Moving the Cotton Gin

[Wayne]

Got my issue of The plow magazine from the Fiber Center at Lubbock yesterday. I am excited to see they are finally moving the old 1874-75 cotton gin from the Ranch Heritage Center to it's new home inside a new building at the Fiber Center. Will be making a trip to Lubbock when it's in place. I used to live about 10 miles from where the gin set in Smith County.

Cotton Gin 001.jpg

[RPinAZ]

It would definitely be interesting to see. I spent much of my elementary school years in Millington TN. There was a big (well big to little eyes) cotton gin in the middle of town that we got to go to for a school field trip. This was a working mill at the time and I remember being fascinated by all the machinery and seeing all the oil soaked wood structure (oil slung by the machinery) with cotton fluff stuck to it and everywhere. The coolest thing to me was the press where they pressed loose cotton into 500 pound bales. A couple of months after our visit, the cotton gin burnt down. We lived 3 or 4 miles away and I remember that you could see the flames from our front yard, as well as a huge column of black smoke. In retrospect, that place was a tinderbox. I think it took less than an hour to burn completely to the ground. I'm sure that codes back when it was built were a little more lax than they are now.

-RP

[Windcatcher530 Dan]

That is really cool Wayne, keep us posted!!

[Wayne]

Good news I got permission to post the story about the gin. You mentioned the press, it was different in the way it works. Hope you enjoy reading about it.

Goodman Gin 1 001.jpg

Goodman gin 2 001.jpg

[Wayne]

I saw a gin in Georgia just like this one or the first time I saw it in Lubbock I wouldn't have known what it was. At that time it was just an old barn looking structure setting behind a chain link fence. My sister and I were visiting Lubbock and she said look at that old barn. I was able to say no that's not a barn that's a cotton gin.

[RPinAZ]

Great read Wayne, thanks for posting.

-RP