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Roswell Manufacturing Company documents

 Collection
Collection number: ahc.MSS865f

Scope and Content

This collection documents the Roswell Manufacturing Company's rebuilding and expansion after the Civil War. Included are deeds, financial documents, and company checks. One of the contracts documents a land sale between the Roswell Manufacturing Company and its neighbor, the Laurel Mills Manufacturing Company.

Dates

  • 1865-1911

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

This collection is open for research.

Conditions Governing Reproduction and Use

Unpublished manuscripts are protected by copyright. All requests to publish, quote, or reproduce must be submitted through the Kenan Research Center.

Administrative/Biographical History

The Roswell Manufacturing Company was a textile mill complex built by Roswell King (1765-1844) and his son Barrington King (1798-1866), who also served as its first president. The first mill opened in 1839 and a second one was added to the complex in 1853. By 1860 the company produced cotton cloth, yarn, rope, and tenting in the two factories and opened a factory store. During the Civil War, the mill manufactured supplies for the Confederate States of America and uniforms for the Confederate Army. When the Union Army invaded Roswell in July 1864, General Sherman ordered the destruction of the mills. Shortly after the war, the 1853 mill was rebuilt, and in 1882 a new mill opened. In 1926 a fire destroyed both the original 1854 mill and the rebuilt 1853 mill, neither of which was ever rebuilt. In 1923, William Gillies Broadfoot (1887-1961) of Wilmington, North Carolina, bought the Roswell Manufacturing Company and changed its name to Roswell Mills, Inc. In 1947 Southern Mills, Inc. purchased Roswell Mills and operated it until 1975.

Extent

1 folder(s)

Language

English

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Gift, 1998

Description Control

This collection was processed in 2019.

Title
Roswell Manufacturing Company documents
Author
Hallie Lonial
Date
April 2019
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Language of description note
Finding aid is written in English.

Repository Details

Part of the Kenan Research Center at Atlanta History Center Repository

Contact:
130 West Paces Ferry Road
Atlanta GA 30305
404-814-4040