Sunbury Textile Mills

Sunbury Silk Mills, Sunbury Pa

"It is recalled that in 1896 Henry and Ewald Schniewind, German textile manufacturers were known to be interested in establishing an industry in the United States and word of that fact came to Frank R. Slifer, at the time Reading Railroad agent in Sunbury 

1900

He advised Harry S. Knight, local attorney, now deceased, of the plans and they greeted the Schniewinds when they landed New York City, brought them to Sunbury and showed them potential industrial sites. 

The Hiram Haas farm. on which a large fairground was located became their choice and was purchased by popular subscription and turned over to the Schniewinds who built there a silk mill that was to develop into a chain of 11 plants along with the Sunbury Converting Works, a dyeing and printing facility located in the building occupied by the Celotex Corporation.

 When hard days came upon the textile industry. the local silk plant was the last of the Susquehanna chain to be phased out. In addition to the Sunbury plant Sunbury Textiles has four mill outlets--two in Sunbury and one each in Williamsport Port Trevorton. Sales by the New York City sales office of the firm cover all areas of the United States and Canada."

About Converting Silk

Converting silk required several steps. First, 100-yard pieces ran through a singeing machine to burn away slubs or flaws. Then the pieces were soaked in boiling suds and bleached to allow the dyes to absorb evenly into the fabric. Workers moved the fabric to the dye house, tinted it in large vats and dried it on large steam-filled drums.

After it was completely dry, the fabric was lightly starched and finished.

1896 Ground Breaking

1903 - The company added the converting works to it's operation in 1903.  

Inside the Converting Works

The first product made at Sunbury Converting Works in the northern end of the city was a 500-yard piece of 18-inch wide satin dyed Nile green by dye master Adolph Selter.

Note the Northumberland covered bridge in the background, behind the Converting Works

After the silk industry collapsed and synthetic fabrics flooded the market, the factory was home to Westinghouse Electric Corp., which had government contracts to produce goods during World War II. Westinghouse left Sunbury and moved its operations to New Jersey in the early 1950s. Later, new owners converted the sizable plant to manufacture pulp and fiberboard building products made over the years by Barrett, Jim Walter and Knight-Celotex corporations

1954, May 17th  - Susquehanna Textile Mills at Sunbury reopened as Sunbury Textile Mills Inc.  "In 1954, Sunbury Textile Mills opened its doors, set up its looms and began weaving decorative jacquards in Sunbury, Pennsylvania. Fifty years later, we've become one of the most influential mills in the world, bringing innovation, performance, and unprecedented quality to our age-old industry."

1956, March 20 - Protection Fire Equipment, which occupied the third floor of the five floor section of Sunbury Textile Mills, was surveying the possibility of using two additional floors, and possibly eventually using all five floors.  Each flood had 20,000 feet of manufacturing space.  The company manufactured polvonite protection football equipment, ensolite mats and floor and wall padding, and was "one of the areas newer industries"

1958, Dec - sites for four 200-bed hospital units for use by the county CD [Civil Defense?] Council were approved .  Two units were to be stored n the first floor of the Sunbury Textile Mill, one in the former Dalmatia High School, and one at Shamokin State Hospital.

1963 - First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy chose a Lokpuf damask manufactured by Sunbury Textile Mills, to cover a buffalo horn chair she had found at an antique store,  for the White House.

The  Knight-Celotex building closed in 2008, and was demolished in 2011.

Sunbury Textile Mills Christmas Cards

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1913

Sunbury Textile Mills was founded in 1954. It was purchased from the Susquehanna Silk Mills, a silk tie manufacturer which built the original manufacturing complex in 1890. A more modern facility was erected in 1970, housing today’s modern looms and manufacturing equipment while also keeping the original saw-tooth roof, an architectural signature from the turn of the century. Our sales and creative design offices are located in a historic, cast iron building dating back to 1861 in the vibrant neighborhood of SoHo in New York City.

