Originally published in The Vidette-Messenger of Porter County on February 21, 1936.
CONTINENTAL TO EXPAND
VALPARAISO TO BE WESTERN HUB FOR NEW OPERATIONS
Continental-Diamond Fibre Company, One of Nation’s Largest Electrical Insulation Industries, Launches What May Become Large Expansion Program for City.
LETS CONTRACT FOR $40,000 WAREHOUSE; TO BUILD AT ONCE
BY LYNN M. WHIPPLE
Put several seemingly unrelated facts and incidents together and you have the “making” of the following news-storyーpotentially the most important of its kind to break in Valparaiso in many a year.
FACT NUMBER ONE: Detroit, Mich., has become the automobile and automotive parts center of the United States.
FACT NUMBER TWO: Chicago, Ill., and Cleveland, O., are today the electrical supplies, equipment and fabrication centers of the United States.
FACT NUMBER THREE: Some thirty-six years ago, a Philadelphia capitalist ventured “west” to establish a mica fabricating plant and chose Valparaiso as the scene of operations.
FACT NUMBER FOUR: the automotive and electrical fabrication industries create the largest demand and market for mica and its associated products, laminated fibroc or bakelite.
FACT NUMBER FIVE: Six years ago the Continental Diamond Fibre Company, one of the largest mica and bakelite manufacturing concerns in the world, became owner of the Valparaiso company, then known as the Chicago Mica and Fibroc Insulation Company.
Now for the news-story: Through L.L. Howard, manager of its Valparaiso plant, Continental-Diamond Fibre Company today announced a decision to make Valparaiso, instead of Chicago, its western headquarters and the letting of a contract for a new unit for its plant here, to cost approximately $40,000.
The new unit will be a two-floor (first food and basement) structure, sixty feet wide and one hundred feet long, to be built as a north-wing to the present plant.
This building will be used for storage of large quantities of vulcanized fibre and bakelite which formerly were stored in Chicago plants.
If present plans are realized upon in the future, the new storage building will be but the first unit of a large construction program here which eventually would mean work for 100 or more workers than ever employed by the local plant.
In the production season the Valparaiso division of Continental Diamond Fibre employs 300 workers. Even in the seasonal slack period, employment is now given to over 200 workers.
It is with future expansion plans in mind that, at the instance of the Continental-Diamond Fibre Company legal steps are being taken to make additional building space available by the abandonment of what is known as Factory street, located directly south of the Continental Diamond plant.
Today’s announcement of the letting of the contract for the large storage unit for the Valparaiso plant is taken to mean that Continental-Diamond Manager L.L. Howard, now serving a second term as president of Valparaiso Chamber of Commerce has “sold” the company management upon the idea of centering western division operations in Valparaiso.
The Smith-Nuppnau Company, of this city, has been awarded the general contract for the new unit. Contract for plumbing, heating and electric service installation have not been let. Building operations will start March 1, or as soon as possible thereafter.
Manager Howard today expressed confidence that the spring and summer season will find the valparaiso plant at the height of operations. Chicago plants of Continental-Diamond have discontinued operations and the Valparaiso unit has been given enlarged trade and service territory to the east.
This means that the Valparaiso plant will now fill orders originating in eastern Michigan, including Detroit, Indiana, Ohio and parts of Kentucky and West Virginia.
Continental-Diamond-Fibre company industrial operations are far-flung. With Valparaiso as its western headquarters Continental-Diamond operates two other establishments in the United States, one in Canada, one in England and one in France. The two American plants are located in Bridgeport, Pennsylvania, and Newark, Delaware. That in Canada, at Toronto; that in England, at Maidstone; that in France at Paris.
Background for Continental-Diamond operations in Valparaiso is most interesting. It was back in 1899 that the Chicago Mica Company, organized a year before, with eastern capital, decided upon location here and purchased one of the city’s oldest factory buildings about which successive expansion units have been built.
M. A. Snyder came here as the first superintendent. Mr. Snyder was secretary to a Philadelphia capitalist by the name of Adams who made his money in sandpaper.
In some five years Mr. Snyder was succeeded as superintendent by F.W. Boyer who in turn was followed by Edward Heilstedt (now employment manager for U.S. Steel mills at Gary).
Next step in operations came in 1920 and centered in A.W. Pickford, vice-president of the old Girard National Bank, Philadelphia. Through Mr. Pickford, L.T. Frederick was brought to Valparaiso and Mr. Frederick with John Griffin, of this city, who, starting with the Chicago Mica company as an office boy, had been made superintendent, a large expansion program was inaugurated. Mr. Frederick was in charge of sales.
Then came a broadening of operations to include the manufacture of fibroc products.
Then followed a period of rapid expansion and in 1926 a preferred stock issue of $100,000 was placed on the market, much of it being bought by Valparaiso investors. Most of this issue has been retired, it is understood.
Two years later Victor R. Despard, long associated with the McGill industries here, severed connections therewith and with Mr. Frederick purchased Mr. Griffin’s holdings. Another large addition to the plant was built. Steps were taken to merge the local plants with others of associated industries. Shortly thereafter friction developed in the management and Mr. Despard sold his interests to the Continental-Diamond Fibre Company, Mr. Frederick remained in charge for a few months but finally withdrew from the company. With the passing of Mr. Frederick, L.L. Howard was placed at the head of the Valparaiso operations.
Prior to the organization of the Chicago Mica Company several industries had operated in the original factory building built, it is understood, some seventy-five years ago for a pin plant operated by the Fontaine Brothers. Then the Powell family established its knitting mill in it. This plant moved to Chicago and finally to Muskegon, Michigan where one of the sons of the founders is still operating a knitting mill.
Then Mike Barry took over the building for his wagon works. This plant was operated for several years and was succeeded by the Cosmo Buttermilk Soap Company which came here from Elkhart, Ind., and finally returned to Elkhart.
This brings the story up to the organization of the Chicago Mica Company whose history has been sketched above.
Speaking of future prospects of the Continental-Diamond Fibre Company in Valparaiso, Manager Howard states: “Because of the demand for electrical insulation products created by the automotive industry in and about Detroit and the rapid centering of the electrical supplies industries in and about Chicago and Cleveland, major operations in our field are now centering in the middle-west, rather than in the east, where they originated. Valparaiso now has the largest plant of its kind in the west and unless all signs fail, it will continue to expand its operations.”
