Stiles, Forrest Hyde, Leßoy
• Martin, A F. Bonsai, Wm. H. Buf
fla, aad Carl B. Harris. Stiles, Hyde,
aad Bonsai are residents of New
York City, Martin, of Baleigh. The
other Board Members are residents
Baleigh. The other Board Members
of Durham.
Mr. Lewis came to work for the
Erwia Mills in Durham in 1900 and
i' aeon became first assistant to the
late W. A. Erwin, who founded the
Company ia 1592. He was made As
sistant Secretary and Treasurer in
1919, Secretary and Treasurer in
1987, and succeeded Mr. Erwin as
President in 1982. He is a past
President of the North Carolina Cot
toa Manufacturers Association and of
the American Cotton Manufacturers
Association.
Mr. Buffin started work with the Er
. win Mills ia 1919, spending two years
working through various manufactur
ing departments. He became Secre
tary and Assistant Treasurer ia 1932,
Secretary and Treasurer, 1941, and
Ttee-President and Treasurer, 1942.
He is a past President of the North
Carolina Cotton Manufacturers Asso
ciation, and is serving now aa Presi
dent of the North Carolina Industrial
ChnSUl and as a Member of the
Board of Directors of the National
Association of Manufacturers.
Window Display Marks
National Scout Week
la celebration of the NationalJhfl
Scout Week this month, the
Church troop, Troop No.
Ed the J. N. Ledford (fraPKflP
dow. Included in t Ug. -dHjpPy
ia » complete showiMggj|||ifSiuip
ment consisting of telfcgjnprcamp-
aSHk be seen
a min
given a
February 10, 'by the
tee. All hoy* between the ages of 12
aad IS who not scouts will be
welcomed t*> join the troop any Tues-
THE ER^^HHATTER
m, v«. it
| H
WILLIAM H. BUFFIN KEMP P. LEWIS
President Lewis Reviews History in
Annual Meeting of Stockholders
(The following informal statement
was made at the annual stockholders
meeting here February 6 by Presi
dent Kemp P. Lewie.)
Before we adjourn I have an infor
mal statement I want to make to the
stockholders which has an item of
news that may be interesting.
Mr. W. A. Erwin and my father
were good friends. Mr. Erwin told
my father once that he understood
he had several boys, and he wished
Dr. Lewis would send one of the boys
up to work for him. So father select
ed me. I arrived in West Durham on
the afternoon of October 3, 1960, not
knowing what I would have to do or
the conditions of employment.
The first day I spent waiting at
the door of the shipping room for
Mr. Erwin, who said he would take
me through 'the mill. He evidently
forgot me, because I waited there
all day. The next day he asked me
to go through the mill and follow
the course of the cotton from the bale
to the finished eloth and write out a
record of it. I would like very much
to have that historical document, which
was lost when we moved our office.
The first actual work I did was
counting briek to be used in building
a fire wall to a warehouse. Mr. Er
win had no definite job for me, but
counted on working me into the or
ganization. The first work I did in
the office was on the payroll, and in
counting the money to put in the
payroll , envelopes. Mr. Erwin noticed
me and said he bet I could not do
it without making mistake. I
thought different, anftjM*fl by mak
ing seven mlstakajgiWgtf
Mr. Erwin's
pany, and Wfi w I
would leqjfr
me
• hfe g*wt pP
yhflSiMpPy for some six or eight
more about the busi
nflpKom being elose to him, and
very helpful to me in every
My next job was purchasing agent,
then general assistant in the Execu
tive Department, and special assistant
to Mr. Erwin. I was made Assistant
Secretary and Treasurer in 1919,
Secretary k Treasurer in 1987, and
President in 1982.
From this you will see that I have
been with the Company nearly forty
seven and one-half years, and Presi
dent of it for sixteen years. It is
rather an unusual experience for a
man to have bad only one job connec
tion in forty-seven and one-half years.
When I first came to West Durham
there was only the No. 1 Mill, mak
ing Denim—the first Denis made in
the Bouth. I saw the whole business
develop from that beginning until to
was bought front the rut.
ton Milla in 1900; No. 4 Mill was
built in 1910; No. 5 Mill was built
in 1925; and No. 0 Mill was bought
in 1932. Our other two plants, both
very large ones, are finishing plants
in West Durham and Cooleemee. We
had 25,000 spindles in 1900, and have
192,000 now. We have broadened our
operations from making Denim to
cover Sheets and Pillow Cases, Can
tons, Suitings, Drills, Jeans, Outings,
Interlining Flannels, Sport Denim,
Drapery, and Luggage Fabrics.
I have always been/ proud of my
association with The * Erwin Cotton
Mills Company. It has had a repu
tation for character in which I take
great pride, and the Company has
always had the most excellent eredit
in financial circles. It was estab
lished and has been maintained on
a foundation of honor and faithful
ness to high principles. My experi
ence with the Company has been a
very happy one. I believe it has a
good future, and the stockholders
should be pleased with its standing.
