Full Text
Historic District Designation Report: Glencoe Mill and Mill Village - - 2 I N V E S T I G A T I V E F I N D I N G S DISTINGUISHING CHARACTERISTICS: (Criteria Assessment, Section 8, Glencoe Historic District National Register Nomination Form, 1979) A. Glencoe is a remarkably complete mill village associated with and exemplifying the post-Civil War development of the textile industry along the streams of Piedmont North Carolina, an event of major significance in the economic history of the state. It is typical of the small isolated mill complexes where the industry (now huge and urban) began, where the social, industrial, and commercial functions were combined in a community established for and by the mill. B. Glencoe is associated with James H. and William E. Holt, two of the five influential sons of Edwin M. Holt, textile industry pioneer. The Holt family was a powerful factor in the development of the textile industry in Alamance County and the Piedmont, of whom it has been said, “What the Flemish have been to England, what the Venetians have been to southern Europe, that are the Holts to Alamance and to North Carolina.” D. The mill complex embodies distinctive characteristics of mill and mill housing construction in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the mill of the Italianate brick type used nation-wide for mills, the housing consisting of small frame structures of uniform design. PROPERTY DESCRIPTION AND INVENTORY: (Update, Section 10, Glencoe Mill Village Local Historic Landmark Designation Report, 1997) Description: The Glencoe Historic District is located on the north bank of the Haw River about three miles north of downtown Burlington in Burlington’s extra-territorial planning jurisdiction. The district consists of five recorded parcels as defined by the following tax map numbers: 5-23-28, 5-23A-23, 5-23A- 24, 5-23A-26 and 5-23A-31. It is a typical but remarkably well preserved example of the nineteenth century industrial villages that once flourished in North Carolina’s Piedmont region. The district covers approximately 95 acres and consists of four parts: a manufacturing and commercial complex, elements of the former power and water system, a residential and social unit, and a large tract of open space. The manufacturing and commercial complex is situated primarily between the Haw River and River Road. The complex includes a three-story main mill building, a wheel house, a one-story picker house, a dye-house, finishing room and napper house, cotton warehouses and other storage buildings, and an office and company store complex. The power and water system begins several hundred yards beyond the dye-house on the south side of River Road at a reinforced concrete dam which runs 250 feet across the Haw River. This dam was built in the mid-1940’s to replace a wooden dam built on a cement foundation in 1909, which in turn had replaced the mill’s original log and stone dam.1 The dam creates a small pond from which a head race flows 400 yards to the wheel house at the north end of the mill. Some of the power system at the wheelhouse survive. Some parts of the system including the main shaft and have been replaced, and the older parts are exposed to the elements in the open space north of the wheelhouse. A tailrace runs from the wheelhouse back to the Haw River. The water system included three octagonal fire hydrant stations and two metal water towers. The water towers remain along with one for the fire stations. Most of the industrial buildings in the Glencoe Mill complex remain structurally sound except for the dye-house, in which 1 Bluestone, “Historic American Engineering Record Report Documenting Industrial Processes at Glencoe Mills”, p. 12; hereafter cited as HAER Report. ---PAGE BREAK--- Historic District Designation Report: Glencoe Mill and Mill Village - - 3 the brick at the west end of the north and south walls is badly deteriorated due to chemical action instigated by the dye process. The original Glencoe mill village is still largely intact. Early maps indicate that there were forty-five residential frame dwellings, regularly spaced and set back from the street, of which thirty-four remain. (Several houses are known to have been burned down.) Some dwellings included detached kitchens and outbuildings. A remaining one-story lodge served an important social function in the village. The village church became dilapidated and was demolished in 1976. The wooden schoolhouse is gone, but a barber shop on Glencoe Street is largely intact. Open wells served four houses. Although the wells have been filled, some remnants of the well houses remain. The mill houses are built primarily along the village’s two streets: Glencoe Street (20 remaining houses), a paved street running in a northerly direction through the property, and Hodges Road (9 remaining houses), a dirt and gravel path which runs in the same direction about 350 feet to the west. Within the village, there was originally an abundance of garden space between dwellings and a large tract (about 50 acres) of vacant land to the north and west of the village. The mill village includes three basic house configurations, some with brick nogging. The houses for the most part had hand sawed timbers, brick pier foundations, tin roofs, and simple, functional design. Few houses with the exception of the mill superintendent’s house have indoor plumbing. Some houses, particularly on Hodges Road, may never have had electricity. Houses vary in size from three to six rooms, with 16 x 16 feet the average room size. The basic styles are as follows: 1. Style 1: A four room, two-story, side gable structure. The front porch is two bays wide with a hipped roof and supported by four un-ornamented posts. Some houses have a central hallway that opens onto rooms north and south. The chimney is usually set on the north. Upstairs there are usually two rooms, with the railing from the narrow staircase extending into one of the upper rooms. This is the predominant housing style on Glencoe Street and is typical of North Carolina rural housing of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Detached kitchens of board and batten construction were set behind a few of these houses. A typical kitchen was about 12 x 12 feet. Later kitchens were attached at the back of the north end of the main block, forming an ell. The attached kitchens have chimneys to the east and customarily have side porches facing the south. The attached kitchens had, by 1910, largely replaced the detached kitchens,2 of which only five remain. 2. Style 2: A one-story, two room, side gable house with a central chimney. The front porch is two bays wide and supported by un-ornamented posts. These houses have rear ells which served as kitchens. Some have two entrances on the front facade and give the appearance of serving as a multi-family dwelling. 