A green stripe Chatham blanket is the next style to be released by the revived Chatham Manufacturing company lead by Alex Chatham. (Photo courtesy of Chatham Manufacturing.)
The decline of American manufacturing, particularly in the textile industry, is clearly visible in Elkin’s East end with the partially demolished Chatham Mill. While it’s a sad sight, especially for those whose family made their living at the mill, one member of the Chatham family is doing what he can to revive the brand that once called Elkin home.
Alex Chatham, is an New York native, but his ties to the Chatham family has inspired him to bring back the classic wool blankets the textile manufacturer was known for.
“I come from a long line of wool manufacturing Chathams,” he explained. “My grandfather was Thurmond Chatham who ran the company for many years.”
Chatham’s uncles were former presidents of the company and though his father was never directly involved with the company he said “there’s a lot of family history there” and something he wanted to connect with.
Five or six years ago Chatham said he started getting really interested in the history of the family company and subsequently heard about the demolition of the mill.
“I was shocked that it was still there and then getting torn down,” he said.
Chatham, who works in industrial design, said it started him thinking if there was a way to start making Chatham blankets again.
He started reaching out to some of the remaining woolen manufactures in the country and it was a tough road.
“I spent three or four years just trying to figure out who I could work to get American made wool blankets made again. Each had a reason why it wouldn’t work as a viable product,” he said. But, compelled by a sense of family pride, he kept on pursuing the project.
Through an online business fundraising platform called Kickstarter, Chatham began raising funds for the project in October of 2020.
At the time Chatham had found a Civil War era mill making wool products in the “American manufacturing way” that agreed to pursue the project with the funds from Kickstarter. By the time funds were collected, however, the mill had shut down. Luckily the shutdown was temporary and a year later Chatham said they finally had the product in hand.
“Nothing’s been easy, it’s been years,” Chatham said.
At long last though, those warm and sturdy Chatham wool blankets are back.
“There is a sense of satisfaction and accomplishment but I also feel like it’s just the beginning,” Chatham said. “For me the end goal wasn’t just to go through process and make it, but really to go through the process make products and turn this into a viable business.”
“The first line of blankets, the renewed company, is the only the beginning I think,” said Chatham. “We have another style coming soon in production. My hope is to build out a line of dozens of different styles and colors.”
Chatham said he has received “overwhelming positive” feedback about the new blankets. The right kind of wool blanket, the right fabric weight, the right woolen finish, which is one of the toughest parts, Chatham said, is what it’s all about.
Not just those who had the nostalgic connection to the original Chatham mill, but others who understand the quality of the product are purchasing the blankets, Chatham said.
“It’s not just people that know the Chatham name or history, but I think there are people that really love an American manufactured product. It’s rarer and rarer. I think there are loyal wool fans out there who just love the idea of the American woolen industry.”
Elkin resident Jane Hazelman is among those who are now proud owners of one of the new Chatham blankets.
Hazelman said she and her daughters had heard of Chatham’s plan to revive the blankets and she reached out via Facebook to chat with him more about the project.
“Unbeknownst to me, my daughters invested in a throw, estimated to arrive in February 2021. Of course we all know what happened at that same time, the pandemic arrived but not the throw. Imagine my surprise when I unwrapped a Christmas present in December 2021 to find an authentic Chatham blanket! I love the connection to our sweet town and my dear friend Barbara Chatham. I’m sure a lot of older residents in Elkin have original Chatham blankets in their closets, but I think this one is worth the wait,” Hazelman said.
With Chatham’s commitment to uphold the family legacy, the new blankets are sure to become treasured items for Elkin area residents and beyond.
“As much as possible I’ve been trying to make this authentic, minus the fact that they’re not made in Ekin, they are, as much as possible, the same Chatham blanket that was made before,” he said.
To learn more about the revival of the Chatham blankets visit chathammfg.com.