This is Lancaster, South Carolina, named by early Scots-Irish settlers who came here from the area near Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

The name goes even further back in history.

In England in the 15th century, the House of Lancaster, represented by the red rose, was engaged in war with the House of York, represented by the white rose.

This War of the Roses was a bloody struggle to see who would rule.

It's only fitting that here on July 31, 1896, would be born a famous South Carolinian who understood both war and power.

Colonel Elliott White Springs would not only become an honored World War I flying ace, but also the most powerful textile magnate in the country.

♪ ♪ ♪ Elliott White Springs' abilities in war and in the textile industry were not by accident or personal preference.

His grandfather, Samuel Elliott White, who lived here in Fort Mill, had attended the Kings Mountain Military Academy in York County and later was one of the highest-ranking students at The Citadel in Charleston.

He was dismissed his junior year because he led a rebellion.

At the outbreak of the War Between the States, he joined the North Carolina Seventh Regiment and served brilliantly... rose to the rank of captain.

In the battle of New Bern he received a head wound but insisted on remaining with his regiment rather than returning home.

During combat, he received other wounds and bore the scars of them proudly in later years.

In the 1890s, Captain Sam was elected president of the Jefferson Davis Memorial Association and caused to be erected here in Fort Mill the first monument dedicated to the Confederate cause.

♪ In the early 1880s, Samuel Elliott White joined with John Spratt, also of Fort Mill, in order to form a cotton manufacturing company.

There's a description in "Clothes Make the Man" by Elliott White Springs.

"In Fort Mill a farmer, a doctor, a preacher, "a teacher, a merchant, and a tavern keeper "gathered each morning to praise General Hampton, "compare symptoms, and entertain strangers.

"They discussed the efforts of other communities "to climb out of the mud and finally decided that Fort Mill would follow suit."

At the meeting held in 1887, 25 people bought stock in the new company.

Among these was a merchant and cotton broker from Lancaster, Leroy Springs.

Samuel White was elected president of the company, and the plant was built across the street from his home.

It opened on February 8, 1888, and by April of that year was producing 8,000 yards of cloth per day.

♪ On December 28, 1892, Grace Allison White, the only one of Captain White's children to live to adulthood, married Leroy Springs, who lived here in Lancaster.

Leroy was a very prosperous businessman.

In 1884, when he was 22 years old, he formed his own company.

Throughout the years he became extremely prosperous through his business interests and many ventures.

He formed a cotton shipping company which had branches in Winnsboro, Cheraw, Chester, Gaffney, Charleston South Carolina, and even a branch in Shelby, North Carolina.

He also founded The Bank of Lancaster.

So in 1896, here in this home, a son was born to Leroy, Elliott White Springs.

This former home now houses the offices of the Lancaster City Hall.

♪ ♪ Leroy Springs has been described as a hard and ruthless man.

In 1885, John R. Bell, a bartender and a carpenter, accused Leroy of slandering him.

They met here on the streets of Lancaster the next day.

Bell hit Leroy and attempted to draw his pistol.

Leroy was faster and shot him through the heart and killed him.

Because he fought in self-defense, Leroy was never prosecuted, but he did pay Bell's funeral expenses.

By 1892, the year he married Grace, Leroy had amassed a fortune of over $1 million from his various businesses, which in those days was a considerable sum.

Three years later, he organized the Lancaster Cotton Mills, which became one of the most profitable in the Southern states, and a year later organized a railroad.

He bought the Cheraw to Chester Railroad and renamed it the Lancaster and Chester.

It immediately began to show a profit.

Leroy Springs has been described as being extremely ruthless, stern, and very demanding.

traits which, in later years, would cause considerable trouble between him and his only son Elliott.

During his early years, Elliott was somewhat ignored by his father.

He formed a very strong relationship with his grandmother Esther Allison White.

He is described as being very bright and energetic and did extremely well in school.

He was raised with all the comforts given to children of a wealthy Southern family.

In 1903, for the first time, he was faced with tragedy.

