The Federal Knitting Mills Company was established in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1905 and incorporated in the following year. Its founders were Jewish entrepreneurs including by Herbert G. Goulder, Louis Seldon, Ludwig C. Seligman, J.A. Zimmerman, and Clarence J. Hays. A member of Cleveland's substantial garment industry, Federal Knitting produced knit goods, especially sweaters, as well as fabric that would be turned into hats, scarves, shawls, and dresses. Most of these products were wholesaled to the jobbing industry. The company's national accounts included Sears, Roebuck & Company, Inc., Montgomery Ward & Company, Inc., and Marshall Field & Company. At its height, Federal Knitting Mills employed five hundred people at its 125,000 square foot plant at Detroit and West 29th Street in Cleveland.
In 1937, after the passage of the National Labor Relations Act, several unions, including the American Federation of Labor (A.F.L.), the Council of Industrial Organizations (C.I.O), and the International Ladies Garment Workers Union (ILGWU) attempted to replace the Cooperative Workers Association, the company union for Federal Knitting Mills. Following an industry-wide strike and clashes between the unions, the matter was put before the National Labor Relations Board, which ruled that the employees of the Federal Knitting Mills would be allowed to decide their union allegiance. However, the strike had so strained the company's finances that Federal Knitting Mills dissolved in December of 1937 and had sold off its remaining assets by 1939.
The Federal Knitting Mills Company Records, 1907-1939, consist of audit reports, balance sheets, correspondence, legal documents, minutes, newspaper clippings, and a scrapbook.
This collection is of value to researchers studying the history of business in Cleveland, Ohio, the Federal Knitting Mills Company, Jewish-owned enterprise in Cleveland, the Cleveland garment industry, and the history of labor in Cleveland, including the interaction between the A.F.L., the C.I.O., and the ILGWU, as well as the course of the 1937 garment industry strike. Of special note is a scrapbook containing newspaper clippings, photographs, and flyers that chronicle the progression of the 1937 strike and a copy of the National Labor Relations Board's decision regarding union representation. Those with an interest in the role of women in the workforce in the 1930s will also find the scrapbook of interest.
The collection is arranged alphabetically by document type and then chronologically. Documents within the minute book and scrapbook have been retained in original order.
Researchers interested in the Cleveland knitting industry may also consult MS 4651 National Knitted Outerwear Association, Cleveland District Records
Processed by Samuel Milner in 2010.
None.
[Container ___, Folder ___ ] MS 5051 Federal Knitting Mills Company Records, Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio
Gift of Richard S. Campen in 1995.
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.