As a result of the coming of the Midland Pennsylvania Railroad, a shirt manufacturing company located in New York agreed to open a branch plant in Gratz, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania. The initial projections were that the shirt factory would employ 40 people at the outset, but those estimates were never realized. It was years later that factory did employ that many workers, but the planned railroad was never completed.
Previously, on this blog, a photograph was presented showing the employees of the factory in 1911, along with Harry T. Yoder, who managed the operation for about ten years:
Articles describing the coming of the factory appeared in the Harrisburg newspapers in late 1910:
From the Harrisburg Patriot, 23 December 1910:
FACTORY FOR GRATZ
YODER COMPANY WILL OPEN SHIRT INDUSTRY
New Building Will Be Erected and Operations Must Continue at Least Five Years
Special Dispatch to The Patriot
Gratz, Pennsylvania, 22 December 1910 — The Lykens Valley Board of Trade, together with the interests of the Midland Pennsylvania Railroad, has secured the first new industry incident to the building of the railroad through the Valley between Millersburg and Ashland. A contract was signed with the Yoder Shirt Manufacturing Company, of New York, who operate a chain of factories in a number of the Eastern cities, to locate a branch factory in this town.
Work on the construction of the building, which will be 30 by 50 feet, was started this morning, and the contract calls for the operation of the factory for a period of five years. It is expected to be ready for operation in about six weeks, and at the start will give employment to about forty people.
Efforts are also under way for the securing of a number of other new industries for the Lykens Valley, so that they in time will bring additional revenue into the small towns in this section and increase the freight tonnage over the railroad.
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From the Harrisburg Telegraph, 23 December 1910:
Lykens Valley Board of Trade Gets Plant
Special to the Telegraph
Gratz, Pennsylvania, 23 December 1910 — The Lykens Valley Board of Trade, together with the interests of the Midland Pennsylvania Railroad, has secured the first new industry incident to the building of the railroad through the valley between Millersburg and Ashland. A contract has been signed with the Yoder Shirt Manufacturing Company, of New York, who operate a chain of factories in a number of the Eastern cities, to locate a branch factory in this town.
Work on the construction of the building, which will be 35 by 50 feet, has been started.
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Note: While there were attempts to establish a shirt factory in Gratz as early as 1902, those attempts failed. After Yoder began its operations in 1911, the factory continued to operate under different owners through 1985, when it was finally closed and sold. At its height, it employed about 200 people.
News articles from Newspapers.com.