His grandmother promised to take him for a walk.

After waiting some time, th e boy went inside to find her.

He located Esther lying dead on her bedroom floor.

After this experience of finding his grandmother's body, again reality and tragedy faced him three years later with the death of his mother Grace, to whom he was extremely devoted.

She died at the age of 33, probably from cancer.

♪ Leroy, occupied with his many business enterprises, had no idea how to raise a young boy.

He simply turned him over to his grandfather.

The captain retired from the business in 1901, leaving Leroy in charge.

For the following years, young Elliott spent many hours being regaled with his grandfather's war stories.

The War Between the States was very much alive to the old gentleman, and with awe and admiration, Elliott spent many hours being entertained by his grandfather's exploits.

Captain White suffered from gastric ulcers, so young Elliott did what he could to relieve his grandfather's discomfort.

When a doctor suggested he go north to a clinic, Captain Sam replied, "Hell's catoot!

"The only time I've crossed the Mason-Dixon Line "was to chase Yankees into Pennsylvania.

I've no idea of crossing it again."

♪ The years he spent with Samuel Elliott White would make an impression upon the boy.

This ended in 1908 when, at 12 years of age, he was sent to The Asheville School, an academy in North Carolina.

During his years there, Leroy admonished him in everything from grades to penmanship.

Leroy opposed him when Elliott wanted to play football.

His fears were that the boy would be hurt because he was the smallest boy there.

The fears were groundless.

Elliott proved fearless on the football field and gained the admiration of boys twice his size.

It was at the academy that Elliott developed his talent and love for writing.

During his first years there, his stories were published in the school magazine.

Even at this early age, Elliott developed a love for writing and intended to make it his career.

[no audio] Captain Samuel White died in 1911 at the age of 74.

He left Elliott the White homestead here in Fort Mill and other holdings.

Elliott was sent to Culver Military Academy in Indiana.

He made good grades and continued to polish his writing skills.

Leroy constantly admonished him about everything, especially self-discipline, grades, and spending habits.

At this time, Elliott developed stomach problems.

He said that he had had an ulcer at The Asheville School due to his stress, but Leroy said, "Nonsense..." that he'd developed his grandfather's gastric problems.

Whatever the cause, Elliott would suffer with this his entire life.

♪ At Culver, Elliott received his first reputation as a ladies' man.

He had so many dates that it caught the attention of the entire campus.

Back in Lancaster, Leroy was engaged in courtship.

He had focused his attentions upon Mrs. Lena Jones, head of the English department at Queens College.

Leroy and Lena were married in 1913, before Elliott began his freshman year at Princeton University.

The wedding must have made an impression upon the man.

An event occurred in that year that would have a profound effect upon his life.

That year, 1913, at the York County Fair, Elliott saw his first airplane.

[no audio] His years at Princeton were uneventful.

Leroy badgered him constantly!

After a bout with his stomach problems which left him weak, doctors advised Elliott that the best thing he could do was to stay away from his father as much as possible.

His grades were acceptable, but it's said that where Elliott really excelled was in the nightlife of Princeton and New York.

Leroy was furious and wrote him about the dangers of spending money on dining, dancing, and young women.

Elliott replied, "I'm well aware "that the three causes for masculine failure "are first, girls; second, girls; and third, girls.

"I could write a little on the subject myself.

"Somehow I enjoy the theater more "if I have some expensive nuisance along with me.

"When I dance, I much prefer "something fluffy, though expensive.

"It's just in me, that's all.

Possibly I get it by inheritance?"

After graduation from Princeton, Elliott was accepted in the Army's Aviation Section.

World War I was raging in Europe.

Fascinated by the danger and the thrill of flying, Elliott wrote to his father, "I can't begin to describe the fascination of flying.

"When I get my hands on the controls, "I just begin to live.

"If I knew my next flight would be my last, I would still go up."

Elliott White Springs was one of the pioneers who gave meaning to the term aviator.

These men were reaching for the skies, fascinated by the independence and the sense of danger.