3. Style 3: A one-and-a-half story, side gable house with a central chimney. The front porch is two bays wide and supported by un-ornamented posts. There are two rooms on the first floor and two rooms on the second. Some have a rear ell which served as a kitchen. Much of the mill housing is deteriorating and one or two of the houses are beyond saving. Most of the houses have rotted sills. Many of the unoccupied houses are missing porches and are plagued by water damage. Few houses with the exception of the mill superintendent’s house have indoor plumbing. Many houses, particularly on the back street, may never have had electricity. However, even though there is deterioration, almost all of the mill houses can be rehabilitated. If several of the houses are lost, the overall integrity of the district will not be diminished. It is important that the boundaries of the district be maintained in such a manner that the overall setting may be preserved. Inventory – Preliminary Subdivision of Tax Map Parcel # 5-23-28: 2 Interview with Charles Murray, June 8, 1978. ---PAGE BREAK--- Historic District Designation Report: Glencoe Mill and Mill Village - - 4 Lot Style 1 with rear ell projecting from the south end of the main block. The superintendent’s cottage is the most well preserved residential building on the property. The cottage features a brick foundation and a porch that wraps the west and south sides supported by turned posts connected with a frieze and brackets. The porch is surrounded by a simple balustrade. The entrance exhibits double arched paneled doors flanked by two-over-two windows. The first floor windows are two-over-two, while the windows on the second floor are nine-over-six. All doors and windows are present. The exterior chimney on the north face of the main house is missing some bricks near the top. The ell features a porch that faces north and an exterior chimney at the east end. The cottage features clapboard siding, brick nogging, a tin roof and side gables with returns. A detached kitchen with board and batten siding is located behind the house. Lot Style 1 with rear ell projecting from the north end of the main block. The house features a brick foundation and simple front porch. The main house is of clapboard construction, features a tin roof and side gables with returns. A partially rebuilt chimney is located on the north end of the main house block. All exterior doors are present, although the front door has been altered. Nine-over-six windows are in the main house block while six-over-six windows are in the ell. A porch on the rear ell faces south and has been supported with temporary posts. An exterior chimney on the detached kitchen’s north end appears to have been removed. The detached kitchen has a porch facing east. The property has an outhouse with clapboard siding and a detached kitchen with board and batten siding, both located east of the ell. Lot Style 1 with rear ell projecting from the south end of the main block. The house features a brick foundation and simple front porch. All exterior doors are present and the front screen door may be original. Nine-over-six windows are used throughout the house. However, the north face of the main block only contains one window opening, and it is located on the first floor. The house has clapboard siding, features a tin roof and side gables with returns. A porch on the rear ell faces north and has two entrances into the ell. The ell has two rooms and an interior chimney, while the main block has a nearly intact exterior chimney on the north end. Lot Style 1 with rear ell projecting from the north end of the main block. The house features a brick foundation and simple front porch. All exterior doors are present. Nine-over-six windows are used throughout the house. The main block has a partially rebuilt exterior chimney on the north end. The entire house has clapboard siding, features a tin roof and side gables with returns. A porch on the rear ell faces south. An outhouse of clapboard construction is located southeast of the ell, and its door is intact. Lot Small front gable frame building on brick piers with interior chimney, clapboards, tin roof and existing front door. The building has two-over-two windows on the front and south sides, and two window openings have been covered in the rear. The building formerly served as a barbershop. The structure is currently raised so that new piers can be constructed. Lot Building A is a style 2 structure with two rooms and a rear ell projecting from the south end of the main block, all with clapboard siding. The house is built on piers and the front porch has collapsed. The main block had six-over-six windows on the north, south and east sides; while the ell had two-over- two windows. Almost all windows and sashes are gone although a couple of doors and remnants of the sash are present. The main block has an exterior chimney on both the north and south ends. While the north chimney is nearly intact, the south chimney’s top has crumbled. The ell has a porch facing south that has been supported be temporary posts and an interior chimney. A fairly intact well house with clapboard siding and featuring a front gable tin roof is located south of the ell. Building B is the Lodge House. The lodge is a one-story front gable building, with clapboard siding and no windows on the west side. The front porch has been supported with temporary posts. Some windows and sashes are missing, while those remaining are a six-over-six configuration. The interior chimney is crumbling. ---PAGE BREAK--- Historic District Designation Report: Glencoe Mill and Mill Village - - 5 Lot Style 1 with rear ell projecting from north end of the main block. The house is built on brick piers, has a nearly intact front porch and door and has clapboard siding. All of the original nine-over-six windows have been removed, however, several sashes have been saved. The rear door from the main block is also missing. The main block features an exterior chimney on the north end, brick nogging, a tin roof and side gables with returns. The ell features a porch facing south and an interior chimney. Lot Style 1 with rear ell projecting from north end of the main block. The house is built on brick piers, has front and rear doors, and has clapboard siding. The porch roof has been supported with temporary posts, but the floor is missing. Nine-over-six windows were used all around the house and most of them remain. The main block features an exterior chimney on the north end, a tin roof, brick nogging and side gables with returns. Like the house on Lot the north face has only one window opening, and it is on the first floor. The rear ell features a floor that is sagging severely, a collapsing porch that faces south, and an interior stove-pipe chimney that has deteriorated. The ell’s porch door is also missing. Lot Style 1 with rear ell projecting from north end of the main block. The house is built on brick piers, has clapboard siding and a center hall floor plan. The front porch has been removed and both front and rear doors are missing. The nine-over-six windows have been