Hi all!
My friend, Virginia from Virginia sent me this clipping today describing the closing of the miniature department at the Lane factory in Altavista, VA. The article says Lane announced “On Friday” the department would be closing. As we all know, May 26, 1999 was a Wednesday so the announcement likely was talking about the previous Friday, May 21st.
Even with this evidence, it’s hard to say when the last little box ran through the line but a good guess would be late May 1999.
The article also mentions the Girl Graduate Program started in 1929 but it doesn’t say the first boxes were made in Altavista. It does say, “for more than 50 years” but doesn’t go so far as to say when the miniature department was started. Over 50 years is a pretty broad statement and only leads to 1949 which is 20 years past when the article itself says the program stared.
This is definitely a great piece of history to receive and it adds even more to what we know about the miniatures. Thanks, Virginia!
If you want to see a bigger view of this article, check it out on Facebook at Lane Mini Cedar Chests.
I will try to get this added to my website as well…lanecedarbox.com
Until next time,
Chad
