Mt. Vernon Closes Plant

By Cecile B. Corral -- Home Textiles Today, 6/20/2005 12:00:00 AM

Mauldin, S.C. — —

Mauldin, S.C. — The 161-year-old Mount Vernon Mills, said to be the country's oldest continually running textiles mill, is closing the Tallassee, Ala., plant where it manufactured greige fabrics for apparel and home textiles.

Ned Cochrane, vice president, secretary and general counsel, said the company will remain in these business segments, but is considering dropping some unprofitable customer-specific products.

Mount Vernon Mills is still evaluating which of its other 14 operating plants throughout the Southeastern states it will move these greige fabrics operations to.

“We're in a very difficult global environment, and we had to adjust our capacity to what we can sell profitably,” Cochrane said. “And we believe this (move) should help us better compete globally.”

The closing of the 750,000-square-foot plant is expected to take place by mid-September. It employs just over 300 people, Cochrane said.

Mount Vernon Mills boasts a long history in the industry, with the Tallassee plant figuring into historical events. The plant, which became part of the company in 1900, produced cloth for uniforms and carbine rifles for the Confederate Army during the Civil War. Fabrics made by the company's mill in Baltimore, Md., were sewn into tents used by the Union Army.