removed, but several sashes remain inside. There are no window openings in the south end of the main block. The main block features an exterior chimney on the north end, a tin roof, brick nogging and plain side gables. The rear ell features an exterior chimney on the east end that is crumbling, an exterior door to the porch, and brick nogging (this is the only house with nogging in the kitchen ell). The decking on the ell porch is missing, and the porch roof has been supported by temporary posts. Lot #10: Style 1 with rear ell projecting from north end of the main block. The house is built on brick piers, has clapboard siding, an intact front porch and a center hall floor plan. All exterior doors and windows are missing. There are no window openings on the south end of the main block. The main block features a partially rebuilt exterior chimney on the north end, a tin roof and plain side gables. The rear ell features an exterior chimney on the east that is crumbling. The ell porch faces south and has been supported by temporary posts. Lot #11: Style 1 with rear ell projecting from north end of the main block. The house is built on brick piers and has clapboard siding. The front porch has been removed, as well as all exterior doors. There are no window openings on the south end of the main block. The main block features a partially rebuilt exterior chimney on the north end, a tin roof and plain side gables. The rear ell features an exterior chimney on the east that is crumbling and a porch that faces south. The decking of the ell porch is missing and the roof has been supported by temporary posts. Lot #12: Style 1 with rear ell projecting from north end of the main block. The house is built on brick piers and has clapboard siding. The front porch has been removed. All exterior doors except the front door have been removed. All windows have been removed as well. There are no window openings on the south end of the main block. The main block features an exterior chimney on the north end, a tin roof and plain side gables. The rear ell features an exterior chimney that is crumbling and a porch that faces south. The decking of the ell porch is sagging. Lot #13: Style 2 with rear ell projecting from north end of the main block. The house is built on brick piers and has clapboard siding. The front porch has been removed, as well as all exterior doors and windows. There are no window openings on the east side of the main block. The main block features a crumbling interior chimney, a tin roof and plain side gables. The rear ell features an interior stove-pipe chimney and a porch that faces south. The decking of the ell porch is collapsing. An outhouse with clapboard siding and an existing door is located southeast of the ell. ---PAGE BREAK--- Historic District Designation Report: Glencoe Mill and Mill Village - - 6 Lot #14: Style 1 with rear ell projecting from north end of the main block. The house has a brick foundation, clapboard siding and a nearly intact front porch. Missing clapboards are presently being replaced. All windows and exterior doors have been removed. There is only one window opening on the south end, and is located on the first floor. The main block features a crumbling exterior chimney on the south end, brick nogging and side gables with returns. The roof has been repaired with carpentry and framing that matches the original, and the galvanized tin roof has been replaced. The rear ell has been severely damaged and will likely be completely removed and replaced. One of the most intact detached kitchens is located to the rear of the house and features a shed roof porch, a chimney on the south side, a tin roof, and board and batten siding. An outhouse with clapboard siding is located behind the detached kitchen. Lot #15: Style 1 with rear ell projecting from south end of the main block. The house has a brick foundation, clapboard siding and a front porch. All exterior doors are present, and the windows are a nine-over-six configuration. The main block features an exterior chimney on the south end, a tin roof, brick nogging and side gables with returns. The rear ell features an interior chimney and a porch that faces north. The property has several outbuildings, including a detached kitchen, a well house and an outhouse. The two-room detached kitchen located behind the house, features board and batten siding and a tin roof. The kitchen has been raised, and the piers have been rebuilt. The well house, located south of the house, features a front gable, clapboard siding and a tin roof. The outhouse is located behind the well house and has clapboard siding. Many repairs are being undertaken and the project has been approved by the SHPO for tax credits. Lot #16: Style 1 with rear ell projecting from south end of the main block. The house is built on brick piers and features clapboard siding, nine-over-six windows, and a nearly intact front porch. All exterior doors are present. The main block features an exterior chimney on the south end, a tin roof and side gables with returns. The rear ell features an interior chimney and an enclosed porch that faces north. A storage shed featuring a tin roof and clapboard siding is located south of the house. An outhouse also exists near the southwest corner of the lot. Note: the former village church was located between the houses on lots #16 and #17. The church was torn down in the 1970s and the property has been divided between those two lots. Lot #17: Style 1 with rear ell projecting from north end of the main block. The house is built on brick piers and features clapboard siding and a nearly intact front porch. The front door and ell’s porch door are present, but the back door on the main block has been removed. Nine-over-six windows have been removed and the openings have been covered with plastic. The main block features an exterior chimney on the north end, a tin roof, brick nogging, a center hall floor plan and side gables with returns. The ell features an interior chimney and a porch that faces south. A detached kitchen with exterior chimney on the north end is located to the rear of the ell and features board and batten siding. An outhouse is located at the rear of the property. A small stone and concrete bridge is located at the rear of the property, traversing a small intermittent creek. Lot #18: Style 1 with rear ell projecting from north end of the main block. The house is built on brick piers and features, clapboard siding, and an interior chimney. The front porch has been supported by temporary posts and the decking is collapsing. A front door is in place, but the rear door has been removed. The windows are a nine-over-six configuration, and most are still present. There are no window openings on the south end of the main block. The main block features a tin roof, brick nogging and plain side gables. The ell porch faces south and is nearly intact. Lot #19: Style 1 with a rear ell that has collapsed and been removed. The building had slipped