American Denim

A photo essay that tells an American textile-manufacturing story in three parts: the final days of operation at the White Oak Mills in Greensboro, North Carolina; its closure; and its rebirth making selvage denim again, under the care of the White Oak Legacy Foundation and Proximity Manufacturing Company.

American Denim aims to preserve a unique property and a unique time in the history of American textiles. At one time the world’s largest denim mill, occupying more than a million square feet, you almost couldn’t see where the looms ended at the White Oak mill in Greensboro, North Carolina. Between 1915 and 1970, the lion’s share of denim produced for Levi Strauss & Co. was made there.

Photographer Matt Sharkey was the only person granted access to all three recent stages of the White Oak mill’s life:

• The last week of commercial production in December 2017
• Empty and vacated in February 2018
• Brought back to life in a small but mighty way in September 2022

Here is a layered history told through beautifully honest "portraits" that were captured with film, an analog process to honor analog manufacturing and those who worked, and work, at the mill.