1709 Woolen Mills Road

In 1920 this was the home of Emma Baltimore Amiss and her husband, mason Joe Amiss. Also in their house, 6 children. Twenty-one year old Lois was a weaver at the mill, nineteen year old Lillian was a spooler, seventeen year old Edna worked in a ten cent store. Frances (15), Emma (11) and Edward (9) were presumably enrolled in Woolen Mills School, 75 yards west on Woolen Mills Road.

capable hands

Joe and Emma Amiss house, 1709 Woolen Mills Road

While the board developed the practice of meeting quarterly and on special calls (a feature which resulted in limiting effective membership to persons residing near the community), close supervision became lodged in the hands of the president, secretary-treasurer, and the factory superintendent. After 1875 nearly every phase of the business was placed directly in the capable hands of Marchant who served from that date until his death in 1910 as president and general superintendent. To assure the board a closer touch with daily problems, however, an Executive Committee of three directors was created in 1879 to advise the president. And two years later the unwieldy size of the directory was reduced to seven.--Harry Poindexter