off of its piers, but has been raised and leveled while the piers are being rebuilt. Doors, windows and front porch have been removed. There are no window openings ---PAGE BREAK--- Historic District Designation Report: Glencoe Mill and Mill Village - - 7 on the south end of the main block. The house features a crumbling exterior chimney on the north end, brick nogging, a tin roof and plain side gables. An outhouse is located in the southwest corner of the lot, and a well has been filled. Lot #20: Style 3 with rear ell projecting from north end of the main block. The house is built on brick piers and features clapboard siding. The front porch and all windows have been removed. Apart from the front door, all other exterior doors are present. Second story window openings are only on the sides of the house. The main block features an interior chimney, a half spiral staircase, a tin roof and plain side gables. The ell features an interior chimney and a nearly intact porch that faces south. Lot #21: Style 2 with rear ell projecting from north end of the main block. The house is built on brick piers and features clapboard siding, two front entrances and a nearly intact front porch. All doors and windows have been removed. The ell has suffered some roof and floor damage where it joins the main block. The main block features an interior chimney that has crumbled, a tin roof and plain side gables. The ell also features a porch that faces south and an interior stove-pipe chimney. Lot #22: Style 2 with rear ell projecting from north end of the main block. The house is built on brick piers and features clapboard siding and two front entrances. The front porch roof has been supported, but the decking has collapsed. Both front doors are present; others have been removed. All windows have also been removed. The main block features an interior central chimney, a tin roof and plain side gables. The ell features an interior chimney and a porch that faces south. Lot #23: Style 1 that fronts on Hodges Road with rear ell projecting from north end of the main block. The house is built on brick piers and features clapboard siding and a front porch that has collapsed. The front door is present, but others have been removed. All windows have also been removed. Both north and south ends of the house only have window openings on the first floor, and there is a pair of openings on the south end. The main block features a partially rebuilt exterior chimney on the north end, a tin roof and plain side gables. The ell is wider than any other in the village and features an interior central chimney and a south facing porch that is collapsing. Lot #24: Style 1 that fronts on Hodges Road with rear ell projecting from north end of the main block. The house is built on brick piers and features clapboard siding. The front porch and door are present, but the porch decking is collapsing. All other exterior doors and most nine-over-six windows have been removed. There are no window openings on the south end of the house. The main block features a partially rebuilt exterior chimney on the north end, a center hall floor plan, a tin roof and plain side gables. The ell features a crumbling exterior chimney on the east end and a south facing porch that is collapsing. Lot #25: House was demolished when a natural gas line was installed through the area in the early 1990s. The lot lines have been drawn so as to allow a new home to be built in the general area of the original home. Lot #26: Style 1 that fronts on Hodges Road with rear ell projecting from north end of the main block. The house is built on brick piers and features clapboard siding and a front porch. The porch decking, however, is collapsing. All exterior doors and most of the nine-over-six windows have been removed. There are no window openings on the south end of the main block. The main block features a partially rebuilt exterior chimney on the north end, a center hall floor plan, a tin roof and plain side gables. The ell features a partially rebuilt exterior chimney on the east end and a porch that faces south. The ell porch is also supported by temporary posts and the decking has been removed. Lot #27: Style 1 that fronts on Hodges Road with rear ell projecting from north end of ---PAGE BREAK--- Historic District Designation Report: Glencoe Mill and Mill Village - - 8 the main block. The house is built of brick piers and features clapboard siding and a front porch that has been supported by square posts. The porch decking, however, is collapsing. Front and rear entrance doors to the main block are present, but the ell’s porch door has been removed. Most nine-over-six windows are still present, and there are no window openings on the south end of the main block. The main block features a partially rebuilt exterior chimney on the north end, a tin roof and plain side gables. The ell features a partially rebuilt exterior chimney on the east end and a supported porch that faces south. Lot #28: Lot fronts on Hodges Road. House has been demolished. Chimneys remain at the north end of the building footprint and to the rear. Lot #29: Lot fronts on Hodges Road. House has been demolished. Lot #30: Lot fronts on Hodges Road. House has been demolished. Lot #31: Lot fronts on Hodges Road. House has been demolished. Lot #32: Style 2 that fronts on Hodges Road with rear ell projecting from north end of the main block. The house is built on brick piers and features clapboard siding. The front porch and all exterior doors have been removed. All windows have also been removed. There are no window openings on the west side of the main block. The main block features an interior central chimney, a tin roof and plain side gables. The ell features a crumbling interior chimney. The ell porch faces south, but has collapsed. An outhouse at the rear of the lot has completely collapsed. Lot #33: Lot fronts on Hodges Road. House has been demolished. Lot #34: Style 3 that fronts on Hodges Road with rear ell projecting from north end of main block. The house is built on brick piers and features clapboard siding. The front porch is collapsing. Although exterior doors are present, most nine-over-six windows have been removed. The main block has suffered severe structural damage. A portion of the west wall is gone. The front sill has collapsed. The interior floor has collapsed in many areas as well. The main block also features an interior chimney, a tin roof (part of the roof is missing), and plain side gables. Due to the severity of the damage, this house will likely need to be demolished. The ell features an interior central chimney and a south facing porch that has collapsed. An outhouse stands on the northwest corner of the lot. Lot #35: Style 1 that fronts on Hodges Road with rear ell projecting from north end of the main block. The house is built on brick piers and features clapboard siding and a nearly intact front porch. All exterior doors and nine-over-six windows are still present. There are no window