They were flying into clouds on wings of silk.

Although death was an everyday occurrence, they would have found life was without meaning without flight.

♪ After completing his training, Elliott was sent to England with a group of fliers.

On the trip he met Mac Grider from Arkansas and Larry Callahan from Chicago.

In England, after days of grueling training and nights filled with drinking, brawling, and romantic encounters, they were named "The Three Musketeers" by their fellow fliers.

In the spring of 1918, they were made members of the newly-formed British 85th Squadron and were sent to France where they could see the battle action they had been craving.

Through excerpts from Elliott's letters and diaries we have a clear picture of the war.

[airplane engine droning] (male voice) "I'm either coming out of the war "a big man or in a wooden kimono.

"I can fight, fly, and I ought to shoot straight.

They can't stop me."

(Mary) In a somber mood before battle, Elliott confided his feelings concerning his father to Grider.

(male voice) "I've gotta get killed...

I can't go home!

"If I get knocked off, Father will have a hero "and can spend his money building monuments to me.

"If I live through it, Father will fight with me.

"No matter what I do he'll say it's wrong.

"I want to get bumped off the last week of the war.

"I don't want to go home and work in a mill "and live in the mill village.

"He's always talking about my starting at the bottom.

"Any mistake I'd make would break his heart.

Father's hell-bent to make a superintendent of me."

Vivid scenes of combat are described through Elliott's personal notes.

[machine-gun firing] (male voice) "Shells were bursting everywhere!

"Here and there were tanks, "some belching lead, some a mass of flames "or a misshapen wreck hit by field guns.

"I saw few dead bodies, "but any number of dead horses.

"The ground was pockmarked.

"What vegetation remained was light straw in color.

"I saw Huns using gas, a thin layer of brownish stuff "drifting slowly along the ground.

"No men were to be seen, only dead horses and tanks.

"I could smell phosphorous and burning petrol.

"My machine is so shot up, I've got to get a new one.

I've had seven new wings in three weeks."

[airplane engine droning] (Mary) Though many pilots whom Elliott knew were killed, the full effect of death never struck him until one of "The Three Musketeers" was lost.

After supporting Elliott in a fierce fight, Grider's plane was lost in a cloud.

(male voice) "Mac might have been firing and shot his prop "or gotten a burst in the motor.

"That's the worst of the game, the uncertainty of it.

"No man ever had a truer friend.

"He was as fine a fighter as ever tripped a trigger.

"Mac is gone but never forgotten, "until the Hun's aim improves, or I pass out from the doings of the Springs family."

Mac's death, which was later confirmed, changed Elliott White Springs.

He became moody and suffered bouts of illness.

His last days in combat were filled with remorse.

He dreaded the conflict which he faced when he went home to face his father.

He wondered why he was allowed to continue living.

(male voice) "The bells began ringing at 11:00.

"The band struck up the 'Marseillaise' "and the 'Star-Spangled Banner.'

"The French are dancing in the streets... "I find no enthusiasm.

"I went to bed a free man "but awoke with a millstone around my neck "called tomorrow, "which will hang there until the grave.

"I demand another war!

"There is no longer the front, "where every man is known by his merit.

"I find myself alive.

"I hadn't considered that possibility.

"I must alter my plans.

"Peace...we've shoved it down the Germans' throats.

Let's find it for ourselves."

♪ (Mary) Elliott returned home a hero.

In 1919 in a ceremony in Washington, D.C., he was one of ten American fliers to be awarded the British Distinguished Flying Cross by Edward, Prince of Wales.

The American War Department credited him with 11 kills, making him the fifth-highest ranking American ace.

The years that followed were unsettled ones as Elliott adjusted to civilian life.

Leroy was a great trial to him as he insisted on controlling every facet of Elliott's life.

When Leroy insisted that Elliott live in Lancaster, Elliott was determined to live here at the White homestead in Fort Mill.

When he moved in here in 1922 with his new bride Frances Ley, Leroy absolutely refused ever to set foot in the house, and he never did.