Sunbury has always operated at the present manufacturing site in Sunbury, Pennsylvania and is one of the only mills of its type that continues to manufacture 100% of its products in the United States of America. In 2004 Sunbury Textile Mills became an ESOP (Employee Stock Ownership Plan) company and is owned 100% for the benefit of all the employees’ retirements. We employ multigenerational families that carry on the art of weaving with an average tenure of 20 years of design and weaving expertise.

We are extremely proud of our reputation for excellence in product quality, superior design and unsurpassed levels of customer service. We are a market leader in the design and manufacture of decorative jacquard fabrics for the world market.

Sunbury Converting Works Baseball Team

Armour Tannery, Williamsport Pa

 
Armour Leather Co, 500 Arch St Williamsport PA

Today, Brodart, the building was built in 1919, " J.K. Mosser Tannery, a plant of the Armour Leather Company, located in Newberry"

Tanning, or hide tanning, is the process of treating skins and hides of animals to produce leather. A tannery is the place where the skins are processed.

Trimming and washing room in the tannery

"By 1880, Pennsylvania had 890 tanneries, with many located in Tioga County. These tanneries primarily produced sole leather and coarser leathers used in factory belts and harnesses. They were strategically located near the region’s rich forests, as the industry relied on the bark of oak and hemlock trees for tannin, a crucial ingredient in the tanning process" - from the Lumber Heritage website

Hides in the Mosser Tannery

J.K Mosser established his tannery in 1876; by the time his plant in Newberry reached its full capacity, it covered 14 acres and had an annual output of more than 100,000 finished hides. It had 365 vats and more than 275 employees.

A "tanner pusher" at the Mosser Tannery.  These trains ran on tacks 24 inches wide, less than half the size of standard tracks.  They moved railcars that transported hides from the tannery. 

Machine in the Mosser Tannery

In 1914 the company was acquired by the Armour Leather Company and operated until the mid-1960s. It became the world’s largest cut sole factory.

From the Williamsport Sun, June 1919:

"Recommendations have just been drawn up by the J.K. Mosser Tannery, a plant of the Armour Leather Company, located in Newberry, which calls for the erection of a new six-story manufacturing building on Arch Street, for the purpose of expanding the cutting business of the local company.

When the new department is in operation it is expected that the workforce at the factory will triple.

According to present plans, the new structure will be built of reinforced concrete, with brick facings and up-to-date and modern in every detail. Plans call for 35,000 feet of floor space. The building will have frontage of 150 feet on Arch Street, 302 feet in depth and 196 feet in the rear, where the new structure will adjoin the present property.

The building will be erected on property that the company has owned for some time and also includes the recent purchase of a 50-foot lot on Arch Street secured from James Davison. Arrangements are now being made to move the dwellings on Arch Street that now stand on the site for the new building, to other locations. Realizing the need for housing facilities the company has taken this step instead of tearing the dwellings down."

The J.K. Mosser Tannery encompassed 58 buildings on 2,300 acres, with 1,200 feet on West third street and 1,600 feet along the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad tracks.  The operation was half tanning, and half manufacturing.

In July of 1933, the Alex Brothers, a subsidiary of Armour Leather, manufactured a belt 86 feet long, 6 feet wide, and 5/8ths of an inch thick.  The belt was made from 285 hides put together with special cement, and weighed more than 2,000 lbs. 

Ted Mullett, in his memoir recalling his time playing in the original Little League, wrote: "I was born in 1930 and lived with my parents in a rental house on Newberry Street. Eddie Younken lived a black away on Apple Street and we both attended Webster School. However, in 1938 my dad was promoted to superintendent of the Armour Leather factory so we moved into one of the company houses opposite the tannery on West Third Street, and I transferred to Lincoln School." 

Newberry station was later used for the Blue and White Diner.