openings on the south end of the main block. The main block features a partially rebuilt exterior chimney on the north end, a tin roof and plain side gables. The ell features a porch that faces south. A tin roof, front gable storage building is located southwest of the home. Another smaller storage shed is nearby. Lot #36: Style 2 that sits further back from Hodges Road with rear ell projecting from south end of the main block. The house is built on brick piers and features German siding and a nearly intact front porch. The front porch features Greek revival columns. The main block features a crumbling exterior chimney on the north end, a tin roof, exposed rafters, and plain gable sides. All exterior doors are present. Although some glass panes are missing, the main block has six-over-six windows, while the ell has nine- over-six windows. The ell features a supported porch that faces north, and the porch decking is collapsing. A collapsing outhouse is located north of the ell. Lot #37: Style 2 with rear ell projecting from south end of the main block that sits behind Lot #36 facing Hodges Road. The house is built on brick piers with German siding, and a nearly intact front porch. The front porch features Greek revival columns. ---PAGE BREAK--- Historic District Designation Report: Glencoe Mill and Mill Village - - 9 The front door exists, but the ell porch door has been removed. The main block features a crumbling exterior chimney at the north end, a tin roof, exposed rafters, and plain side gables. While the main block has six-over-six windows, the ell has four-over-four windows. The ell features a collapsing porch that faces north. An outhouse is located behind the house. Lot #38: Style 2 with rear ell projecting from south end of the main block that sits behind Lot #39 facing Hodges Road. The house is built on brick piers and features board and batten siding. The front porch has collapsed and most of the six-over-six windows have been removed. All exterior doors have also been removed. The main block features a crumbled exterior chimney on the north end, a tin roof and plain side gables. The ell features a crumbling interior chimney and a collapsing porch that faces north. Overall, the building has suffered moderate to severe structural damage, and some interior areas have been scavenged. Lot #39: Style 2 that front on Hodges Road with rear ell projecting from north end of the main block. The house is built on brick piers and features clapboard siding and a front porch that is collapsing. All exterior doors and all windows are missing. The main block features an interior stove pipe chimney, a pressed tin shed roof (the only one) and plain side gables. The ell features a supported porch that faces south, although the decking is collapsing. The house has suffered some structural damage where the ell joins the main block. A collapsed outhouse is located southwest of the house. Lot #40: Lot fronts on Hodges Road and Mill Race Road. House has been burned and demolished. Lot #41: Lot fronts on Mill Race Road. House has collapsed and been demolished. Lot #42: 1940’s bungalow facing Mill Race Road. Severe structural damage. Rear porch is supported, but front porch has collapsed. Several of the brick piers have collapsed and the sills have broken. This house will likely be used for parts to restore an identical bungalow located near the terminus of Mill Race Road. Lot #43: Style 2 with rear ell projecting from south end of the main block behind Lot #38 facing Hodges Street. The house is built on brick piers and features German siding, exposed rafters, and a supported front porch. The front door is still present, but other exterior doors have been removed. Most six-over-six windows have also been removed, although some sashes remain. The main block features an exterior chimney on the north end, a tin roof and plain side gables. The ell features an interior chimney and a porch that faces north. The ell porch has Greek revival columns (only one). The ell’s interior has been scavenged for its beaded board siding. Inventory – Remaining Portions of Tax Map Parcel # 5-23-28: All except the approximate 5 acres of the parcel north of Greenwood Road are being designated as part of the Glencoe Historic District. This area contains the following buildings: A. Store House and Office: (circa 1890) with cook’s quarters located at the northwestern juncture of River Road and Glencoe Street. The building has a corbelled cornice with dentils and a sloping shed roof. On the south side is the two story office area, 65 x 17 feet, divided into three rooms with closets and a front waiting area. The back room is presently wood paneled while the rest of the office displays the original wainscoting. The office has a projecting octagonal bay at the corner where the two roads meet. The south side of the building features an arched tripartite double hung window. The ceiling in the office is 12 feet high. The office—its equipment and furnishings—is almost intact. The center one-story portion of the red painted brick building housed the former 55 x 45 foot company store with a front porch and basement. The porch flooring has been changed from wood to concrete. The two entrances have an eight light transom and are flanked ---PAGE BREAK--- Historic District Designation Report: Glencoe Mill and Mill Village - - 10 by eight over eight double hung windows. The store’s ceiling is 15 feet high. The basement features Romanesque arches two bricks wide, approximately 8½ feet wide at the base and six feet high. Many records have been moved from the office to the Southern Historical Collection at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. A small brick room is attached on the north side of the store and once served as the quarters of the mill superintendent’s cook.3 This portion of the building features unpainted brick, a corbeled cornice, and arched entrance with paneled door and a twelve-over-twelve window. It has a hipped roof porch supported by chamfered columns and tongue and groove flooring. The rear of the cook’s quarters has a shed roof porch partially enclosed with weatherboard siding. To the north of the cook’s quarters is attached a shed roof structure of corrugated metal. B. 30,000 Gallon Water Tank: Added to the mill complex in 1905. C. Mill House: Style 3 house featuring a shed roof rear addition, south-facing front porch and central chimney. The design of the house is unique in that the front door is located in the left bay. The house has six-over-six windows, and the second floor features a stationary six-light window. A metal storage shed is located behind the house. D. Quonset Hut: (140 x 40 feet) erected opposite the mill building for cotton storage during World War II.4 The building is made of arched corrugated metal with double solid metal doors facing south flanked by pairs of four-over-two windows, and is constructed on a raised concrete platform. E. Warehouse This brick building (1880) is located east of Glencoe Street