Elliott White Springs (1896-1959)

Elliott White Springs was a gifted writer, pilot, advertiser, and business man— he inherited the Springs Mills textile empire from his father, Colonel Leroy Springs.

Much to his father's bemusement, Elliott harbored a rebellious streak. He served in World War I as an ace fighter pilot (amassing 11 confirmed kills). He possessed a liberal sense of humor and was the author of many short stories—several of which served as the basis for movies released in the late 1920's and early 30's. He flew under a bridge on the Catawba River and buzzed his father's office with his plane on multiple occasions.


In 1928, Leroy prompted Elliott to leave his position in New York (where he was one of the country's best magazine writers) and come back to Lancaster to serve as company treasurer-secretary. He learned everything about the textile business, experimented on looms in the basement and expanded the company. Under Elliott's leadership, Springs Mills survived the Great Depression and emerged as an industrial giant. He fought off attempts at unionization by providing generous benefits and living conditions to his workers.

Elliott anticipated the post-WWII demand for finished goods and knew that Springs Mills would have to change its marketing approach if it was to appeal to a residential audience. With a combination of wit and business sense, he was able to establish a strong brand name and continue the high levels of production that the mills had enjoyed through the war effort... he did this—as with other things—his own way:

"Expert on Tease"
In the 1940's after a fruitless search for an ad agency that would produce the kind of ad campaign he wanted, Elliott contracted artists to draw pin-up girls and began to write his own humorous sales copy. He was the first to employ the tactic of sex in advertising and his unique approach to advertising turned Springmaid into a household name. Elliott's racy print ads ruffled the feathers of conservative mid-century America, turning sensibilities and the advertising world upside down. His 1948 "A Buck Well Spent" ad raised many eyebrows, securing its place in history as number 69 of the Top 100 Advertising Campaigns. The series is used in advertising courses in dozens of universities as the most successful ad program ever launched.

FURTHER READING:
Personalities And Products

The Indian Head Connection
Detailed History of Springs Mills
SC Aviation Hall of Fame
Anne Springs Close Talks Ancestry with The Boss
Elliott White Springs Prize For Fiction Contest

• Elliott White Springs was born July 31, 1896, the son of Leroy and Grace Allison White Springs. His mother died when he was 10 years old, and at 12, he was sent to the Asheville School, an academy in North Carolina. He later graduated from Princeton University and Oxford University

• Married Massachusetts heiress Frances Hubbard Ley in 1922 and had two children; Leroy '"Sonny" Springs (died in plane crash in 1946 at age 22) and Anne Kingsley Springs. After Elliott's death in 1959, leadership of the company was left to son-in-law Hugh Close.
  

• In 1934 the United Textile Workers of America attempted to organize workers at the Springs mills. Elliott Springs allowed the union to address the workers at a company-owned baseball field in Chester. After the organizers had spoken, Springs mounted the platform and told the workers that if they went on strike, he would close the plants and take his family to Europe. The workers later voted unanimously against union representation, with some even chasing the unionizers out of town.