floated to the top

Blair-Amiss House gets a new coat of paint

Beginning in 1886, the woolen mill floated to the top of the same wave of prosperity. By 1889 the deficit disappeared and earnings rose constantly until the 1893 panic. The lowly $8,000 profit of 1887 was tripled in 1890, and two years later it just missed being five times as great. With the 1893 crash, profits dropped rapidly, but they still reached $19,000. Recovery was rapid, so that from 1896 to 1909, except for a slight decrease in 1900, net earnings hovered between $30,000 and $40,000. After a sudden upturn in 1910, the company moved into the war years with annual profits of over $55,000. --Harry Poindexter