Cramerton residents to share stories of life in historic mill village

Alice Walker remembers her father walking to work at the textile mill in Cramerton. He was dressed in overalls and carried his lunch pail.

Walker said that both of her parents worked at the mill, "and my parents worked different shifts so that somebody could be with us all the time."

On Saturday, Walker will share her story at the Cramerton Historical Society museum as part of an oral history presentation on life in Cramerton's mill village.

The mill village, originally known as Mayworth, was designed by Stuart W. Cramer, a leader in the textile industry for whom Cramerton was named.

The focus of the presentation Saturday morning, which starts at 10:30 a.m., will be stories from people who grew up in Cramerton and remember life in the mill village.

Rhett Cozart, who also plans to share his story, said that his father came to Cramerton in 1938 to play baseball on the textile league team in Cramerton.

"And part of the package deal was that he had to work in the mill," he said. "His primary impetus for coming to town was to be a ball player for Mr. Cramer's team… and he decided he would stay, and then my mom and my older brother came down from Granite Falls."

Cozart grew up in a three-bedroom mill house. He had five siblings.

"So Mom and Dad had a bedroom, my sister had a bedroom and five boys had a bedroom, so I never slept long until I joined the Navy," he said.

Art Shoemaker said that his parents came to Cramerton in the early 1940s from Newport, Tennessee, and his father worked for the mill for more than 30 years.

"And he later became a second shift supervisor, and he worked for the mill until it closed for probably 35 or 40 years," he said. "I think we all agree that it was a blessing that our families came to this town."

The presentation on Saturday will last until noon, and then lunch from Kyle Fletcher's Barbeque and Catering will be served. Residents who wish to either attend or share do not have to sign up or purchase tickets. The presentation is free.

This article originally appeared on The Gaston Gazette: Cramerton residents to share stories of life in historic mill village