General Textile Mills was one of several company names that preceded the name of today's Gentex Corporation.
For historians researching the U.S. textile industry and Northeastern Pennsylvania and Carbondale, Pennsylvania industrialization, this is a name of interest.
General Textile Mills was originally Klots Throwing Company. A joint venture Marcus Frieder and his son, Leonard spearheaded in 1932 with the purchase and reorganization of Klots. By the time Marcus died in 1940, and Leonard assumed the presidency, the company's ability to weave quality silk textiles had led to the creation of entirely new and more sophisticated technologies for use in other manufacturing applications.
With the start of World War II, the textile company aided in the United States' war effort by manufacturing parachutes for the U.S. armed forces. Eventually, it became one of the largest manufacturers of parachutes in the country, producing chutes for cargo and carrier pigeons, as well as a special aluminized option that could reflect radar.
In August 1945, General Textile Mills was awarded the Army-Navy ‘E’ Award for excellence in wartime production. During that same period, General Textile Mills began manufacturing its own composite-structure parachute boxes from fiberglass mat impregnated with a polyester resin to protect packaged parachutes.
After the war, the U.S. government approached General Textile Mills to determine the feasibility of using the same composite-structure for the parachute boxes to manufacture military aviator helmets. With the advancements in aircraft technology, improved protective headgear for pilots was warranted to replace the cloth or leather options used prior to 1948.
General Textile Mills produced its first hard shell helmet using the parachute box technology that same year. The helmet, known as the H-1 was made for the U.S. Navy and the P-1 soon followed for the U.S. Air Force. Such technologies were then quickly incorporated into helicopter pilot helmets for both military and commercial applications, as well as tank crew helmets.
By 1958, General Textile Mills shortened its name to Gentex and was actively working to improve and adapt the helmet technology. Today, Gentex Corporation is a world leader in the manufacturer of aircrew and ground troop helmets for the U.S. military and other international armed forces. Weaving of technical textiles is still a daily operation near its corporate headquarters in Carbondale, Pennsylvania.
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