Fox River Mills

Last updated
Fox River Mills
Company type Private
Industry Hosiery
Founded1900;126 years ago (1900)
DefunctOctober 10, 2025;3 months ago (2025-10-10)
FateAcquired by Nester Hosiery [1]
Headquarters
Osage, Iowa
,
U.S.
Products Socks
Website www.foxsox.com

Fox River Mills, Inc., was a sock manufacturer based in Osage, Iowa that operated for 125 years from 1900 [2] to 2025. [1] In 1992, they purchased the Nelson Knitting Company of Rockford, Illinois, and in the process acquired the trademark for the Red Heel socks commonly used to make sock monkeys. [3] Fox River Mills includes instructions for making a sock monkey in every packet of Red Heel socks. [4]

Contents

Fox River Mills is also known for their odor-controlling X-Static sock liners [5] and their line of organic wool socks. [6]

In November 2016, Fox River Mills, was acquired by the Texas private equity firm LongWater Opportunities from the family that had owned it for over four decades. The terms of the sale were not disclosed. Following the acquisition, Fox River will become a subsidiary of Standard Merchandising Co., a New Jersey–based sock maker also owned by LongWater. [7]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Bunge, Mike (August 1, 2025). "North Carolina company is buying Fox River Mills in Osage". KIMT 3 News . Mason City, Iowa . Retrieved January 2, 2026. Nester Hosiery, LLC, a prominent U.S. sock manufacturer, announced it has acquired most of the assets of Fox River Mills, a historic sock company in Osage.
  2. ↑ Apodaca, Rose (November 19, 1993). "Tiny Totes: More than skirts are going mini… / The Agony of Da' Feet". Los Angeles Times . Archived from the original on January 3, 2026. Retrieved January 2, 2026. The Iowa company has been making socks since 1900.
  3. ↑ Morgan, Fiona (September 27, 2006). "Still life with monkeys". Indy Week . Durham, North Carolina. p. 34. Archived from the original on September 29, 2023. Retrieved January 2, 2026. Fox River Mills bought the rights to the Red Heel Sock, and they're still available.
  4. ↑ Nammany, David (April 24, 2007). "Sock Monkey Mania! Fox River Mills featured in new book about sock-made critters". Globe Gazette . Mason City, Iowa. Archived from the original on August 6, 2025. Retrieved September 29, 2008. "We sell two pairs in a package that comes with original instructions on how to make them," explained Joel Anderson.
  5. ↑ McGivney, Annette (April 1999). "Editor's Choice '99: Fox River X-Static sock liners". Backpacker . p. 87. Doctors for decades have used silver to prevent infections in burn victims, so it makes sense that the silver-coated nylon thread in the X-Static socks would work on foot bacteria and fungi.
  6. ↑ "Iowa Company Launches Organic Socks". CBS News . Associated Press. December 11, 2005. Archived from the original on October 20, 2008. Retrieved September 29, 2008.
  7. ↑ "Iowa sock maker Fox River Mills sold to private equity firm" . The Des Moines Register . Associated Press. November 17, 2016. Archived from the original on January 3, 2026. Retrieved November 8, 2023. The Mason City Globe Gazette reports that Fox River will become a subsidiary of another sock maker that LongWater already owned, New Jersey-based Standard Merchandising Co.
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