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for Marines serving in the Pacific, and workwear for women entering
Carhartt Manufacturing Facility in 1906
the workforce on the home front.
Wylie continued the Carhartt mission to produce the strongest,
longest-lasting work gear for every
worker. However, he had his eye
on supplying clothes to men
working, hunting, and fishing in
the Great Outdoors – something
that would play a strong role in its
future as the All-American maker
of quality gear into the Mid-
Century, when Wylie’s daughter’s
husband took over the company.
Jumping ahead to the 1970s,
Carhart surged once again thanks
to the massive orders placed in
Alaska as they constructed the
Early ad for the Alaska Pipeline. In an article at
railroad industry
esquire.com, “No place is more
emblematic of Carhartt’s work-
Once the U.S. entered World War I (1917-1918), Carhartt offered
seven of its facilities to the government for the making of uniforms. ing-class golden age than Alaska, a Photo of Alaskan workers in Alaska
Soon thereafter in 1925, Carhartt opened a plant in Paris, France, and state where the love of the brand where Carhartt clothing with wool
maintained an office and warehouse in New York City. A “Hamilton runs so deep you’d think it was blanket linings helped them
Carhartt Junior” line of clothing for younger workers was established in invented there. Each year in the survive the cold workdays.
Los Angeles and Philadelphia, and a third cotton mill was now up and city of Talkeetna, residents dress up
running in Alabama. But a rollercoaster ride was about to begin. in their finest shades of brown, brown, and more brown for the ‘Carhartt
The Great Depression brought many changes to the company, Ball.’ The Alaska State Fair even hosts a Carhartt fashion show.”
decisions were made in order to survive. The company downsized to The company was also providing private-label goods for stores that
just three plants: Detroit, Atlanta, and Dallas. During this time included J.C. Penney, Sears, and Wonder
Hamilton worked closely with his son and heir apparent, Wylie, to Montgomery Ward. Subsidiaries of Carhartt Woman star
Chris Pines
weather the storm. Together, they were able to reinstate their fast- were created to handle different divisions returns home
forward determination to serve the working public. within the company structure. Carhartt wearing his
In 1932, Carhartt was once again able to regain some of its losses as South, Inc., was established in 1971 to pro- Carhartt in
a new factory came online in Irvine, Kentucky as part of its “Back to duce jeans. In 1976, Carhartt Midwest, Inc. the airport.
the Land” campaign. This focused on providing workers with better was founded after the purchase of Shane photo: Vogue.com
working conditions out in the country vs. the large industrial towns Manufacturing Co., known for making
filled with thousands of unemployed people resulting from the Great military canvas carbine carry cases.
Depression. According to workwear-blog.com, “Using the motto ‘from
mills to millions,’ Carhartt enjoyed a great deal of prosperity after the Keeping Up
Depression, growing to establish some seventeen plants and mills Production &
throughout the U.S.A., Canada, and Europe. From denim mills to
cotton production, the company was at the forefront of blue-collar Meeting their
work clothing for the masses.” The Irvine plant survives to this day, New Fan Base
serving as Carhartt’s administrative and operations headquarters.
All this differentiation lead
the corporation to look at
marketing Carhartt as a
total supplier for the
hard-working man and
outdoorsman.
In 1980 Carhartt
launched their first
national advertising
campaign as a sign of
strength. The corpo-
ration combined
subsidiaries
to create divisions
and built a new dis-
tribution center and a
new sewing plant in
Madisonville, Kentucky.
Postcard featuring “Carhartt Park” in Kentucky, touting the surrounding scenery The Brand was being built
and stating “Back to the Land Movement will Revolutionize Human Life.” stronger than ever. The tagline?
A Change of Hands “Rugged as the men who wear them.”
In 1937, Hamilton and his wife Anette “Nettie” Welling were By 1990, Carhartt had record sales
tragically killed in a car crash. He was 82 and Nettie was 77. There was totaling $92 million. With the money,
they—you guessed it—expanded. The
an investigation into the cause of the crash and the other party company had started selling its
involved. His son Wylie became president of the company. clothing as “fashion” and was doing
When World War II began, Carhartt produced their signature
coveralls for soldiers and support personnel, their new camo jungle suits very well in Japan. For the first time,

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