When he wanted to do business with Elliott, Leroy would have his car driven up the driveway.

When his son came out, he would conduct his business from his automobile.

[footfalls on steps] [no audio] Elliott was gaining a reputation locally as a daredevil pilot.

He flew under the Buster Boyd Bridge when it was dedicated.

His stepmother Lena was gaining a national reputation as an activist for women's rights.

In the National Democratic Convention of 1924, she became the first woman ever nominated for the vice presidency of the United States.

During this time, two children were born to Frances and Elliott... a son, Leroy II, called "Sonny," and a daughter, Anne.

Also, Elliott was able to realize one of his dreams.

While working with Leroy in understanding the workings of the textile industry, he was able to write and publish his novel based on his experiences during World War I.

It was called "War Birds," published in 1926.

It's said that this book was the first true explanation of aerial warfare in Europe.

It was made into a motion picture and is the role model for many other movies about World War I.

[no audio] In 1931, the father-son love-hate relationship which had existed for so long ended with the death of Leroy Springs in a Charlotte hospital at the age of 69.

Elliott, now a successful author, could have walked away from the family business.

He didn't, due to his concern for the Springs' employees.

The whole country was in the Great Depression.

Throughout the South, textile mills were closing.

Elliott managed to keep the Springs' Mills afloat.

Warehouses all through the area were filled with thousands of yards of Springs' cotton cloth which couldn't be sold.

Where others were searching desperately for any work, Springs' employees worked and fed their families.

Somehow, during this terrible period, Elliott managed to build up the Springs' Mills, even though the other firms failed and closed.

When World War II came along, all that stored cloth was worth a fortune!

[no audio] Elliott was anxious to serve during the war.

He was given the rank of colonel and made in charge of Morris Field, an Air Force base in Charlotte.

Ill health prevented him from serving.

He took pride in the fact that Sonny Springs became an accomplished pilot in the Air Force, although he never saw combat.

This pride turned to sorrow in 1946 when Sonny was killed in an airplane crash, for which Elliott felt somewhat responsible.

He seemed to change after that, due to a deep guilt.

Elliott never again referred to Sonny, and Sonny's name was never said before him.

One of Elliott's greatest accomplishments was yet to come.

In the late '40s, in order to find more outlets for Springmaid Sheets, he developed a campaign which changed the face of American advertising, using the slogan, "You can't go wrong on a Springmaid Sheet!"

He designed and wrote a number of ads which shocked and delighted the American public.

The wit and humor which had characterized his writing, such as, "A buck well spent on a Springmaid Sheet," caused indignation and letters of protest from all over the country.

Several magazines refused to print his risque ads, but Elliott reveled in the furor he was causing.

When the ad campaign began, there were only six outlets selling Springmaid Sheets.

After a few months, there were 10,000 stores selling them!

In spite of all the furor, Elliott had made Springs Mills the leading and most successful textile firm in America.

♪ It's impossible in the time we have to list the accomplishments of a man like Elliott Springs.

He possessed the wit and intelligence to guide a struggling firm through the hardest times.

He possessed the love of his fellow man, which supported many citizens of York, Chester, and Lancaster Counties throughout the years.

A tribute may be found by a writer at Princeton, reporting to the alumni the death of Elliott White Springs in October of 1959.

"Time alone will tell how lasting the imprint "of the man who became a legend in his own lifetime.

"One thing is certain without awaiting the verdict of time.

"If degrees were awarded for what you put into life, "that of Colonel Elliott White Springs would unquestionably be "summa cum laude."

Perhaps the best tribute wa s written by Colonel Springs, following the first casualty in the 85th Squadron.

"He was buried where he fell, "so what the hell, boys, what the hell?

"He died with his boots on, "and his grave is marked with a cross made from a propeller.

He was certainly a fine feller."

♪ [acoustic guitar slowly playing "Ain't Misbehavin'"] ♪ ♪ ♪ Program captioned by: CompuScripts Captioning, Inc. 803.988.8438 ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