Roger Milliken
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Roger Milliken (October 24, 1915 – December 30, 2010) was an American textile heir, industrialist, businessman, and political activist. He was president and then CEO of his family's company,
Milliken & Company Milliken & Company is an American industrial manufacturer that has been in business since 1865. With corporate headquarters located in Spartanburg, South Carolina, the company is active across a breadth of disciplines including specialty chemica ...
, from 1947 until 2005. He continued as chairman until his death in 2010. Milliken is known as a political godfather to the
American conservative ''The American Conservative'' (''TAC'') is a bimonthly magazine published by the American Ideas Institute. The magazine was founded in 2002 by Pat Buchanan, Scott McConnell and Taki Theodoracopulos to advance an anti- neoconservative perspect ...
movement.


Company background

Deering Milliken Company was co-founded by Roger's grandfather, Seth Minot Milliken, and
William Deering William Deering (April 25, 1826 – December 9, 1913) was an American businessman and philanthropist. He inherited a woolen mill in Maine, but made his fortune in later life with the Deering Harvester Company. Life Early life Deering was born ...
in 1865. The small woolens fabric company was initially based in
Portland, Maine Portland is the List of municipalities in Maine, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine and the county seat, seat of Cumberland County, Maine, Cumberland County. Portland's population was 68,408 at the 2020 census. The Portland metropolit ...
, but moved to New York City in 1868 after
William Deering William Deering (April 25, 1826 – December 9, 1913) was an American businessman and philanthropist. He inherited a woolen mill in Maine, but made his fortune in later life with the Deering Harvester Company. Life Early life Deering was born ...
left Deering Milliken to start the Deering Harvester company. Deering Harvester later merged with the McCormick Harvester Company to form International Harvester. There is a surviving spinoff of International Harvester (which is today known as
Navistar International International Motors, LLC (formerly Navistar International Corporation) is an American manufacturer of commercial vehicles and engines, established in 1986 as a successor to the International Harvester company. International Motors produces ...
). In 1884, Deering Milliken Company invested in its first property near
Spartanburg, South Carolina Spartanburg is a city in and the county seat of Spartanburg County, South Carolina, United States. The city had a population of 38,732 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in South Carolina, 11th ...
, where the company's headquarters have been based since 1958. In 1976, Deering Milliken officially became
Milliken & Company Milliken & Company is an American industrial manufacturer that has been in business since 1865. With corporate headquarters located in Spartanburg, South Carolina, the company is active across a breadth of disciplines including specialty chemica ...
.


Personal life

Milliken was born October 24, 1915, in New York City, the eldest son of Gerrish Hill Milliken and Agnes Malcolm (née Gayley) Milliken. Roger's grandfather was Seth Milliken, co-founder of what is today known as
Milliken & Company Milliken & Company is an American industrial manufacturer that has been in business since 1865. With corporate headquarters located in Spartanburg, South Carolina, the company is active across a breadth of disciplines including specialty chemica ...
. He attended
Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...
, where he studied French history and graduated in 1937. After graduation, he started out in New York City’s Mercantile Stores, in which his family had an ownership stake. Roger's brother Gerrish H. Milliken was married to Phoebe Thayer Milliken née Goodhue, the daughter of the banker F. Abott Goodhue. In 1941, he was given the stewardship of three small woolen-producing mills in Maine. When his father, Gerrish, died in 1947, the 32-year-old Milliken succeeded him as president. Young Roger Milliken soon became embroiled in one of the ugliest labor disputes in American history. In 1956 Roger Millike
imposed changes in working conditions at the Darlington SC textile mill that were unfavorable to the workers
The workers at the mill — which had been in operation 1883 — felt they were suddenly being treated like slaves. In response the workers voted to negotiate with their employe
which was their absolute right under United States labor law
Roger Milliken responded by firing all the workers i
violation of federal labor law
and closing the mill. The former employees sued to enforce the law. The United States Supreme Cour
ruled against Milliken in 1965
After delaying 15 more years, in 198
Milliken and Company settled the matter by paying $5 million dollars
to the 439 Darlington workers who were still alive and the heirs of the 114 workers that had died without being paid. Roger Milliken died on December 30, 2010. Funeral services were held at Church of the Advent and he was buried at Greenlawn Memorial Gardens of Spartanburg.


Family

Milliken met his future wife, Justine van Rensselaer Hooper, at a dinner party. They married in 1948 and had five children. Justine died in 2003. Milliken's son Weston is an openly gay man, liberal activist, and member of the
Democracy Alliance The Democracy Alliance is a network of progressive megadonors who coordinate their political donations to groups that the Alliance has endorsed. Since its founding in 2005, the Democracy Alliance has given more than $1 billion to liberal organiz ...
that is dedicated to advancing the rights of organized labor, people of color, women, and LGBT people in Southern states. Weston's activism has been described as "clearly avenging the sins of the father." Among Milliken's other living relatives is Cody Franchetti, an independent scholar in Rome.


