The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1899-11-08
GEORGIA'S FIRST COTTON FAC
TORY.

1t is MOI generally known that Wilkes
County was the scene of the first cot
ton factory in Georgia. Rev. Frank
Il. Simpson, furnishes the following
article on this subject
can article has been going the
rounds of the newspapers, in which il
was stated that the first cotton factory
in Georgia was built near Athens, on
the Oconee river, in the year 1927. II
is a well established fact, however,
that Georgia first cotton factory was
built in 1911, on Upton creek, nine
miles southeast of Washington, In
Wilkes County. 1t was here the Bar
nets, attracted by the fine water pow
err, soon after the Revolution, built a
grlst mill. In the year 1791, the mill
was burned, and the family moved TO
Columbia County. Two years after
MI. Miller, who married Mrs. Green,
Of Savannah, and was a copartner of
Whitney, the inventor of the cotton
gin, purchased the mill site and lands
adjoining, and put in operation a gin.
This wonderful machine attracted Wis
itors from far and neal but only ladies
were allowed to see it in operation las a
patent had not been granted. 1t is
said that a Mr.. Lyon dressed himself
in his wlfe's clothes, and got the secret,
and being a skilled workman, made the
saw gin, a great improvement on the
Whitney gin, which used wire teeth in
separating the lint from the seed.
"The house in which the gin was OPP
erate'l was bought by Thomas Talbot
and used as his kitchen while he lived.
A few rods from where stood the gin
was built the factory. Tho stockhold-
ers were Boiling, Anthony, Capt. ST.
mons, the Talbots and Bolton, the lat
ter also being the architect. The
foundations of the house are still to be
seen. 1t was built of stone quarried
from the adjacent hills. Over each
door and window was a slab of grey
rock, which contrasted with the brown
stone of the walls, made il quite an at.
~tractive building. 1t was sixty feet in
length, by fifty feet in width, having
two stories with a basement and attic
1t was entered by a door leading into
an anteroOm, about ten feet wide, from
which the main room on the first floor
was entered, and in which were stairs
which led up to the upper floor and at
tic. The walls were neatly plastele t
and the glass windows were protected
by strong shutters filled with nails
' Over the front door was inserted il
; the wall a large stone with the letters
Bottom the name of the architect
but IN circular form, with the figures
) 1911 beneath.
"The hinges, hooks, nails, etc., wer,
all wrought liz the smithies in thu
> the neighborhood, Billy McFerrin, al
: Irishman, being the head smith. HI
lived TO a good old age, and for som
years before his death he was paralyzed
! but managed 70 walk with crutches
!, Homeless and poor, he was cared TO
by Thomas Talbot, at whose house h
died.
. "Tbc factory did not prove to be
paying Investment, and after being op
!, Grated a few years was closed. Th,
> machinery was sold to Thomas Talbot
: who started a small factory on his OWL
| plantation to furnish clothing for tn,
: numerous slaves.
"The factory building wos unused
for years, except occasionally TO
preaching by the Baptists, who had n,
: church in the nejghborhood, and b,
, Esquire Richardson Booker, who her,
: taught for many years a Sabbath
= school.
"In 1884 William Simpson bough
the property from the estate of Gene
raj Green, and put in the house a cor
. and wheat mill. In September, 1941
an unprecedented rise in the creel
: caused the wall next the stream to fall
: The next year the timbers and ston,
: were used in erecting a fine FIGURING
mill. The stone with Bottoms nam
cut in it is in the possession of tn
writer"