Gulf Coast breeze. [volume] (Crawfordville, Fla.) 1897-19??, 1898-12-09
MRS. CONDOR, MlTTeN CAPITALIST.
The Big Industry New England Woman
started on $40,

started on $40.
At South Penobscot, Me-, lives the
mitten capitalist of the United States.
Mrs. A.C. Condor is the name of this
wealthy woman and sho distributes
every year from II, 600 to 10, 900 dozen
pairs Of mittens. She is living illus.
tration that it pays to knit mittens, q
modern, up.to-date proof of the fact
that our grandmothers knew what
they were doing. Mrs. Condon's story
shows what brave, plucky New Eng
land woman can do when sho sets her
mind to it. Mrs. Condor has written
this statement Of her mitten industry
from its beginning up to the present
time.
II began business in 1864 with
capital of $40 in little room about
l5 by IL feet in size. first made
over WORKOUT felt hats thrown away
by the men, cleaned, shaped and turned
them and then made them over into
hats for women and girls. Then, as l
lived in the country where there was
no industry, but very many willing
hands, l resolved to procure, il pos
sible, some wolk for those idle hands
to do.
II went to Boston and saw some
yarn manufacturers and from them
got twenty-five pounds of yarn on
credit. this yarn TO be made into nit
tens. The manufacturers furnished
the yarn, and l put 1t ont at the homes
of the people near where 1 lived. L
had difficulty in starting the work and
was obliged to return part of the yarn
to the manufacturers at the end of the
year because l found it impossible to
have it all knit into mittens..
"This was not very encouraging for
years work. but 1 persevered and
at the beginning of the second year
one family insisted on having some
yarn to knit into mittens. SO tried
it over again and after it once got well
started l could not supply the demand
for yarn. Tons of yarn were sent to
me and my business grew until paid
the steamboat company the largest
freight bills Of any one who did bust.
ness on the Boston and Bangor route.
From 10, 600 to Is, 900 dozen mittens
were manufactured yearly, and besides
making mittens we made ladies' and
misses hoods and caps, toques, etc.
II had 1900 names ON my books OF
people who were at work for me, and
many moro that were really working,
as on my books there would be only
one name from each house, although
perhaps two, three or four members
OF the household were knitting, often.
times as many as there were members
in the family. In the long winter
evenings men and boys wound the
yarn and in some cases even the men
knit.
"After 1873 the knitting Of mittens
by hand gradually decreased and ma
chimes came in to take the place of the
knitting. In 1882 began to buy ma.
chimes and kept adding to my stock,
until now l have eighty-two machines.
We make from 1000 to 10, 900 dozens
in one year on the machines. One OF
my girls has made 104 pairs of nit |
tens in one day, small single mittens,
and eighty.fye pairs of boys double
lined mittens. Nearly all the machines
IRE run at the homes of the knitters,
or in that way they make more
money.
"Girls on an average make about
our dozen OF cheap mittens or two
lozen Of lined mittens in day. We
make great many fine fancy-backed
nittens Of all sizes and of these the
,irls make from one to two dozen q
lay. The piice OF knitting used to
20 70 cents pair. Then it dropped