Correspondents' Correspondence Mr. Charlie's Town
SPARKS, PHILIP
Correspondents' Correspondence BRIEF TAKEOUTS OF MORE THAN PERSONAL INTEREST FROM LETTERS &WPMR COMMUNICATIONS RECEIVED BY THE EDITORS. Mr. Charlie's Town KANNAPOLIS, N.C.—This community of...
...as is the weaver...
...Nor has there been much pressure for fringe benefits: William A. Freedman, a Cannon employe for 61 years, recently retired with a pension of $16 a month...
...The offices of the local newspaper, owned by Cannon in-laws, rests on land leased by the company, as do all the town's churches...
...Kannapolis was laid out in 1906 by James W. Cannon, founder of the dynasty that has run the company throughout its 86-year history...
...A key element in Cannon's success has been the absence of other industry in the area to compete for the Kannapolis workers...
...The school board, too, is controlled by the company...
...Ironically, he did not choose to live here himself, preferring to commute every day in a limousine from the family home in nearby Concord, named "For Pity's Sake...
...In addition, both the company and the town are still touchy about race relations...
...Until 1971, Charles A. Cannon ruled the company and town alike with an iron hand...
...What Charlie Cannon has left behind is an anachronism in modern America, a perfectly preserved company town on the New England model of the 1800s...
...Charlie don't want nobody coming in and running up wages," observed one resident, alluding to the problem that some textile firms are now encountering in other parts of the South...
...PHILLIP SPARKS...
...Since it controls the town water supply, the company has been able to prevent outside firms from locating here...
...Cannon is one of the largest employers in North Carolina, but its workers are among the lowest paid in the nation...
...The employer of 12,000 workers here and the owner of a solid square mile of the central business district, the corporation dominates every facet of public life...
...The only elected state legislator from the area is a supervisor for Cannon...
...Garbage collection, electricity, sewer and maintenance services for Cannon properties are dependent upon the company...
...Indeed, a 1970 Nader study found "no visible form of government" here...
...The phrase would be better applied to the conditions of the workers employed by his mill...
...The Voting Rights Act of 1965 has increased black voter registration, yet as one complained, "How are we ever going to elect black officials with no elections...
...Because of its unincorporated status, Kannapolis does not have elections for local political offices...
...And, as the Nader report noted, "The policeman is just as much an employe [of the corporation...
...Four years ago Attorney General John Mitchell filed suit against Cannon for discriminatory hiring and housing practices...
...Charlie's Town KANNAPOLIS, N.C.—This community of 36,000, located 15 miles northeast of Charlotte, bills itself as "the world's largest unincorporated town...
...During his 50-year reign, he built a fledgling mill and a little village into major enterprises, though most of the company buildings were constructed before 1927 and the work-force has not increased much since the early '30s...
...Charlie"—as he was always called by nearly everyone in these parts—continue to be told in the present tense...
...But its real distinction is that it is the headquarters of Cannon Mills, the fourth largest textile company in the United States and the leading producer of towels and bedsheets in the world...
...Even today, many stories about "Mr...
...As late as 1968 a contingent of Ku Klux Klansmen headed the local Christmas parade...
...Today the mill holds title to 40 pet cent of the total assessed real estate in town, including 1,600 residential buildings...
...The bank lists members of the Cannon family as its principal shareholders, and its employes come under the mill's retirement plan...
...In 1971, for example, Cannon contributed $214,000 toward the salaries of the police force, enough to pay 22 of its 35 officers...
...Despite the fact that blacks represented 15 per cent of Kannapolis' population, they occupied only 50 of the 1,600 residences rented by the company...
Vol. 56 • December 1973 • No. 25
