Apponaug prospers, thanks to Lustig
For most of the 19th century, Apponaug's existence revolved around the
town offices and the mills. Because of its location along Post Road,
Apponaug often set the tone for the rest of the town. The history of
the town indicates that when this village prospered, so did Warwick;
and when it suffered the town did as well.
Excellent leadership
Because of the insight of men like Caleb Greene, Edward Boit, Alfred A.
Reed, J.P. Farnsworth and Albert L. Lustig, the mills in the village
had adapted to the changing times and managed to continue to operate
despite serious depressions and panics. During the early 20th century,
thanks to Albert L. Lustig, the Apponaug Company prospered and became a
very important center for textiles. Lustig, a native of Hungary and one
of the world's most respected color chemists, had become general
manager of the Apponaug Co. in 1913. In 1917, when J. P. Farnsworth
died, Lustig was made president of the company.
Warwick’s major employer
Under Lustig's leadership the Apponaug plant became a major employer in
Warwick, attracting skilled workers from nearby Natick, Clyde and
Riverpoint. Many old-timers in these villages recall that when
difficult times curtailed the activities in many of the mills of
western Warwick, jobs at Apponaug were much sought after. They remember
walking to and from work in the bitter cold winters and stopping at
farm houses along Tollgate Road to warm up a bit and, perhaps on
payday, buying a chicken or eggs to take home. This was the period
before inexpensive restaurants and hotels and many a hard working
immigrant found that boarding houses in Apponaug, run by enterprising
women such as Georgianna Aylesworth, supplied a very important need.
Sections of the village remained rural for many years and large
vegetable gardens and chickens could be seen in the heart of the
village.
Success depended on chemistry
While other mills in the Pawtuxet Valley were often unable to compete
with England and Europe, the mills in Clyde and Apponaug were
successful. Much of this was because the print works, engaged in
bleaching and dyeing, depended a great deal upon the water supply and
the skill of the chemists. Both were needed and, as stated so well by
the owners of the Oriental Print Works, the water from Gorton's Pond
was excellent.
Also important, and perhaps even more so, were the superb chemists in
the Apponaug mills. During the early part of the century, the skills of
Lustig were rivaled only by those of Robert Reoch at the Clyde Print
Works. These two chemists clearly demonstrated that the printing of
material in Rhode Island could be successful.
Another reason for success was the fact that the location of the large
complex was within easy reach of the principle textile mills and the
most important wholesale markets. This was significant, as during the
first part of the 20th century the Apponaug Company's business was done
entirely for mills and converters.
The impact of World War I
As previously stated in an earlier article it was during the early
years of Lustig's management that the mills witnessed a great deal of
prosperity because of World War I. The war caused an unprecedented
demand for American goods and when the United States entered the
conflict in 1917, many young men from the mill villages along the
Pawtuxet River entered the army thereby causing a labor shortage. This
eventually gave greater bargaining power to the workers and they forced
the textile companies to abandon the 64-hour week for a 48 hour one
with higher wages. This prosperity for workers was short lived,
however, and the 1920's saw a decline in the textile industry. Mill
owners in many of the villages announced the implementation of a
54-hour workweek and pay cuts up to 20 percent. The Textile Strike of
1922 and the further decline of the textile industry in the 1930's cut
the work force in the mills in the Pawtuxet Valley, including the newly
created town of West Warwick, to one third of what it had been in the
early 1920's.
The mill that was an exception to the decline of the textile industry
was the Apponaug Company, which found itself the recipient of increased
orders during the 1930s. The reason for this prosperity during the
trying years of the Great Depression can be credited to Alfred Lustig
and his associates.
Improvements, prosperity and decline
Fortunately for Apponaug and its environs, the Apponaug Company was
able to keep its doors open during the tumultuous twenties. To keep
pace with major changes and innovations, the Apponaug Company plant
underwent a major modernization between 1920-1928. This surprised a
number of mill owners, as it was a time when other mills were talking
of closing.
The new structure
During this period most of the stone mills built by the old Oriental
Company were replaced by red brick buildings. The new structure was
built in one unit with 10 buildings connected for maximum efficiency.
The Apponaug Company's floor space was now approximately 326,000 square
feet. The company now had its own power plant, and ample laboratory
facilities for research and experimental work.
At a time when competitors were closing and the entire country was
experiencing a Great Depression, the average output of the Apponaug
Company in the 1930's was in excess of 30,000,000 yards per year.
Appreciation by the State of R.I.
Residents of Apponaug at the time gave credit for the success of the
company to the very talented Lustig family. The importance of the
Lustigs to Rhode Island's economy often prompted full cooperation from
the State of Rhode Island. One example of this came during a Lustig
family emergency in 1931. At that time, Alfred L. Lustig, who was
vacationing in Virginia, was stricken with stomach ulcers and had to
undergo surgery. Republican Governor Norman S. Case offered the
assistance of the State. As a result, Mrs. Lustig and her daughter,
Mrs. Frederick C. Brown of Apponaug, were escorted by State Police on
an exceedingly fast trip to New York City so they could catch the
earliest train South. Thanks to this cooperation, Mrs. Lustig was able
to get to her husband's bedside before the emergency operation.
Warwick’s largest employer
The economic impact of the mills in Apponaug continued well into the
twentieth century. For nearly four decades, the Apponaug Company was
Warwick's largest employer and was instrumental in many of the changes
that took place in Warwick. The influence of the mill extended well
beyond the salaries paid to workers in the sprawling complex, for the
prosperity of the mill meant prosperity for the village. Most
businesses in Apponaug would not have survived had the mill closed its
doors and the Apponaug Company exerted a subdued form of paternalism by
sponsoring better municipal services and worthwhile projects.
The end of an era
In 1935, Alfred L. Lustig, the president and general manager of the
Apponaug Company, died. The Lustig family continued to control the
enterprise until 1944, when they sold to George V. Mechan. After a few
years of ownership, Mechan sold to the Aspinools Corporation of
Connecticut. During the 1950's, the principal owners of the company
were the Lamport Co. of New York City, the Bancroft Company of
Wilmington, Delaware, and Frederick G. Brown, who was also president
and spokesman for the Apponaug Company.
The Apponaug Company eventually became a victim of the decline in the
textile industry that had started in the 1920's. In January of 1958,
Frederick G. Brown announced that the company would close its doors on
March 15th. By that time, only 300 of the 530 employees who usually
staffed the plant were still employed. Both the State of Rhode Island
and the City of Warwick expressed their concern over the plant's
closing and tried to find buyers for the sprawling complex. On March
17, 1958, as Brown had predicted, the Apponaug Company shipped its last
orders and an era was over. Frederick Brown said, "The tragedy has
happened." All employees, with the exception of the packers and
shippers who were moving out the final yardage of cloth, had been "laid
off for good." One of the older employees, still stunned from the
plant's closing, is reported to have said, "It's a sad thing. I worked
there for many years and it's going to be hard to get used to the idea
of not getting up in the morning to go to work."
New use for the old mill
It was over two years before the vast complex, with its 10 buildings,
water tower, and power plants, was sold. In 1960, the Anchor Realty Co.
purchased the property and soon began renting the space to diverse
industries. Among the first to take advantage of the space available
was the Thompson and Green Machinery Company and the Greenwood Sheet
Metal Company.
Far from being obsolete, the Apponaug mills had demonstrated that there
was a demand for the buildings despite the near death of the textile
industry.