I have decided to reeommend to
the Directors, who will meet just af
ter the close of this meeting, to
change the official set-up of the Com
pany and establish the office of
Chairman of the Board, and I am go
ing to do something I have never
done before, and that is ask for a
job. I believe that the Directors will
look favorably tpon choosing me as
Chairman of the Board, and I hope
(Continued on Page 4)
Ifef A /k 9 Ills 3 w
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JBh.I. J#l\' jH|Hb F Mmm m
Rtertrfj |
I
BOYS' BASKETS ILL TKABf above has iron seven gtmet and lost only one at dertHae time. Tmrtirtfrttt to
going well at the hii h school and the team will play win in Winston-Salem in the Slate FV- School Athletic
Association's Claw B tournament. Member* of the squad fere left to right, front Gathrefi, Louie Beck,
B°*»y Footer, Hayde i Benson, Bob Jordan and J. W. MeClannon; second row—David Pa«e, Bod Mcdamrock,
M M Jma mm ■ ■
MiTvfnKVIfCO KOCwrU
(Week Eadiag Jsaaary 18, 1948)
Pint Me. 3
Warehouse 87.50%
Dyehoose 98.97%
Outside 83 M%
Mschiae Shop 99.09%
Carding 94.55%
Spinning .84.44%
Warping 92.90%
Weaving 91.19%
AVEBAGE FOB PLANT 90.80%
FiaiShiag Plaat Ho. 3
. Cloth Boom 92.41%
Shipping 89.33%
Napping 92.24%
Piece Dye 97.28%
Bleachery 89.01%
AVEBAGE FOB PLANT 92.58%
AVEBAGE FOB
COOLEEMEE 91.20%
Company Offers Rowan
Lots to Home Builders
The Company is offering to the em
ployees, 100 x 200 foot lots just
across the river on the Bo wan aide
for the purpose of building dwelling
houses. As soon as eaah house ia
completed the company will deed the
land to the owner for $l.OO. There
are 17 tracts set off for this pur
pose. Anyone interested ean get
further information from the Main
Office.
Greater Funds
Maintain Red C
The 1948 fund campaign of the
American Bed Cross reminds the pub
lie that "this year greater sums are
needed for an equal job." To esti
mate a campaign goal takes a lot of
figuring, based in part on statistics
of the past, in part on unpredictable
needs of the coming year, and, most
important, on definite plana for com
munity well-being.
In its steadily increasing emphasis
on a peacetime program, the Bed
Cross is expanding its work for vet
erans and their dependenta, while at
the same time maintaining its tradi
tional services to the armed forces
and to civilians.
Bed Cross beneficiaries in 1947 were
legion. Nearly 100,000 persons re
ceived emergency help and rehabili
tation following disasters of the past
fiscal year. In the first 10 months of
1947 alone, Bed Cross disaster re
lief appropriations were approximate
ly #9,500,000. Financial assistance
to veterans, servicemen, and their de
pendents totaled $11,944,305 for the
year. Numberless persona were serv
ed by Volunteer Special Services
workers, who gave 25,000,000 hours
of their time.
CirculstiM 1600
Cooleemee High
Now Member male
Athletic Assoc.
Cooleemee High Bchool athletics
advanced another step this month
when the North Ctrolin High School
Athletic Association eccepted C. H. 8.
The first step was made the past
fall when Coach Balph Sinclair be*
gan football in earnest
As a result of the new association
membership, the local basketball
boys' basketball team will play in the
State Class B tournament at the Rey
nolds High Gymnasium on March 1.
la the event the team cornea out a
winner, it will then be eligible to
proceed to the state finals at Chapel
Hill.
This Spring the baaeball team will
take part in the Round Robin play
composed of teams from Yadkinville,
West Yadkin, Courtney and Boon
ville. The winner of this divisional
play is to compete with other divi
sional winners for Btate honors.
This new step forward for local
high school athletics Cooleemee
the first Claas B school in this section
of the state to advanee to state-wide
competition.
Early in the nineteenth century a
machine was widely used in the
South whieh by the operation of a
single erank ginned, carded, aad span
i simultaneously six threads of cotton.
Benefits from Bed Cross services
are two-way. Instruction in water
safety and first aid not only provides
skills that prevent many accidents
from occurring to the individual bat
also provides a knowledge of what
to do for others when accidents -do
occur. Since the Bed Cross in 1914
began its program to "waterproof"
America, the nation's drowning rate
has been cut in half. Similarly, the
11,230,000 certificates issued since the
first aid program was instituted in
1910 are impressive evidence of the
number of beneficiaries of these serv
ices.
The National Blood Program when
fully established will make whole
blood and its derivatives available
without cost to all people of our na
tion. Its beneficiaries carry in their
very veins a token of neighborly serv
ice.
Events of the year 1948 are uncer
tain and unpredictable. Yet standing
by, ready for any emergency, is the
Bed Cross with millions of organ
ized workers to camm its manifold
services. •
Remember —
are needed for
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