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In April of 2025, Charlie Hughes gave a presentation on the tannery operation at the Sullivan County History Buff Breakfast.  I have 6 pages of notes to add to this post, but for now, here's a facebook photo album of all the photos and scans of Charlies Drawings.

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?vanity=ValleyGirlViews&set=a.1220286353431695

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1958 article on the Tannery Waste

The West Branch Novelty Company, Milton Pa

The West Branch Novelty Company, Milton Pa

1892-1950

The Company began in the loft of the West Branch Knitting Company. By 1901 the company was the largest single importer of bamboo in the entire United States.  In 1900 they began making cedar chests, and by 1915 they had ceased all bamboo operations. In 1950 the facility was bought out by a York firm, but the sale did not include the West Branch Novelty name.  It briefly became the DeWitt Furniture Manufacturing Company, eventually becoming Milton Wood Products, manufacturing Yorktowne Cabinets into the 1970s.

In the 1905 S. of V. Encampment Souvenir Booklet

On December 9th 1926, The Miltonian published the following history of the West Branch Novelty Company: [Modern Photos Added]

"In the year 1892 one of the towns most interesting and profitable business houses was founded.  The "West Branch Novelty Company" began with three employees.  The business grew until today it boasts a payroll of seventy-two men and women. The business grew until today it boasts a payroll of 72 men and women. It is interesting to know just how this organization started and how it was developed through the years.

 When the town was in its infancy Mr. Lieberman of Brooklyn NY came to Milton with the idea of starting a bamboo furniture plant. He employed two men to help him and established a business of the top floor in the West Branch knitting mill. An exclusive line of bamboo furniture was made as well as screens, jardiniere stands, casels, tabaret stands, and other furniture novelties. The entire bamboo plant consisted of two rooms, one slightly larger than the other.

In preparing the wood, pieces of card were wrapped around the bamboo, after each piece of card had been thoroughly soaked in coal oil. This was done in the larger room and now the furniture was taken to the smaller of the two rooms, called the “smoke room”. And here the marks were burned into the bamboo. This was a dangerous job because it was necessary to watch it carefully so that it would not catch fire. It was common occurrence for the bamboo to blaze and to be subdued.

The business grew so rapidly that in 1894 Mssrs. Marshall Reed, Harry Frick, Frank and George Chapin bought out all interests and moved the plant to the top floor is what is now the Chalfont building.   At this time the building was not brick but a frame construction. For a time they employed 3 or 4 men. They gradually added employees one by one.

 In 1899 they moved to their present location [Arch & Locust Street.  Current Trate Surplus Building? ]. At that time they had only 2 frame buildings. One of these buildings is now almost entirely offices. The growth of the plant was so rapidly increasing that it found necessary to build a much larger brick that has been motorized and electrified. This modern brick building was constructed alongside the frame one which is now on arch St. These buildings are continuous from upper Market Street to locust st.

A West Branch Cedar Chest finished to look like a bamboo chest.

In 1900 they started making  “West Branch Cedar Chests”, Discontinuing bamboo furniture in 1915. It's astounding to believe that one cedar chest must enter such different and numerous processes to become the finished product. Almost the entire bulk of the cedar from which the West Branch chests are made is obtained from the mountains of Tennessee. This cedar wood is the same as used in making lead pencils. 

The novelty company uses from 5 to 600,000 feet of lumber a year. This shipped lumber is green when it is taken from their siding and hauled in trucks to the dry kiln. Here one row of lumber is laid each piece a slight distance apart, strips of wood are then laid on it crosswise and then another layer of cedar corresponding to the first layer. The kiln is heated to degrees from one hundred fifty to one hundred sixty Fahrenheit. It is usually necessary to allow the cedar strips to dry for six days, although sometimes the cedar wood is extremely dry when shipped.   The cedar wood is unusually difficult  to dry because it so very oily.  It must test to five degrees degrees moisture. Because the wood is so oily it is difficult to ascertain the exact proportion of oil and water.