Activism

The Milliken family was active in the community, Roger serving on the board of
Wofford College Wofford College is a private liberal arts college in Spartanburg, South Carolina, United States. Founded in 1854, it is one of the few four-year institutions in the southeastern United States founded before the American Civil War that still ope ...
and Justine on the board of
Converse College Converse University is a private university in Spartanburg, South Carolina. It was established in 1889 by a group of Spartanburg residents and named after textile pioneer Dexter Edgar Converse. It was originally a women's college but now admits ...
. Milliken also served on other corporate and nonprofit boards, including Arthur D. Little, Westinghouse, Citicorp, Mercantile, W.R. Grace, Institute of Textile Technology,
The Heritage Foundation The Heritage Foundation (or simply Heritage) is an American Conservatism in the United States, conservative think tank based in Washington, D.C. Founded in 1973, it took a leading role in the conservative movement in the 1980s during the Presi ...
, the Greenville-Spartanburg Airport Commission, and the Spartanburg Day School. Milliken was vehemently
Anti-Union Union busting is a range of activities undertaken to disrupt or weaken the power of trade unions or their attempts to grow their membership in a workplace. Union busting tactics can refer to both legal and illegal activities, and can range anywhe ...
, closing the Darlington Manufacturing Company after workers there voted to unionize in 1956.


Politics

He was president of Milliken & Company until 1983, when he became chairman and CEO. He relinquished the CEO title in 2005, and remained chairman until his death. Starting in the 1950s, Milliken helped build the
South Carolina Republican Party The South Carolina Republican Party (SCGOP) is the state affiliate of the national Republican Party in South Carolina. It is one of two major political parties in the state, along with the South Carolina Democratic Party, and is the dominant par ...
, which had been in the minority for decades. Milliken helped convince South Carolina Senator
Strom Thurmond James Strom Thurmond Sr. (December 5, 1902 – June 26, 2003) was an American politician who represented South Carolina in the United States Senate from 1954 to 2003. Before his 49 years as a senator, he served as the 103rd governor of South ...
to
switch In electrical engineering, a switch is an electrical component that can disconnect or connect the conducting path in an electrical circuit, interrupting the electric current or diverting it from one conductor to another. The most common type o ...
to the Republican Party. Milliken raised the money for the "Senator Thurmond Speaks for Nixon-Agnew" commercials that formed part of Nixon's Southern Strategy of attracting white Southerners to the Republican Party in the 1968 Presidential election. He was a notable donor to conservative causes. He supported ''
National Review ''National Review'' is an American conservative editorial magazine, focusing on news and commentary pieces on political, social, and cultural affairs. The magazine was founded by William F. Buckley Jr. in 1955. Its editor-in-chief is Rich L ...
'', the
Western Goals Foundation Western Goals Foundation was a private domestic intelligence agency active in the United States.Staff writer (Jan. 2, 1989)"Western Goals Foundation."''Interhemispheric Resource Center/International Relations Center''. Archived frothe original. ...
, the
John Birch Society The John Birch Society (JBS) is an American right-wing political advocacy group. Founded in 1958, it is anti-communist, supports social conservatism, and is associated with ultraconservative, radical right, far-right, right-wing populist, and ...
,
Barry Goldwater Barry Morris Goldwater (January 2, 1909 – May 29, 1998) was an American politician and major general in the United States Air Force, Air Force Reserve who served as a United States senator from 1953 to 1965 and 1969 to 1987, and was the Re ...
,
Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He was a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party a ...
, and
Pat Buchanan Patrick Joseph Buchanan ( ; born November 2, 1938) is an American paleoconservative author, political commentator, and politician. He was an assistant and special consultant to U.S. presidents Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, and Ronald Reagan. He ...
, among others.


References


External links


entry in 2008 Forbes richest people

Roger Milliken on Forbes World's Richest People, 2003


* ttp://www.amconmag.com/blog/2011/01/03/requiem-for-a-patriot/ Remembrance of Milliken from Patrick Buchanan
Milliken obituary from Spartanburg Herald-Journal newspaper online
{{DEFAULTSORT:Milliken, Roger 1915 births 2010 deaths 20th-century American businesspeople American Episcopalians American textile industry businesspeople Anti-union sentiment Businesspeople from New York City Businesspeople from South Carolina John Birch Society members Milliken family New Right (United States) South Carolina Republicans The Heritage Foundation people Yale University alumni