Shirt Shed - 514 W. Mill  

Feelers were put out for employyes this ad had appeared in the July issue; it was said below that "The company has received an excellent response to its advertisements requesting applications for positions."

Shirt Shed To Establish Plant At Culver

Culver - A group of Culver town officials, including members of the T own Board, Dan Adams, David Baker and Jean Williams; the President of the Plan Commission, Sue Flora, the President of the Chamber of Commerce, Ron Tusing, plus Rick Chambers of Lake Realty and John Deery of the State Exchange Bank, visited the Shirt Shed Inc., plant at Wabash last week to earn mo r e a b o u t t h e planned establishment of a new plant at Culver.

The firm is in the process of purchasing six acres of land north of Mill Street across from the new Street Garage. The present owners, Everett E. and Catherine Easterday have petitioned the Plan Commission to rezone this land from Suburban “S" to Light Industrial "M'1". A public hearing will be held in the Culver Town Hall on Tuesday, August 14 at 7:30 p.m.

The company’s main business is printing by a process of heat transfer all types of slogans and pictures on tee-shirts; however it has a complete print wear program which includes toddler and juvenile, men’s and boys’ and girls and ladies’ wear. It produces over 7,000 dozen heat transfer garments daily.

The firm started just six years ago and has had to continually expand its plant size to handle the tremendous increase in demand for its products The President of the firm. Jim Moore, stated that his firm needs an additional plant and has selected Culver as a location partly because of his familiarity with the area when he worked with the Ben Franklin stores.

Bill Henselly, the Executive Vice President has been in Culver making arrangements for the last few months. It is expected that the plant will initially hire between 100 and 150 employees, many of whom will be females. The company has received an excellent response to its advertisements requesting applications for positions. If growth continues as expected, the number of employees may exceed 250.

The Culver group noted that the Wabash plant is an attractive building, having a wooden front for its offices attached to the typical shed frame building. The Shirt Shed plans to construct a similar attractive building at Culver. It hopes to have an operating plant by November of this year.

Shirt Shed has had fine relations with the city of Wabash as evidenced by its being selected as Honored Industry of 1979 by the Wabash Chamber of Commmerce,

The Culver Town Board was informed that the firm will pay for extending the sewer and water lines and that the plant will not use a great deal of water.

The firm hopes to purchase Industrial Revenue Bonds to help finance the construction of the Culver plant. The Culver Town Board, which has been considering the establishment of an Economic Development Commission to attract industry to Culver, has directed the Town Attorney to initiate the procedures neccessary for the formation of such a Commission.

Revenue Bonds can then be purchased at a lower interest rate but there is no liability incurred by the Town or the Commission in anyway. - 2 AUg 1979

Plans Progress For Shirt SHed Plant in Culver

Culver - Six acres on Mill Street across from the new town garage here are being readied for the construction of a plant by Shirt Shed. Inc. whose main plant is located in Wabash.

The members of the new Culver Economic Development Commission were sworn in Friday by Clerk-treasurer, Marizetta Kenney. Serving on that commission are Larry Boetsma, John Elliott and Danny Haenes.

Mrs Kenney stated that the plant is applying for a minimum of $350,000 in industrial bonds through the newly formed commission. These will be sold at interest rates lower than what is available on the private financing market.

The Town Board members visited the Wabash plant and were pleased with what they saw. The factory will not create an air, water or noise pollution The parking area surrounding the plant here will be paved so no dust problem will be created

Shirt Shed will employ approximately 150, most of them women, at their new plant They will work 10 hour shifts, four days a week

Shirt Shed uses a heat transfer process to apply decorative designs on shirts. As they do at their Wabash plant, the heat used in the production will then be recycled to provide heat for the factory which is a big energy saving factor. - - Sep 6, 1979

Culver - Left to right are Larry Boetsma, John Elliott and Danny Haenes, member of the newly formed Culver Economic Development as they were s worn into office by Clerk treasurer Marizetta Kenney

Sep 13, 1979 add for full time production workers.

Wind Causes Damage At Shirt Shed Construction Site

Culver - Three young men escaped serious Injury just before noon last Friday when a gust of wind blew down a hundred feet of trussing they were working on at the site of the Shirt Shed plant on Mill Street.



Contractor foreman. Tim Hunt, Ken Patton and Brian Napier, all of North Webster were taken to the Lake Shore Clinic by Culver-Union Township Ambulance and EMT’s were Hunt and Napier were treated and released. Patton was transferred by ambulance to Memorial Hospital, South Bend where ho was treated for a knee injury. This reporter visited them on the job site on Tuesday of this week and all three are back to work. - Sep 20, 1979

(the actual opening was delayed until 1980).

If Shirt Shed had seemed a boon to local industry, it didn't last long. On March 30, 1983, Tim Creasy, plant manager at the factory, announced that the plant would close its doors after three years in Culver. Nexus, which owned the plant, cited declining demand for apparel lines produced in Culver as the reason. One employee at the facility told a Citizen reporter at the time that the closing came as a “complete surprise” when it was announced to workers. Shirt Shed had employed 156 persons as of late 1982.

1979 - Oct Under construction is the Shirt Shed, Inc. on Mill Street near State Highway The home offices are located in Wabash. The company’s main business is printing by a process of heat tansfer all types of slogans an pictures on T-shirts. The plant will employ aporximately 150 mostly females, and representives are in Culver now inducting interviews with ospective employees. Shirt Shed Inc.. plans to be operating in November.

This is the site of thc Shirt Shed. Inc.. construction. The plant is planning a November opening and will employ approximately 150. - Thursday, October 11, 1979

Culver Citizen
April 3, 1980

Huge Crowd At Shirt Shed Grand Opening Culver - About 1,000 people attended the Grand Opening of the Shirt Shed here on March 25. Lines began to form at 6 p.m. to view the interior of the 35,000 square foot plant and enjoy punch and cake.

The Shirt Shed, Inc., has been in operation since last December and now employs 130, the majority women from the Culver area. It¹s located on Mill Street near Highway 17.

On hand for the opening were Shirt Shed¹s President Jim Moore and Executive Vice President, Bill Henselv from Wabash, Manager of the Culver plant, Steven Corcoran, along with Moore and Hensley greeted the many visitors and conducted guided tours. Using a heat process, sayings and pictures are applied to T-shirts as well as other items.

Corcoran said, ³I¹m really pleased with the great enthusiasm the community has shown.² Moore stated that he was happy with the progress the plant has made in such a short period of time.


1983 - Shirt Shed Leaving Culver by the 30 March 1983 issue of the Culver Citizen:

Tim Cressy, plant manager at Culver 's Shirt Shed factory on West Jefferson Street [sic Mill Street] announced that the plant will close its doors after three years in Culver . Nexus, which owns the plant, cited declining demand for apparel lines produced in Culver as the reason. One employees ast the facility told a reporter that the closing came as a "complete surprise" when it was announced to the workers Tuesday. The plant opened in early 1980 and employed 156 persons as of last November.