and north of River Road, opposite the northeastern segment of the mill building. It measures 48 x 24 feet and was originally Cotton Warehouse No. 1. It has a 12-foot ceiling and a front gable roof. A large overhead paneled door with lights is located on the south end which is not original to the structure. F. Lumber Shed: Building has been demolished. G. Heating Boiler House: Building has been demolished. Only remaining octagonal frame fire hydrant is nearby. H. Main Mill: The most significant structure on the Glencoe site is the three-story brick mill building (1880), a fine example of Victorian commercial architecture incorporating popular features of the Italianate style. The mill is 200 feet and 18 bays long and 50 feet, or three bays wide. It has quoined stucco corners (except on the south, or rear, side), a central tower, windows with heavy, arched stucco labels and accented keystones (again, not on the south), and a corbelled cornice with dentils. The mill’s sloping shed roof is parapeted along the east and west sides. The west side of the building displays more architectural ornamentation than the east because until 1904 the main approach to the mill was over a bridge at the west end of the mill site.5 The 45 foot high square central tower, one bay wide, rises several feet above the mill roofline on the north. It displays the same quoined stucco corners, heavy arched stucco labels with accented keystones, and corbeled cornice with dentils as the mill building. It has a flat roof, which like the mill’s and other flat roofs on the property, is built-up (of tar paper and gravel construction). All basic processes took place within the mill including spinning and spooling on the second floor, carding, drawing, and warping on the third floor, and weaving on box looms on the first floor. I. Main Mill Addition: (1945) A one-story and basement brick addition running the length of the mill building was attached on the north side in 1948. It is two bays (53 feet) wide. The windows and doors display heavy arched stucco labels with accented keystones consonant with the ornamentation of the original mill building. There is a parapet 3 Interview with Charles Murray, Jume 8, 1978. 4 Interview with Clarence R. Shepherd, June 8, 1978. 5 Bluestone, HAER Report, 4. ---PAGE BREAK--- Historic District Designation Report: Glencoe Mill and Mill Village - - 11 immediately above and extending several feet to each side of the main (north) doorway. The east and west ends of the addition have corbeled cornices and are parapeted. The roof is flat. J. Wheel House: Attached to the northwest of the original mill building is a one-story 42 x 52 foot wheel house with a tin roof. The 400-yard-long head race enters the wheelhouse from the west and the tail race flows out to the south to rejoin the Haw River. The building was rebuilt in 1910, with new masonry, wood, and cement replacing deteriorated wood.6 The wheelhouse contained a 48-inch cylinder Victor Gate turbine wheel, main gear fittings, a Lombard governor, main power shaft, and a with a 9-foot diameter. There was also a General Electric 2300-volt generator installed in the late 1930s. Parts of the turbine wheel and the generator have been removed and are located on the parking area north of the wheelhouse. K. Picker Room: West of the mill building is a one-story picker room (1880) where bales of cotton were opened. It is 60 x 33 feet in size with a twelve-foot ceiling. The windows are arched and the roof is sloping. L. Picker Room Addition: A two-story 45 x 64 foot brick warehouse on the west side of the picker room, was added in 1942 connecting the picker room to the east end of a one-story frame cotton warehouse. M. Warehouse This cotton warehouse has board and batten siding with a tin roof and is divided into three sections separated by brick fire walls. N. Machine Shop: (1880) located north of the Picker Room Addition - An auto shed at the rear (south) has been removed and the covered entrance at the east side is missing. The building is 60 x 40 feet. It has two arched windows on the west side, an arched window and a door on the east side, and one bricked over window on the south. The north facade includes the main entrance of the building with double paneled doors and two nine-over-six arched windows on the first floor and nine-over-six windows on the second floor. The roof is gabled and of tin. O. Waste House: Building has been demolished. P. Storage and Shipping Building: This 86 x 26 foot brick structure was added for sanforizing cloth in 1951 to the south side of the finish and napper building. This structure has eleven large windows each with 35 panes of glass. Q. Finishing and Napper Room: West of the Storage and Shipping Building is the finishing or napper room (1903). This building was designed by O. A. Robbins, Architects and Mill engineers from Charlotte. The building is 100 x 43 feet with an 18 foot ceiling and features arched windows which have been bricked. A two story stock room, 86 x 40 feet, was added between 1913 and 1918 at the south end of the finishing and napper room, forming an L which extended west toward the river.7 In 1939 a two-story folding and storage structure 132 x 43 feet was added to the east side of the finishing and napper room. R. Boiler and Engine Room: This small brick building joins the finish and napper room to the dye- house. S. Dye-house: This one story building (1880) adjoins the northeast side of the finishing and napper room. The dye house, 145 x 30 feet with a twelve-foot ceiling, has a cement floor in which several dye vats remain recessed. The gable roof has a parapet at the east end. Projected vents with gable roofs are found along the rest 6 Bluestone, HAER Report, 12. 7 Sanborn Insurance Map of Burlington, NC, May 1918, page 11. ---PAGE BREAK--- Historic District Designation Report: Glencoe Mill and Mill Village - - 12 of the roof ridge. As in most of the structures connected with the mill operation, the windows are arched. The entrance dye house also featured four-foot-high raised wood slat sidelights which are now boarded over. Some power equipment including some line shafts and pulleys survive in the dye house. The 18 x 37 foot one-story brick storage house south of the mill building is no longer standing. T. Dye-house Pump Building: This small brick building is overgrown and inaccessible. U. Water Tower V. Dam: A reinforced 250-foot concrete day rebuilt in the 1940s. W. 1940’s Bungalow: One story front gable bungalow built in the 1940s. Windows, doors and support posts for the porch or missing. X. Grist Mill Site: Portions of the stone foundation are all that remain of the original grist mill and saw mill that once stood on this site. However, the site is likely to have archaeological potential and is therefore deserving of preservation and/or archaeological investigation. Inventory – Other Tax Map Parcels: Parcel 5-23A-23: 1.41 acre vacant, wooded lot west of North Carolina Highway 62 adjacent to the north side