Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1919-04-04
TOWN OF KINGS MOUNTAIN.
Shelby Paper Digs up Some Local
History.

Kings Mountain a mill town, the
creation Of q railroad, Is less than 40
wears old, yet has eight large cotton
mills, 5000 inhabitants, many Of whom
have flourished and grown up with the
cotton mill industry. Its brave and
energetic pioneers. Freno Dilling (now
so years young, yet shot with his rifle
a deer running this winter,) w. An
drew Mauney, (now n years and worth
a third Of a million dollars) Jake S.
Mauney a tower Of strength now IS
years, Carpenter brothers, noble pair
of brothers, and DR.. ]. s. Tracy, an
inpulsive and magnanimous citizen.
laid deep and broad the foundation IN
1884, and their heroic works do
praise them.
Freno Dilling. running a saw mill
half a mile above town, built the first
house in Kings Mountain and now
owns the house. He soon bought three
acres for IS an acre and this winter
sold an acre Of said tract for $1,000.
Joseph Crow, a merchant and dis
tiller who soon moved to South Caro-
lima, ran a small store, DR.. ]. w. Tracy,
whom everybody loved, and Bobbie
Falls, who owned 200 acres OF land
which increased in value by "the un-
earned increment" were the trio who
lived there before the invasion OF the
iron horse. Then 1t was In an old
broom -sedge field, full Of briars. that
the present wood depot was built upon
wood blocks, instead Of rock pillars
in 1874. The Southern was Cleve-
land county's first railroad, and a few
wears prior to the Wilmington, Char
lotte and Rutherford IS. A. L. railway
advent to Shelby. All these pioneers
were brave and broad minded men
with a vision for the future towns
Welfare and they strove manfully FOR
its growth and uplift.
The five Garrett brothers from rich
Edgecombe county and their brother
in-law, R. S. Sugg, added their pro-
gressive spirit learned in New YORK
trade. their wealth and intellects to
the Cleveland county pioneers and
were welcome settlers. I. w. Garrett
the best county commissioner and
hartman that Cleveland county ever
had, was a skilled accountant VINO
,ould at one time add three columns
of figures in a long row, and had oeen
a merchant in New York city. DR..
Garrett was a skilled physici>-n, and
Richard H. Garrett was a successfu'
farmer living on the CASTOR county
line. So Kings Mountain had Tor its
founders wise men with a vision.
In a few years little man with a
big voice, Captain w. R. T. Bell a
dark eyed orator magnetic teach
er opened the Kings Mountain mill
.ary school and taught successfully
students from many counties ana
states. He was in many respects
splendid teacher, whose intellect and
magnetism made every boy love him.
I never saw one Of his boys VINO d'o
not praise him and even defend hiF
escapades, for he was one Of the most
successful teachers in the state. HIS
large school added much to the INTEL
lectual uplift of the place.
After the gold mine, so full OF au-
riferous quartz in its subterranean
shafts and galleries that had been
worked for a century, had ceased to
Weld its golden treasures and ended
IN financial wreck, these progressive
citizens co-operated and made disas-
ter a stepping stone to success. more
stores. more settlers, and eight cotton
mills galore added to the hum OF the
spindle and the loom to the whistle OF
the locomotive, and this place moving
forward with gigantic strides was put
on the map of North Carolina, and
now Kings Mountain is the richest
town in Cleveland county. A nall
dozen of her citizens, with Andrew
Mauney in the lead. his son-in-law
e. Ncisler, who owns cotton MILL j.
s. Mauney and others are worth over
a million dollars, and when the united
States issued bonds to finance the
war, they with others subscribed I'D
erally and bought bonds. The secret
Of their success and the increase OF
population to 5000 has been her
eight large cotton mills and a ninth
mill contemplated.-Shelby News.
Democracy by Default.-The only