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Misc. Non-Excavated
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ROSWELL MILL! Georgia 1864 Confederate Interim Deposit Paper For $100 in Bonds
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This is an interesting piece of Confederate financial history. This is what is known as a Confederate Interim Deposit Receipt. These papers were given to prove that a financial transaction had happened and that there is a promise to do something in the future. This one was approved by the Confederate Government on February 17th 1864 and was stating that there would be Confederate savings bonds issued when available. The piece is on pre-printed paper that measures 7-1/2 inches by 4-1/8th inches in overall size. The blanks have been filled in using fine brown ink. It is dated from the Atlanta, Georgia office on March 31st 1864. This pattern is listed as GA-20 in the Confederate Treasury Certificate book by Tremmel, Fricke and Davis. This is a scarce version and in the book they state that approximately 7,400 examples of the Tremmel GA-20 were issued. It is stating that the buyer, "B. King Prest. Roswell Mills" had purchased $100 in Bonds. This was given to Roswell King who owned Roswell Mills in Roswell, Georgia. Roswell Mill refers to a cluster of mills located in Fulton County near Vickery Creek in Roswell, Georgia. The mills were best known for producing finished textiles from raw materials grown on nearby plantations, and the group was "the largest cotton mill in north Georgia" at its height. The mill grew steadily, at one point producing wool and flour, in addition to cotton textiles. This diversification progressed through several phases of ownership well into the 20th century, and the mill continued producing textiles until its eventual shutdown of operations in 1975. The first mill was founded by Roswell King, a wealthy Connecticut businessman who had previously settled in Darien, Georgia, a small town on the state's Atlantic coast. He spent time as a construction manager, local militia officer (his father, Timothy King, was an American Revolutionary War veteran), and as a Representative in the Georgia State Legislature. He had also worked as the supervisor of Major Pierce Butler's two large plantations, in which office King was noted for his meticulous attention to detail in the day-to-day operations of the plantations. It was this strict recordkeeping that made King especially suited for factory management. Construction of the original mill started in 1836. Roswell King owned slaves, many of whom had built his home and the original mill; however, the number of slaves his family owned decreased once the mill was operating. Barrington King and Ralph King, two of Roswell's sons, moved to the area to help run the fledgling business. Five families from the Atlantic City of Darien would later move to Roswell, which was incorporated into Fulton County in 1854, eighteen years after the mill's first opening. An outbreak of the mumps and measles in 1847-8 left "over half the workers stricken and three slaves dead," likely due to the fact that the workers were living in close quarters and dark, cramped conditions. The Roswell Mills are best known for their role in producing supplies for the Confederacy during the Civil War. They made "Roswell Gray" fabric to be sewed into Confederate military uniforms. Because it was of great importance to the South's military supply chain, General Gerrard, a Union official working under the purview of General Sherman, seized the mill on July 5, 1864. Confederate forces burned down the bridge that spanned Vickery Creek before he could get to it. Two days after the taking of the mill, General William T. Sherman remarked, "I have ordered General Gerrard to arrest for treason all owners and employees, foreign and native, and send them under guard to Marietta, whence I will send them North...The women can find employment in Indiana." The reference to the foreigners were made because the mill owners, apparently in a ploy to safeguard the mills, planted a French flag on the mills and put a French millhand in charge. What a great little piece of history!
Item #: C9079 Price: $175.00 USD (Sale Pending)
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