of parcel 5-23A-24. Parcel 5-23A-24: 1.58acre vacant, wooded lot on the northwest corner of the intersection of North Carolina Highway 62 and State Route 1598 (River Road). Parcel 5-23A-25: 1.99 acre lot on the north side of State Route 1598 (River Road) adjacent to the main mill property (Parcel 5-23-28), of which a 60 by 230 foot portion adjacent to River Road will be dedicated. Parcel 5-23A-26: 1.06 acre vacant, wooded lot on the north side of State Route 1598 (River Road) adjacent to the main mill property (Parcel 5-23-28). Parcel 5-23A-31: 1.99 acre vacant, wooded lot west of North Carolina Highway 62 between the Haw River and State Route 1598 (River Road). NON-CONTRIBUTING LOTS AND STRUCTURES: In the preliminarily-subdivided residential portions of the district, there are presently eight lots that are void of any original structures. Many of these structures either burned or were torn down for the installation of a major natural gas line. If all of these lots are restored as planned to residential use, they would comprise 18 percent of mill house properties in the district. In the industrial portions of the district, several structures were added in more recent times. However, all of these more recent structures are connected with the function of the mill. These structures include the Quonset Hut (1940’s), the Main Mill Addition (1945), the Picker Room Addition (1942), the Storage and Shipping Building (1951). It is unclear at this time how the industrial portions of the original property will be subdivided. Regardless of future subdivision plans, the main mill and the majority of its ---PAGE BREAK--- Historic District Designation Report: Glencoe Mill and Mill Village - - 13 original accessory structures remain, adding to the historical integrity of Glencoe. HISTORICAL DISCUSSION (Update, Section 9, Glencoe Mill Village Local Historic Landmark Designation Report, 1997) The original Glencoe cotton mill and its associated worker tenement community, was built on a 95-acre site along the Haw River in Alamance County between 1880 and 1882.8 It remains one of the most undisturbed mill complexes in North Carolina, providing a comprehensive picture of social and commercial organizations of a late-nineteenth century water-powered Southern cotton mill complex. Established by James H. and William E. Holt, sons of North Carolina cotton mill pioneer Edwin M. Holt, Glencoe was part of a chain of mills operated by the Holts primarily in Alamance County. It produced napped cotton cloth, flannels and woven plaids and at its height supported up to 500 people,9 approximately half of whom resided in mill housing on the site. Glencoe was one of the 17 cotton mills which, by 1890, made Alamance County the leading cotton manufacturing center in the state in terms of cotton looms and spindles.10 This was at a time when Southern states particularly the Carolinas and Georgia, were turning to the cotton mill as a means of economic and social salvation.11 At a time when there were only four cotton factories in North Carolina, Edwin Holt took advantage of readily available raw cotton and established the first cotton mill in Alamance County on Great Alamance Creek in 1837.12 Describing Holt’s motivation, one biographer wrote: To him it seemed a geographic and economic inconsistency and perversity that this staple should be carried thousands of miles from the place of its growth to be made into cloth, much of which was to be brought back and used to clothe the very people who had produced it….13 Holt later learned from an itinerant Frenchman and became the first power loom manufacturer of plaid and colored cotton fabrics in the South.14 His “Alamance Plaids” and “Alamance Ginghams” achieved wide distribution and popularity. He and his five sons and 15 grandsons soon built a chain of cotton mills in Alamance County and elsewhere, prompting one turn-of-the-century writer to exclaim, “What the Flemish have been to England, what the Venetians have been to southern Europe, that are the Holts to Alamance and to North Carolina.”15 The Haw River, with a drainage area of 1675 square miles and an average fall of six feet per mile, was ideally suited to water-powered technology, a characteristic which made it one of the principal manufacturing streams in North Carolina in the late nineteenth century.16 After building Carolina Mill along the Haw in 1869, E. M. Holt and Sons began purchasing land at another site upriver in 1878. Located where a grist and saw mill stood, Glencoe Mill (named after the site in Scotland of a seventeenth century massacre involving the MacDonald clan) was established primarily by two of the elder Holt’s sons, James and William, between 1880 and 1882.17 8 Bluestone, HAER Report, 1. 9 Ibid., 13. 10 Whitaker, Centennial History of Alamance County, 164. 11 Cash, The Mind of the South, 180-181. 12 Whitaker, Centennial History of Alamance County, 97. 13 Holt, “Edwin M. Holt,” Volume VII of the Biographical History of North Carolina, 182. 14 Holt, “Edwin M. Holt,” Volume VII of the Biographical History of North Carolina, 184. 15 Stockard, The History of Alamance, 123. 16 Beecher, Science and Change in Alamance County Life, 50. 17 Bluestone, HAER Report, 1. ---PAGE BREAK--- Historic District Designation Report: Glencoe Mill and Mill Village - - 14 Reliance on water power had much to do with the development of the Glencoe cotton mill. Since the power available from the Haw was insufficient to support a group of mills at any one site, mills were built isolated from one another. Besides, property taxes were significantly less in outlying rural districts. This isolation, coupled with a poor transportation system, forced the mill owners to build housing, albeit cheaply and quickly constructed, to support their workers.18 Provision of certain necessities in the form of a retail store, church, school, and athletic teams were also included in establishing Glencoe cotton mill. Glencoe began operation with 186 looms and 3120 spindles.19 Sanborn Insurance maps of the mill building indicate that the first floor housed the weaving machinery, the second floor was devoted to spooling and spinning cotton, and the third was used for carding the cotton and as a cloth room. Finishing operations were also carried out on the third floor until 1903, at which time the finishing and napper room was completed north of the mill building. In 1899, the mill and its associated mill village were sold for $112,000 to “Glencoe Mills,” a corporation run by Robert Holt.20 Using locally grown cotton until about 1900, Glencoe produced plaid, checked, and striped cotton cloth. In the early 1900’s the mill equipment was extensively upgraded, allowing for napping and the production of cotton outings for items like nightgowns and blankets. In 1900 there were 4000 spindles; in 1907, there were 5000. The number of looms stayed about the same throughout Glencoe’s 72 years of operation, rising to 206 in 1927 and remaining at that level. The production of cotton