Industry Pulp and paper Key people Miles Marsh, CEO Net income $157 million (1996) Headquarters Virginia Number of employees 23,000 | Defunct 1997 (merger) Revenue $5.7 billion (1996) Successor Fort James Corporation Founded 1969 Parent organization Georgia-Pacific LLC | |
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Fate Merged with Fort Howard Paper Company | ||
James River Corporation was an American pulp and paper company based in Richmond, Virginia. The James River Corporation was once the largest paper manufacturer in the world.
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History
The company was founded in 1969 as the James River Paper Company by Brenton Halsey and Robert Williams, with the purchase of Ethyl Corporation's Specialty Papers Division. Halsey and Williams were both former employees of Albemarle Paper Manufacturing Company.
In 1973, the company changed its name to the James River Corporation.
In 1982, James River acquired the Dixie/Northern division of American Can Company.
In 1986, James River acquired the fine paper mill assets of Crown Zellerbach, making them the largest paper manufacturer in the world. The brown paper division of CZ became Gaylord Container Corporation.
James River began producing 100 percent recycled paper products in 1991 at its mill in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Some of the products included Recycled Northern Bath Tissue, Recycled Brawn Towels, and Recycled Northern Napkins. Also that year, the company sold twenty-two paper mills to Specialty Coatings Group.
In 1997, the company merged with the Fort Howard Paper Company of Green Bay, forming the Fort James Corporation. At the time of their merger, James River was one of the largest paper manufacturers, with 60 manufacturing facilities in North America and Europe.
In 1998, Halsey and Williams, the company's founders, were both inducted into the Paper Industry International Hall of Fame.
Legacy
The historical records of the James River Corporation are housed at the Virginia Historical Society.