olonel Elliott White Springs was a WWI fighter pilot and ace who, in 1931, inherited from his father Leroy, six cotton mills with 5,000 employees, 7,500 looms, and 300,000 spindles valued at $7,250,000. In the 1940’s and 50’s his risqué marketing of the Springmaid brand became legendary in the advertising world and made Springmaid a household name. As part of a commitment to provide recreational facilities and programs to the people who worked in the cotton mills, he decided to build affordable accommodations and recreational facilities for his employees. They included golf courses, swimming pools, and community centers with bowling lanes in Lancaster, Fort Mill, Chester, and Kershaw, South Carolina. In 1949, Springmaid Beach opened to provide oceanfront recreational opportunities for those employees. Now open to the general public and consolidated under the banner of the Leroy Springs Company, the facilities continue to provide recreational and community services.