and shirting flannels was added in 1915.21 From the 1890s through at least the 1930s Glencoe employed between 110 and 150 workers.22 Few, if any, were black, except Robert Holt’s personal cook.23 Although strikes hit several mills in the nearby town of Haw River, Glencoe apparently escaped any labor unrest. The mill was a signator of a 1900 mill owners’ resolution involving 41 North Carolina cotton mills which pledged the signees not to use, and to oppose, union labor. In 1889 the average Glencoe mill hand worked six 11-hour days, or 66 hours per week. Men earned from one to two dollars per day; women earned from 50 cents to a dollar; children earned 40 cents per day.24 In 1905 the average worker worked six 10.5 hour days, or 63 hours per week. Men earned from 75 cents to $2.75 per day; women earned between 60 cents and one dollar; children still earned 40 cents per day.25 By 1924 Glencoe employees were working 55-hour weeks, with men earning between $2.10 and $6.60 per day and women between $2.10 and $2.38.26 Robert Holt died in July 1923 and his brother-in-law, Walter G. Green, took over Glencoe Mills. Green ran the mill with his son, Holt Green, who, unlike his father, had some training in mill operations.27 The late 1930’s saw considerable change at Glencoe. It was at that time that the shafting and textile machinery were converted to electric drive, that the water power was adapted to generate the electricity which powered the electric motors driving the line shafts,28 and that Glencoe first purchased its electricity from an outside utility, Duke Power.29 (Glencoe did utilize power from the Holt’s Latonia Power Plant 18 Hughes, The Development of the Textile Industry in Alamance County, 152. 19 Bluestone, HAER Report, 4. 20 Alamance County Corporation book, Office of the Register of Deeds, Graham Corporation Book 21, page 155. 21 Bluestone, HAER Report, 13. 22 Ibid., 12. 23 Interview with Charles Murray, June 8, 1978. 24 Bluestone, HAER Report, 5. 25 Bluestone, HAER Report, 12. 26 Ibid., 13. 27 Interview with Charles Murray, June 8, 1978. 28 Bluestone, HAER Report, 14. 29 Bluestone, HAER Report, 15. ---PAGE BREAK--- Historic District Designation Report: Glencoe Mill and Mill Village - - 15 1.5 miles upriver, thus making it one of the first Alamance County cotton mills to draw electric power from a generating plant outside the mill as early as 1910.30 Holt Green served in the Navy in World War II and was lost in action in Europe. He was replaced at Glencoe by his brother, Walter G. Green, Jr., a lawyer, who had been living in Washington, DC. Upon Walter’s death in 1987, the property’s ownership was split and given to Mr. Myron Rhyne, the mill’s business manager; Mr. John Jamison, a step-son; and Mr. Walter G. Green, III. Upon reaching purchase agreements with the latter two property owners and receiving a donation from the first, Preservation North Carolina took sole ownership in 1997 and is planning for the property’s restoration. Throughout its history Glencoe Mills remained a modest, isolated operation. This worked especially well during the era of water power and continued to allow for the mill’s success as long as it was able to compete with other mills’ prices. In the later 1940s and early 1950s Glencoe increased the number of its spindles to 5760; rebuilt the dam along the Haw River at a cost of $100,000;31 added the one-story and basement addition to the mill at a cost of approximately $350,000.32 But while it was making these large capital expenditures Glencoe failed to modernize its equipment, either to keep up with the increasingly efficient looms being used by competitors or to switch to printed plaids when the woven plaid market unraveled. During that same period large textile corporations were purchasing many small cotton mills, thereby providing inexpensive and well-organized competition for independent mills like Glencoe,33 which was finally forced to close in 1954. The mill buildings remained full of equipment but unused until 1961, when the Glencoe Carpet Mills began leasing the mill buildings. At that time the old mill equipment was sold for scrap metal.34 The main mill building is still in use today as a carpet outlet. Other mill complex buildings are either vacant or being used for storage. STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE (Statement, Section 8, Glencoe Historic District National Register Nomination Form, 1979) The original Glencoe Mill, consisting of a cotton mill and associated worker tenement community, was built on a 95-acre site along the Haw River in Alamance County between 1880 and 1882. It remains one of the best preserved mill villages in North Carolina, providing a comprehensive picture of the social and commercial organization of a late-nineteenth century water-powered Southern cotton mill village. BOUNDARY JUSTIFICATION Glencoe mill village, a worker tenement community and some of its related structures, was spread over 34.5 acres of a 95-acre parcel near the Haw River in Alamance County between 1880 and 1882. It remains one of the best preserved mill villages in North Carolina, providing a comprehensive picture of the social and commercial organization of a late-nineteenth century Southern cotton mill and mill village. The boundary of the historic district will follow the existing property lines for the main 95-acre parcel 23-28) except areas along the parcel’s northwest and southeast edges. In the northwest portion of the main parcel, the boundary will stop at the south right-of-way line for Greenwood Road and follow that right-of-way line to the east until it rejoins the old property line. As a result of this alteration, approximately 5 acres north of Greenwood Road will not be 30 Ibid. 31 Interview with Tom Hanford, May 7, 1996. 32 Interview with Clarence R. Shepherd, June 8, 1978. 33 Bluestone, HAER Report, 16. 34 Interview with Clarence R. Shepherd, June 8, 1978. ---PAGE BREAK--- Historic District Designation Report: Glencoe Mill and Mill Village - - 16 included in the historic district. This area is far removed from the core of the village and the physical barrier that Greenwood Road represents greatly diminishes the contribution of that 5 acres to the character and integrity of the district. In the southeast portion of the main parcel the boundary will be extended to encompass the following parcels: 5-23A-23, 5-23A-24, 5-23A-26 and 5-23A-31, as well as a portion of parcel 5-23A-25. Three of these five parcels are under the same ownership as the main parcel, and the first four have historically been undeveloped. The fifth is largely undeveloped as well, but is also the site of servant’s quarters for a nearby home. By including these parcels in the local historic district, the preservation of the open space around the main entrance to the Glencoe mill property is ensured; thereby protecting the historic integrity and appearance of the area. ---PAGE BREAK--- Historic District Designation Report: Glencoe Mill and Mill Village - - 17