 From the dry kiln the cedar strips are taken to the machine department where they are cut to the desired lengths and widths. Then they are glued into panels, planed, polished and shaped. The chest is now ready for the cabinet department. Here the hinges and locks are put on the chests. After this is done they are taken through a very critical inspection. If the smallest defect is found, this is immediately remedied, and then they are ready for the trimmers. After they have been carefully trimmed the feet are put on.

From the cabinet department they go to the finishing department.   Here two coats lot shellac are applied. The cheaper grades of chests are now ready for the stock room. The more expensive chests are rubbed down to a dull satin finish. In this manner they differ from the cheaper chests which are shipped in their natural gloss.

Now, they too are ready to be taken the stock room.  In the stock room all cedar shavings  are brushed out and brass decorations are added to the chests so ordered. As they are sold they are taken to the crating room to be carefully wrapped and crated. From here the chests go to the depot from which they are to be shipped, to all parts of the United States. The "West Branch Cedar Chests" are famous throughout every state in the union.

The West Branch Novelty Company carries a very exclusive line of walnut and mahogany chests which are cedar lined. This wood is five-ply, each ply intercrosses, so that the wood has no chance to warp. This wood, when shipped, is cut to a almost the desired lengths and widths, SO that it is necessary only to trim it. These chests go through almost the same detailed operations. They are also shellacked and varnished and are always rubbed dull.

The walnut and mahogany chests are in great demand, although the demand is greater for the natural cedar chests. At the present time the West Branch Novelty Company ships from twenty to twenty-five thousand chests annually. 

George C. Chapin was president of the company until his death in 1924. Since that time the office has been held by his son, E.D. Chapin. Merril V. Best is the treasurer of the company. Mr. Best, in 1924, succeeded D. Chapin, the president at this time. Earl M Long controls the sales and advertising end of the business It is easy to believe that the West Branch Novelty Company has, for the past ten years, enjoyed a very remarkable growth, and are taking steps to repeat the success in the future."

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During the First World War the plant interrupted its regular production schedules to make boxes for the shrapnel shells and toxic gas shells which were being manufactured then by the American Car and Foundry Company here and by the Milton Manufacturing Company.

In 1950, the manufacturing operation was sold to York manufacturers, and they shifted from manufacturing cedar chests to bedroom furniture, and small tables.  An article in the local papers stated: "the original firm's name did not change hands.  The new enterprise is expected to be known as the DeWitt Furniture Manufacturing Company."  Plans were being discussed, at that time, to start a new firm "under the West Branch title, in Milton or vicinity" to continue making cedar chests.

If the West Branch Novelty firm was ever revived at a new location, I could find no record of it.  

There was a fire in the DeWitt plant on April 30th 1951, but it was relatively small, damaging only a mid section of the roof.  A sprinkler system is credited with saving the building. At the time, the company was making television cabinets for Air King, and combination radio and phonograph cabinets for General Electric.

The Dewitt Furniture Company was sold January 15 1952, to Washington Cabinet Corporation. In December of 1953, 30% of the workers were laid off from Washington Cabinet Company.  By September of 1954 the company was bankrupt.  The company was sold at public sale to Colonial Products Inc, a Dallastown Woodworking firm, and it's name was changed to Milton Wood Products.  In March of 1970, The Wickes Corporation of Michigan acquired the Colonial Products company of Red Lion and Milton Wood Products Company, Milton.  At the time, the Milton facility was one of 9 plants manufacturing yorktowne wooden and steel cabinets, counter tops, vanities and furniture. 

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By 1901 the company was the largest single importer of bamboo in the entire United States. A large brick building was constructed in 1912 at the north end of the Arch Street property on land purchased from the estate of Henry A. Fonda, formerly occupied by the flour mill of Elias Bickel. In 1935 another large addition was built to house the machine department.

By 1913, production of bamboo furniture had decreased and the company focused primarily on cedar chests.